From the Desk of Fr. Omar

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

We just have finished our beautiful Christmas Season, and now, we are entering for a little while into the Ordinary Time before we encounter once more the season of Lent. This week’s readings are calling us to put the gifts we have received from God at the service of others. In today’s Gospel reading from St. John, we hear the account of Jesus’ first miracle or sign (as St. John calls it), the wedding of Cana. There is so much we need to learn from this story, so much that in a homily, I would not have enough time to unfold everything we need to see and learn.

This is one of the reasons why this year’s pastoral initiative for the Church of the Little Flower and its parishioners has been laid out between Adoration and Formation, two very important parts in the life of this parish and in the life of every Christian.

We already have St. Joseph’s Chapel set up for perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, all seven days of the week throughout the year. We all need to find in our heart time to be dedicated exclusively to Jesus; therefore, make your commitment of one hour a week of adoration. Please make sure you register for it in our website, www.cotlf.org. As a community of believers, we must be able to accompany Jesus, not for His benefit but for our own personal and communal benefit.

Beginning in February, we will have the opportunity to learn more about our faith, about what it means to be a Catholic, through the weekly formation hour hosted by Fr. Manny and myself. I agreed with Fr. Manny with the necessity of refreshing our Christian beliefs or simply learn about them. We, Fr. Manny and I, hope that these formation hours will benefit as many of us as possible; consequently, do not lose the opportunity to be part of this new and exciting initiative in our parish.

Additionally, I would like to remind all that as a parish, we already have tools allowing us to grow in the knowledge of Scriptures. On Mondays, “Seekers Bible Study Group,” and “Adult Bible Study Group,” meet regularly. On Tuesdays, I have been offering Bible Study Sessions online to unfold the Scriptures in English and Spanish. These Bible Study Groups are inline with what we will celebrate on the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time; Pope Francis in his apostolic letter “Apertuit illis” in the form of Motu propio has designated that day as the Sunday of the Word of God. The Holy Father is reminding us that we must always remember the great gesture of love the Risen Christ made for us. He has open for us the treasure of the Word of God, which is inexhaustible.

Finally, we also have the classes offered through the Rite of Christian Initiation for adults as tool to refresh and learn more about our faith and traditions in the Catholic Church. These classes are open not only to those preparing to receive the Sacraments of Initiation but also to anyone who would like to attend them.

As you can see my brothers and sisters, we have no excuses to enrich our faith throughout this year. We must recognize our limited knowledge about Scriptures, Catechesis, and traditions of our Church. Allow yourself this year to be challenged by the Lord and grow in His knowledge. The choice is entirely yours!

Peace and blessings,

Fr. Omar