Weekly Letter: Jan. 7, 2024 Bulletin

Dear friends in Christ,

    This weekend we celebrate the Solemnity of the Epiphany. Just as the wise men from the East long ago journeyed to see the newborn child Jesus, we too are called to do Him homage as well. Where do we see God manifested in our world today? How do others see Christ manifested in us? Let us pray that we will see Him in all people and all places in this coming year.

    Christians first celebrated the Epiphany (or “the manifestation”) in northern Africa sometime during the 3rd century. This means our Church first celebrated the “Day of the Three Kings” even before we observed Christmas itself. In many parts of the world, Epiphany is celebrated on Jan. 6, traditionally following the 12th night of Christmas on Jan. 5, but in the United States, it now is celebrated on the first Sunday after Jan. 1, regardless of the day. The timing is just about perfect for us this year, given the way the calendar falls. The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, normally celebrated on a Sunday, this year will be on Monday, Jan. 9 due to Christmas Day having fallen on a Sunday. That will conclude our liturgical season of Christmas, and when you return for Mass next Sunday we’ll be back in Ordinary Time.

     This weekend we’ll also kick-off the year with our annual Stewardship Sunday wherein we might renew our commitment to serve the Lord joyfully as good stewards of God’s many gifts. We have much to look forward to as we embark on 2024. May the Lord direct our hearts in the way of Giving, Praying and Serving – the best kind of GPS there is. We’ll have volunteers from our Welcoming Committee and Stewardship Council available after Mass to assist you in learning how you can grow your faith this year and to help you find a ministry in need of your talent and time. When we give of ourselves – no matter the amount – through our time, talent, and treasure, it makes a discernible difference in helping us live out our mission as intentional disciples.

     The 2024 discernment for new members of our Parish Pastoral Council (PPC) will take place on Thursday, Feb. 1 at 6:30 p.m. The PPC is an advisory board to me as pastor of the parish and is one of the chief ways that the parishioners participate in the life and mission of the Church. We have an excellent PPC at the moment and I have benefited greatly from their collective wisdom the past several years. We all owe the current PPC a tremendous amount of gratitude for their service.

    The PPC is composed of 12 parishioners and we rotate membership every year to get new people and new ideas involved. We try to keep a balance of nine discerned members and three appointees. A process of discernment has become the normative way that pastoral councils are filled throughout the country. Though it takes a few hours to complete, it allows all participating to share in the experience and, most importantly, allows the Holy Spirit to guide the collective wisdom of those discerning. It soon becomes clear who the Spirit is calling to serve in this ministry.

    It is important to note that members of the PPC are expected to be attentive to the needs of the entire community. They must work on behalf of all, not just their favorite areas of interest. They are a representative body, not a body of representatives. They serve in a consultative role only and have no decision-making authority. They do not deal with the day-to-day operations of the parish, but rather are to be “forward-looking” in their role. They help identify present and future needs of the parishioners and consult with me on ways we can best achieve those goals.

    To be a member of the PPC, one must be an active registered parishioner with a demonstrated commitment to the life of the parish. You must be fully initiated in the sacraments, and if married, be in a Catholic marriage. A PPC member must also be willing to engage in spiritual growth and skills development to best serve on the council, and I think it goes without saying that you must be willing to commit to working collaboratively with others. The PPC meets once a month, but there are often other responsibilities associated with the council that require time and preparation.

    If you would like to participate, please contact me in the office by phone or email. If you would like to nominate someone to go through the discernment, please let me know so that I might invite them to attend. I’m hopeful we will have a good group of parishioners on Thursday, Feb. 1 from 6:30-9 p.m. in Room 111 of the Parish Office Building. Also, please feel free to ask any current PPC member any questions you might have about the council. You’ll find them at most every Mass wearing a PPC name badge.

     Lastly, I want to take one final look back at the many events that concluded 2023. Due to publishing deadlines, we didn’t get to give you a proper round-up of our Advent and Christmas outreach initiatives. The Toy Drive for Assumption Catholic Church was an overwhelming success. It was our first time partnering with Assumption, and the people there were both so helpful (with at least 40 parishioners on hand to assist in the distribution) and so appreciative (I lost track of how many children and families who were in line, but they all left with at least two new toys). Thanks to the dozens of CtR parishioners who came to Assumption to help with the distribution. It takes a lot of work to pull off a project like that, especially on a busy Saturday morning a week before Christmas. Thanks to our volunteers as well as Tim Herbert and Kerry Chu who organized it all. Thanks to all who donated a new toy. I can promise you they were all very gladly received! In addition, we had a great response for our annual Giving Tree for CAM. You all contributed more than $10,000 in gift cards that were given to those in need in our community. Thank you very much. That’s Stewardship in action, my friends.

    In addition, we owe a sincere debt of gratitude to our Liturgy Department and volunteers who helped make the Christmas masses flow so smoothly. My very special thanks to Ofelia Carrasco, Deanna Negrete, and our many liturgical ministers who put in long hours to make sure our masses were as well coordinated as they were inspiring. Thanks as well to Patty Arnett, Cecilia Truong, Cathy Oland, and all the Art and Environment team who helped create a beautiful worship space. To all of our extra ministers of the Word, Holy Communion, ushers, greeters, sacristans, and acolytes my sincere thanks. We thank our choirs (adult and children), led by Bridget Wenk and assisted by Christine Marté and organist Michelle Murphree, as well as Mark Dolce and company in the contemporary choir. They all put in multiple rehearsals and enabled us to praise the newborn king with heavenly hearts and voices. Our parish is blessed with selfless people who sacrifice so much so that so many can experience the goodness of God. Thank you one and all for your beautiful stewardship of time and talent.

Peace, Fr. Sean