From the Pastor's Desk: December 22, 2019

From the Pastor’s Desk:                                                                                                     
December 22, 2019
 
     With the celebration of the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we are just a few days away from Christmas. This brings us to reflect upon two times of transition: First, the end of Advent- the time of preparation for the birth of Jesus, and the Second, the beginning of the season of Christmas. The 12 days of Christmas marks the time between the birth of Christ on December 25 ^th and continues through January 6 ^th- the Feast of the Epiphany. During this time, the Church celebrates many significant feast days that help us to go deeper into the celebration of Our Lord ’s Nativity and our understanding of His coming as one of us for our salvation. To make this Christmas the best ever, let us be opened to enter into its meaning and to push away the temptation to end the Christmas celebration a day or two after Christmas. I suggest that in addition to daily prayer and reading of the scriptures, we may listen and learn from one of the all-time favorite Christmas Carols, “The Twelve Days of Christmas.” Written in England in the 16 ^th Century during the Catholic persecution, the song was meant to serve as Catechism to teach children the fundamentals of the Catholic Faith. The song was easy to memorize and unassuming in its context. So what exactly do the words in the song mean that today we hear all the time?
 
     My True Love– God the Father; Me– Every baptized person; The Partridge– Jesus; The Pear Tree– The Cross of Christ; Two Turtle Doves– The Old and New Testaments; Three French Hens– The Theological Virtues (Faith, Hope, and Charity); the Blessed Trinity; and the gifts of the Three Wise Men (Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh); Four Calling Birds– The Four Gospels and Evangelists of the New Testament (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) and the four Major Prophets of the Old Testament (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel); Five Golden Rings– The first five books of the Old Testament (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy) and God’s eternal nature, love, and faithfulness; Six Geese A-Laying– The six days of creation; Seven Swans A-Swimming– The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit; the seven sacraments; the seven Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy; the Seven deadly sins; and the seventh day of creation when God rested; Eight Maids A-Milking– The Eight Beatitudes; Nine Ladies Dancing– The nine Choirs of Angels; Ten Lords A-Leaping– The Ten Commandments; Eleven Pipers Piping– The eleven faithful Apostles (Peter, James, John, Andrew, Phillip, Jude Thaddeus, Thomas, Matthew, James, Bartholomew, and Simon); Twelve Drummers Drumming– The twelve points of belief in the Apostles Creed; the twelve original apostles (see eleven but add Judas, the traitor); Twelve Minor Prophets of the Old Testament Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi); the Twelve Tribes of Israel; and the Twelve Fruits of the Holy Spirit.
 
     This Christmas, when you hear the song The Twelve Days of Christmas playing, you can think of the marvelous gift of Jesus’ birth and the many blessings He showers on us every day!  Remember, Christ comes to us to meet us where we are in life in the form of a baby with divine love, peace and joy. Where will you find Him this Christmas?  (Excerpts from Mycatholic kids.com)
 
     May I take this opportunity on behalf of Fr. Xaviour, Deacons Bob and Steve, and the entire parish staff to wish you all a very happy and blessed Christmas! It is our prayer that you and your loved ones will truly experience the joy of Jesus born in your hearts and in your homes this Christmas season!
 
Merry Christmas!  With prayers, Fr. Andy