Dear St. Raphael Parishioners,

With Advent well underway, the calendar is full with Church acvity, especially some special Masses during the next two weeks. It’s a good reminder that Advent is a season of preparation and prayer.

Immaculate Conception: God preserved Mary from all sin, both original sin as well as any personal sin in her life. December 8 is the Holy Day when we remember Mary in this way, as a model of holiness. Therefore, Thursday is a Holy Day of Obligation, and we will have two Masses that day: the usual 8:30 am and evening Mass at 7 pm. Please note the evening Mass on December 8 is not a vigil Mass.

Family Mass Next Sunday: Our monthly Family Mass is next Sunday at 11:00 am. Fr. Carlos is scheduled as celebrant. Our Sixth and Third grades will be providing volunteers this month. Religious Education students will have their Advent Penance Service and Confessions on Wednesday, the evening of December 7.

Our Lady of Guadalupe: Next Monday, December 12, is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. In 1531, the Blessed Virgin appeared to an Aztec convert, Juan Diego. The world-famous Guadalupe image of Mary is said to be evidence she gave that she truly appeared to him. In Mexico it is a solemnity, but not a day of obligation in the USA. Join us for our 8:30 am Mass that day. Last year I was given a beautiful leather poncho with Guadalupe images on it. I will put it on display in church next weekend.

Addional Confession Times: If you received our Advent mailing, I want to alert you to a correction in the extra Confession times. The confessions scheduled for December 15 have been moved to Tuesday, December 13. That evening will be a Holy Hour with Adoration from 7 to 8 pm. I will hear confessions while seminarian Deacon Jeff Frieden leads Adoration. The other times for Confession are correct as listed in the mailed schedule.

Simbang Gabi December 15: The Filipino community has a nine-day devotion leading up to Christmas Eve, known as Simbang Gabi. The series of daily Masses travels among local churches. Please join us on the evening of December 15, as we celebrate our night Mass at 7 pm. Last year’s Mass was well attended, with many visitors coming to see our church. We also had a visiting choir and musicians. All parishioners are invited to come and take part in this seasonal devotion.

God bless you all,

Fr. Matthew 

Dear Friends,

As we move through Advent toward the celebration of the Lord's birth at Christmas, I invite you to reflect on how Jesus has been close to you this past year and the light He brings into our lives.

Our celebration of the Nativity each year is more than a remembrance of history: it is a reminder that Christ is still present to the world, and to each one of us. May the newborn Christ Child bring you and your loved ones the light you need to discover again the peace that is His gift to us.

In our Lord,

Father Matthew Kowalski