Today begins the Season of Advent and a new year in the church calendar. Advent prepares us for the coming of Jesus, both in celebrating the past (when he came as a newborn child) and looking toward the future in hope (when he comes in glory at the end of time). As we begin a new church year, both of our collaborative parishes are introducing a
new book in the pews to aid our participation in the Mass. Breaking Bread contains in a single-volume the hymnal and all the prayers and readings for the whole year. Since it is from the same publisher as our previous books, it should be an easy transition - just think of the front half as the missal and the back half as the hymnal. These annual volumes cost less than seasonal missals and allow us access to the full music repertoire throughout the year.
This year’s
St. Martha Holiday Fair was another great success! It is always impressive to see the crafts and seemingly ever bigger raffle baskets - not to mention the constant flow of traffic through the church parking lot both days of the fair! This event brings together many parishioners - whether on the committee to prepare, as volunteers at the event itself, and as donors to the raffle prizes and "Claire's Corner" goods. There are many St. Mary parishioners who also donated and supported St. Martha by attending the fair. The hard work of many St. Martha parishioners makes possible this very significant event which is an important fund-raiser to help balance the parish budget. The whole St. Martha Parish Family is very grateful!
In particular, this successful parish event could not have happened without the dedication of the
Fair Committee, co-chaired by Liz Molloy and Dianne Moores. Your untiring efforts since summertime do not go unnoticed, from creating crafts, recruiting corporate sponsors, and coordinating the many people and pieces of this wonderful event all come together beautifully!
Thanks also to all of our corporate sponsors, who are listed on the next page.