Merry Christmas?
Yes, you heard me right. After our Octave and The Holy Family, Theotokos and Epiphany and all the falalalas, this weekend we take in our final breath of Christmas with the Baptism of The Lord. It’s where all this has been leading us. As much as we may think it fun playing in the Manger, it was time to escape from the Herod’s of life to be protected in order for this return to the river Jordan, to make the waters holy for us to bathe in the waters of salvation. Yes this is our call to embrace and unwrap the final gift of Christmas, the renewal of who The Christ Child calls us to be from our Baptism as priest prophet and king. So, this weekend I am offering you a better understanding of how we can live this out as a parish family beyond our 70th year. After all you have done to help me repair and renew our parish over these past ten years, now I need to admit that it is time for us to provide for what our parish truly needs to continue to grow in the mission of Jesus Christ through the Memorare Center. Thank you for discerning how you can best support the efforts that are necessary in order to raise the funds that will allow us to begin building this new facility. Pray with Our Lady (Mary help of Christians) through the Memorare prayer that all this may be solely because of The Father’s desire and not our own.
Also, I will be helping to lead a young couples retreat with The Connections from our parish on February 16-17 in Berlin, Ohio. We have a few openings left. The only cost is for the hotel room. If you would like more information, please call the rectory or send an email to Maggie or Art Klatt at maggieklatt@gmail.com.
Peace in Emmanuel, Fr. Bline
