“We desire to be able to welcome Jesus at Christmas-time, not in a cold manger of our heart, but in a heart full of love and humility, in a heart so pure, so immaculate, so warm with love for one another” – St. Teresa of Calcutta

Dear Friends of St. Joseph,

The month of December is always a month of contradictory experiences; on one hand, we are blitzed by offers from many branded lifestyle necessities. On the other, God grants an offer to everyone – a free salvation – by sending His only begotten Son in the form of human flesh in this snowy winter, a time when Santa Claus is singing “Jingle Bells” and children are waiting for their Christmas gifts.

We also celebrate another important event in this month – the feast of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception. It was on December 8, 1854, Pope Pius IX declared that at no moment in Mary’s life, contrary to us who have a human nature tainted by original sin because of the fall of Adam and Eve, was she under the dominion of sin. She was conceived without original sin and freed from its influence even in the womb of her mother, St. Anne. From the very first moment of her life, the Blessed Virgin Mary and our Mother too, was in the original state of the fullness of grace. She was in the state of the original blessing. In other words, she was conceived immaculately in the womb of her mother without the stain of sin.

We also celebrate in this month the birth of our Founder, St. Louis Guanella, on December 19th. He was a holy soul, one who had a special love for those who were physically and mentally disabled.

In addition, on December 28th, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Innocents, the first martyrs for our Lord Jesus. It’s the time we need to pray especially for the unborn in our country. As we begin the new liturgical season of Advent, a preparation to welcome for the coming of the newborn child Jesus, let’s prepare ourselves more generously to receive the child Jesus – to allow Him to be born in our hearts.

St. Augustine says, “Where your pleasure is, there is your treasure; where your treasure is, there is your heart; where your heart is, there is your happiness”. So let us always try to find Jesus as the true treasure, the one who is the ultimate source of happiness for our lives. May this Holy Christmas bring love, peace, and joy to dwell in our hearts, our families, and the community in which we live.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

&

A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR 2019

With Love and Prayers,

Fr. Leo Joseph SdC

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