Children of God



My grandmother with baby Belia
at our Uncle Art's 50th Birthday Party

In this octave of Christmas, as we celebrate the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ,

       my co-worker became a grandmother for the fourth time to her daughter's first child, baby Robby,

       my uncle, Fr. Art Gramaje, CMF had a 50th birthday party where a couple he married recently showed up with their 8-week old baby Belia,

       a friend of the family expecting their first child hosted a baby shower (years after a miscarriage),

       we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family today.

This is a wonder-filled time to be reminded that we are all children of God and, as today's gospel reading says, "called to grow in wisdom and age and favor before God and man."

Will conclude this post with a Prayer Blessing of a Child in the Womb, just recently approved by the USCCB. Feel free to celebrate this blessing rite during Advent, on Mother's Day, on the Annunciation, or any other appropriate time throughout the year. May we all continue to remember to give praise and thanks for this most great gift God has given us...the gift of life and of course LOVE.

Merry Christmas!

Did you know?

St. James Cathedral in Seattle

Did you know that the anniversary day of the dedication of your parish church is supposed to be observed as a solemnity in your church?

And what is more, December 22, the Anniversary of the Dedication of St. James Cathedral is ranked as a feast day in the Archdiocese. This Saturday, the prayers for the anniversary of the dedication of a church are said, white vestments are worn and a Gloria is to be sung or said. (but just to clarify, not at tomorrow evening's Mass, which celebrates the 4th Sunday of Advent) 

Why does the liturgical calendar place such significance on these anniversaries? The answer lies in the fact that these celebrations are not so much about the building, but the Church made up of living stones, fashioned together into one body, with Christ Jesus as the head.

Be sure to make plans to observe the anniversary of the dedication of your church as well as the dedication of St. James Cathedral on December 22. These feasts help us recall what God is doing in and through the Church.

Taken from the Liturgy Line, Advent 2012 issue

Subscribe to the Liturgy Line, a liturgical resource published by the Archdiocese of Seattle

 



Heaven on Earth...

...the divine liturgy.

Sacred Heart University celebrated a special liturgy in memory of those who died in the tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

IMass?

Saw this in a catalog at the office today. Aware that we are in a digital age, hopefully we will be cautious not to put Liturgy at the service of technology.

 

 

 

O Wisdom

These last days of Advent (also known as the Octave before Christmas) mark the beginning of the great "O" Antiphons. Familiarized by the popular Advent hymn, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," these antiphons refer to the seven antiphons recited (or chanted) preceding the Magnificat during Vespers of the Liturgy of the Hours, which form a series of invocations, each beginning with "O." Each of these seven antiphons refer to a title of Christ the Messiah. The Lectionary for Mass also offers these texts as alternatives for the Gospel acclamation verse for each of these final days of Advent.

If you remove the "O" that begins each antiphon and list them starting from the last night (December 23rd) and make your way towards the first night (December 17th), you get:

Emmanuel, Rex, Oriens, Clavis, Radix, Adonai, Sapientia.

Taking the first letter of each antiphon as listed above, you get the Latin sentence "ero cras" which roughly translates "Tomorrow I come." These antiphons not only remind us of the tree that has not yet been decorated, the Christmas cards still needing to be written, or the hopefully final run to the mall for last-minute gift shopping, but it also reminds us that these last few days are a time to rejoice, because of the coming of Christ, the Messiah!

Interested in joining me, as I go out into the cold and rain for the next seven nights to make the Simbang Gabi novena at St. Edward Church to prepare for Christmas? If not, here's a joy-filled way to pray a Christmas novena with the great "O Antiphons," courtesy of St. James Cathedral's website. 
Best part is that you won't have to leave your living room!

Simbang Gabi Commissioning Mass

This past Saturday, St. James Cathedral hosted the Commissioning Mass of coordinators of the Simbang Gabi novena throughout the Archdiocese. The timing of this celebration could not have been more appropriate.

In light of the horrific shooting in Newtown, Connecticut last Friday, we are reminded that now more than ever there is a need for the light of Christ. Not only must we be the Christ light for others, but this same Christ light must lead our way and guide us in all we do.

In his homily at the Simbang Gabi commissioning mass, Archbishop Sartain described how he was led into the Cathedral by the many parols (star-shaped Christmas lanterns) which represent this very light of Christ, the victory of light over darkness. As he processed in, he was reminded that it is always Christ who must guide his way...guide our way.

During this dark time in our lives, in our country, and especially in the lives of those affected by the shooting in Connecticut, may we find the light of Christ as a source of hope and strength; may we be the light of Christ for others; may we allow the light of Christ to guide our lives.

Chancery Advent Gathering

Today, the Chancery Employees were invited to gather with Archbishop Sartain for the annual Christmas Mass and Luncheon. At this celebration, most employees are decked out with their boughs of holly, wearing red blouses with Christmas trees or a knitted blue sweater with snowflakes, (this year we even had offices wearing antlers and mistletoe on their heads) I, on the other hand, wear one of my favorite purple dress shirts. After all, we are still in the season of Advent.

Whether you see it as a Christmas or Advent celebration, it was a wonderful gathering! Archbishop Sartain delivered an inspirational homily at Mass celebrating the feast of St. John of the Cross. The theme was that no matter how the public sees you or may judge you, no matter how they treat you, we must remain strong in our faith and prayer. Just as we hear in today's gospel, we can "play the flute" and yet no one will "dance."  We could be seen as a glutton or a drunkard or friends of tax collectors. Our day may have begun by someone yelling over the phone towards us, but no matter what happens in our lives, we must remain rooted in Jesus. We must hold firm in prayer. We must remain grounded in our faith. It is only in Christ Jesus that we are able to remain rooted in our faith and prayer life and are able to continue to serve God's people for His greater glory!

Ang Pasko ay Sumapit

As the popular Filipino Christmas Carol translates, Christmas is indeed coming! 

We're half-way through Advent, "O" Antiphons will soon be sung, and this Sunday, priests may pull out the rose-colored vestments to set a tone of joyful expectation for the Lord's birth and Second Coming.

As we are one day closer to welcoming our Savior, this Saturday begins the Simbang Gabi novena with the archdiocesan celebration at St. James Cathedral. Mass begins at 11:00am with a blessing of all the parols (Filipino star lanterns) from parishes celebrating a Simbang Gabi Mass. This year, three parishes in the archdiocese are hosting the full nine-day novena. Here is the full calendar of the Simbang Gabi celebrations throughout the Archdiocese.

Let us all take advantage of these joyous opportunities to celebrate and proclaim the joy and hope we have in the birth of our Savior and King.

Historic Day...

...and not just because it's 12/12/12.

Today is the day Pope Benedict sent his first tweet:

"I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart."

The Pope has already answered three questions from his "followers" and counting.
Follow the Pope on twitter!

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

As they say, pictures (or in this case, a video with music) speak louder than words...especially when it comes to celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!

This video (courtesy of Isaac Govea of the Hispanic Ministry Office) is a beautiful compilation of pictures taken at this year's Archdiocesan Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Madre de las Americas, which was celebrated on December 1st. The day began with a Rosary at St. Mary's Church followed by a procession to St. James Cathedral for the Mass. Then of course, a gran fiesta! (Unfortunately, no pictures of the tamales.)

¡Que viva la Virgen de Guadalupe!



Roman Missal: One Year Later

"The New Evangelization calls each of us to deepen our faith, believe in the Gospel message and go forth to proclaim the Gospel...The New Evangelization invites each Catholic to renew their relationship with Jesus Christ and his Church." (taken from the USCCB website)

It's been a little more than a year since we began praying "and with your Spirit".

One day after Catholic News Service posted a news brief on the acceptance of the translation by majority of Catholics, I'm still left wondering if we have truly been inspired to "deepen our faith" and "believe in the Gospel message" as we are called to do in this Year of Faith, or are we simply playing monkey see monkey do? or in this case, monkey say?

Here is a link to a two-page survey that is being done at All Saints parish in Puyallup that might interest you, whether for personal or parish use. Thanks to Paula Schmitz, Pastoral Associate for Music and Liturgy at All Saints, for sharing this wonderful resource.

And just weeks after the assembly began saying "It is right and just," St. James Cathedral also conducted a parish survey on how the implementation was going. Here is a link to the questions they asked and their full report.

Not that I'm encouraging your parish to go out and do a survey of what your community thinks of the Roman Missal. But just wondering if anyone else is thinking more about the one year birthday of the 3rd Edition of the Roman Missal and how we can challenge the assembly to "proclaim the Gospel" message of Christ. Have we already grown nonchalant?

With the New Evangelization inviting us to learn more about Christ and as we enter into the second year of hearing prayers with no punctuation, let us invite others (and even ourselves) to articulate and live out our experience of the Paschal Mystery.