First Sunday of Advent

Dear Parish Family,

A blessed start of the new liturgical year to all of you! I am sorry that I am not with you this weekend. My original plan for a five week break would have seen me return for this weekend, but in the end, I needed a little more time.

Speaking of time, the start of this new year with the season of Advent is a good opportunity for us to reflect on the cyclical nature of all things and our experience of them through the course of time. Why do we follow a liturgical calendar at all? Because it’s natural to do so. Just as the earthly seasons change, and as we mark the passing of the years with different celebrations and anniversaries of our own lives and that of our loved ones, so we do the same with Jesus’ life. The liturgical year follows His life. We don’t make up our own trajectory week-to-week, month-to-month, or year-to-year in our succession of worship. No, we follow the course of His life again and again.

And so, with Advent we find ourselves in this period of pregnant anticipation, awaiting the arrival of the Savior to be born of Mary. Like the experience of little ones waiting for Christmas, it seems like such a long way away! But the weeks will pass quickly, and we will look back wondering where the time went. We may even find ourselves wishing we had made more of the opportunity.

That is where I don’t want to find myself. These weeks away from the parish seem like a long time, but in hindsight, it really isn’t much time at all. My goal is to be able to look back on this time away without any regret, confident that I made the most of the opportunity to be able to come back healthy, not only for me, but for you. So I am taking a couple of more weeks, but I will be back soon! In the meantime, please keep me in your prayers, and know that you remain in mine.

Happy Advent!

-Fr. Kennell