Messages from the Pastor - Archive

December 27, 2009

Dear parishioners and friends of St. Joseph Cathedral,

My first words here have to be a reaffirmation of the blessings of Christmas: I hope this holy season continues to be for you and yours a special time of grace.

You know, the beauty of our Christmas liturgies is well-known: we add to God’s Word and Sacrament so much by our décor, our music and our reverence. But the most beautiful thing about our worship is never its external aspects. Just as the Deity itself is enfleshed in the Christ Child, so too holiness becomes real within us. It has been a great privilege to share this sacred time, in our Cathedral’s beloved sacred space, with you.

Now I suppose most of us will start giving some thought to the upcoming New Year of 2010. What will it bring? How can we “resolve† to do better, to be better, in the New Year? A lot of people do this, and I have to admit that it’s not a bad thing. The New Year gives us an opportunity for a “fresh start,† a new beginning of creativity and benefits.

But I will challenge you: don’t just let your New Year’s “resolutions† be ordinary ones. Sure, deciding to eat smarter and exercise more are good things to do. It’s great when people resolve to develop a new interest or hobby, read more books, or make extra efforts to stay connected with friends and family.

Beyond this, though, would be more extraordinary pursuits. And here I’m thinking of spiritual things. First of all, make sure you start your New Year off right by worshipping with us: January 1 is a holy day of obligation, after all. It’s the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God: she who had such a big part to play in the first Christmas continues to be a model for our own life of faith. Mary considered herself totally at God’s service: it’s something we can do as well.

I especially want to encourage you to learn more about your Catholic faith. And so I’ve thought of one way to do this. Remember the Magnificat Advent Companion I sent as one of the Cathedral’s little gifts to you? It provided a daily meditation and other spiritual helps to enrich your prayer in that holy season. Did you use it?

I have to admit that the regular monthly Magnificat booklet is an outstanding personal aid to prayer and reflection. It is also quite informational as regards Catholic teachings and Church history, and provides interesting and useful guides to the sacred liturgy as well.

There’s just one downside to Magnificat in my opinion: a personal subscription is $45 a year. Call me a cheapskate, but I think that’s pretty steep. Fortunately, the price goes down dramatically if ordered in bulk. For example, if we order between 100 and 500 copies, the price goes down to just $25 a year! That’s way more reasonable.

So I tell you what: because I’m such a fan of Magnificat, I would like to offer you a special deal: the Cathedral’s Parish Office can serve as the middleman for you. Clip the coupon below and fill it out. Send it with your payment for the next year and we’ll get Magnificat for you at the reduced price! You’ll be able to pick up your personal copy at the Cathedral each month as soon as they come in, beginning in February or as soon as we can.

Think about it! And then do it! It might be the best thing you do for your prayer-life in this New Year!

Finally, be forewarned: at the end of January I’ll be putting one idea before you that definitely is worth a New Year’s resolution. Our annual Stewardship of Finance appeal is a special occasion on which all of us prayerfully discern that – and how much – we must give monetarily to God. Proper stewardship means making a free, prayerful, planned, proportionate and sacrificial gift to God and His Church. These “five giving principles† ensure that our financial commitments benefit both the Parish community and ourselves as much as possible.

In Christ,
Father Paul

December 13, 2009

Dear parishioners and friends of St. Joseph Cathedral,

As Advent continues towards its joyous climax at Christmas, this week probably will see a bit of desperation creep into our lives.

Some of this anxiety will be practical: I’m realizing as I sit down to write this column that I have not yet purchased a single Christmas gift! This means that as you read this column I’m probably beginning to panic, big time!

But I actually also hope some of the anxiety will be spiritual. If you have not yet made a thorough examination of your conscience and a good “Christmas confession,† this should be something pretty high up on your “to do list.† (In the interest of full disclosure, my own confession’s scheduled for later this week: my poor spiritual director needs a few day’s warning before tackling me! You might want to say an extra prayer for him!)

The best confession goes beyond the required minimums (which include mentioning in number and kind all unconfessed mortal sins since the last confession, and real repentance of heart). An honest, in-depth look at our human weakness before God means two other things. First, search for the root cause of sin. Maybe it’s selfishness, or sloth, or preoccupation – whatever lies at the root of our wrong thoughts and actions. As even a TV doctor will tell you, a cure doesn’t happen when the cause of the disease is unknown!

But second – and more importantly – a really great confession also leads to a strategy to improve. The sins that trouble us the most tend to be repeated ones, the ones “always† mentioned. Perhaps they’re bad habits, or poor responses to stressful or evil circumstances. Whatever. We need to find a successful avenue to peace of soul and mind, and that’s going to mean modifying our behavior, and likely also our thinking. And while change is hard, it has to be done.

In line with this, here’s a creative idea that often works wonders. Ask yourself: “what would I HATE for the priest in confession to tell me to do?† And then you do it first! Would you hate for him to challenge you to start attending daily Mass? Would you really detest being asked to be more generous in your giving to church or charity? Would you really be uncomfortable visiting the sick or signing up to assist with some parish ministry? Would you absolutely hate having to call up someone you don’t get along with and try to patch things up? Do it first and you just might discover your Christmas confession is less of a burden and more of a joy this year!

Let me remind you again. Volunteers will be at tables in the rear of the Cathedral again this weekend, offering for sale at the publisher’s price of $32 each the new “coffee table† book entitled Roots of Faith: A History of the Diocese of Baton Rouge. The full-color 176- page volume tells the story of the 68 parishes which make up our local Church. Please consider purchasing Roots of Faith for your family, and in giving them as gifts for others. You can also use the order form below to purchase the book: just return it and your payment to the Parish Office.

Know that I continue to pray for you and yours daily. May Christ come to you in an especially profound way in this holy season.

In Him,
Father Paul

December 6, 2009

Dear parishioners and friends of St. Joseph Cathedral,

This weekend the Cathedral comes alive, as our Advent preparations for Christmas continue. On Dec. 5 our “Saturday @ 4† Mass features the LSU Gospel Ensemble, while the next day the Baton Rouge Concert Band’s annual Christmas Concert is held at 3 pm. I hope you’re planning to come to both of these special celebrations. You know, joyful music has long been a hallmark of the Advent and Christmas seasons, but so much of it nowadays is recorded or broadcast. This year, I hope you treat yourself to some of the “live† holiday music we’re happy to provide.

I also want to urge everyone to support our Christmas Giving Tree project. The Parish’s Social Concerns’ Committee sponsors this each year as a way of making Christmas better for needy children in our area. Remember that the deadline to bring the gift you’ve purchased is next Sunday, Dec. 13. You can simply bring your gift with you to Mass (someone from the Social Concerns Committee will be there to help) or drop it by the Parish Office this week. And while my gratitude to you may mean something, I suspect that these children’s parents’ thanks are even deeper.

Lastly, I have a Christmas gift idea for you. The Diocese of Baton Rouge and its archives department have just published a “coffee table book† entitled Roots of Faith: A History of the Diocese of Baton Rouge. This full-color 176-page volume tells the story of our local Church and its 68 parishes. Anticipating that it would be an exceptionally good book for our parishioners to have, Father Young last spring ordered a number of copies of it even before its publication. And, as usual, he was right!

I like it too, for two main reasons. Aside from the interesting text, the book’s graphic design is great, featuring the religious art and architecture of our area in an outstanding way. But there’s an even more important reason: the single Parish church which is featured the most within it is St. Joseph Cathedral! The historical pictures are most interesting, and tell our story in a way that everyone can appreciate.

So, we have a number of copies. Please consider purchasing Roots of Faith for your family, and in giving them as gifts for others. Volunteers will be at tables in the rear of the Cathedral this weekend, Dec. 5/6, offering them for sale at publisher’s price of $32 each. You can also use the order form below to purchase the book: just return it and your payment to the Parish Office.

Beyond gift-giving, I hope your Advent is progressing well. Know you’re daily the most precious focus of my prayers.

In Christ,
Father Paul