What is a Parishioner?

What is a parishioner? The Psalm says,

“Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.”

Before we were baptized, we were under a death sentence. Without baptism we cannot hope for eternal life. Eternal life is only possible with God. Adam and Eve rejected God, and as a result, their children were shut out of Heaven. Because of our baptism our sins have been forgiven and we are admitted to life with God, life with the Sacraments, eternal life. Baptism makes us citizens of God’s Kingdom, citizens of Heaven; citizens of His Church. [Read more…]

Jesus’ birth was the greatest event in the history of mankind. The event was so great that all historical time is now counted as time before Jesus’ birth (“B.C”) and after Jesus’ birth (A.D., or “anno domini”, year of our Lord. The time before was when Death ruled the world. In the time after Jesus’ coming, Death was defeated. What other human event could be the center of our time?

Jesus’ birth was not a “surprise party”. God did not sneak up on men when he became a man. [Read more…]

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary. For thousands of years our faith has recognized that some feasts are of a higher order than others. We use the word solemnity today to indicate the fact that the feast of the Motherhood of Mary, Mother of God, is of the highest rank for the entire Church. Easter Sunday is announced as the solemnity of solemnities, as it is the feast that has the highest rank over all other Sundays and feast days.

Today is a major solemnity. [Read more…]