From the desk of Father Raaser:

I am happy to publish in this bulletin our financial statement for the past year (page 6).  Our fiscal year is September until August.  I begin by thanking you for your continual, generous support of our parish.  Even though the last 6 months of the fiscal year were affected by the shutdown, from March 20 until June 13^th, you continued to support the parish financially.  Not listed; however, are the many, many food cards that you dropped off to help your fellow parishioners, the monetary donations that you gave to families who needed money to pay their bills during the height of the pandemic.  And now the outpouring of gifts for the Christmas Giving Tree, the food collected for the Thanksgiving Food Drive, and the monthly food drive are all signs of our Parish’s vitality and Christian service.

So, as you will see in the Report, we are once again operating in the black.  With the excess money, we are developing a healthy investment portfolio, and a solid savings account.  Our expenses were down this year as well.  We are saving money with an energy savings program sponsored by the Archdiocese and we are spending less on gas and heating with the new boiler systems etc., and our supplies are less this year as well.  If you have any questions, please feel free to call me.  As I say often, I’m just the steward of your money.  You have a right to know how it is being spent, so please take time and look the report over.

Christmas

In four days, we will be gathering to celebrate the Birth of Jesus.  Christmas is always a beautiful feast, because of God’s love for His people.  Over time, it became a very sentimental holiday; due to TV shows, the movies and holiday music, we want to have certain warm and fuzzy feelings on Christmas Day. And many people are disappointed when those feelings don’t come their way.  Christmas is first and foremost a religious Holyday reserved first to God and His Son whose birth we celebrate. 

Christmas is a holy day of love, the love that God has for us.  God didn’t need to create anything; He is sufficient unto Himself, as He is a community of Persons.  God created all things, visible and invisible, not for Himself, but for us.  And the height of His creation, the most beautiful of His creation is humanity, for we are created in His Image and Likeness.

When God saw His beautiful creation falling into complete ruin because of people living in fear and darkness even growing old in sin, He sent His Son.  Not as a “spirit” or a “cosmic idea or force” but as a real flesh and blood human being. After all, Love cannot accept not seeing the person it loves.  We had to see God, so God took on flesh and was born of Mary. Our Lord gave us the Eucharist, so as we 2,020 years later, can still “see” Him.  Love has come as Light into the darkness.

For the past year, our world has been living in fear of a virus.  Our loved ones have died because of it, people have taken their lives in despair, or they have turned to drugs or alcohol to cope.  People are angry looking for any reason for violence.  In the midst of this darkness, once again, Light will be celebrated in four days, and we who have been blessed with the Catholic faith cannot be silent, we must proclaim: 

Merry Christmas.  Christ is Born to us, let us be glad and rejoice.

On behalf of Fr. Clarke, and the entire staff of St. Margaret’s,
Have yourself a Merry Christmas.
Have a Blessed day and celebrate well.
Don’t forget to thank God for the first gift of Christmas: 
His Son Jesus.