…”Jesus said to them in reply, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.” On this Third Sunday of Advent – Rejoice!!! That’s the hopeful message of the Scriptures on this Gaudete Sunday. As the pink candle is lit, so near is the Lord our God. Take some time this week to allow yourself to step back and notice the abundant blessings of God in your life. As you do so, you should be stirred with a great joy for the mighty things God has done, and is doing, in your life. Rejoice!! Go and tell everyone!!!
…This past Wednesday was the Feast of Saint Ambrose. I had the joy of being with six of our students from Saint Ambrose School on the radio (95.5 The FISH). They were talking about doing acts of service in the spirit of Jesus over the Christmas Season. When I had the chance to talk, in sixty seconds or less, I talked passionate and energetically about YOU – your goodness – and the blessings of our parish community. The most recent example of overwhelming Saint Ambrose goodness comes from the Scouts. Over the past weekend our Scouts collected 8,000 cans of food for those in need this Christmas. They walked the streets and experienced an outpouring of goodness in our community. So many will find help and hope through your goodness and the efforts of our Scouts and Catholic Works of Mercy Team. I truly look for moments and opportunities to ‘tell everyone what I see and hear’ each day at Saint Ambrose. Your goodness is a well-spring of God’s mercy and compassion. The hungry are fed. Those who have lost loved ones find comfort. Children and students learn the ways of the Lord. Those sitting in darkness find hope and peace. God bless you now and always. We have every reason to rejoice.
…YOU have been receiving many thank you notes these past days thanks to our Thanksgiving outreach. From Malachi House, “we want to say ‘thank you’ for the wonderful Thanksgiving dinner we received from the members of your parish….We are so blessed to have such wonderful supporters in the community. Please extend our heartfelt appreciation to your parishioners, and we wish you all a blessed, happy Christmas season.”
…And another….”thank you so much for all the good you do and the people you help in our community.”
…And a phone call from Thanksgiving Day afternoon….”you have no idea how blessed we feel right now as we sit down as a family and share this delicious meal. Please let everyone know how thankful we are.”
…Many thanks to those who have taken tags from the Advent Kindness/Giving Trees. The team is working hard to make sure that all of our ‘adopted’ family members this Christmas have a good meal and some essential items to help them. Your goodness allows us to provide comfort and hope to those in need. If you took a giving tag, please make every effort to get those gifts to the Church this week. Thank you for your support.
…This past week the students of Saint Ambrose School had some amazing opportunities to learn about, work with and see in action some of the newest and greatest technology. One of the presentations was on 3D printing. The professor from Wayne College kept saying, “you can build just about anything” through 3D printing. What caught my attention most is that, together, we as a community are building a better world in the Spirit of the Lord. Isaiah keeps calling us to a world of mercy and peace, care and compassion.
…One last call for gently used coats. Over the past month we have distributed about 800 coats to those in need in the city of Cleveland. We have a list from Thanksgiving that expresses need for about 100 more coats (men and children especially). If you have a minute and can check your closet to see if you have an old coat you are not needing/using, please drop them off at the Narthex (connector to the Church).
…Speaking of the Narthex, it was great to see so many people gazing at the Angel Ornaments on the tree last weekend. There’s room for your family Angel ornament on the tree. You can hang it yourself or drop it off at the Parish Office.
…The Singing Angels Concert and Brunch with St. Ambrose, St. Nick and Friends were both GREAT events. It was wonderful to see such a rich diversity of our community coming together to share faith and friendship in family friendly, fun ways. Thanks to all who worked so hard to create these great events for our community. Please bring your kids and grandkids to the Living Nativity next Saturday at 5:45 pm. Stay for the Nativity and/or the food after in Hilkert Hall. It’s the perfect way to remember the real reason for the season.
…Amid your holiday shopping, the good members who count our weekly collection were very worried this past week. Realizing that Christmas is on a Sunday, they wanted me to remind all our members that we need both a good Christmas collection and their Sunday donation this year. Truth be told, we could really use your support. As you will see our collections are just a little under last year. Your support helps us do all the things we do each day/week at Saint Ambrose. Thank you for your continued support.
…We have a busy week coming up at Saint Ambrose. A few highlights: Next Friday we have several priests coming for the Sacrament of Reconciliation/Confession at 1:00 pm in the Church. On Saturday give yourself a beautiful gift and join our Special Ed Community for their Christmas Mass at 8:15 am in the Church. Their sincere love reminds us of the love that Christ has for each of us.
…We are blessed with a strong team of volunteers that assist our maintenance staff in taking care of our campus and getting things set for Christmas. They are meeting for a couple hours of service on Wednesday at 9:00 am. They can always use a few new hands. Come to the PLC.
…We are blessed that three members recently signed up and are now trained to serve at Funerals. It’s a beautiful ministry of service and a great act of compassion. What a gift you can give to the Lord in service to our community this Christmas – let your light shine!
…Gaudete Sunday – the time to rejoice – so near is the Lord. I see God’s abiding presence and goodness each day in the wonderful things you do for the Lord and our community. Have a blessed week. Be assured of my daily prayers for you and your loved ones.
