A Tradition for Your Christmas Eve

We now have available the “Oplatki” or “Christmas Wafers” for your use.  This is millennia old tradition that began in Poland, Slovakia and Lithuania.

At the Christmas Eve Meal one of the wafers or, a part of one, are placed on each person’s plate.  Before the meal a prayer is said and then beginning with the father and mother of the house, a Sign of Peace is exchanged in the same manner and the wish of a Happy Christmas.  Then each person, with wafer in hand, breaks off a part of the wafer from the other person and eats it.  This continues until each person has greeted and eaten a part of the wafer of everyone present. (Read more…)

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

In the midst of this season of Advent, we celebrate on Tuesday, December 8th, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception which is a Holy Day of Obligation.  Catholics believe that from the moment of her conception, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was preserved from original sin.  It is most appropriate that this feast falls during the Advent season.  During this season, we are called to have a generosity of spirit. Mary had this spirit as she generously accepted the call from the Angel Gabriel to bring the Christ Child into this world. (Read more…)