As we begin this New Year, let the Lord’s blessing come upon all of you. As the Lord said the Moses and Moses to Aaron and his sons, this is how you shall bless…
The LORD bless and keep you!
The LORD let his face shine upon you,and be gracious to you!
The LORD look upon you kindly and give you peace!
as proclaimed in our First Reading on January 1, 2026, the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God.
Ushering in the New Year always brings with it a mix of excitement and hope and maybe even some fear of those challenges and struggles we may need to face in 2026. As we heard this past Advent, hope is possible and with Christmas, we can believe the best is yet to come. We have made many special connections this past year as a Jubilee Church and my hope is that our community connections continue to grow.
Again, we talked about hope during the Season of Advent. There is ample cause for hope and it can be strengthened. The daytime is already getting longer and the Christ child, the Light of the World, shines once again. In this new year let’s dream big and see where His light takes us.
While Christmas decorations may be coming down, our new year is off to a busy start.
This week on Tuesday, January 6th the ChristLife Series continues with “Following Christ. It is not too late to register on-line. Join us as we share our faith with numerous members of our parish. Religious Ed will also resume this week.
Then on Friday, January 9th Catholic Families Connect (CFC) and Elementary Families Together (EFT) will sponsor a joint Epiphany Family Event from 5:30 PM-7:30 PM in our gym. It will be a wonderful time for our young families to learn about the Feast of the Epiphany, share prayers, fellowship and a special blessing for the new year. It is also a time that the children can participate in a Service Project by bringing deli meats, cheese and bread to make sandwiches for neighbors in need. Please register using this link https://my.sainthelen.org/OnlineReg/3142.
While new year resolutions are one way to start the new year, I’d like to focus on asking that each of us “dream big!”
Let us spend more time with our family and those closest to us. Let us continue to find new ways to meet our mission as we Worship God, Serve Others and Make Disciples.
Let us make our parish community a place where more and more disciples can call it home.
God Bless You All,
Msgr. Tom
