Looking back at the weekly messages of Father Paul Counce, first published in The Carpenter, our weekly Parish Bulletin
Published: December 29, 2019
Dear Parishioners and Friends,
If you really want to get picky about it, the Christmas liturgical season still isn’t over. While we here in the USA think of Christmas as the best day for giving and getting presents, in fact, in many cultures the Solemnity of the Epiphany serves that purpose: the “gift-giving” of the Magi to the Christ Child inspires Christians to do the same to one another!
Christmastide comes to a close next weekend, with the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. By then, the holidays will seem well past, with the upcoming carnival season getting more of our attention. But I do want to offer a last word of profound thanks to Bishops Duca and Muench; to all of our dedicated ministers of word, eucharist, altar, décor and hospitality; to David Summers and our marvelous Cathedral choir and musicians; to Lorie Watson and the other hard-working members of our staff – Carla Kennedy, José Diaz, and Debbie Orsot; and to each and every parishioner, friend and visitor who took part in our holiday activities. YOU all were the ones who made God’s love come alive in our midst!
And as Bishop Duca chuckled, “This Christmas is going to be remembered for the big tree!” So two other firms which we hired need to be specially complimented: Green Seasons of Greenwell Springs, who supplied the trees, and Billy Heroman’s Florists of Baton Rouge, who decorated them and supplied the poinsettias. They outdid themselves in an impressive way!
Now don’t let the grace of Christmas fade in this New Year. Stay as generous with your time, talent and treasure as you were in December! If you didn’t get through all of the thank-you notes and phone calls, keep at it. Don’t slack up on your New Year’s resolutions on self-improvement – in fact, it’s not too late to make some more!
Remember how your Christmas confession felt so good? Do it again before you “have to” again in Lent. Remember how neat it was to give and get cookies or fudge or – if your friends care about your waistline – homemade enhanced Chex mix? That kind of little gift-giving doesn’t have to happen only in Advent! Recall how good it was to visit with someone you don’t see too often, or to chat with the relative who lives out-of-town? Contacts like that don’t have to happen just once a year, you know!
Don’t let 2020 lose its novelty too quickly. Stave off apathy by being creative. Keep trying new things. Mr. Summers is heading to San Francisco this week, to attend the “National Conference of Cathedral Musicians” taking place there. I know he’s looking forward to learning and sharing with his colleagues from around the country.
Many other cathedrals around the country are similar to ours, in that the building is located in a downtown business district, rather far from those who look to it as their spiritual home. Many of us – as a result – have small congregations who rarely fill up their worship space all by themselves. Many have significant financial challenges, and smaller staffs than most parishes. But I’ll bet that like us most all of them consider liturgy as their primary ministry and do a wonderful job at it. Community-building is also something that always needs special attention, so like them we do our best to be warmer and more personal than the mega-parishes out in the ’burbs!
In the newborn Christ-child,
Father Paul Counce
