Dear Parishioners,

This Sunday we begin the Season of Advent, the time of prayerful and vigilant preparation for both - the celebration of Christ's birth, and his second coming at the end of time. Advent is a time to take life a little more slowly and to focus on what we need to do to turn away from our sins, to get closer to God and to grow in holiness of life.

Typically, we tend to rush through the season of Advent. After all, we need time to decorate, to buy presents, to send Christmas cards, to bake those delicious Christmas cookies... As a result, it is so easy to totally miss this important time and all the graces which it brings. If those material things capture our time and our heart, how can we be ready to celebrate Jesus' coming into our lives?

Advent gives us an opportunity to remember not only the child Jesus coming into the world to shatter darkness and end sin, but also to anticipate his second coming. This aspect of Advent gets lost all too often. Advent is a time to recall the cry of the early Christians: "Come, Lord Jesus!" Come into our lives, come into our homes, come into our hearts, and come into our world to save us from all the evil around us! But first, we must come to Him in prayer, we must come to Him at Holy Mass, we must prepare ourselves with a good Confession, and we must commit ourselves to faithfully following our Lord and His commandments every day of our lives. This Advent lets us be alert and watchful, let us pause, let us pray, let us listen, and let us get ready for Jesus is coming!

'The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin" (Pope Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus, 1854)

On Friday, December 8th, the Church will celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Mary as the Immaculate Conception is the Patron Saint of the United States. Even though this feast day occurs in the liturgical season of Advent, which prepares for the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Immaculate Conception refers to the conception of Mary in the womb of her mother, St. Anne. The concept of the perfect, sinless Mary had been taught by the Fathers of the Church as early as 370 AD, but long before that it had been a part of the Church's beliefs . At the Annunciation Archangel Gabriel greets Mary with the words, "full of grace" or "highly favored". (Luke 1:26-38)

The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is a dogma of the church which was officially proclaimed by Pope Pius IX in 1854 in his papal bull Ineffabilis Deus. The papal definition of the dogma declares with absolute certainty and authority that Mary possessed sanctifying grace from the first instant of her existence and was free from the lack of grace caused by the original sin at the beginning of human history.

The Immaculate Conception means that Mary, whose conception was brought about the normal way, was conceived without original sin or its stain - that's what "immaculate" means, without stain. The essence of original sin consists in the deprivation of sanctifying grace, and its stain is a corrupt nature. Mary was preserved from those defects by God's grace. From the first moment of her existence, she was in the state of sanctifying grace, sharing in God's own life, and was free from the corrupt nature and all the sinful inclinations that original sin brings.

Masses for the Holy Day will be on Friday, December 8th at 8:45 am, 6:00 pm in English. and 7:30 pm in Polish. During all masses on that day, we will renew the Act of Concecration of our parish, our families, and of ourselves to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Please remember that our Advent Confessions this year will take place on Thursday, December 14th from 5:00 until 8:00 pm.

The following is our Parish Christmas Mass schedule:

Christmas Eve, Sunday, December 24th - 4:00 pm - Children's Vigil Mass English, 5:00 pm - Vigil Mass English, 9:00 pm - Polish Shepherd's Mass (Pasterka), 12:00 am - English Midnight Mass

Christmas Day, Monday, December 25th - 7:00 am - Polish Mass, 9:00 am - English Mass, 11:00 am - English Mass, 1:00 pm - Polish Mass

God Bless,
Fr. Gregg