December 4th

Dear Friends,
Thanks to all who took tags from our Giving Trees to purchase gifts for families served by Casa Catalina, the PORT Ministries and the Veterans at Jesse Brown Veteran’s Hospital. Please remember to return them, unwrapped and with the tag attached, no later than December 11th. You can return them to church, or during office hours at the Parish office at Nativity or the Rectory office at St. Gabriel. 

To help support parishioners in preparation for the celebration of the Incarnation of Christ (His Nativity), our churches will be open on two evenings for private prayer and meditation, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and confession (for those who choose to go). Our first evening is this week at St. Gabriel, on Tuesday, from 6:30 – 8pm. The second will be at Nativity of Our Lord on the 19th from 6:30 – 8pm. Consider simply dropping in for ten or twenty minutes to put aside the busy-ness and stress of this season in order to rest for a time with the Lord and reflect upon your relationship with Him. 

This Thursday, December 8th, is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, the patronal feast of our nation and a Holy Day of Obligation for Catholics. Mass will be at St. Gabriel at 8:05am, Nativity of Our Lord at 10am (for the school, but all are welcome) and 7pm. On Monday, December 12th, we will have a special Mass at 7pm at St. Gabriel for the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, featuring some very special mariachi music.
 
Finally, our pilot ALPHA has been a success and concluded this past Wednesday. This series of evenings brought together parishioners who gathered for a meal together, followed by a thought-
provoking video and a stimulating discussion about issues of faith. My thanks to participants who took part in this “dry run” evangelization effort, and to the members of our Evangelization Committee: Deacon Rob Morris, Lori Serpico, Jean Johnson, Anthony Dugo, Angelica Hernandez and Sharon Cordin. We will now work on preparing for “Season 1” ALPHA, which will start up early next year.

May your week reflect the encounter with Christ
we experienced at Mass today!