Dear Folks,

Every Christmas the last thing that stood between me and opening presents would be a poem read by my mother. My Dad has taken over this reading now. But I share it with you and wish you blessings beyond your imagination.

And when we give each other Christmas gifts in His name, let us remember that He has given us the sun and the moon and the stars, and the earth with its forests and mountains and oceans–and all that lives and moves upon them. He has given us all green things and everything that blossoms and bears fruit and all that we quarrel about and all that we have misused–and to save us from our foolishness, from all our sins, He came down to earth and gave us Himself.

—Sigrid Undset

As a pastor, I have also come to appreciate even more how much work goes into everything we celebrate. To make our Christmas celebrations beautiful, St. Mary’s army of elves, reindeer, volunteers, and KofC have been decorating, singing, planning, training, cleaning, trying to keep the parking lot moving, and much much more. Just as children have no idea how hard parents work to make Christmas magical, so too the average parishioner is unaware of the work behind the scenes. Please say a prayer of thanksgiving for all the elves, knights, and volunteers!

Happy Birthday Jesus!

Merry, Merry Christmas!

pax,

Father John Mosimann