The Fourth Sunday of Advent
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about…
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet…
Christianity, generally, and Catholicism, in particular, are grounded and rooted in verifiable fact and in human history. This isn’t really necessary for religion in general. Popular religions like Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, and Atheism (which is a religion in every meaningful way) are all un-grounded in history, irrational, non-factual, and anti-human. But from the earliest days, Judaism was concerned about being grounded in specific places and upon the human person of specific individuals with real human nature. The story of Lot’s wife, of Sodom, and of Gemmorah are all real in a way that the perfect and sinless Mohammad or the mystical Shiva are not. The Jews were concerned with recording the virtues and the flaws of their leaders. The Jews acknowledged the essential role of women in their culture and in positions of leadership (c.f. Deborah in Judges). Even mystical individuals like Elijah and Elisha are remembered in the context of verifiable historical events. The story of Jesus begins with a long genealogy tracing Him to David, Moses, and even Adam. Long before the biology of human reproduction was deeply understood, Christianity recognized that the birth of Jesus was preceded by Mary’s “yes” to God’s will as delivered by the Archangel Gabriel.
The history of the Church is the history of humanity and the Catholic understanding of Sacramentality is a genuine union of the spiritual realities of the world being manifested in physical actions and individual persons. Jesus founded the Church on the person of Peter. Peter passed along his authority by an invisible prayer and the visible act of laying on hands. Baptism happens by a visible washing to accomplish an invisible soul cleaning.
How is Jesus among us today? Is He merely in our hearts? NO! Jesus is present in the world visibly in the Holy Eucharist. And the Lord has provided numerous Eucharistic Miracles in order to confirm to the science of various ages that what is visible as bread is also invisible as the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of the Son of God.
Every Christian can trace his or her faith back to the preaching of a fellow human being. Every Baptized Christian was baptized by someone else. Every priest was ordained by someone else. Every sin which is forgiven sacramentally is forgiven by a fellow sinner. Every Catholic bishop can trace his “lineage” of authority back to one of the apostles.
And all of this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about - visibly. And while Jesus certainly does and says plenty which comes as a surprise, the Church fathers identified over a hundred passages in the Old Testament which make specific promises about the Messiah and which are fulfilled in Jesus.
This union of the physical, testable, tangible, historical aspects of our Faith and our human nature with the invisible, unimaginable, super- natural realities of God and His creation is what makes Christianity fundamentally true and all other religions fundamentally false. It’s what makes Catholicism the truest and most intellectually honest expression of Christianity. It’s what resonates most deeply with our Human Nature and it’s why we need to celebrate and remember the stories of Christmas every year!
We can’t just think of these stories as factual data that we commit to memory like our times tables or the Articles of the Constitution. These events which took place at the entry of Jesus into the world are constitutive of our understanding why we believe and how we believe. These events are less like factual history and more like the stories we tell at family gatherings which draw us together and underlie our sense of identity.
We need to be able to explain how our family’s sense of self came about and so we need to tell the sweet story about Aunt Rhonda, the embarrassing story about Uncle Mike, and the slightly disturbing story about Grandpa. These stories ground us as a family and as individuals. We need to be grounded in the story of Christmas for many of the same reasons and to accomplish the same ends.
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Donald and Payton Trichell/family
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a In memory of J E “Boyzie” Jumonville/family
- Mon NO MASS
- Tues 9:00a In memory of C L Keene/family
- Wed 4:00p Christmas Eve … PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Wed 6:00p Christmas Eve … In memory of Jamie Howington, Sr/family
- Thu 9:30a (Traditional Latin Mass)Christmas Day … In memory of Eva Reynolds (birth anni)/family
- Fri 5:30p In memory of Brian Stamey/family
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Joseph Testa (birth anni)/Magoun
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a In memory of Paul VanderVieren (death anni)/family
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for the special intentions of Margo Corulla
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) | EMHC(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/20 5:30p | - | M A Gilfoil | M Rome |
| 12/21 9:30a | Annie, Thomas Meyers, Katelyn | Youth - Jamal | - |
| 12/27 5:30p | - | M Rome | C VanderVieren |
| 12/28 9:30a | Michael, Finley, Ashlyn | D Ellerbee | - |
Upcoming Events
- Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass and Sunday from 9a until Mass
- Dec 21 Birthday Party for Jesus following Sunday Mass in Church Hall
- Dec 21 Adult Christmas Party - 6p in Church Hall - see notes elsewhere in bulletin
- Dec 24/5 Christmas, the Nativity of Jesus Christ - Holy Day of Obligation
For Your Information:
CHRISTMAS MASS SCHEDULE Christmas is a Holy Day of Obligation. As an experiment this year and because of our increased numbers, our Christmas schedule will be a little different:
- Christmas Eve (Wed, Dec 24) 4:00p Simple Mass without Music
- Christmas Eve (Wed, Dec 24) 6:00p Main Mass with Music, Caroling beforehand, Blessing of Creche
- Christmas Day (Thu, Dec 25) 9:30a Mass (in Latin)
- Note: due to single-digit attendance at Mass on Christmas Morning for the past several years, there will be no English Mass on Christmas Day. All are welcome to attend the Latin Mass (sermon in English).
ANGEL TREE You can still make a monetary gift to be used for personal care items, a religious book, and food items for family food baskets. (Cash gifts may be put in the collection basket, given to Father Ryan, or left at the church office.) Special thanks to our coordinators, Dana Hamilton and Dana Dukes, for their hard work!
CHILDREN’S BIRTHDAY PARTY FOR JESUS will be this Sunday, December 21 in the Church Hall after Mass and in place of Sunday Catechism. Thanks to Kendra Collins for her hard work again this year.
OUR CHRISTMAS PARTY (for adult parishioners and their guests) is this Sunday, December 21 beginning around 6p in the Parish Hall. Participants may bring chips, dips, and other finger food. Thanks in advance to all those helping out…especially Stephenie Marsh and Shannon Woods who have given leadership to this..
ENVELOPES for CHRISTMAS FLOWERS can be found at the entrance to the church. Donations may be made “In Memory of” (for the deceased) or “In Honor of” (for the living). Please place envelopes in the collection or return them to Fr Ryan or the church office.
CONGRATULATIONS to Alex and Morgan Gilfoil on the birth of their BABY BOY Palmer Scott Gilfoil, great- grandson of parishioners, Margaret and Pat Gilfoil. He was born on December 3, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas. Palmer’s grandparents are Jamie and Wendy Gilfoil, Magnolia, Texas.
CONGRATULATIONS to Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, and Marsh Wood who graduated from LSU earlier this week. Congratulations, too, to parents Chip and Beth Sullivan and Bart and Shannon Wood and proud grandparents Leslye Ellerbee and William and Sharyn Marsh.
FORMED.ORG has weekly features at https://watch.formed.org/this-week-on-formed. Remember to sign in using our parish’s zip code (71282) at https://signup.formed.org
ROSARY GROUP meets on Monday at 5:30p for prayer and supper. Everyone is invited. Contact Louise Magoun (318-341-2403), coordinator for more information.
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2025-2026 | $ 2,500 |
| November Budget | $ 12,500 |
| November Collections | $ 17,012 |
| November Expenses | $ 11,641 |
| December Budget | $ 10,000 |
| December 14 Collection | $ 4,623 |
| Collections To Date | $ 8,029 |
Stewardship When he discovered that Mary was with child, Joseph resolved to end their engagement with as little disgrace as possible. But, obedient to the voice of God, he changed those plans and became instead the protector of the child, Jesus, and His mother, Mary. God grant that I may be as open to the leading of the Holy Spirit!
Let us Rejoice in the Lord!
Happy Birthday Christy Guizerix (Dec 22), Catherine and Harrison Riddick (Dec 22), Emmy Lou Marsh (Dec 27), Emory Dukes (Dec 30)
In Our Daily Prayers…
Please let us know of anyone who is ill or hospitalized and would like to receive a visit from Father. Also, help us keep our prayer list up to date by advising us of those who should be added or removed.
For our Pope, Leo XIV, our Bishop, Robert Marshall; and our Diocesan leaders, our President, Governor, Mayor and national, state and local elected representatives
Our parishioners who are sick, shut-in, under full-time care and for those who care for them, and for those otherwise in need of our prayers: MaryKathryn & Nap Book, Chris, Susan, and David Cagnolatti, Connie & Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Leslye Ellerbee, Susan & Johnny Gilfoil, Margaret & Pat Gilfoil,Terry Farlow Hall, Sidney & Mary Jane Johnson, Frances & Bill Kennedy, Ed Mills, Susie Murphy, Bobby Reynolds, Mike & Sue Rome, Lori Sullivan
Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Ashley Alexander (Regan), Graham Allen (S Gilfoil), Marie Farlow Bellard, Martha Book, Kay Boolos (S Gilfoil), Chris Breard (Gilfoil), Gayle Brown (Dukes and Oliver), Sarah Cannon (Gilfoil), Albert Christman, Jeannie & Donald Collins, Teresa Carney Condra, Jami Cook (Wilks), Craig Cox, Gene Cox, Carol Dipert (Rome), Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, Judy Fortenberry, Fred and Cathy Fulton, Morgan, Alex, and Palmer Gilfoil, Thom Gilfoil, Wyly Gilfoil (Gilfoil), LaVonne Givens, Charlotte Green, Rita Hargrave, Evie Hilburn (Lancaster), Patricia Lively (Wilks), Lonnie Hollowell (Naya), Charles Howington, Callie Halbach Hyams, Will Irby (P Gilfoil), Diane Johnson, Carla Leese (S Gilfoil), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Caroline Marcello (Watts), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Ruth McDonald (Copes), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Kiely McKellar (S Gilfoil), Boyce Miller,Mike Morelli, Cole Norris, Randy Parker, Russell and Betty Petersen, David Peterson, Quintin Purvis, John Neill, Bailey, Scott, and Tiffney Rome, Debbie Kedrick Sims, LeeAnn Rome Tranchina (Rome), Randy Watts, Jr.
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Preston Collins, Henry Ellerbee, Lilly Falgout, Jag Gilfoil, Matilda Johnson, Caroline Marsh, EmmyLu Marsh, Charlize Richardson, Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, Chandler Wood, Marsh Wood
