Our sympathies to the family of Daniel Haynes on the loss of their son whose funeral was celebrated here last Monday. May he rest in peace with all our beloved departed.
Congratulations to Michael & Stephanie Cangelosi on the baptism of their daughter Mia Nicole which will take place during the Noon Mass this Sunday. May Mia know the joy of a living faith as her parents pledge to pass that on to her.
This Monday, February 2nd, is the feast of the Presentation of the Lord which commemorates the presentation of Jesus in the Temple, a Jewish law which required parents to present their first-born son to God. When Christ was brought into the Temple, an old, pious man by the name of Simeon said that Jesus was to be the Light of the nations. And so, to symbolize Jesus as the Light to the world, we bless candles on this day which are used in the church throughout the year: candles by our altars & tabernacle, candles by our shrines of the Sacred Heart & St. Ann, & candles that are used to blessed throats. So this day is also referred to as “Candlemas Day” since we bless those candles at Mass. On Tuesday, February 3rd, we celebrate the feast of St. Blaise, a bishop whom we believe was martyred in the early 4th century. He is associated with the blessing of throats based on a story that his prayers saved a boy who was choking on a fishbone. So in place of the final blessing at Mass this weekend, Father Vesely & I will bless throats as we seek the intercession of St. Blaise, “bishop and martyr,” that God may “deliver us from every disease of the throat and from every other illness.” We place two candles held together by a red ribbon around your neck as we give this blessing. We used to light the candles but then on occasion, someone’s hair would catch on fire. We could always have ushers standing next to you with a fire extinguisher but some of them may be trigger happy.
My siblings & I bought a grandfather clock for my parents when they celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary many years ago. I have since inherited the clock but neither the clock nor the chimes are working, due either to age or to its movement from one place to another over the years that I have moved. Does anyone know how to get the clock to actually tell time and to sing again? Abby misses getting mesmerized by the swinging of the pendulum.