Dear Family and Friends:

Thank you all for making our parish so wonderful and making a difference for others.

As we gather together to celebrate these great holy days, allow me to extend to all of you my sincere gratitude for all the good you have done to make life more meaningful and happier for others and to build God's kingdom of justice and peace. I am always so very inspired by your good works and acts of charity.

Your Christmas letters reflect so much goodness and compassion which truly uplift so many people and certainly inspire me to carry on the mission of the Church. We labor "as Church", "in the Church" and "for the Church" so that God's kingdom to which the Church is subservient will come to reign in the hearts of all people. Our labors together are truly labors of love. Indeed they are the source of our inner joy and peace. United as one Body of Christ, the world is divinized in Christie apostolic radiance.

Love really does endure. As I look back over the years, I am so happy that I can recall so many moments of goodness, compassion and love that still have an effect on me today. I am sure that all of you can also notice these sources of immense transformative grace as you look back over your life.

St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, gifted us with his famous Examen. This brief reflection at the end of each day can take many forms, but ultimately it always leads us to notice where God has been most active in our lives. Such awareness helps us to discover our openness to this divine self-disclosure and the immensity of God's own "divine and inner life unfolding before the eyes of our souls. Without measure, we become more aware of the mystery beyond words-the ultimate impulse that endures.

Looking forward in hope and trust, the disciple of Christ always anticipates the new day that is dawning before it arrives. We are always a people of anticipatory hope because God is with us and among us, especially in the disfigured poor of the world. We see the Lord's face most clearly shining with radiant beauty in those persons who live on the peripheries and margins of society.

We are truly fortunate to have our great Jesuit Pope Francis highlight this for the world so in need of such insight. Together with him, we proclaim a "faith which does justice" in the one global family of humankind.

Know that my prayers and love remain with all of you who suffer and carry the burdens of illness and the trials of others on your shoulders. You are remembered in so many Masses and prayers and hold a treasured place in my heart.

Know that I am very happy to find a life that allows me to receive from you the insights of faith that God has bestowed on you and your loved ones. With Mary, our sister, mother and friend to accompany us, we are able to proclaim the joy of the Gospel. Thus, the joy of Advent and Christmas are reborn in time and space for the glory of God and salvation of all. Merry Christmas!

Together with you in ministry,

Fathers Len and Brad, Deacons, Religious Sisters, Teachers and Staff.