Let’s start out the year with your good news, your good hopes for this new year of salvation.
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“This blog is like a fusion of the Baroque ‘salon’ with its well-tuned harpsichord around which polite society gathered for entertainment and edification and, on the other hand, a Wild West “saloon” with its out-of-tune piano and swinging doors, where everyone has a gun and something to say. Nevertheless, we try to point our discussions back to what it is to be Catholic in this increasingly difficult age, to love God, and how to get to heaven.” – Fr. Z
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Good news? All sorts of things to be thankful for at the end of the year – especially having cleared enough of the to-do list & things from my desk at work to be able to actually use some of the vacation time I accrued this year and go visit family.
– My Mom’s health is mostly good after an eventful (to put it mildly) year
– Visited one of my older cousins (97) who is in declining health and under hospice care, but still pretty much “with it” and a towering example of grace, faith, and good spirit.
– Next Gen, part I: visited one of my wife’s cousins and several of her adult children and new daughter-in-law and got to meet the two-year-old grandson whom we had missed connecting with on previous visits. Fun kid, has a taste for opera.
– Next Gen, part II: visited my wife’s niece, saw new baby boy (3 weeks old). Got to babysit and give Mama three (!) hours out with her girlfriends to get nails done and converse about something other that formula, diapers, and the usefulness of A&D ointment.
– Next Gen, part III: visited another cousin for New Year’s, got to meet the five-month grandson. Strong kid, happy boy.
Feliz Ano Nuevo, Padre Juan!
I spent yesterday at the Noon Mass of my parish, which is prayed in Spanish for our Hispanic community. The Mass intention was for my dear Mexican Goddaughter, eight year-old Flor. She was thrilled that Padre Reed and everyone else in the church gathered together at Mass on the Fiesta of the Holy Mother of God, and that her name was mentioned in the Eucharistic Prayer. So was I! It was a beautiful Mass, and Flor, her Godfather and I were very honored to bring forward the Offertory gifts. I think she will never forget this day, and I pray that she will always love Jesus and his beautiful Mother, Maria.
My Flor and her cousin, who was the altar server at Mass, have both been subjected to hateful comments and bullying by the children at school (Catholic schools, sadly) and adults because of their Mexican heritage. I pray and hope that the hatefulness and bullying stops, and is replaced with Christian kindness and friendship. Politics may be one thing, but people are individuals with different stories. Flor is an orphan who is being raised by her aunt. I pray that people remember that when we meet God when we die, He will not be checking our passports. He will be checking our souls.
I also pray for forgiveness for all I have offended by my words and actions, and I ask God to give me the gift of mercy toward those who have offended me. And to help me not to judge people unkindly and unfairly.
I wish you, Fr. Z, and your blog parishioners the very best and most holy of New Years, today and for the rest of 2017!
Chiara, what a beautiful post!
I am glad to start over at a new year. I went to confession and Mass and am on number two of the five first Saturdays next weekend, which I want to do forever from now on. I am still able to work and help people. I have said goodbye to the old parish, what do I have in common with people who are so self-absorbed? They are like the people Chiara mentions, always ready to tell people to get out of their holier than thou country club.
The priest at my new parish is standoffish, and that’s a good thing now.
Happy and prosperous New Year to all.
One of my brothers is expecting his first child any day! My niece will make her first holy communion this year around Easter. And I’m going on a discernment retreat with the Dominicans.
Signed up for a pilgrimage to the Holy Land which will place me in Bethlehem on the anniversary of my Confirmation. A friend asked if I’d checked out the tour company and whether it’s reputable. Should’ve told her that the company consists of a guy with a cellphone but instead identified the local priest chaplain and the office he works in. There were no further questions.
I’m finally sorting through a storage unit with mostly stuff from mom’s house in it. I have some difficult decisions to make and will set aside some things for a friends goddaughter who is moving from the dorm to an apartment this summer.
Oh, and my brother has given me something of mom’s that our sister had – he inherited when she died but didn’t care about the pottery lamps mom made in college. He doesn’t seem to care about his first grader art so I’m the proud owner of a cross-eyed construction paper image of Rudolph which I plan to frame.
Excellent attendance at our 12 midday tlm yesterday, at least 60 souls, a lot of new faces too and our young altar boy was thurifer for the first time.
Nan, actually, cross eyed Rudolph sounds lovely. Heirloom!
15 men from my class at St. John Vianney in St. Paul will be studying in Rome for this semester. Fr. Andy McAlpin and one of our NAC deacons were at our home parish briefly, and I was able to serve Mass for them recently. My little sister is receiving her first communion this spring.
JDBenedictH, are you from Excelsior? How fun to go to Rome if you’re one of the 15! It’s always nice to see seminarians back at their parish or wherever they serve Mass; for awhile it seemed that everywhere I went, a seminarian from my old parish was there, serving Mass.
Congratulations to little sister.
Let’s see – I *FINALLY* have my parish website under control.
I have been employed for a steady 11 months after 5 years of unemployment.
I have a new car ( the old one died)
I am SLOWLY paying off my school loan debt.
Tolkien’s 125th Natal Anniversary today! Not good news peculiar to me, but a sort of universal earnest pleasantry – to which may be added the Tolkien Society (UK) suggestion (for those parts of the world where it s still possible) of “raising a glass at 9pm your local time.
The toast is simply:
The Professor!
All you need to do is stand, raise a glass of your choice of drink (not necessarily alcoholic), and say the words ‘The Professor’ before taking a sip (or swig, if that’s more appropriate for your drink). Sit and enjoy the rest of your drink.”
I was recently accepted into two of my dream colleges, both reputable Catholic institutions, with generous merit scholarships. It is looking like I will be able to continue my streak of Catholic-only education.
Received intentions for the Luminous mysteries on the feastday of St John Paul II. for future bishops and popes.( see Reparatrix.org )