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It seems to me that St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is a patron to whom we can all relate, and if you want my opinion, next to the Blessed Virgin Mary, she is an ideal patron for the Church in the United States!

On this Epiphany Sunday, may we join together in praying that the light which attracted the Magi from afar may now shine brightly on the Church’s face, so that many who are far from the LORD and the Church will be attracted to him by us and by the witness of our lives.

In an age when people find long-term commitment difficult, I think of Mom and Dad. When they were married in 1947, little did they know what their wedding vows would mean in practical terms: “to love one another in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health.”

Throughout this past difficult year, when the usual props in our lives were kicked out from under us, we may have found ourselves wondering more profoundly about the meaning of life and the purpose of our existence. If we took time to pray and to reflect, we may have discovered, without leaving home, something vaster, something more enduring, something more breathtaking than all of nature’s wonders put together.

An old Christmas song tells us, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year”. For many of you, Christmas is indeed a wonderful time of year, especially if you have children and grandchildren. Many of us enjoy Christmas concerts, lessons and carols, holiday parties and gatherings, along with shopping, gift-giving and much more. But, of course, this year is different. Much of that is dialed back, severely so. This year, we might feel as though the Grinch really did manage to steal Christmas!