We have now crossed the threshold of Lent. Each year marked in the boldness of ashes upon our forehead; we are marked in the cross of Christ. This is a pivotal crossroads for us, because it is here that we must decide how well invested into the process of Lent that we are. Lent is a penitential season primarily designed for us to be led into a deeper conversion. The first order of business is that all the faithful are called to admit their faults, take a long look into the mirror of our soul, and determine what must change about us.

Dear Parish Family,

We find ourselves at the brink of entering the season of Lent. This is a time for change. It's not so much being concerned with how others change, but how such change begins with us. In this jubilee year of St. Francis his prayer rings true to let peace begin with me. You want change than be the change, you want more fervor than practice it! Don't try to transfer your sense of piety on others, if anything, you should be a good example of humility and let that be contagious. After all, we can only change ourselves. We are also called to bloom where we are planted, to pick-up our cross, not run from it or move away from it.

Dear Parish Family,

Something wonderful occurs as the minutes of light grow in number during the month of February. Our days become a little longer, brighter, and in Arizona a little warmer with the return of the sun. It's a bit of a miracle really to begin witnessing nature awakening from her deep winter slumber. Arizona is privy to literally front row seats, as the deserts will soon burst into color as the sun calls the wildflowers to bloom. It's supposed to be a great spectacle this year with the winter rain that fell. One thing we learn from nature is if we do not have light, we die.

Dear Parish Family,

Our scripture readings today sheds some light upon the human aspects of our struggle in faith. We learn that such faith is made real and is visible during our moments of heartache and difficulty. The Christian does not run from the cross, nor says may I have an easier one to carry. We obey the Lord and pick up our cross and follow him. Our call to discipleship is our willingness to accept the cross, and to give our lives to Christ. Our struggle is the source of our motive to seek God, and to better align ourselves with Christ.

Dear Parish Family,

In this season of celebrating the coming of the Light of God to all nations, we realize the message from Sacred Scripture is not just for the people in the days of Jesus, but for today as well.

The news of the death of John the Baptist saddened Jesus, but prompted him to retreat, and see that the prophecy from Isaiah be fulfilled. John the Baptist was martyred for the sake of the Light, God Himself. Jesus like John was drawn to the mission of God, the very reason He who is God came into the world.

Dear Parish Family,

Though we are back to Ordinary Time for just a few short weeks, we are still reflective of where we've been recently. We also concern ourselves with Quo Vadis, in Latin where are you going? Well for us collectively we are headed to Lent, but in the meantime, we are called to relish in the presence of Jesus among us as one of us.

Today marks the end of the Christmas Season, but it does not mean what we celebrated has ended. We have become renewed in the hope of the Incarnation, and the profound reality that God loved us so much He became one of us by taking on human form. The spirit of Epiphany lives on in the reality of His manifestation in the world, and our awakening to His presence.

Epiphany is here and marks the twelfth day of Christmas. The feast day traditionally falls on January 6th but had been moved to the nearest Sunday. This was an attempt to have more people attend Mass. Today marks the visitation of the Three Magi and is most significant because we witness that the message of salvation causes us to be awakened and responsive to the voice of God. Mary, Joseph, Elizabeth, Zacharias, and the shepherds in the field all encountered the voice of God via an angel or in a dream.

Dear St. Catherine Laboure Family,

The beauty of Christmas is not that it's limited to only one day, the sentiment of these holy days unfolds for us deeper hope, deeper peace, deeper joy, and the most deepest love. These pillars given to us at Advent are never lost but continue with us as we deepen our love of God. It is the season after all that we are called to reflect more profoundly on the essence and mystery of our faith, and decide whole-heartedly to focus on things that really matter.

On the fourth Sunday of Advent, we testify to LOVE. What is love? So many ideas of what love is, yet the world is in most need of love. Love is married bliss, love is a pop music ballad, or a country music song. So many things have been said of love. It's a perplexing mystery, but we know we crave it and rejoice when we find it. Who does not want to be loved, but at times we can be stingy with this most wonderful gift of God. It's easy to love the people that love us but what about those that don't love us back, those are the hardest to love, yet we are called to love them anyway.

Rejoice in the Lord Always, Again I Say Rejoice !!!

Gaudete Sunday or Rejoice Sunday is the Third Sunday of Advent reserved for lighting the one and only liturgical rose-colored candle for the Fruit of the Holy Spirit of JOY.

Each candle of the Advent wreath brings us a new Fruit of the Holy Spirit to learn to live by, and to build our foundation of faith. We have come a long way, building upon Hope, Peace, and now Joy as the pillars that will hold us up and lead us to the final candle of LOVE.

Delving into the Advent Season we find ourselves thinking about the four fruits of the Holy Spirit, as we began with Hope, then continue to move onto Peace, JOY, and Love. Hope and Peace are the cornerstone of the Christian life with all four gifts our foundation. The Advent Wreath really is a great instrument of contemplation, the circle of the wreath reminds us of the pilgrim journey we've undertaken, and that the path of that journey must be illuminated at all times, as we light the candles of the wreath, and become open to the ways God will lead us, if we only stop to pause and listen to Him.