Just a reminder that our Advent Giving Tree program is under-way until the end of the month. We are collecting donations for the Neighbors In Need program that supports assistance to local Simsbury-area families and individuals who are in the midst of struggles. Your support can help buy fuel for the home, food, offer assistance with repairs for automobiles so that people can get to work and continue to care for their families

I wish to offer a special gift to each and every registered Parish family here at St. Catherine of Siena. From the weekend after Christmas forward there will be in the atrium a table set up with books on it entitled, Rediscover Jesus, by Matthew Kelly. There is one book for each Parish family and I ask you to collect one each (per family) over the next week or two.

One can never say Thank You too often. And gratitude is the essence of the Christian faith as expressed in and through the Catholic Church. Gratitude for God’s love and gift of life and eternal life, gratitude for the gift of faith, gratitude for family and for friends, gratitude for the blessings God bestows on us—and that we are called to share with others.

This is the last Sunday of Advent, the month-long preparation for the Christmas celebration of the Incarnation of Christ—God into humanity. Let us ask ourselves, how did we use this time of preparation so as to prepare our hearts as a home for Christ? Soon it will become even more hectic and crazy, leaving very little time to think about the religious aspect of Christmas as we put up the tree, finish the shopping, and begin (I am way behind) the wrapping.

Pope Francis Proclaims a Jubilee On April 11, 2015, Divine Mercy Sunday, Pope Francis proclaimed that the Church would celebrate an extraordinary Jubilee. The Jubilee Year of Mercy will commence Tuesday, December 8, 2015 – the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It will conclude on November 20, 2016 – the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe.

In this most Merciful year—from 8 December 2015 through 22 November 2016—Pope Francis wants the Catholic Church to highlight the essence of our lived-out Catholic faith, which is mercy and forgiveness combined with compassion and hope, to show the world what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. This “showing” of our Christ-like way is meant not only in a theological or abstract way, but also in a very practical way—a day-in, day-out sort of way—that will change a person’s life or daily existence in a meaningful way, so that they feel the presence and power of Christ in and through others.

The Third Sunday in Advent, known as Gaudete Sunday for Gaudete in Domino semper or Rejoice in the Lord Always, calls us to rejoice at a “higher pitch” since we have now passed the midpoint of Advent. So the priest normally wearing purple vestments now may wear rose colored today and the third candle in the Advent Wreath is also rose colored. The change in color provides us with encouragement to continue our spiritual preparation, and so the Church lightens the mood a little bit. We are now called to a different kind of ‘joy.”

Last Sunday night former Hollywood actor Frank Runyeon played the Apostle Matthew preaching Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount teaching. He was theatrically powerful, gave a wonderful message and the crowd found the evening very enlightening and enjoyable. The message he provided was powerful and timely. It centered on Christ’s teaching on what brings true happiness in life as well as highlighting how powerfully God loves us—and what He hopes for our lives