Today’s Gospel of Luke (4:21-30) places us in the hometown Nazorean Synagogue of Jesus, where today stands a Melkite Greek Catholic Church, though there is no proof to cement this as the actual historical site. Yet a painting which hangs above the altar in that Synagogue illustrates today’s gospel account—Jesus teaching in the Synagogue where He is fulfilling the role of a prophet—telling the listeners and us today—that the Kingdom of God is at hand and will be fulfilled in their/our hearing.

Today we hear from the Gospel of Luke, which will be the primary gospel source for the year. And in this Jubilee Year of Mercy proclaimed by Pope Francis, Luke asks us to understand why he decided to write a gospel, "I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you…so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received."

In the movie Beyond the Forrest, a bored housewife, Rosa Moline played by Bette Davis, made famous the line "What a dump!" as she descended down the staircase of her husband’s small hunting lodge illustrating her boredom with small town life. That famous line came to mind—with equal disgust when I was informed of a sad occurrence here on our parish grounds. Shortly after Christmas late one night or early one morning, someone discarded the remnants of a kitchen remodel job in our new back parking lot!

Many Thanks to all who supported our Sacred Heart Epiphany Tree...more than 150 gifts were distributed to children at Sacred Heart Parish. A big thank you to Karen Carew for her work executing the the Advent Giving Tree which raised $40, 868! And a sincere thank you to all those who decorated our church for the Christmas Holy days! Please click to read the entire article...

I noted last weekend that a very generous couple in our parish recently made a donation to Saint Catherine's Parish totaling $125,000 for charitable works. This is an amazing blessing for us! It is also a wonderful commentary on the people of Saint Catherine of Siena—that you are an active Catholic community who reaches out in so many ways to all those in need and well it is also a positive commentary on the growing numbers of people who volunteer to keep our ministries alive and running. I want to “publically” thank this couple, who wish to remain anonymous:

This weekend we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord, which brings to a close the Christmas season, and is another Epiphany or manifestation of the Lord in the Gospels. John the Baptist raised both the religious and the political hopes of a people enslaved—and yet said that he was not the “one to come”—denying himself as the Messiah. What was the reaction of the people to his statement? Certainly, surprise.

Its appropriate this Sunday to remind us of the role of godparents in Baptism and of the Ritual of Baptism itself. We are lucky here at St. Catherine of Siena as baptisms are on the rise. So what is Baptism in the Church? Answer: Baptism is a New Testament ordinance established by Jesus Christ just before His ascension into heaven.

In today’s modern culture the title godparent has become an “honorarium”—recognizing someone special in our lives: a favorite aunt, a best bud from college, or an employer or colleague. But the Church’s definition has not changed, nor has the true, Christ-given role and expectations. First there are criteria for someone to be a godparent, and they are (Canon 874):

Today we celebrate the Magi, who coming from Persia, wanted to kneel before the One, True Son of God. In the City of Bethlehem at the Church of the Nativity—the most visited Christian shrine—the current church building believed to be built over the site of the birthplace of Jesus,

During the Christmas season we hear on the radio or carolers singing “the Twelve Days of Christmas,” and in Church we hear the phrase “the Octave of Christmas” and perhaps wonder “what’s the difference?” We all know the Twelve Days of Christmas: everything from “A Partridge in a Pear Tree” to “Ten Lords a Leaping” and beyond. Personally, the Twelve Days of Christmas offers an excuse for mailing out my Christmas cards late!