Oracle - Vol.II

CHRISTMAS

CHRISTMAS

ISSUE • DECEMBER 2022

ORACLE

Quarterly Newsletter of Holy Cross Parish, Santa Cruz

Weekday Mass Times

Tuesday - 12 noon Wednesday- 6:00 am Thursday - 6:00 am Friday - 6:00 pm

First Saturday - 6:00 am

Weekend Mass Times

Holy Cross R.C. Saturday - 5:00 pm Sunday - 7:00 am Sunday - 9:00 am (Youth mass - 4th Sunday)

St. Peter’s Chapel Maracas Bay Sun - 10:45 am

Office Hours

Monday to Friday 9:00 am - 2:30 pm

Clergy Office Hours Wednesday 8:00 am - 10:00 am Friday 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm

Parish Priest

Fr. Hasely King, O.Carm

Parish Office Assistant Ms. Elizabeth Cooper

From the Desk of

Happy New Year everyone! May God fill your hearts and your homes with love and joy and may you be encouraged by His faithful promises and all the wonderful blessings He has in store for you.

FR. HASELY KING, O.CARM

My prayer for you is that this New Year brings you, your family and loved ones, happiness, peace, and prosperity. I also take this opportunity to thank you for your love and support in this past year.

Wishing you a joyous 2023! God bless.

Fr Hasely

The Grace and Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all (cf. 2 Cor 13:14). The year 2022 has been a year of challenge and change for me and my family. As you may already know, after a two-year hiatus as administrator in the parish of Mary Immaculate Queen of the Universe, Bourg Mulatresse, His Grace has released me from my responsibility there and reassigned me to Holy Cross. I look forward to being of service to you for the remainder of this year and next year, and as we

enter this holy season of Christmas, I pray that the star which pointed the way to Jesus in the manger, may also lead us and our families to the Christchild.

On behalf of my family and I, I would like to extend my heartfelt Christmas greetings to you. May our Lord and Saviour, who did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped but emptied himself to take on the condition of a slave (cf. Phil 2:6-7), continue to bless you and keep you, and may he let his face shine on you (cf. Num 6:24-25).

Blessings,

C H R I S T M A S & N E W Y E A R S

May the Holy Family pray for us Deacon Malcom Joab

The Season of Christmas

BY FR. BRENT ALEXIS, O.CARM

The Collect (Opening Prayer) for Christmas Mass during the Day is:

0God,whowonderfullycreatedthe dignityofhumannatureandstill morewonderfullyrestoredit,grant, wepray,thatwemayshareinthe divinityofChrist,whohumbled himselftoshareinourhumanity. Wholivesandreignswithyouinthe unityoftheHolySpirit,God,forever and ever..

This prayer is one of the most ancient that we have in the Roman Missal that we use for mass today. It can be found in one of the oldest sacramentaries that exist (the Gelasian Sacramentary c. 750) and many scholars believe that the prayer probably traces back all the way to Pope St. Leo the Great (400-461).

Pope St. Leo the Great is important in the history of the Church for various reasons, but one of main reasons his writings are still studied up to this day is because he played an important role in the debate regarding whether Jesus was truly human and truly divine. This was a debate that divided the church for many centuries and the early councils were called to try to settle these arguments. One such council was the Council of Chalcedon (451), when a document that was written by St. Leo was read aloud and the bishops who were

present accepted his teachings and shouted in agreement: “Peter has spoken through Leo!” The document that was read at Chalcedon sums up much about what we believe about the nature Jesus Christ: one person, fully human and fully divine. Furthermore, it stressed the fact that the Word became flesh to redeem us and to allow us to share in the very life of God. To share in Christ’s divinity!

Christmas is such a great feast for us Christians because we celebrate the fact the Word of God became human. God humbled God’s self to become a small and defenseless baby, who would grow and experience everything like us except sin. We also celebrate that it is through this mystery that we come to share in His divinity. Christmas is more than just nice food and presents for us who are believers. Christmas is a time for us to remember the ultimate gift that God has given to each one of us - God’s only Son who through Him allows us to become God’s true children as well.

The Church liked the Collect mentioned above so much that when the mass was revised after the Second Vatican Council, they used most of it for one of the prayers that is said by the priest every time the Eucharist is celebrated - when the water is mixed with the wine during the offertory. This reminds us that whenever we celebrate mass, we celebrate the mystery of the tremendous gift God has given to each of us, a sort of mini-Christmas, “...that we may share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.”

Our Ministries

Altar Servers Ministry Centering Prayer Group Charismatic Prayer Group Events

Family Life Unit

Faith Formation: Baptism First Communion Confirmation RCIA Hospitality Ministry Lectors Ministry Legion of Mary Liturgical Ministry MAT Men’s Ministry Music Ministry

St. Vincent de Paul Youth Ministry

Sacraments

BAPTISM: Baptisms will be held every Second Saturday. Kindly contact the Parish Office for more information.

HOLY COMMUNION, CONFIRMATION & RCIA: Please contact the Parish office for registration and information.

MARRIAGE: Couples planning to be married in the Catholic Church, are encouraged to contact the Parish office six months prior the wedding date to begin marriage preparation.

CONFESSION: Persons can walk in during clergy office hours or call the Parish Office to schedule an appointment.

ANOINTING OF THE SICK: Please contact the Parish Office Assistant.

Fr. Brent Alexis, O.Carm is a Trinidad Carmelite Friar and former Parish Priest of St. Michael’s R.C. Church, Maracas, St. Joseph. Fr. Alexis is currently doing further studies in Sacramental Theology at the University of St Mary of the Lake in Mundelein, Illinois.)

Our year in Review

We look back at memorable moments of 2022 and what we achieved together as a parish community. The struggles, growth, joy and hope we shared as a family in Christ. Thank you for being part of this incredible journey.

Archbishop Jason Gordon, chief celebrant at the Holy Mass Launch of the Mental Health Initiative at Holy Cross R.C. Church All Souls Mass

HOLY INNOCENCE MASS

28th December, 4pm Holy Cross R.C. Church

YOUTH CORNER

Thank you

The Holy Cross R.C. Church World Youth Day pilgrims sincerely thank all patrons who gave generously of their time talent and treasure in support of our most recent fundraising venture - a Christmas concert, The Greatest Gift. Your contributions towards this event to assist our youth in their journey to WYD 2023 is appreciated. Thank you.

We wish to extend our heartfelt thanks to the following persons and sponsors:

•

Fr. Hasely King, O. Carm.

• Mary Immaculate Queen of the Universe R.C. Church

• Geiron Mang and family

• Simon Carimbocas

• Ron Milford

• Trevor Akan

• Lystra Francis and family

• Aaron De Matas

• Michelle Espinoza-Miles • Tricia Rousseau

•

Josephine Tang Nian and family •

Nigel Cooper •

Elizabeth+ Francisco Cooper •

Ryan Hinkson •

Lucito Reyes (Jerry) •

Bernadette Lopez •

The Gooding Family •

Stephen Singh •

Green Equipment Co. Ltd • Marios Pizza Ltd •

TSL Group - Printree •

Elliot Francois Fotography •

Coal Pot Caterers •

De Big Farmers Supermarket

DID

Our Lady of Guadeloupe

BY TONIA GOODING

Devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe began after Our Lady appeared to an Indian peasant Juan Diego. He was sent to the Bishop to express her desire for a church to be built and dedicated in her honour on Tepayac hill. During her first apparition, Our Lady said to him ’Since I am truly your merciful Mother, amid that of all men, I will grant everyone who visits the sanctuary the fruit of my affection, my compassionate attention, my help and salvation.

Carmelite Corner

My Advent Retreat Experience Wait on The Lord in the Garden of Carmel

BY ALLISON WATSON TOC (THIRD ORDER CARMELITES)

Saturday December 3, 2022, is a day that will be etched in my heart and mind for a long time to come.

As I gathered with my Carmelite family; the Corpus Christi Sisters, Lay Carmelites and Handmaids of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, with our very own Carmelite friar, Fr. Mikhail Woodruffe to shepherd us

I will hear your cries of distress so as to cure all your sufferings and ills’ (Nican Mopophua, Mexicao 1981, pg 28-32)

When the local Bishop asked for a sign as proof of Mary’s petition before granting Juan Diego’s request, the miracle of transforming a bouquet of long-stemmed roses, in the middle of winter, into the beloved image of Our lady of Guadalupe on his cloak - served as this great sign, not only for the Bishop, but for all the world to see. This miracle proved to be very instrumental in the conversion of many of the Aztec community in Mexico to Catholicism.

On this feast day, and every time we recall this miracle, let us ask Our Lady of Guadalupe to intercede on our behalf to re-evangelize our community, as She did, through our thoughts, words and deeds. Let us ask her to show us the best way of drawing family and friends closer to God through the apostolate of friendship and confidence, especially during these challenging times we are facing. Our parish of Holy Cross is especially fortunate to have a little shrine, in her honour, located at the back of our Church. Let us try to remember to carve out a few moments, either before or after mass to visit and bring to mind all our concerns and trials, knowing that she will always hear our cries and intercede on our behalf.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Pray for Us

through the day’s retreat, a feeling of excitement filled the church of St. Michael’s in Maracas valley.

We all had accepted the invitation from the Caribbean Carmelite Institute to spend a day in retreat with the theme, “Wait on the Lord in the Garden of Carmel.”

The day began with the celebration of Holy Mass, during which Fr. Mikhail delivered a very thoughtprovoking talk on the theme. As he spoke, a few points resonated with me. We were reminded to be humble and of the importance of waiting. That there are many reasons people wait. Some wait with a sense of fear, dreading the result of a medical examination, an answer to a job application, or a grandparent who waits with joyful expectation for the birth of a grandchild. He reminded us that all is not lost, and that we should follow the example of Mary,

who waited patiently for her baby to be born. When we look at the Advent candle of Hope, we can take consolation in the knowledge that God our Father knows our every care and circumstance and will provide in His time.

After Mass, participants were invited to spend some time in silent contemplation. It was during this time that I reflected on Father’s words, “be humble, always find time for silent prayer and meditation,” something that sounds easy but is difficult for me in this noisy secular world and in my own mind.

Wandering through the church’s beautiful garden, I realized that my “waiting” does not have a time limit. That first Advent candle of Hope reminds me that there will be a brighter tomorrow because God is faithful. God works in His way, not mine.

Mrs Tonia Gooding and her family are members of the band Goodvibesing and faithful parishioners of Holy Cross R.C. She is also the President of Communities Alive Education and Training (CAETTT).

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