December 24 - 25, 2011 Dear Cathedral Community, A Blessed and Joyful Christmas to you all! May the presence of our Savior bring warmth and peace to your hearts. The liturgies of Advent have been quite beautiful. The preparations for the Solemnity of the birth of Christ Jesus have been many and varied. Our gratitude to all who have brought about a joyful celebration of this great Feast. In particular, let us thank... Morna Patrick and the crew who erected the Nativity Creche, Judy Cunningham and all the Heavenly Dusters who brought freshness and renewal to the Cathedral and the Blessed Sacrament Chapel as well as Kathy Tierney, Dr. Pat Crawford and the members of our Singles Group who joined in the cleaning and food preparation, Ed Green, the Laudis Cantores and all the musicians who joined in the magnificent “joyful noise” unto the Lord, Dr. Margie PIke and the many volunteers and visitors of our Cathedral Kitchen, And finally, to all of you......our wonderful parishioners, and the many who joined us at the Cathedral giving God the glory for being present among us, and promising to return in glory. If you are reading this column, and joining us for the first time, or are an occasional visitor, we welcome you as we welcome Christ Himself. If you are seeking a faith home, please return and join our Cathedral Community where we have celebrated a “Living Tradition, and a Promising Hope” since 1898. Check out our web site at info@ssppc.org Sincerely yours in Christ-among-us, Father Noah
December 17 - 18, 2011 Dear Cathedral Community, This beautiful time of Advent has gone by in a flash. We have one more wonderful week to ponder the readings from the Sacred Scriptures preparing us for Christmas. In reality, this four week period of Advent is a preparation not only for the event of Christmas, but more importantly, it is an introduction to a life long attitude of vigilance as we await the return of the Lord in glory at the end of human time. This attitude of vigilance helps us to put all of life into a Christian perspective reminding us, among other things, that we are destined to share the kingdom of God as our ultimate home. What we do in this world and how we live all points to that fact that this world is a passing experience not intended to be an end in itself but a passageway into a greater reality of God’s eternal love. To live faithfully in the present, with gratitude for our past leads us into hope for the world to come. When these points are in balance, so are our lives. As I mentioned to the participants at the Common Leadership Meeting last week, we will be hosting a good number of visitors for the various Christmas liturgies especially at the 5:00 PM Christmas Eve and Midnight liturgies. Many of these folks come only once a year to the Cathedral. Some come from other parishes as part of a family tradition. Others are not Catholic, but who appreciate the liturgical experience. Some fall into the category known as “un-churched”. There, of course, are always the “Christers”, that is, Christmas and Easter only participants, or as my cousin of happy memory, Father Jim Sweeney, used to say the “non-season ticket holders”. (Imagine their surprise, we they hear the new texts!) In any case, WE WELCOME THEM ALL! As the Cathedral community, let’s put our hearts and souls into welcoming and giving the gift of hospitality. This just might be a time when those lingering at the edge of church participation could be drawn in by our kindness and joyful welcome. We all share this responsibility. Thanks to all who joined in the December 10 creche project and church cleaning. The Heavenly Dusters live on! Thanks to Morna Patrick and Judy Cunningham and their respective crews. Great job, folks! Come, Lord Jesus, come! Father Noah December 17 - 18, 2011 Dear Cathedral Community, This beautiful time of Advent has gone by in a flash. We have one more wonderful week to ponder the readings from the Sacred Scriptures preparing us for Christmas. In reality, this four week period of Advent is a preparation not only for the event of Christmas, but more importantly, it is an introduction to a life long attitude of vigilance as we await the return of the Lord in glory at the end of human time. This attitude of vigilance helps us to put all of life into a Christian perspective reminding us, among other things, that we are destined to share the kingdom of God as our ultimate home. What we do in this world and how we live all points to that fact that this world is a passing experience not intended to be an end in itself but a passageway into a greater reality of God’s eternal love. To live faithfully in the present, with gratitude for our past leads us into hope for the world to come. When these points are in balance, so are our lives. As I mentioned to the participants at the Common Leadership Meeting last week, we will be hosting a good number of visitors for the various Christmas liturgies especially at the 5:00 PM Christmas Eve and Midnight liturgies. Many of these folks come only once a year to the Cathedral. Some come from other parishes as part of a family tradition. Others are not Catholic, but who appreciate the liturgical experience. Some fall into the category known as “un-churched”. There, of course, are always the “Christers”, that is, Christmas and Easter only participants, or as my cousin of happy memory, Father Jim Sweeney, used to say the “non-season ticket holders”. (Imagine their surprise, we they hear the new texts!) In any case, WE WELCOME THEM ALL! As the Cathedral community, let’s put our hearts and souls into welcoming and giving the gift of hospitality. This just might be a time when those lingering at the edge of church participation could be drawn in by our kindness and joyful welcome. We all share this responsibility. Thanks to all who joined in the December 10 creche project and church cleaning. The Heavenly Dusters live on! Thanks to Morna Patrick and Judy Cunningham and their respective crews. Great job, folks! Come, Lord Jesus, come! Father Noah
December 10 - 11, 2011 Dear Cathedral Community, This weekend has traditionally been called “Gaudete Sunday” from the Latin for “Rejoice” as we are at the halfway point in Advent, and journeying toward Christmas. The church wears rose colored vestments today as we blush at the nearness of our God. Mary Oss reminds us that we have plenty of Cathedral Christmas Card inventory along with a number of Cathedral Music CD’s. They are on sale in the Narthex. Please check out these items for great Christmas Gifts. Thanks to everyone who participated in the Common Leadership Meeting last Sunday. The sessions seem to be productive with practical resolutions. This past Monday the Cathedral hosted the annual High School Seniors Mass with Bishop Coyne presiding and preaching. About 1100 Seniors were in attendance. There are two remaining Sunday evening Vesper liturgies tonight, Sunday December 11 and December 18 at 5 PM. Come and join us for this wonderful, peaceful Advent prayer. On a very practical matter, because Christmas and New Year’s Day fall on Sundays, we “loose” two collections. In fact, there are two envelopes in your packet this year, one for the Feast Days and another one for the sundays. This makes a huge impact on our budget. Thanks for your generosity and consideration. Please note the recently revised weekday liturgical schedule. In particular I call your attention to the two opportunities for the Sacrament of Reconciliation: Tuesday evening following the 5:15 PM Mass, and over the noon hour on every Friday beginning at 12:00 Noon. Plan accordingly as you prepare spiritually for the celebration of Christmas. How is your Advent observance going? Are you finding time to relish the wonderful Scripture readings and the Advent music? Come, Lord Jesus, come! Father Noah
December 3 - 4, 2011
Dear Cathedral Community, In last week’s homily, I referred to the use of our spiritual gifts to assist us in keeping watch for the return of the Savior. One of those gifts is the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I want to call your attention to the Intra-parish Penance Service (Cathedral, St. Mary and Holy Cross), on Tuesday, December 20 at 7:00 PM in St. Mary Church at the corner of Vermont and New Jersey. There will be a number of confessors available to you. Don’t forget about our new times for Reconciliation here at the Cathedral: after the 5:15 PM Tuesday evening Mass and on every Friday from Noon to 1:00 PM. Recall that there will no longer be Confessions on Saturday afternoon due to very poor participation. Hopefully, the new times will be more “user friendly”. I also encourage you to consult THE CRITERION for a complete listing of Penance Services throughout the season of Advent. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE TO CELEBRATE THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION. While we are considering the Sacrament of Reconciliation, let’s reflect for a moment on the practice of Confession. Preparation: It is important to spend some preparing for Confession. In the back of the Chapel, you will find a helpful guide in a holder in the back of the Chapel. The Ritual: Begin with the words, “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been ______ since my last confession.” Recognize the major stumbling blocks in your relationship with God and others. If you need help, let the Confessor assist you. At the conclusion of this, the Confessor will assign you a penance usually in the form of prayers. Occasionally, I like to give printed cards with Psalms as a Penance. Then, the Confessor will invite you to pray aloud an Act of Contrition by memory or in your own words. We keep the form in the Reconciliation if you care to use it. The Confessor will then pray the words of Absolution at the end of which you will bless yourself. It is important to pray your Penance before you leave the Chapel. Regularity: While it is not a law of the Church, I typically suggest that one comes to Reconciliation once each Liturgical Season. Clue: When we change the color of our vestments, it’s time for Confession! Habitual sin is best overcome by building habits of grace, and regular Confession provides a great assistance in our efforts of conversion. This coming week we will celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8. Please note the following schedule of Masses for this Holy Day of Obligation: Wednesday evening, December 7 at 5:15 PM; Thursday, December 8 at 8:00 AM (Chapel), Noon (Cathedral), and 5:15 PM (Chapel). Please remember this is the Patronal Feast of the United States. This Feast commemorates the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin without stain of original sin in preparation for her special and singular role in the history of salvation as the Mother of God. There are only two Dogmas declared infallibly, and both have to do with the Blessed Mother in her Immaculate Conception and her Assumption into Heaven. Finally, don’t forget to join us for the cleaning of the church and creche set up next Saturday, December 10 at 9:00 am. We need all the cleaners we can assemble. We’ll have fun and something to share to eat for lunch. Thanks to Judy Cunningham for serving as coordinator of the Heavenly Dusters. Come, Lord Jesus, come!
Father Noah | 
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