Pastor’s Letter: December 17, 2023

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

We enter the Third Sunday of Advent.  We light the third  candle of Advent this weekend which  symbolizes joy.  The  third candle is called the shepherd’s Candle.  This Sunday is also known as Gaudete Sunday where we are invited on the joy the shepherds felt at the birth of Jesus.  Once again, we are invited to reflect on the journey Joseph and Mary took to Bethlehem and how we too can take this  journey that leads to a renewal in our lives, which is why we are encouraged to use this season to make a good confession.

In addition to our regular times for reconciliation, there will be a Parish Penance Service on the 19th of December at 7pm at St John Vianney and on the 20th of December at 1:30pm at St John Vianney.

Additional Confessions times at Mary Our Queen are on Tuesday and Thursday at 11am to 12pm, 4pm to 6pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and 7pm to 8pm on Wednesday and Thursday. Please see page 10 of this bulletin for additional reconciliation times held this week.

This season of Advent we invite you to two Advent Talks to help us make the most of the Advent Season by Keith Jiron.  We had our First Session last Sunday.  This Sunday we will have our Second Session entitled – Preparing to receive Jesus through the Miracle of the Eucharist. The session is short – just 30 minutes and convenient as it will be offered on Sunday morning December 17 at Mary Our Queen from 10:15am to 10:45am and St John Vianney from 11:45am to 12:15pm.

We invite all of you to attend this time of learning, reflection, and fellowship.  For questions, please call Jodi Meyer at 402.669.0972.

Thank you to all our volunteers who made the Living Nativity last Friday and Saturday at St John Vianney possible.  It was a wonderful opportunity to allow the spirit of Christmas live as we focus on the birth of Jesus in the manger.

As we make our way to the end of the year, if you are planning to make a  charitable donation for tax purposes, we invite you to please consider a generous gift to our Parish Capital Campaigns or building funds at both Mary Our Queen and St John Vianney.  Your generous gift would not only help us with the upkeep of our Parish Facilities but will also help us look towards the future where we continue to create new opportunities for our Parish to be a place where our faith is lived and shared.

God’s Blessings,

Fr Marc