Dec 14, 2022

Greetings,

Happy Fourth Sunday in Advent! There is much bustling about the parish, as I am sure it is in your home, getting ready for Christmas. May your final preparations help make your welcoming of Christ a joyous, blessed event.

This particular Christmas, which only comes once every seven years, makes parochial vicars happy and pastors sad, for this Christmas falls on a Sunday. That means one fewer homily to be written and extra time to work on a good Christmas homily. That’s the part that parochial vicars like. The part that makes pastors sad is that it is that we lose a collection. (Amazing how perspectives change like that.) So, as your pastor, I am asking you to please remember your parish in your generosity on this particular Christmas. Thank you for your consideration and know of my prayers.

IN OTHER NEWS:

PARISH CANDLELIGHT CHRISTMAS CONCERT: Lynn Steward, our singers and other musicians will be performing our Parish Candlelight Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 18 at 7pm. This concert is free and open to the public. Thank you to our fellow parishioners who are putting so much effort into this concert for our enjoyment!

FINAL ORGAN RECITAL: The final Noon, Advent Adoration and Organ Recital will be this Tuesday! This could be a great, relaxing moment before the rush of Christmas!

LAST CONFESSIONS BEFORE CHRISTMAS: Please note that the last scheduled confessions before the Christmas Masses will be from 4 to 5 o’clock on Friday, December 23.

CHRISTMAS MASSES: The Mass schedule at Christmas is a little bit different from our typical Sunday Mass schedule. Please note the times:

Saturday, December 24

• Christmas Eve 4:00pm Children’s Mass - St. Sebastian Parish School Band, Cantor and Organ, music begins at 3:45pm
• 7:00pm Mass - Bachman and Friends, music begins at 6:45pm
• Midnight Mass - St. Sebastian Parish Choir, music begins at 11:20pm

Sunday, December 25

• Christmas 9:00am Mass - Cantor and Organ, music begins at 8:45am
• 11:00am Mass - Contemporary Worship Group, music begins at 10:45am
• 1:00pm Extraordinary From (Latin) Mass - Gregorian Schola

***At the end of the Mass at midnight for Christmas, the choir will sing Handle’s Hallelujah Chorus and they invite you to bring your own score to sing along with them.

LIVESTREAM: All of a sudden, all the tradesmen we have been waiting to do work around the parish descended en mass two Thursdays ago. It began with the demolition of the brick driveway. Down in Zwisler Hall, new lights on the stage and a new sound system was being installed. Also, a team was in the rectory and church working on fixing our internet at the church. The connection is fixed! But we need a week to re-apply for copyrights of music and to gather the operators. The first Mass to be live-streamed once again (if all goes well) will be the Midnight Mass on Christmas.

God bless,

Fr. Valencheck