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December 28, 2018In addition to Sundays, the Holy Days of Obligation for 2019 are:
January 1st, the solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God
June 2nd, Ascension of the Lord (permanently transferred to the 7th Sunday of Easter in GA)
August 15th, the solemnity of the Assumption of Mary
November 1st, the solemnity of All Saints
December 7th, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
December 25th, the solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ
I am grateful to Fr. Michael Hull who will be filling in for me on Monday and Tuesday. Masses for the Holy Day will be a 6pm Vigil on Monday and a 10am Mass on Tuesday. I will be celebrating New Year's in Jacksonville, where I have a very sweet gig as chaplain to the sponsors of the Gator Bowl, the Tax Slayer.com folks. Don’t cry for me Tybee Island. Life as a sports chaplain is good. I will try to behave myself, just keep an eye on Fr. Hull.
Even though I am almost never much good at keeping them, I do like the sense of direction that New Year’s resolutions give to my life. To build on today’s homily, what might some resolutions towards a healthier spiritual life look like? Here are a few suggestions and my hope would be that you give one or two of them some consideration and maybe even a little resolve.
- Prayer – Add more prayer to your daily life. There are many ways to pray. Traditional prayers like the Rosary, talking to our Lord, admiring his wonderful creations, quieting yourself in the presence of God through centering prayer, and lectio divina are only a few ways to enrich your life with daily prayer. Get a daily Catholic devotional book… and read it. Two of my favorites are Living With Christ and Give Us This Day.
- Faith Formation – No matter how old you are (children and adults alike), there are on the internet and right here in the parish a number of formation programs designed to deepen your faith knowledge and practice. And if you don’t find anything that speaks to you, I’d be happy to help you in forming a new group.
- Be Active and Get Involved – Going to Mass on Sunday is only part of being a good Catholic. There are so many ministries within our faith community and most of them would be happy for the energy of new “blood”.
- Attend Mass – Of course we should always participate in Mass on Sundays and other Holy Days of Obligation, but daily Mass is really one of the best ways of deepening your spirituality. Try to attend Mass as often as your schedule will allow. What better way to start the day than with our Lord?
Take Your Christianity with You – don’t leave it in the church pew when you leave Mass. Strive to live as Jesus commands us to do so. By enriching your Catholic faith through going to Mass, attending faith formation programs, spending time with our Lord in daily prayer and being involved in your parish community, you will have more knowledge and tools to accomplish this goal.
The Church Leadership hasn’t gotten very far in addressing our problems, which I find frustrating. But at the direction of the Holy Father they are starting out 2019 with a good beginning, rooted in prayer. Catholic bishops from across the United States will begin the new year taking part in a spiritual retreat for seven days at Mundelein Seminary January 2 to 8, 2019. Preacher to the Papal Household, Capuchin Friar Father Raniero Cantalamessa, O.F.M. Cap., will direct the retreat under the theme of “He appointed Twelve, to be with Him and to Send Out to Preach” based on Mark 3:14. The Bishops can expect temperatures to remain below freezing throughout their stay, which could be a hopeful sign, if you believe that true reform won’t happen in the Church until hell freezes over. Seriously, keep our Shepherds in your prayers. They have a lot on their plates these days and hopefully they can face it with openness and courage.
Fr. Jerry Ragan
