Happy Advent and Liturgical New Year. It is time to turn our attention to another year of grace and to remember that because God has not sent his Son Jesus for the second time, we will once again reflect on the events of Jesus and dedicate ourselves to renewing our faith and preparing for the celebration of the coming feasts of Christmas, the celebration of the Holy Family, and Epiphany Sunday. This month, we also remember Mary three times, at the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, the feast of our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12, and the feast of Mary the Mother of God on January 1. We honor Mary in all her roles and titles throughout the year, but for us, it is important to remember that Mary was also a disciple among disciples and apostles. She is so important, but humbly followed her son to give us all an example of what humility and discipleship look like.
THANK YOU to all of you! Thank you for being patient and for listening to the communications about the Grateful Discipleship Program our parish has engaged in for the past three weeks.
God has given each of us special abilities and gifts to honor God and serve others. Jesus reminds us that we should do our best with the talents God has given us. Each of us must decide if we are going to use our gifts for God, and how we are going to do that.
Whenever I am asked about my time here, I think about the beginning of Catholic life in Salem. It was officially begun in 1826, and the building we are in was built in 1859 using part of the torn-down wooden church initially built for worship in 1826. Eventually, St. James (1891, rebuilt 1898) and all the other churches were built to accommodate the growing faith in this area. We go back a long way and there have been times when I am sure that pastors prepared things and invested in building and buying land with an eye for the future. It is humbling to think that we are that future they had in mind.
We are updating our records especially what is required for volunteers at any parish in the Archdiocese of Boston. All volunteers must complete an annual CORI and attend a Protecting God’s Children Training (Virtus) at least once.
We continue to be a welcoming parish to our guests and visitors and take a look at what small changes you can make to be more welcoming to young families.
In an urgent appeal, Cardinal Sean is asking SVdP to help collect donated winter coats, boots, socks, and other clothing items for families arriving in Massachusetts from warmer climates. The Cardinal has described this influx of immigrants as a major humanitarian and social crisis within the Archdiocese.