Dear Parish Family,

This Monday, January 22 is the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. Based on the Judeo-Christian values of the dignity of the human person, the Church firmly, consistently, and insistently teaches that all people have the right to life from conception to natural death. Moreover, we as the Church must work with people of goodwill at all levels in our civil society to safeguard this human right to life in law, give good witness to the dignity of human life by our words and actions, and practice the corporal and spiritual works of mercy by providing for those in need, especially for mothers, children, and families who are most vulnerable in our society.

Remember that the human right to life isn't based on religious arguments, but rather on biological, anthropological, and moral truth accessible to every person regardless of faith or cultural backgrounds. We need to ask the fundamental questions about when human life begins, the purpose of our freedom, and our social responsibility to get at the heart of why abortion ought to be illegal. Killing one's child in the womb, or permitting another person the "right" to kill one's child in the womb, is an unconscionable reality in every circumstance and for every person regardless of beliefs or cultural conditioning.

It might feel deflating to uphold the dignity of children in the womb in today's cultural climate opposed to life in so many ways, yet we must not lose our hope, our conviction, and our joyful proclamation of Jesus' resurrection as we live our faith in the world, including in political and social advocacy at all levels. Our Catholic-Christian witness of faith adds so much good to the cultural discussion of the right to life based on the anthropological truths open to every reasonable and conscientious person. Reflect on the words of Pope Francis in his encyclical Laudato Si which recall the fundamental priority of protecting the preborn in our society: "How can we genuinely teach the importance of concern for other vulnerable beings, however troublesome or inconvenient they may be, if we fail to protect a human embryo, even when its presence is uncomfortable and creates difficulties?" (120). As members of the human family, we are called to work together to protect all human life from conception through natural death. 

Last Sunday Confession Change
After next weekend, we will be moving confessions from the last Sunday of the month after Masses to the last Wednesday of the month from 6-7 pm during Adoration. Next Sunday will be the last time we have the confessions after Sunday Masses. This change will help the priest better prepare between Sunday Masses, make the confession experience less rushed, and open penitents to a time of Adoration with the Blessed Sacrament. Remember that we have extra opportunities for confession during the Lent and Advent seasons, and Fr. Fabian and I are available for confession throughout the week by request, even if it's not at a formal confession time. We are required to celebrate the Sacrament of Confession with a priest if we have committed mortal sins (serious sin committed with full knowledge and full consent). Venial sins are absolved whenever we bring them to the Lord in our time of personal prayer and at various times where we invoke the Lord's mercy throughout the Mass. Thank you for your understanding of this change which will ultimately help Fr. Fabian and me serve the parish to the best of our ability on Sundays. 

New Rectory Proposal Feedback
If you haven't done so, please review the presentation notes and fill out a feedback form on the new rectory build project available at https://stmarychardon.org/new-rectory-project. I presented the current status of the project back in November at two well-attended town hall meetings. Updates will be posted on this web page and in the bulletin as we progress with the new rectory project. Thank you for your prayers and support!

I am yours in Christ,
Fr. Scott Goodfellow