Newsletter - 18 December 2022
Dear brothers and sisters,
It was very good seeing you again last Sunday after a few months of waiting on both sides. The time spent far away makes me thoughtful about Advent, which is a dedicated waiting period, when the children of God are invited to wait and watch for the coming of their God and Saviour.
However, we are not used to waiting anymore. I think modern times and the world today lead us in the opposite way and we turn out being more impatient, since impatience comes along with efficiency and speed. We want to settle everything promptly and entirely and seldom support delays. There is no space for waiting, for unresolved issues and situations. This is true not only at work and in our social lives, but also with family ties and other personal issues.
The Advent period is there for a good opportunity to “waste” some time and learn to be more patient. By not obtaining or solving something immediately it helps us understand that we receive everything from God: the Lord is the one who provides even though our daily experiences make us believe that we are the ones who work hard and produce results.
Some things take time to get resolved for some reason and very often we do not understand straight away why the Lord does not answer our prayers and demands. In Isaiah, we read, “the heavens are as high above earth as my ways are above your ways, my thoughts above your thoughts” Is 55:9. The Lord’s plans are far beyond our ways and consequently it will always be a challenge to get into God’s time. We usually understand that his plans were excellent only after the situation is over and resolved. We then notice that the results were far beyond our expectations.
Let us ask the Lord to teach us to accept his ways and time, which will always differ from ours and require both patience and perseverance.
Father Pascal Sullivan, ccn
Focus of the Week
CAROL SERVICE IN THE CHURCH
Saturday 17 December 7-8pm
Followed by mulled wine in the Hall
Come along and spend an hour singing carols with your church community - the ideal preparation for Christmas!
(Put the Strictly Final on record!)
COCKFOSTERS SUNDAY EVENING MASS
Sunday evening Mass will continue at 5.30pm on 18 December and every 3rd Sunday of the month thereafter.