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I invite and strongly encourage each and every one of you to be with us during these solemn days. The liturgy of the Church during the Sacred Triduum is rich in word and symbol, and draws us into the very sacrifice of Jesus on the cross which reaches its climax in the celebration of the resurrection at Easter. The schedule for the Triduum and Easter, which you should have received in your home, is reprinted in this bulletin for your convenience.

It is an important aspect of my job as pastor to make sure we, as a parish community, remain financially healthy, and that your generous contributions (i.e., your financial stewardship) are being used prudently and wisely. I take this role as chief financial steward of our parish very seriously, and the fact that I have been entrusted with this responsibility by the Archbishop and by you is humbling. Of course, I could never fulfill this charge alone.

I remind you that on Wednesday, April 6, at 7:00 P.M., we will be celebrating our annual Lenten Penance Service in the lower church. There will be several priests with us that evening to bestow Christ’s mercy and forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

To take the Disciple Maker Index survey, please use the link below: https://www.catholicleaders.org/phila-dmi PLEASE NOTE:  When you open the link you will see a list of all the parishes in the Archdiocese. Please select our parish (Saint Timothy, Philadelphia) to complete the Disciple Maker Index survey.

I think it is especially significant that we are honoring Saint Joseph and asking his intercession while our world is being torn apart by this terrible conflict in Ukraine. We are desperately in need of God’s help, and Saint Joseph, the great intercessor, will certainly hear our prayers and plead with God on our behalf. Joseph is a powerful saint, which is why we go to him with many different needs always.

Each diocese throughout the world will carry out the Synodal Process in a way that best responds to their local circumstances. In the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, we are working with Catholic Leadership Institute to implement the Disciple Maker Index (DMI) survey at every parish in the Archdiocese from March 2 to April 4, 2022.

We have, as always, a very full Lenten season planned for our parish community here at Saint Timothy. Inside this week’s bulletin, please find our annual Lenten calendar, (printed on purple paper!), which details for you all of the liturgies, prayer experiences, and events we have scheduled for our 2022 Lenten journey. I encourage you to keep this Lenten calendar at home throughout the season.

Tolton is a riveting multimedia drama not to be missed. The production runs 75 minutes, and is suitable for middle school age and up. Please join us on Friday evening, February 25 at 7:00. For more information, please call the rectory.

I remind you that Catholic Charities is no longer a second collection in church, like so many other special collections we take throughout the year. It is now a direct mail campaign that basically lasts for a whole year. You should have received a mailing from the Archdiocesan Catholic Charities office, containing a campaign brochure and a gift/pledge card, along with an envelope within which you would be able to send your gift or pledge.

We begin today Catholic Schools Week. This annual observance is a good opportunity for us to give thanks to God for the existence of our Catholic schools, especially here in our Archdiocese, which enabled so many of us to receive our grounding in the faith. We are also reminded of the many sacrifices parents and guardians make, many right here in our own parish, to send their children to Catholic school and, thus, to provide them with the best of a faith-based education.

As I have mentioned in the past, prayer is vital, but so is a personal invitation to these young people. There are surely young men and women in your life --- whether they are family members, friends, neighbors, or those you may see in church week after week --- who you believe would be excellent priests or religious. Why not --- in the name of God and his Church --- invite them personally to consider committing their lives in just such a vocation.

I am happy to report to you, as well, that we have achieved an important goal of mine: Blessed Trinity School is now complete­ ly financially independent from Saint Thnothy Parish and from the other parishes who send children to our school. Our school is pres­ ently in a very strong financial position, allowing us to discontinue the subsidy of the parish(es) to the school (you will recall the fact that, for many years, much of our parish's fmancial resources were used to keep Saint Timothy and, later, Blessed Trinity School sus­ tainable).

It is important that we realize the significance of today’s feast. We end the season of Christmas with the Lord’s baptism by John, an act which marks the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. With his baptism he officially begins the work he was sent by the Father to accomplish.

I would like to take this occasion to thank you all for your generosity in our Christmas collection. The sacrifices that were so evident in your contributions are appreciated by me, as your pastor, and are certainly not unnoticed by God. This is one of the most important collections of the year, and so I want you to be sure that your generosity is not only appreciated but very necessary for the upkeep of our parish.

We celebrate next Friday and Saturday New Year’s, which for us Catholics is the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God. How appropriate that we take this first day of the New Year to honor the one who brought the Word-made-Flesh into being by her very “yes” to God. Happy 2022 to you and those you love.

Let us remember to prepare ourselves appropriately to receive this greatest of gifts on this most joy-filled feast. As we celebrate God’s goodness to us in so many ways during these final days of Advent, let us also not forget the poor.

This beautiful reminder is taken from the Letter to the Philippians, and calls us to remember that, not only are we half way through our Advent celebration, with Christmas just two weeks away, but our salvation is also close at hand, for the Savior who brings us God’s life and love is always near to us, and will, indeed, return one day, as He promised, to gather all of us who believe into the fullness of God’s reign.

Please remember those who are in need during this Advent season by taking note of our giving tree, which is located at the front of the upper church. You are encouraged to pick a tag, purchase the item, and return it by December 12th, unwrapped with the tag attached, to our donation containers inside the church.

I remind you that, during this month of November, the Archdiocese is beginning our annual seminary appeal, for the benefit of our present seminarians, as well as to ensure the future of our great seminary of Saint Charles Borromeo at Overbrook. This year’s appeal’s theme is Saint Charles Seminary: For today. For tomorrow. For all of us.

As we ask the saints, particularly during this autumn time, to continue to intercede for us before the throne of God, let us remember especially our loved ones and friends who have died, that our prayers may help them gain the reward promised to all those who are faithful.