On behalf of ALL of us here St. Clare School and Parish I wish you a peaceful, healthy, and Merry Christmas. This may not be what we envisioned our Christmas celebration to be, by that I mean all that “wraps” the main event – coming of Jesus into our lives. The tangible things of this world do matter; beauty can reveal the truth about God becoming flesh. Perhaps this is the best way of “walking” in the shoes of Mary and Joseph or the Three Magi – who could not have imagined the coming of the Messiah “in this way” or the birth of the New King “in this way” in all these surroundings? Mary said Fiat – Yes, Magi brought gifts and came to pay homage. We can learn from this ancient but ever new story: We come to God and welcome Him in the way we are, but also God comes to us and welcomes us the way He is. As I reflect on the liturgical year I see many ways the Lord was present in our midst: wonderful spiritual celebrations, academic and professional accomplishments, and also in the difficult moments during the weeks and months we could not celebrate “proper” funerals, the sacraments, or social events that we are known for here at St. Clare. Yet, we close this year with great hope for an end to the pandemic, for good memories of all that happened since last Advent. During these challenging times – you the parishioners of St. Clare stepped out of your comfort zone to help those in need: our first responders, the sick, and those lacking material goods. You the parishioners came to St. Clare, in person or virtually - to celebrate the faith amid joyful and sorrowful moments of life, the lives of your loved ones, and your friends. Today on this Christmas Day I offer my prayer of gratitude to each of you. As I break the Opłatek at my Christmas dinner I wish and pray that God will continue to shower His blessings upon you always. We close this year as much preventative and restorative work is being completed on our campus. The restrooms on the lower level are just about finished. I know there is more to be done and I am optimistic that we will be able to initiate many other projects in the new year thanks to your financial support. We close this year knowing that God blessed us, that He called us to fulfill our own vocation; challenged us to be good stewards of our treasures, gifts, and talents. As we give thanks for this year, for all our celebrations and accomplishments, for the people whose involvement and dedication made these celebrations possible, for the great things that took place in our homes, school, and parish — we ask for God’s guidance, good health, help, and strength for the upcoming new year. We close this year with a new directive from the Archdiocese to engage in the mission of the Church. This new initiative calls for creating the Family of Parishes. St. Clare will become part of the Family comprised of: St. Paul, St. Ambrose and St. Matthew parishes. Archbishop writes: While Families of Parishes are certainly new to our archdiocese, the required commitment to collaboration and cooperation is not. In the past four decades, we have seen parishes coordinating Advent Reconciliation Services, Lenten Missions, and Mass schedules. Some of our parishes have shared staff positions, faith formation programs or pastors. A few have shared buildings and worship sites. In the months and years ahead, new and innovative ways to work together will strengthen the bonds that already exist and will build new bonds everywhere else. For many of our parishes this will be an entirely new process which will require everyone to let go of a status quo mentality and to choose trust over fear. For all of us, this new reality will require a renewal of our confidence in Jesus’ power and his presence among us. There will be more information forthcoming as the plan unfolds. https://www.familiesofparishes.org