1st Sunday of Advent Year B

Happy Advent everyone! As we begin this new liturgical year our Lord reminds us - twice - " Beware, keep alert....Keep awake!" The season of Advent is a season of expectant hope and longing not only for the great Feast of Christmas - Christ's birth in time and history but his glorious return at the end of time. The first two weeks of the advent season focus on this reality, this article of our faith; his coming again to judge the living and the dead and the consummation of all time and history.
The third and fourth Sundays of Advent deal with the Lord's coming at a particular time, to a particular place in history and to a particular people.
As we enter into this season our celebrations, our marking of these spiritual realities' take place in a particular time - during a pandemic. But the realities that we celebrate have not changed or diminished. What God has promised is still fulfilled, how Christ came to us and how he still comes to us has not changed or altered.
Who knows with certain restrictions in place this may afford us the time to focus a little more on the spiritual realities of what we celebrate and less on the material aspects of it?

With the beginning of this new liturgical season, I have news to share with all of you. Almost three years ago I started planning a sabbatical with the permission of Bishop Fabbro. A sabbatical is a period of time, usually 6 months or a year ( in my case 6 months) to those priests who usually have been ordained for a while ( 29 years next May 2021). It is a time for rest, education, spiritual growth, travel etc. I was granted to take this sabbatical last year but was not able to officially and publicly announce it until a replacement priest(s) was found. So, on January 6, 2021 I will be leaving the parish cluster family of St. Peter's and St. Francis Xavier to begin my 6-month sabbatical. I will be flying out of Toronto to Rome on January 6th ( quarantining for 2 weeks ) then beginning a sabbatical program of studies and travel at the Pontifical North American College in Rome for 3 months ( until April 12th ). I will return in April and make an extended retreat and hopefully a trip to England sometime in May or June.

At the end of June, I will be reassigned to a new parish or family of Parishes beginning in early July 2021.

As of now I do not know who will be coming to provide pastoral care for the Parish Cluster of St. Peter's and St. Francis Xavier, hopefully soon I will be able to inform you of this. The pandemic has made it impossible for international priests to get into the country and we really rely on them - but rest assured your needs will be provided for.

So Iam not saying good bye now - we shall do that in June.

Rest assured that you will all remain in my thoughts and prayers as I enter into this long-awaited journey.

Peace

Father Christopher

PS My address in Rome will be:

 TEL: (39 06) 68493-4000

       FAX: (39 06) 687-1529

       Website: http://www.pnac.org

Pontifical North American College Forming priests for Jesus Christ in the heart of His Church and providing a residence for American priests pursuing continuing formation programs in Rome. www.pnac.org

 

ADDRESS:

Institute for Continuing Theological Education

PONTIFICAL NORTH AMERICAN COLLEGE

00120 Vatican City State

         EUROPE

and you can still reach me by email at [email protected]