Looking back at the weekly messages of Father Paul Counce, first published in The Carpenter, our weekly Parish Bulletin
Published: December 10, 2017
If you’re reading this issue of The Carpenter early (in your email or on our Parish website), remember that there is no Saturday “vigil” Mass on December 9, due to the Santa Run and then the Christmas Parade downtown. I dislike having to cancel Mass, but even more the noise and commotion from the holiday festivities outside would really prevent a good experience of worship inside – if you could park close enough to get here!
And don’t forget the annual “walking pilgrimage” from church to church downtown on Sunday, December 10. You can begin as early as 5:30 pm at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, or join along the route to First Methodist and then First Presbyterian: the entourage typically gets here to the Cathedral at 7 pm, before moving on to St. James Episcopal and First Baptist. At each church, a 15 to 20 minute musical presentation gives the “pilgrims” a brief interlude of prayer and grace. Come and see why it’s a favorite way each year for hundreds of Baton Rougeans to share the spirit of Christmas. The full schedule is on the page opposite this one.
When you do come into the Cathedral during Advent and Christmas, do look up at the ceilings in the side chapels. We’ve postponed finishing the work up there until after the holiday season, taken down the scaffolding and “opened up” the spaces for viewing and use. Notice the new, added structural beams and braces that have been put in place: there’s no more danger of the roof caving in! After Epiphany we’ll replace the ceiling and its decorative elements, and install new light-fixtures.
I know you’ll also be busy shopping and visiting during the holiday season. That’s part of the fun of Christmastime. Just don’t forget to make some quiet time for yourselves and your family too. A chilly evening is the perfect time for a cup of hot chocolate and the Christmas story read aloud (in front of the fireplace or firepit, if you have one!). The first two chapters of the Gospels of Luke and of Matthew are what you need, before sinking into prayerful reflectiveness on the “reason for the season.” The repetitive, transforming prayer of the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary, also, can work a mysterious, mystical transformation within our souls as we unite ourselves with Mary, the Blessed Virgin who was willing to bring the Son of God to us. In the end, Christmas presents and parties without Christmas prayer won’t sustain us for long. The Lord Jesus is the gift that we get to enjoy forever!
Note the whole Christmas schedule here at your Cathedral on p. *** . We won’t have a 12 noon Mass on December 24, 25 or 31! We do have Christmas Eve Masses at 4 and 9 pm, and our famous “Gumbo and Champagne” Vigil Mass and dinner at 4 pm on New Year’s Eve, December 31.
Remember that one must attend Mass two times over the Christmas weekend, once for Sunday and once for Christmas. As I’ve said before, if it’s absolutely impossible to attend two Masses, there’s no sin, since no one is bound to the impossible. The clergy of the Diocese of Baton Rouge also can dispense from the obligation to attend Mass on a Sunday or holy day of obligation, and are always eager to be benevolent in such situations. But all of us who seek to be faithful Catholics and live out our faith in the best way possible will celebrate the last Sunday of Advent and the Nativity of the Lord Jesus separately!
Sincerely yours in the coming Christ,
Fr. Paul
