A Note From Father Eickhoff
January 7, 2024
Today’s Feast of the Epiphany marks the end of the Church’s celebration of Christmas. After today we will once again switch to Ordinary Time (and the color green) until the start of the Season of Lent. There is an ancient tradition in the Church that on the Feast of the Epiphany the dates for the Lenten and Easter Season are read out since their dates change from year to year. In this spirit I want to list out the upcoming feasts and celebrations of the Church Year:
February 14th – Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the Season of Lent
March 24th – Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week
March 28th – Holy Thursday
March 29th – Good Friday
March 30th – Holy Saturday
March 31st – Easter Sunday and the beginning of the Season of Easter
May 19th – Pentecost Sunday and the end of the Season of Easter
Having come to the end of the Christmas Season, I want to thank one more time the many people in the parish who volunteered their time to assist in the liturgies during this season. There are a great many ways in which parishioners help and if I forget one of these ways, please forgive me. The Ushers have one of the more difficult volunteer roles during the Christmas Season for they stand in for the entire parish when they greet people who are coming to church. Many of these people are coming to church for the first time in a long time and their impression of the friendliness of the parish are made by the Ushers. The Ushers also have the responsibility of trying to find seats for the people at the 4pm Christmas Eve Mass. The Lectors, the Eucharistic Ministers, and the Altar Servers all have an important role in the Christmas Liturgy which is at the very center of our Catholic faith and our worship and praise of God. The musicians and choir members as well have an important part in our celebration of Christmas. Consider how much of the “Christmas spirit” that we long for and hope to build within us is tied to the music of the Christmas Season. Without music our Christmas celebrations would be lacking in both joy and tradition. Finally, the Arts and Environment Committee did a wonderful job this year in decorating the church for Christmas.
Once again my thanks to everyone who helped out this Christmas Season.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Stephen Eickhoff
Pastor