Receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation during Advent helps us to celebrate Christmas with purified and joyful hears.  Here is our schedule for Reconciliation for the remainder of Advent:

• Saturday, 12/14;  3:00 - 4:00 PM
• Saturday, 12/1;  3:00 - 4:00 PM
• Monday, 12/23;  6:00 - 7:00 PM  (w/ Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament)

Advent 2019

Advent is the most beautiful season of the year because it is filled with so much hope and anticipation.

We are waiting in joyful hope for the coming of Christ in the Mystery of Christmas. The first readings for this season are from the Prophets, especially the Prophet Isaiah. These ancient prophecies direct our attention to the Messiah whose coming is fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.

We are waiting for the coming of Christ at the end of the ages: “He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” How this coming will occur, we do not know. When this coming will occur, we do not know. We firmly believe, however, that there will be a moment when the saving mercy of God will be revealed once and for all in Jesus Christ. At that moment, the power of evil will be destroyed forever, and God will be victorious. This something worth waiting and hoping for!

What are you waiting for this Advent? What do you want God to do in your life, in the life of the church, in the life of our country? What we wait and hope for tell us a great deal about ourselves. If we are waiting and hoping for more of what we already have, we are waiting for small things. If we are waiting and hoping for a better version of what we already have, we are waiting for small things.

Real hope transforms us because it challenges us to reach beyond our grasp for what only God can give us. Authentic hope is not confined to this world. Hope that transforms the world is grounded in the promise of God that there will be new heavens and a new earth where the goodness and righteousness of God will reign supreme.

I am hoping for a reformed and renewed church that gives a strong and vibrant witness to the gospel. I am hoping for God’s peace and justice that will transform and unite our country. I am hoping for a deeper participation in the life of the Holy Spirit that will make me more fully alive in Christ. I am hoping for all those things only God can bring about in my life and in the life of the world.

Don’t limit your hope to little things. Don’t settle for what will quickly pass away. Let the Spirit of the living God expand what you hope for so that you will enter into the mystery of Christ. Hope for what will last and endure, not for what you already have. Hope for what will change and transform your life.

St. Paul identifies God as the God of Hope, and rightly so. God always gives us reason to hope. God fulfills our hopes over and over again, if only we dare to hope!

~ Fr. Matera

If you are an E-giver and your funds were being withdrawn from a Simsbury Bank account you will need to update your account information in our WeShare e-giving system.  Now that Liberty Bank has purchased Simsbury Bank, parishioners will need to update their routing numbers so their donations are uninterrupted.  E-giving transactions are still being honored during the transition but the correct routing number for Liberty Bank (211170282) will need to be updated.

Click on the link below to make the changes in your WeShare account.

Instructions:  New Routing Number
 

If you need assistance with this change, please contact the Parish Office.

"St. Mary's: Connecting Our Community"

This program from Simsbury Community TV focuses on our
parish and school following the completion of our new facility.
Fr. Matera and Mrs. Margaret Williamson discuss the impact
for our school, our parish and the community.

Click the image to watch the program