Dear Fellow Disciples, HAPPY NEW LITURGICAL YEAR!

The metaphor of the master and the servants marks the spirit of Advent. In fact, this liturgical season focuses on the waiting of the Lord.

On one hand, the Lord has already come historically in the event of the incarnation of the word in Jesus of Nazareth. On the other He comes constantly and makes himself present in the life of each disciple of the Kingdom, calling him to solidarity and brotherly love.

In our most recent update, we shared significant progress in the realization of the Marian Center and Athletic Field Relocation projects. Following the announcement of the selection of designers in our previous update, we have concluded contract negotiations with Bauer Askew Architects for the Marian Center Renovation.

The contract has been reviewed by the Diocese, and we are delighted to announce its execution. To kick off this transformative endeavor, a project Kick Off meeting was conducted on Nov 29th with the Ministry Leaders representing the Food Pantry, Backpack Ministry, Bridge Ministry, Saint Rose Radio, Boy Scouts, and Knights of Columbus. These leaders, being primary users of the renovated facility and additional storage spaces, actively participated in discussions.

Dear Fellow Disciples, peace.

The scene of the Final Judgement calls the attention of the disciples to their responsibility to live everyday life with their feet very grounded on earth but with their hearts and eyes fixed on heaven. Our historical gestures have an effect on our eternity.

Dear Fellow Disciples, peace.

The parable of the talents serves as a key to interpreting the whole existence of the disciple of God's Kingdom. God gives gifts and talents according to the capacity of each person. Some receive more, some less. However, everyone has the responsibility to multiply their gifts and talents. Every moment in life is an opportunity and a possibility to practice charity. In fact, charity is the only way to allow these gifts and talents God has sown in the heart of the disciple to grow.

Dear Fellow Disciples, peace.

The parable of the ten virgins is a metaphor for the two kinds of disciples. The provident disciple prepares well for his/her encounter with the Lord, even though the day and the time of such an encounter are unknown. The disciples persevere in faithfulness to the Lord and solidarity with the needy. He is always ready to serve. He stays on this path even when it is difficult and long.

Dear Fellow Disciples peace.

Jesus severely critiques the attitude of the Pharisees. Their hypocrisy and arrogance got on His last nerve because they preached one thing and lived something else. Their lifestyle exposed their inability to accept and practice the scriptures and, much less, God's will. For them the saying was very real and valid, "Do what I say, not what I do" or "They love to talk but do not walk the walk".

We continue to make progress on the Masterplan Update, Marian Center Renovation, and Athletic Field Relocation. After notifying the successful design firms for the Marian Center and Athletic Field

Relocation projects, we began detailed scope and fee negotiations. Some may question what that means since many of the parish are more familiar with low-bid projects than professional services. When it comes to “professional services” like architectural and engineering design, low bid is not the preferred option, in fact, it's against federal and state law when public money is used, as it does give the owner the best outcomes.