Christmas Letter
Posted on Mon, Dec 24, 2012
from Fr. Jozef
Dear Parishioners of St Brendan on the Lake Olcott, Newfane, and Wilson:
Approaching Christmas
Jesus wants to be born in our hearts, in our homes, in our churches and in the entire world on December 25, 2012. This is a time when we prepare our hearts. Advent is a time of waiting with the Blessed Mother for the birth of the Messiah who is Christ, the only Savior of the world. I want to write a letter to you as your Priest and Pastor, who’s only dream is that everyone who has received Baptism in the church would practice Faith every Sunday and every day in every moment of their lives, so that all people may have eternal life together in Heaven.
Brothers and Sisters let me first introduce myself. I am the new Priest assigned to you by Bishop Malone as of July 1, 2012. I was born and grew up in Poland. In 2000, after 6 years of study, I received the Priestly Ordination. I then served for three years in South Poland. I left my country for further study in Germany and arrived in the United States 7 years ago to serve the Diocese of Buffalo.
It is a great gift and privilege for me to be assigned in the Year of Faith so I may announce the message of Jesus in our 3 beautiful churches on the shore of Lake Ontario. My friends you are the only purpose of my life and my service. For the sake of your Faith my Mother and Father accepted my decision to leave Poland because it was the voice of Christ Himself calling me to “Go to all the world and preach the Gospel.” In Poland we have enough Priests to serve, this is why the church can share their Priests with those places in need of a shepherd. My dear Parishioners let me now share with you my plans and works that I began on July 1 and desire to continue for the future.
First, allow me to address our buildings. As we Start the new Liturgical year I would like
to thank you with all my heart for your financial support of our parish. My friends, it is
only because of your great generosity that we are able to keep our parish financially stable, pay all our bills on time and provide holy service with joyful hearts as we have been doing for so many years. Please trust that every donation, every prayer, every sacrifice offered to our churches is greatly valued and appreciated. I also want to share with you the building projects we would like to undertake during the coming year to keep our buildings in good shape, safe and comfortable to be used. Together with the parish council, finance committee and trustees, it has been decided to:
In Olcott: restore & repair the stain glass windows, refurbish the outside doors and fix stairs at the main entrance to the church.
In Wilson: install air conditioning in worship area, repair handicapped entrance and side door. Install bathroom upstairs & repair sidewalks
In Newfane: Install air conditioning, replace carpeting in part of the building, resurface the parking lot and install new landscaping.
(over...)
My dear parishioners, please support these projects with your prayers, advice and also financially. I ask you for understanding, help and mutual support in this case. It is no secret that many of our Parishioners have left both our buildings and community in the past for different reasons. I would like to humbly ask that those who left to return home. We need you; we need your Faith, your service and your financial support in order to keep our 3 buildings open. Our parish should be like one home of people who love each other, understand each other, and resolve problems together. I want to apologize for anything or anybody that has hurt you in the past, but now please let us build a future that can be bigger than our past. My friends please come back for weekly Sunday Eucharist, come back and receive the Sacrament of Confession, come back and send your kids for Faith Formation, Youth Groups and so many other opportunities to walk with Christ. Only together are we the Catholic Church of Christ praying, believing, and supporting each other with the help of Jesus. I want our parish to be a Holy place of prayer, Faith, and hope- the place where people enter on a journey to Heaven.
My friends, we celebrate every weekend, Eucharist at Wilson, 4pm on Saturdays and 11am on Sundays. We celebrate at Newfane 5:30pm on Saturdays and 8:30am on Sundays followed by Faith Formation. The Olcott Oratory has Sunday Eucharist from May to September at 9:45am and Novena to our Blessed Mother on Thursdays. Our Olcott Oratory serves for funerals, weddings, and other parish events. Please come to worship together to receive the grace from the Heart of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Brothers and Sisters, Christmas is near. We will celebrate the birth of God on the 24th and 25th of December. Please come to Holy Christmas Masses. I also invite you to receive the Sacrament of Confession before Christmas on Tuesday, December 18, at 7pm in Newfane. Christmas can be a precious opportunity to come home.
As your Priest I assure you I appeal to God in daily prayer for each one of us. You are the best gift of Christmas if you are here in our churches and if your Faith is alive and shared with each other. No matter what happens now in your life, even passing through a dark valley, please keep the Faith that Jesus is present with us and He never abandons our lives. He is the one who was, who is, and who is to come on Christmas Solemnity.
My Brothers and Sisters, I wish you a Merry Christmas, Wesołych świąt!
With the Love of Christ,
Fr. Józef