Our Lady of Hope Blog

My Dear Friends,

The Mass of the second Sunday of Lent is always the reading of the Transfiguration. In each Gospel (Matthew, Mark and Luke), it is the event that ushers in Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and the beginning of his passion. The Transfiguration on top of Mount Tabor consists of Jesus, Moses, Elijah, Peter, James and John. Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets. Peter, James and John are the three apostles that are privileged to be with Jesus during important events and miracles.

My Dear Friends,

It is the time of year again for the Archbishop ’s Annual Appeal. Last year we made 94 percent of our goal. That is amazing!! And we did that with only 20 percent of the parishioners who donated money. This year, our goal is the same as last year. Archbishop Blair is beginning the appeal, but very shortly, when he retires, Archbishop Coyne will be inheriting the appeal.

My Dear Friends,

As I mentioned at Mass last week, I am beginning a Lenten series on Scott Hahn ’s book, A Father Who Keeps His Promises. It is a book on Salvation History and God’s covenants with his people. The five Old Testament covenants begin with Adam, then Noah, Abraham, Moses and David. The New Covenant is with Jesus Christ. The question that surrounds Jesus is “Why did Jesus have to die?” By following Salvation History and the five covenants of the Old Testament, we will come to the answer of that question.

My Dear Friends,

Ash Wednesday will soon be upon us. The receiving of ashes on our foreheads is a sign of penance. The ashes remind us that we are sinners and that we are called to repent, to change our way. There are two formulas that can be said while the ashes are being put on your forehead: “Turn away from sin and believe in the Gospel, ” or “Remember you are dust and unto dust you shall return.” The ashes themselves are a sacramental.

My Dear Friends,

In the bulletin this weekend you will see an ad for a Lenten series that I will be offering on Scott Hahn’s book, A Father Who Keeps His Promises. It is a book about salvation history and God’s unchanging covenantal love, beginning with Adam and following Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and culminating with our Lord Jesus Christ.

My Dear Friends,

Today’s gospel is the call of the fishermen Peter and Andrew, and James and John. Jesus calls to them and says, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” We are told that immediately the four men left their fishing nets and their livelihood and began to follow Jesus. Everyone, of course, is called to follow Jesus.

My Dear Friends,

With last week’s weather, many of you did not hear about one of my favorite Christmas movies, The Three Godfathers, with John Wayne. It is a very underrated John Wayne western but one with much heart. The three rustlers, played by John Wayne, Harry Carey, Jr. and Pedro Armendariz, have an encounter with a newborn baby in the desert and promise the baby’s dying mother that they would be his godfathers and take care of the baby. This encounter changes the three men, just as our encounter with the Christ child is meant to change us.

My Dear Friends,

Today is Epiphany Sunday; Happy Epiphany, which is the twelfth day of Christmas. On this day we commemorate the visit of the three Magi to the Christ child, bringing with them the gifts of frankincense, gold, and myrrh. These are gifts fit for a priest, prophet and king. Many cultures would exchange Christmas gifts on this day and not on Christmas day. As important a day a Christmas is, Epiphany is the revelation of Jesus Christ not only to his parents and the shepherds, but he is revealed to all the nations. It is the first recorded instance of the divinity of Christ to non-Jews.

My Dear Friends,

Happy New Year!!!!! Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family and tomorrow, January 1st, is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. There’s a lot of news coming out of the Vatican these last two weeks and much of it is controversial. I am not one to shy away from anything controversial, as you know, but on this beginning of the New Year, I want to focus on something that is not controversial.

My Dear Friends,

Merry Christmas!!!! Christmas is tied into other major feasts of the Catholic Church, beginning with the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on December 8th. Following this important feast day, the next important feast is the Annunciation of the Angel Gabriel to the Blessed Virgin Mary on March 25th. It is on the Annunciation that God has become man, which our Catholic Church commemorates during the recitation of the Nicene Creed. It is on the Annunciation and on the Nativity of our Lord that we are obliged to kneel when we pray, “and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.”

My Dear Friends,

During this time of the year many people put up manger scenes in their homes. The manger, or also called the crèche, is a beautiful tradition where we place figurines of the important people surrounding the baby Jesus. The manger scene can also be a painting or an icon besides something physical with statues or figurines. Most scenes have at the barest minimum the baby Jesus and his parents, Mary and Joseph.

My Dear Friends,

Christmas is only a couple of weeks away. Because Christmas falls on a Monday this year, Catholics are under the obligation to attend Mass twice, once for the Sunday Mass obligation and once for the Holy Day of Christmas obligation. There are a few ways to fulfill the obligation.

My Dear Friends,

This coming Friday is one of the most important feats of our Church year. We celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, when Mary is conceived without sin in the womb of St. Anne. The privileges of the Blessed Mother are meant for two things; one is to protect the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the other is to help us on our way to eternal life.