Happy New Year, Dear Friends,

We have just joyfully celebrated the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and I hope you all had a blessed and peaceful time with your families.

In a few days’ time, as we usher in the New Year 2026, our attention now turns to the Blessed Virgin Mary. On January 1st, we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. This is a profoundly significant celebration as we begin this new year under her special title.

This year, holy Church celebrates the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, held from May to August in the year 325 in the modern-day city of İznik, Turkey. One of the main topics of discussion at the council was who Jesus is metaphysically, especially in relation to God the Father.

Dear Friends,

As we conclude the Advent season and prepare to celebrate the joyous birth of our Lord in a few days’ time, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. However, even as we enter this festive season, some of our dear ones will not be sharing that joy for various reasons. One of the reasons for some will be loneliness. This reality was brought home to me in a way that moved me to tears, through the sad story of a mother whom I came across online. I suspect some of you can relate to this story.

“Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.”

Today, the Church celebrates Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent. The name of this Sunday comes from the first word of the above Entrance Antiphon, sung at the start of the Mass today, which in Latin is Gaudete.

Dear Friends,

The tone of our celebration for the 3rd Sunday of Advent, also known as Gaudete, is one of rejoicing. The Entrance Antiphon resounds: "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near." The first reading this Sunday presents the Prophet exalting the people to rejoice and to be glad for their God is coming to them. On that day, “The eyes of the blind shall be opened, the ears of the deaf unsealed, then the lame shall leap like a deer and the tongues of the dumb sing for joy.”

The nativity scene or crèche arose out of ancient piety and the medieval theater. Christians were honoring the cave in Bethlehem where Jesus Christ is believed to have been born even before St. Helen built the Basilica of the Nativity over it around A.D. 330. Medieval mystery plays later reenacted the Nativity, but when they got out of hand, Pope Honorius suppressed them.

Dear Friends,

Recently, a close friend of mine posed a highly insightful question to me. I had just described my ministry day, which began with the profound solemnity of hearing confessions, immediately followed by the grief and hope of a funeral Mass, transitioned into the joyful celebration of a wedding Mass, and concluded with the celebratory atmosphere of a school gala.