Did you notice anything different about the calendar this year?
When Christmas falls on a Sunday, things get rearranged. The feast of the Holy Family is usually on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year’s. No Sunday in between these solemnities this year, so the Feast of the Holy Family got moved to Friday, December 30. The Feast of the Lord’s Baptism also gets moved. This year it is on Monday, January 9, which brings the Christmas season to its conclusion.
The Feast of the Lord’s Baptism is the day we also celebrate our parish anniversary. We rearrange that as well and celebrate on the Solemnity of the Epiphany. With the visit of the Magi, Christ is revealed to the world. We, too, are called to reveal Christ to the world. One way we do that is by being people of Joy.
This year, we would like to offer every parish household a little book about joy and ways to foster it. There are many things that would rob us of joy. We need to be intentional in nurturing it. In this book, Chris Stefanick gives nine rules to rediscover and live joy. After reading this book, let me know if you can come up with a tenth rule that helps you be joyful.