Today is Father’s Day! I wish all the Fathers and Grandfathers a blessed Day. As I reflect on Father’s Day, many memories I
have of my father come to mind. It has been over 15 years since my Dad died – – it is hard to believe it has been that long! Dad lived
in my house in Newark Valley until he died at age 90. My Dad and Mom moved into my house in Newark Valley in 1999. I consider
myself truly fortunate that both my Mom and Dad were near me their last few years. We celebrated the turn of the millennium together
at a party at the home of parishioners. My Mom loved living in Newark Valley, but her health soon would lead her to an operation and
over a year in a nursing home. She did return home on the Fourth of July week and had the opportunity to live at home until she died
in October 2002. Dad lived eight years longer than my Mom.
My Dad was a great fan of baseball; he was a Brooklyn Dodger fan, and would listen to the games on the radio. I remember
when the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, my Dad allegiance to the Dodgers waivered. When he began receiving the NY Mets games
on cable TV, he became a die-hard Mets fan. I remained a Dodger fan, though, and am to this day. My brother David and I thank my
Dad for our a love of the game! Since moving to Washington, David has become a Seattle Mariner fan and he has shared his love of
baseball with his sons and grandsons.
I always did enjoy playing catch with Dad or having him hit me baseballs to field. Even after I was ordained, he would do so
at parish picnics. I think back now and realize Dad was in his mid sixties when we last were still playing catch. I know, in my mid sixties, I wasn’t able to do what he could do ! Two other games my Dad loved were bowling and horseshoes. My brother David and I
would often go to the bowling aisle to watch him bowl. We both picked up a passion for bowling and horseshoes from Dad, although
neither of us were as good at the games as was our Dad.
Dad as I said, lived eight years without my Mom. It was not easy for him, but it gave us a chance to spend more time together, I miss my Mom and Dad and I thank God for the time I got to spend with them. I pray that one day we all will be living together
again in our eternal homeland. God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

Today we celebrate the Feast of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. On this feast we are called to reflect on
the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist and to thank God for this spiritual food that sustains us on our journey of life .
The feast is a reminder to us that we are a Eucharistic people, called to be the living Body of Christ in the world. Each time
we celebrate the Eucharist, and receive the Body of Christ, the divine presence of Jesus enters our very being. Empowered
by His Presence may we live our lives in union with God, as His church on earth, bringing his love and mercy to all we
meet.
I would like to acknowledge two boys in our parish who recently received their First Holy Communion, Mark
Burroughs, the son of Jason and Erin, and Joseph Durgin, the son of Joseph and Rachael. Congratulations! May you always
know that Jesus is with you, filling you with his love and peace.
Note: A correction on last week’s list of Pastoral Council members; the newly selected members are: Chris Montreuil from
St. Patrick Church, Moravia, and Mike Groth from St. Patrick Church, Aurora and Peter Paradise from St. Michael Church,
Union Springs. Also, Abby Ford from St. Patrick, Moravia will continue as Youth representative to the Council. Also, on the
Council are Kelly Ford, and Tom Powers from St. Patrick Church, Moravia, Marcia Slocum from Our Lady of the Lakes, and
John Miller from St. Patrick’s Aurora. I am sorry for the mistakes. Next year’s Pastoral Council will be working with Father
Joseph Maurici who has been appointed as Parochial Administrator of Good Shepherd Catholic Community beginning
June 30th. My prayers are with the Council members and Father Maurici as we make this transition. May God continue to
shed His Light upon us. God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

On Pentecost, we prayed over the names of parishioners who accepted nominations to serve as Pastoral Council members. After we prayed the following names were selected: Chris Montreuil from St. Patrick Church, Moravia, and Mike Groth from St. Patrick Church, Aurora and Peter Paradise from St. Michael Church, Union Springs. Also, Abby Ford from St. Patrick, Moravia has accepted her second appointment as a Youth representative to the Council.  Congratulations to Chris, Mike, Peter and Abby, many thanks for your willingness to serve. I pray that the Holy Spirit will give you the wisdom and gifts you will need as you begin this new role of service.
     The new Pastoral Council members will be joining Kelly Ford, Marcia Slocum and John Miller on this year’s Council.  I would like to thank all the members of the Council for their service to our parish. As we welcome new members, I would like to thank the out-going members, Paul Nelson, and Jim Orman for their time of service: I thank them for their willingness to serve as Pastoral Council members and pray that the Holy Spirit will give them direction as to how they can continue to serve God’s people in the future. 
      Remember we are all called by God to serve in one way or the other throughout our lives!               
God’s blessings and peace,  Father Bill    

This weekend we end the Easter Season with the Feast of Pentecost. The gift of the Holy Spirit upon
the disciples marks the final aspect of the Paschal Mystery – the Suffering, Death, Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord and the Decent of the Holy Spirit upon his followers. With the close of the Easter Season we
are back into Ordinary Time on the liturgical calendar. But, the next two Sundays we will not see the priest or deacon wearing the
green vestments of Ordinary Time because Pentecost is follow by two great feasts of the church year; Trinity Sunday followed by
the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ.
In a way I have always viewed these three great feasts as strongly connected together. They teach us about the nature of
God as Trinity and the mystery of how God has called us to live in that divine Triune community of love. Through the Paschal Mystery Jesus opened for us the pathway to eternal life with God. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, Jesus has enabled us to be new
creations in His love, and through the Holy Spirit he continues to teach us and guide us. Also, through the power of the Holy Spirit
he has left us the gift of His Body and Blood to infuse us with his presence, that we as Church, as the living Body of Christ in the
world, may grow in holiness and be drawn into the oneness of God. We may never experience that oneness completely until we rest
in the divine presence of God in heaven, but as we journey together as church may we strive to be one with the mind and heart of
Christ in service to one another and all our brothers and sisters throughout the world.
While the Easter season has come to a close with the Feast of Pentecost, our life in the Spirit continues throughout the
year and our need for the help of the Holy Spirit never ends. When we received Confirmation we were prayed over by the bishop
that we would receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. May we remember to seek and pray for these gifts in our daily lives. Below are
some prayers to the Holy Spirit. God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

Every year I look forward to the season of Spring, but I must admit that this year I have really been longing for the winter
weather to pass. It hasn’t been the snowiest of winters, but it has been the coldest in recent years. It has been even colder in St. Patrick
Church, Aurora with no heat in the church for the past few week! It has given me hope that change is occurring when I hear birds
chirping in the morning! The signs of Spring truly are reappearing after the siege of winter cold. Easter is the season of New Life and
the signs of new life are ever apparent in the birds, and animals, and flowers of Spring!
The greatest signs of new life of this Easter Season hopefully are experienced within us! Jesus has died and is risen to give
us new life! A new life that He wants us to experience each day as we live with Him here on earth, and as we journey to live with Him
eternally in heaven. The gift of the Holy Spirit that Jesus has given us through His death and resurrection is the ever-abiding gift of
God’s presence that helps us to experience new life and become new creations in Christ.
Leading up to Easter, many of you made decisions to spend extra time in prayer, or to do acts of charity, fasting, and almsgiving
to help you to grow in the holiness of the Lord. I encourage you to continue to make a special effort to practice your faith in
ways that will help you to grow in the grace of the Risen Lord, and to be of service to one another. The new life of the waters of Baptism
and grace of the Holy Spirit in Confirmation are the beginning of our newness of life in God’s love. But, God calls us each day to
foster the precious gift we have received.
During the Easter season I pray that the gift of the Holy Spirit, that you have received through baptism, may empower you to
live as new creations in the Lord. I encourage you to pray each day that the Holy Spirit will lead you and guide you, that you may see
more clearly the ways God is forming you anew in His love.
May you and your families be filled with Easter joy, and experience the grace of the Risen Lord and the power of the Holy
Spirit helping you to become new creations in Christ. May the Risen Christ be with you.
Happy Easter! Father Bill

Mass Time Change in Aurora Beginning Easter Sunday April 5, the Noon Mass at St. Patrick Church, Aurora, will
be moved to Sunday at 9:00 a.m. for the Summer, and hopefully through the Fall. Father Brendan Buckley will be assisting
us on Sundays as a celebrant.
Father Buckley and I will be covering the 8:30 a.m. Sunday Masses in Moravia, and the 9:00 a.m. Sunday Mass in Aurora. So
You will see one or the other of us each weekend.
Easter Mass times in last week’s bulletin were incorrect. The Easter Vigil will begin at 8:00 pm at St. Patrick Church, Moravia
, and the Easter Sunday Mass at St. Michael Church in Union Springs is at 8:00 am.
This weekend is the Fifth Sunday of the Lenten Season. We are closing in on the celebration of Easter. But before we experience the fullness of Easter Joy, and the newness of life and hope it brings, we are called to journey with Jesus to the cross. Next Sunday, is Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, the beginning of Holy Week, when we remember Jesus’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. In the days that follow, we celebrate the sacred events of our faith that occurred following Jesus’s entrance into the Holy City, his Last Supper with his disciples, his suffering and death on a cross, that lead up to the Resurrection.
The sacred days when we remember these events, we call the Triduum. The Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil
on Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday liturgies that follow, mark the holiest days of the church year. May we gather in prayer at these sacred liturgies and thank God for the gift of our salvation.
Mary Queen of Peace, Pray for us. God’s blessing and peace, Father Bill

This week we celebrate two special feasts days, in honor of St. Patrick and St. St. Joseph, respectively. St. Patrick is the
patron saint of our churches in Aurora and Moravia, and St. Joseph is the patron saint of the Universal Church. This year the Feast
day of St. Joseph takes on takes on a special reason for rejoicing as Bishop John Bonnici will be installed as the tenth bishop of the
Diocese of Rochester. Please keep Bishop Bonnici in your prayers as he begins shepherding the people of our Diocese that God
may fill him with a deep faith and lively courage so he may teach, sanctify and govern wisely those entrusted to his pastoral care.
Please pray also for Bishop Salvatore Matano and Father Frank Lioi who will both will be entering Senior Priest status.
Bishop Matano has been the ninth Bishop of Rochester since January 2014. It was Bishop Matano who appointed me as pastor of
Good Shepherd Catholic Community. I am grateful to him for his support and for the opportunity to serve the good people of this
parish. Bishop Matano will be taking up residence at St. Mary’s Rectory in Auburn.
Father Lioi has served the parishioners of the Auburn area for many years, first as pastor of St. Mary’s, then taking on the
pastorate of Ss. Mary & Martha serving the parishioners at St. Hyacinth and St. Francis of Assisi. Father Lioi then also took on the
additional Pastorate of Our Lady of the Snow, serving the parishioners at St. Joseph Church, Weedsport and St. Patrick Church,
Cato. I first met Father Lioi when I entered St. Bernard Seminary in 1977, Father Lioi was the Rector of the Seminary. I thank him for
the guidance he gave me in my seminary years, and for the priestly example he continues to give. Father Lioi will continue to reside
in the Auburn area.
Father Daniel White will be the new pastor of St. Mary & Ss. Mary & Martha & Our Lady of the Snow parishes. Father White
has served Bishop Matano faithfully as Priest Secretary for the past 14 years. This will be Father White’s first pastorate. Please pray
for him as he makes this transition.
As I write this message our boiler is still down at St. Patrick Church, Aurora . We are working on the problem. Hopefully, the
church building warms up with the warmer weather, as I write this it is 69 degree at 6:00 pm on Monday, but the forecast is saying the
warmer temperatures will not last through the week. Please pray we can resolve this issue soon.
As the wars around the world continue, please pray a daily rosary for peace.
Mary Queen of Peace, Pray for us. God’s blessing and peace, Father Bill

Journey through Lent
Lent calls us to remember that we as church and as individuals we are in a constant need of conversion and renewal. On
Ash Wednesday as ashes were placed on our heads as a sign of repentance and renewal, the words are spoken, “Repent and believe in the Gospel”. Repentance is always the starting point for conversion of our hearts to take place. It is an acknowledgement that at times we have fallen to the idols of this world and haven’t been faithful to Jesus’ commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves. Repentance alone can still leave our hearts incapable of being as loving as Jesus calls us to be. We also need to recognize our powerlessness to change ourselves and our need for the power, love and grace of God to change our hearts and set us on the right path.
Believe in the Gospel, believe in the Good News! That is the second part of what we are called to as we receive ashes on
Ash Wednesday. We are called to believe that out of God’s love for us He sent his Son to die on the cross to take away our sins, to give us a new beginning, a fresh start to live our life in God’s love! In Lent we are called to remember what Jesus did for us as he died on the cross as Our Savior. Belief in the Gospel calls us to acknowledge that Jesus is the Savior of the World and our personal Savior as well. He has taken away our sins through His victory on the cross to help us be New Creations in His love. But the Good News does not stop there! Jesus continues to pray for us at the right hand of God the Father that we be One with Him through the gift of the Holy Spirit that Jesus and the Father continue to pour down upon us who believe in Him. A gift that gives us the power, love and grace of God to change our hearts, and to allow constant conversion and renewal to take place in our lives. We only need to believe and to invite God to come and dwell with us!
As we journey through Lent may we open our hearts and lives to God’s love that we may live always as the People of God and as evangelizers to one another and to the world.
Have a blessed and joyful Lent, Father Bill

This Wednesday, February 18, we will begin our forty-day Lenten journey towards the celebration of our Lord’s resurrection on
Easter Sunday. The symbol of ashes that we receive on Ash Wednesday is a reminder to us of our mortality and the call to repent, to
turn away from sin and the temptations that lead us to sin, and to believe the Good News. Lent is a time for us to take stock of ourselves;
a time to make a personal inventory of how we are responding to the call of the Lord to live a life of holiness as children of
God led by the Holy Spirit. The forty days of Lent can be a time of great personal and spiritual growth if we take the time to work on
our relationships with God, and with one another. To assist you in your daily prayer during Lent, The Little Black Book, and The
Word Among Us, devotional booklets are available at our churches for a freewill offering.
I encourage you to make some personal decisions as to how you might grow in your faith and in your relationship to God
during Lent. Some things to consider doing during Lent might be: participating in a weekday Mass, spending some time each day in
personal prayer, visiting the church and praying before the Blessed Sacrament, taking time as a family to reflect on Bible stories or
readings, praying the Stations of the Cross, praying the rosary daily for peace in our world, praying together as a family or as a
couple, learning more about injustices in the world and what you can do to address them, reaching out to a person in need, visiting a
housebound parishioner or neighbor, participating in CRS Rice Bowl.
First, pray about what personal decisions you can commit to during Lent, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you to discipline
yourself to do them. You might find that the discipline of Lent will fill your lives with many blessings, and your hearts with peace. A
schedule of Lenten events is enclosed in this bulletin.
God’s Blessings and peace, Father Bill

Recently two parishioners came up to me after Mass and asked to be anointed because they were going in for surgery. I
said I would be glad to and I went and got the Oil of the Sick and anointed each of them with the holy oil as I administered the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. I was grateful that they gave me the opportunity to pray with them before surgery.
The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick is a sacrament that is based on the healing ministry of Jesus and the teaching of
the church found in the Letter of James. James 5:14 teaches,” Is anyone among you sick? He should summons the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.”
In the past people looked at this Sacrament as one that you received as you prepared for death; it was called Extreme Unction, or Last Rites. The Sacrament today is called the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, and while it is still received by those
who are close to death, people are also encouraged to receive this sacrament who are dealing with serious illness, surgery, and those who are dealing with various chronic illnesses, especially the elderly.
If you are in need of receiving the Sacrament of the Sick, I encourage you to do so. You can call the church office (364-7197)
to schedule a time to meet with me either at church, or if you are homebound, at your house. If you are able to attend Mass you can ask me to anoint you after Mass. I encourage this approach especially when you are going in for surgery or some other serious medical procedure or course of treatment.  Also, if you or a member of your family is homebound and cannot attend Mass, please let us know if you or they would like to receive Holy Communion at home and arrangements will be made.
Many members of our parish family have been dealing with illnesses recently. Please keep the sick in your daily prayer.
God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

The Winter storm that hit our country last weekend with it’s bitter cold, destructive ice and blanketing snowfall caused tremendous damage. But as destructive as the storm was, it pales in comparison to the destruction that ICE agents are doing to our country
and our democracy. The ICE agents, who supposedly are removing violent criminals from our country, criminals who are murderers
and a threat to the our citizens, should begin by locking themselves up. Their tactics are violent and degrading with no regard for
human dignity, human life. The senseless shootings, that have brought about the deaths of protesters in Minneapolis, need to stop.
These shootings need to be investigated by authorities other than the DHS for whom the shooters were acting as agents. Right now it
appears that they think the laws of the nation do not apply to them, that they have blanket immunity from prosecution of their actions.
The voices of the protesters who were silenced in Minneapolis by an array of bullets still need to be heard. Each of us as disciples of Jesus needs to speak up for justice, speak up for demoracy. As a youth, I always wondered how the people of Germany or of
Russia allowed dictators to ascend to power. Dictators who would show little respect for humans rights, humanity dignity and human
life itself and who targeted minorities. Would their rise to power have been stopped if more people made their voices of protest
heard? Jesus calls us to be Priests, Prophets and Kings. May we pray for justice and peace, speak His truth, and exercise the
authority He has given each of us to build his kingdom of love. God’s Blessings and peace, Father Bill

On January 7, 2026, His Holiness, Pope Leo XIV, accepted Bishop Matano’s resignation in accord with canon 401 §1 of the Code
of Canon Law. We are deeply grateful to Bishop Matano for his faithful apostolic service to our Diocese over these past twelve years
and assure him of our gratitude and remembrance in our prayers.
On the same day, our Holy Father announced the joyful news that he has nominated Bishop John S. Bonnici, Auxiliary Bishop of
the Archdiocese of New York, as the Tenth Bishop of the Diocese of Rochester. Bishop Bonnici will be installed on March 19, 2026, the
Solemnity of Saint Joseph, and until that time, Bishop Matano will serve as the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Rochester.
Please keep Bishop Matano in your prayers as he prepares for the next stage in his life and ministry, and for Bishop Bonnici as
he prepares for his installation as the Tenth Bishop of the Diocese of Rochester; may God fill him with a deep faith and lively courage
so he may teach, sanctify and govern wisely those entrusted to his pastoral care.

DIOCESE OF ROCHESTER PERMANENT DIACONATE: The deacon is a man of faith, who is called from the community
that already recognizes his dedication to service. He makes a lifetime commitment to serving the People of God by proclaiming the
Word, assisting and presiding at liturgies, and ministering in the areas of charity and social justice. A deacon gives witness to his availability
to the community by addressing present and emerging needs of the Church. The Diocese is inviting Interested men of strong and active
faith, who can demonstrate a record of service in the communities in which they live, work and worship, who may wish to explore a possible
call to ordained ministry as a permanent deacon, to first speak with their pastor for an initial conversation. They may also contact Deacon
Edward Giblin, Director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate, at edward.giblin@dor.org, for additional information. A potential candidate
must be at least 35 years of age and no older than 62 years of age at the time of ordination after a five (5) year period of formation. He
must be in good health, emotionally mature, have stable relationships and must have the wholehearted support of his wife (if married) and
family to enter the phase of inquiry. Because the parish is the primary experience of Church for most inquirers, the parish community is
asked as well to invite from among its members men who exhibit strong faith and a spirit of service and encourage them to consider a
possible vocation to the permanent diaconate. The Diocese anticipates that the next formation class will begin in Fall 2027, with the application
process beginning in early 2027

When does Christmas come to an end? The answer is different depending on the mindset, customs and traditions of
Christians. One way of telling when people think that Christmas is over is to look at the curbside in front of houses. When is the
Christmas Tree discarded? I have noticed that for some people it must be the day after Christmas because that is when they discard
their Christmas Tree ! Others seem to tie it into the New Year celebration as more trees are seen at the curbside on January 2. Still
others seem to look at Epiphany, or “Little Christmas” as the end of the season. When I was a boy after the Feast of Epiphany, which
fell on January 6th, we would take our tree and stick it in a snow bank in the backyard and throw any stale bread we had on it for the
birds to eat in the cold winter days.
Pope Paul VI revised the Liturgical Calendar, and set the date for the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord as the first Sunday
after January 6th. Some countries though, like the United States moved the celebration of Epiphany from January 6th to a Sunday, in
that case Epiphany can vary between January 2 and January 8th. When Epiphany is celebrated on Sunday, January 7th or 8th, the
Feast of the Baptism of the Lord is celebrated the next day, a Monday. The date of the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord also varies
each year depending on when we celebrate Epiphany, but it is never celebrated after January 13th. Whether it is celebrated on a
Sunday or a Monday, it marks the end of the liturgical season of Christmastide.
As we celebrate this weekend the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord we are reminded of how the Holy Spirit came down
upon Jesus as he was baptized in the Jordan. Following the lead of the Holy Spirit, Jesus began His ministry on earth, a ministry that
would lead to the ultimate giving of His life on the cross for us. The mystery of Jesus’ death and resurrection opened for us the greatest gift of God’s love, the gift of the Holy Spirit. We have received this gift of God’s love through the waters of our own baptism, a
baptism that calls us to be priests, prophets and kings for the Lord.
Like Jesus who responded to the call of the Holy Spirit to begin His life of service, we too are called to respond to the
promptings of the Holy Spirit in giving of the gift of ourselves in loving service. We are called by the Holy Spirit to look at the blessings
and talents that we have received from God and to follow the Spirit’s lead in offering them back to the Lord. As we journey through
the this new year may we serve the Lord, by helping and praying for our brothers and sisters in Christ, especially those in great need.
God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

May the Blessings of the Christ Child be with you.
This Christmas will be my twelfth at Good Shepherd Catholic Community and I am amazed each year at the spirit of giving and
love that is revealed in so many beautiful ways during the Advent/Christmas season. Thanks to all who took tags from the giving tree and donated Christmas gifts A special thanks to all who donated to the Christmas flower fund and to the local food pantries. Thanks in advance to all the people who so beautifully decorate our churches, and all who helped to provided music and song at the Masses. Hearing the Christmas hymns each year makes the Christmas liturgies special. Thanks as well to the liturgical ministers who helped at the Christmas Masses. Your ministries throughout the year help to make our liturgies a joyful expression of our faith. As we celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Christmas is fast approaching. May we use the last days of Advent to invite Jesus into our heart anew.
Wednesday evening, we will begin the celebration of Our Savior’s Birth. My prayer for you is that the Holy Spirit may continue to
grow in your hearts to bring the healing grace of Jesus upon you and your families. Mary, the Mother of God, gave birth to Jesus
through the power of the Holy Spirit. May the Spirit of God rest upon you to enable you to make Jesus present to others through your compassion, love, and mercy. May God’s Spirit help you each day in your efforts to bring about the justice and peace of God’s kingdom.
The Christmas season is a time when we gather as a faith community for many special liturgical celebrations. The season
begins with the Christmas Eve and Christmas Day Masses and continues next weekend on the Feast of the Holy Family. It is a day to reflect on the family of our origin and pray that Jesus will touch our family with his healing love and enable us to live each day in unity and peace. Masses will also be celebrated New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day for the Feast of Mary, Mother of God. May we begin the New Year honoring Mary, the Mother of God, and praying together that the Peace of Christ will be experienced in our world, in our country and in our own heart. The following weekend, January 3/4, we celebrate Epiphany, and we close out the Octave of Epiphany and the Christmas Season on January 10/11 with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. May we celebrate all these special feasts, during the Christmas Season, in the joy of knowing that Jesus has come to live with us, and in us, until the end of time.
On behalf of the parish staff of Good Shepherd Catholic Community, I wish all of you a Blessed Christmas. I thank God for
the privilege of serving such wonderful people of faith. Merry Christmas, Father Bill

The Third Sunday of Advent is Gaudete Sunday, the Sunday we light the pink candle on the Advent wreath. Gaudete is
from the Latin verb gaudere (to rejoice). It is a command ordering us to rejoice! May we rejoice in the Lord always as we reflect on
the gift of Jesus our Savior. During the last days of Advent we reflect on the meaning of the first Christmas, that Christ’s birth
brought salvation to his time, to our time and to all time. From December 17-24, the O Antiphons are used in the liturgical prayers of
the church. The Antiphons name the Christ who came into our world to set us free. Most of us are familiar with the hymn, “O Come,
O Come Emmanuel” a hymn based on the O Antiphons. The seven traditional “O Antiphons” are actually more than a thousand
years old. They have long been used as Antiphons for the “Magnificat” prayed during Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours.
Since the Second Vatican Council, they have also been adapted for the “Alleluia Verse” sung before the gospel at Mass. Each Antiphon invokes the coming of the Messiah, beginning with a biblical title and closing with a specific petition. As we journey through
these last days of Advent may we use these Antiphons as our prayer to invite Jesus to come anew into our hearts and lives.
The O Antiphons
O Wisdom, O Holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet tender care. Come and show your people the way to
salvation.
O Sacred Lord of Ancient Israel, who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush, who gave him the holy law on Sinai mountain:
come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free.
O Flower of Jesse’s Stem, you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples: kings stand silent in your presence; the nations bow
down in worship before you. Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid.
O Key of David, O Royal Power of Israel controlling at your will the gate of heaven: come break down the prison walls of death for
those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death; and lead your captive people into freedom.
O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of Justice: come, shine on those who dwell in the darkness and the shadow of death.
O King of the Nations, the only joy of every human heart; O Keystone of the Mighty arch of man, come and save the creature you
fashioned from the dust.
O Emmanuel, king and lawgiver, desire of the nations, Savior of all people: come and set us free, Lord our God.
God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill