During Lent, the Roman Catholic Church invites us to practice the Lenten observances: Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. These practices help us to have a better understanding of the real meaning of this wonderful liturgical season called Lent. In addition to the Lenten observances, the Church also is insisting, not only during these 40 days of conversion, but through the whole year that we go to the wonderful Sacrament of Penance.

Penance is the sacrament in which we experience the mercy of God. This is a wonderful sacrament. Unfortunately, not everyone goes to receive forgiveness, and they are denying themselves the gift of many graces and blessings from God.

I would like to remind you about the steps to have a good confession:

Let us go to the wonderful Sacrament of Reconciliation and let us allow the Spirit of God to come to us.

God bless you and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you always!

Fr. Jorge Ramirez

Very soon, a wonderful season in the Church will begin again: Lent. I say “again” because year after year the Roman Catholic Church insists on repentance, conversion, to see God faceto face, and to ask Him to forgive our sins. But, why does the Church say this again and again, year after year? Why does the Church always invite us to prayer, fasting, almsgiving, penance, sacrifice, conversion? How many times have we heard about this in the sanctuary through the preaching of many priests? Once? Twice? Three times? Thirty times? Fifty times? Eighty times? One hundred times?… In my case, I have heard about this fortythree times, because that is how old I am.

The answer to these questions is very simple, and sometimes we do not pay enough attention. The Church is inviting us year after year to think about all of these because she is thinking about our salvation. If you and I belong to the

Roman Catholic Church, go to the Eucharist, practice the sacraments, it is not because we do not have anything else to do, but because we want to go to the Kingdom of God, that means to gain eternal life.

We need to think about our salvation; hence, all the elements that the Church is introducing us, such as fasting, penance, almsgiving, sacrifice, service, etc., are tools that help us to think how we can be closer to God, surrender to Him, and reach eternal life. If we do not think about our salvation and eternal life, our faith does not make sense. I do not go to Church because I have nothing interesting to do or because my mom, dad, child, or friends are there, but because I want to have a closer encounter with Christ.

Thus, not only during this Lenten season, but all the days of our lives that we should pray and celebrate the sacraments, such as the sacraments of Eucharist and Penance (confession or reconciliation). Let us serve one another and let us allow our love for Christ to be reflected in our service to our neighbors. Through this love and service, we gain salvation and eternal life.

May this Lenten season lead us to have a special encounter with Christ to get to the house of our Heavenly Father.

So, when we go to Church this coming Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of this great season, let us think about the words that our priest or lay people say at the moment we receive ashes on our forehead: “Repent, and believe in the Gospel,” or “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Both sentences should, once again, make us to think about our salvation. Why will we go to receive ashes this coming Wednesday? Will I receive because of tradition, or because I really want to change my life? May this Ash Wednesday help us to think about our spiritual life, change many aspects in our lives, and prepare ourselves to go to the house of our heavenly Father.

God bless you, and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you always!

Fr. Jorge Ramirez

Ash Wednesday is one of the most popular and important holy days in the liturgical calendar. Ash Wednesday opens Lent, a season of fasting and prayer. Ash Wednesday takes place 40 days before Easter Tridium, and is chiefly observed by Catholics, although many other Christians observe it too. Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish tradition of penance and fasting. The practice includes the wearing of ashes on the head. The ashes symbolize the dust from which God made us. As the priest or one of the ministers of the parish applies the ashes to a person’s forehead, they speak the words: “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Alternatively, they may speak the words, “Repent and believe in the Gospel.”

The hours for Ash Wednesday are:

6:30 am	Morning Prayer and reception of Ashes
9:00 am	Mass and reception of Ashes
11:05 am	Mass and reception of Ashes at Maplewood
12:15 pm	Prayer service and reception of Ashes
5:30 pm	Mass and reception of Ashes

If you have relatives or friends who are sick and cannot come to the Church and want to receive the Ashes, Confession, Holy Communion, or Anointing of the sick, please let me know. For more information, please contact the parish office at (585) 265-1616.

St. Valentine’s Day is coming soon. Renew the love that you have for your spouse, family, relative, or friend at Mass. On February 10th and 11th, during the Mass, there will be a special blessing for matrimonies and couples who are engaged, or dating. Those who are single, don’t worry. We’ll also have a special blessing for you because we appreciate your friendship and support for our parish. St. Valentine’s Day is also the friendship day. Please, come and receive this wonderful blessing by God.

Important information for Holy Trinity Church

I would like to share with you that I am leaving for vacation from January 22nd to February 9th. I will go home, to my wonderful country, Colombia. I have not been in Colombia since July 2022. I am very excited to go back after all this time. I will be visiting my family and friends in Medellin, my hometown, and probably, I will visit other cities as well. This will be a good time to relax, share with my family and friends, speak Spanish, and of course, to eat delicious Colombian food. I will preside some Eucharists with my family and friends during this time. Also, it will be a good time to renew my faith and vocation, and to be ready to come back to this wonderful family of Holy Trinity Church to work for God’s Kingdom.

Meanwhile, wonderful priests and a deacon will be with you during these weeks.

Let us start with Deacon Gary Terrana. You know him. He has been serving in our parish since I started my ministry as the Pastor. The parish will not have daily Masses during my time in Colombia; however, Deacon Gary will preside at Communion services. Please, go to these services, pray, and receive Jesus present in the Eucharist.

Fr. John Mulligan will be presiding the Eucharists during weekends and helping to listen to people in confession on February 3rd. You are always in good hands in the company of Fr. John.

Fr. Bill Michatek will be presiding at the Eucharists as well with Fr. John. He will listen to people in confessions as well on January 27th. Fr. Michatek has kindly offered to celebrate daily Mass at Holy Trinity on January 24th, February 2nd and February 6th. You know very well Fr. Michatek, so give him a warm welcoming during these days.

In addition, confessions on Tuesdays are canceled. If you need a priest for pastoral emergencies, anointing of the sick, or confession, please contact St. Paul Church, St. Rita Church, Holy Spirit Church, or St. Joseph Church.

Even though I will not be here, we have a wonderful parish staff, who can help you in case you need it. Please, pray for me during my vacation. I will pray for you from Colombia.

God bless you, and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you always!

Fr. Jorge Ramirez

Christmas is over… for a while, we won’t have the Christmas tree at home, or eat Christmas cookies, or exchange presents. No more Christmas carols or expecting for the coming of Santa. However, although Christmas is over, the joy of having the Lord with us should remain in our hearts. This is precisely the meaning of Ordinary Time. Some people believe that Ordinary Time means “boring time;” however, its meaning is very different. “Ordinary Time is called “ordinary” not because it is common but simply because the weeks of Ordinary Time are numbered. The Latin word ordinalis, which refers to numbers in a series, stems from the Latin word ordo, from which we get the English word order. Thus, the numbered weeks of Ordinary Time, in fact, represent the ordered life of the Church–the period in which we live our lives neither in feasting (as in the Christmas and Easter seasons) or in more severe penance (as in Advent and Lent), but in watchfulness and expectation of the Second Coming of Christ” (learnreligions.com). Moreover, “Ordinary Time is a time for growth and maturation, a time in which the mystery of Christ is called to penetrate ever more deeply into history until all things are finally caught up in Christ” (usccb.org).

Christ is among us. He is “The Emmanuel” who is always showing us the merciful Father. We need to be closer to Him, allowing us during the different seasons of the liturgical year to experience the love of God. If we have a special connection with God through the sacraments, different prayers, and our service to our brothers and sisters, we are really letting Jesus touch our hearts and so we have an ordinary life; that means, to have a life according to the natural order created by God.

My brothers and sisters, let us celebrate always that the Lord Jesus is with us, regardless of the liturgical season. God is with us 365 days a year, so let us rejoice because the Emmanuel is here always to lead each one of us to the house of Our Heavenly Father.

Fr. George

Some people believe that Christmas is over. Perhaps, they think that Christmas is only celebrated on December 25; therefore, probably they have already taken down all Christmas decorations. No more Christmas tree, ornaments, lights, and so on. However, we, Catholics, understand that Christmas is not only a day, but a joyful season which we celebrate the mystery of the nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, let us continue celebrating this wonderful season with the celebration of the Epiphany. This celebration is better known as the feast day of the three kings. They are also known as the three wise men or the three magi. They appear in the gospel of Matthew 2:1-12. This is the story of how 3 magi go to worship the new baby king. They recognize that Jesus is the King of kings; hence, they gave Him three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Gold was a gift for a king, frankincense was a gift for God, and myrrh was an oil that was used for burials. With these three gifts, the magi recognize Jesus as a king and God, and they tell us with the myrrh the destiny of Jesus: to die on the Cross for us. This is a beautiful story to read at home, especially with our kids.

There is a short novel by Henry Van Dyke called “The other wise man,” and published in 1895. Almost a century later, in 1985, Michael Ray Rhodes filmed a television movie called “The fourth wise man,” based on the story of Van Dyke. This story tells us the life of Artaban, one of the Medes from Persia. Like Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar, Artaban saw the star which would lead him to see the king of kings. However, he had difficulties and could not go to see the newborn king. All his life, he tried to see Jesus, and the only time he was able to see Him was during the crucifixion. However, Jesus appeared to Artaban when he was dying and said that every time he helped people, he saw Jesus’ face. This is another story that we can share with our family.

The story of the fourth wise man is a fictional story. It does not appear in the Bible. However, it brings us a great message: we are that fourth magi who always see Jesus each time that we do charitable works. Gaspar, Melchior, and Balthasar worshipped the baby of Bethlehem. Artaban tried to see and worship the newborn king, but you and I are always able to see Him in the Eucharist, in the sacraments, and in the face of our brothers and sisters, who we interact with every day.

Let us worship the King of kings always with our prayers, our actions, and our lives.

Let us pray:
O God, who by the guidance of a star did on this day manifest Your onlybegotten Son to the Gentiles, mercifully grant that we who know You by faith may also attain the vision of Your glorious majesty. Through Christ our Lord. All: Amen.

God bless you and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you!

Fr. Jorge Ramírez

God, through Bishop Matano, decided to send me to work here at the Church of the Most Holy Trinity after working for two years as the Parochial Administrator of N.E.T. Catholic, which has three parishes: All Saints Church in Lansing, Holy Cross Church in Dryden, and St. Anthony’s Church in Groton. I cannot believe that it has been six months since I became the pastor of this wonderful family of Holy Trinity. Six months… six months in which I have tried to demonstrate my faith in God, and work for Him and for His Church.

In these six months, I have been celebrating the sacraments, especially the sacrament of the Eucharist and reconciliation, worked on CMA, facilities, the pastoral and finance councils, and the different committees of the parishes and their activities. I blessed the pets on the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi, the solemnity of All Saints, the Colombian tradition of “Las noches de las velitas” / The night of the little candles, our family Christmas tree, Christmas celebrations, among other activities I have done during these months. Everything I have done is thanks to each one of you because you are realizing that we are more than a parish… we are one family who are walking together under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, through our Lord Jesus Christ to the house of our Heavenly Father. You are also realizing the importance of my theme or slogan for my pastoral plan, “the parish that we dream, is the parish that I help to build.”

For all of these and for your prayers and friendship, I only have to say, “¡Muchas Gracias! “Thank you very much.” These six months of 2023 were amazing, and I know that the following year will be much better. Please, let us continue to work for the kingdom of God all together as one great family… The Most Holy Trinity family. I know that God has wonderful things for each one of us.

¡Feliz Próspero Año Nuevo 2024! / Happy New Year 2024.

God bless all of you, and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you always.

Fr. Jorge Ramirez.

When we think about Christmas, many times we think about snow, Santa, Christmas trees, snowmen, cookies, and of course, gifts. All of these are wonderful images of Christmas celebration. When I visit people, for instance, in my pastoral ministry, I see the beautiful Christmas decorations that they have, and they tell me that they expect to have a white Christmas. I know that usually people associate Christmas with these images, especially with snow.

However, is this enough? Is this the real sense of “holy days?” Do we really know what Christmas is about? Some people have the idea that Christmas is about Jesus, His incarnation, and birth in Bethlehem around two thousand years ago. And this is right, but we need to go beyond this. Christmas is more than remembering the birth of Jesus; it means that it is not only to celebrate His birthday, but to allow Jesus to come into our lives, our hearts, our families, our neighborhoods, our towns, our cities, our country, our planet, and of course, our universe. Christmas is the magical time when you and I recognize that God, who loves us very much, sent His only begotten Son to live like us and save all of us from sin.

“As we contemplate the Christmas story, we are invited to set out on a spiritual journey, drawn by the humility of the God who became man in order to encounter every man and woman. We come to realize that so great is his love for us that he became one of us, so that we in turn might become one with him,” Pope Francis said on December 6, 2019.

We are very happy to receive the Emmanuel, the Savior in our lives; hence, we want to share this joy with our family, relatives, and friends. Jesus is the most important present that we can receive at Christmas, and at the same time, He is the most important present we can gift in this beautiful time of the year to our brothers and sisters. The best way we can do this is demonstrating our love, kindness, generosity, joy, happiness to our brothers and sisters, people who need to feel God’s love through each one of us. Therefore, let us go to Church and receive the sacraments, especially the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist to prepare ourselves to celebrate this wonderful liturgical season.

Let us eat cookies, turkey, ham, or something delicious. Let us sing Christmas carols. Let us enjoy Christmas with our family and friends. But most important, let us keep Christ in Christmas through our good works and loving our neighbors; in other words, doing what Jesus wants us to do.

I, as the Pastor of the Church of the Most Holy Trinity and in behalf of our staff, wish you Merry Christmas! ¡Feliz Navidad! May the Baby, who was born in Bethlehem, be born again this Christmas in your hearts and homes and be with you always. Feliz Navidad, Merry Christmas, my brothers and sisters. Enjoy these wonderful Holy Days in the company of your beloved ones and, of course, the Holy Family, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

God bless you and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you!

Fr. Jorge Ramírez

Have you noted that in the Advent wreath we have three purple candles and one rose candle? Do you know the meaning of the rose candle? When is it lit? To answer these questions, we need to remember the meaning of this wonderful season of the Catholic Church. The word Advent means coming. Therefore, Advent is a time to prepare ourselves to celebrate the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas), and for the second coming of the Lord. Each candle of the Advent wreath indicates that the great celebration of Christmas is near, and we need to continue to prepare the way for the second coming of the Lord.

We have lit two purple candles so far. This Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent, is called “Gaudete Sunday,” and we light the rose candle. “Gaudete” is a Latin word for “Rejoice.” Hence, the Church is inviting us to be happy, rejoicing because the great celebration of Christmas and the coming of the Lord is almost here, but we need to wait a little bit more in this “Gaudete Sunday.” This celebration is a reminder that God, who loves us very much, is still in charge, and that we await His coming not with fear,

but with tremendous joy. Rose is the color of joy in Advent. Hence, we do not only light the rose candle, but also the priest wears the rose vestment.

St. Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, says, “Brothers and sisters: Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4). The readings, the rose candle and vestment, the music… everything in liturgy is a constant invitation to rejoice because the coming of the Lord is near. Let us rejoice always because the Lord is with us, loves us, and cares for us. Let us share this joy that all of us feel for the coming of the Lord with our brothers, sisters, families, schoolmates, classmates, coworkers, and even with people who we do not know. Let us prepare the Christmas celebrations with faith, love, and joy for the coming of the Lord.

Let us pray:

O God, who see how your people faithfully await the feast of the Lord’s Nativity, enable us, we pray, to attain the joys of so great a salvation and to celebrate them always with solemn worship and glad rejoicing. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever

(Taken from the Roman Missal – Collect prayer of the third Sunday of Advent).

God bless you, and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you always!

Fr. George

The Catholic Church started a new Liturgical Year this past Sunday, December 3rd, with the season of Advent. The liturgical year consists of the cycle of liturgical seasons in the Catholic Church that determines when feast days, including celebrations of saints, are to be observed, and which portions of Scripture are to be read either in an annual cycle or in a cycle of several years. The Liturgical year has five seasons:

Advent:

It is the first season of the liturgical year in which we are waiting in preparation for both the celebration of the Nativity of Christ at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. We use the Advent wreath which has 4 candles: 3 purple and 1 rose candle. The liturgical color is violet or purple.

Christmas:

In this liturgical season we are celebrating the Nativity of the Lord. Please, pay attention that this is a season, which goes from December 25 (Christmas Day) until the Epiphany of the Lord (known as the feast of the three kings [around January 6th]), and not only one day. The liturgical color is white.

Ordinary Time:

This liturgical year is divided into two periods: The first one goes from the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord until Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. The second one goes from the Sunday after Pentecost until the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe. This time is called ordinary because everything is in order. The liturgical color is green.

Lent:

This is a season used by the Church to call us to make penance through almsgiving, fasting, prayer, and of course, the sacrament of reconciliation. This liturgical season goes from Ash Wednesday until Holy Thursday in the morning. The liturgical color is purple.

Easter Triduum:

This is not really a season, but the most important celebration for Christians. Here, we commemorate the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We celebrate on Holy Thursday in the evening at the Lord’s Supper Eucharist, which the liturgical color is white, Good Friday with the Adoration of the Holy Cross, which the liturgical color is red, and Easter Vigil at Holy Saturday’s evening where we start to celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord and the liturgical color is white.

Easter:

Like Christmas, this is not only a day, but a full season which starts on Easter Sunday until Pentecost (the celebration of the Holy Spirit). This season celebrates that Christ, the light of the world, is risen. Jesus Christ rose from the dead to take us to the house of the heavenly Father. We light the Paschal Candle, which was blessed on Easter Vigil during the whole Easter season. The Liturgical color is white.

God bless you, and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you.

Fr. George

Our Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the most beautiful gifts that Our Lord Jesus Christ gave us. We love her because she is protecting us and praying for all of us before Our Heavenly Father. We, as the Catholic Church, honor her through many of her names: Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of the Lakes, The Immaculate Conception, and so on. The title of Immaculate Conception is very important for all Americans because she is the patroness of this beautiful country, and for all Colombians. In Colombia, the day of the Immaculate Conception has a lot of celebrations, such as First Communions, parties, and different celebrations. One of these celebrations is call La Noche de las Velitas.

La Noche de las Velitas or the Night of the Little Candles is one of the most observed traditional holidays in Colombia. It is celebrated on December 7 & 8, on the feast of the Immaculate Conception, which is a public holiday in Colombia. This day is the unofficial start of the Christmas season in the country. On this day, people place candles and paper lanterns on windowsills, balconies, porches, sidewalks, streets, parks and squares; in short, everywhere they can be seen, in honor of the Virgin Mary and her Immaculate Conception. On December 8 it is customary for houses to hoist a white flag with the image of the Virgin Mary all day. They also hold numerous events, from firework shows to competitions.

We will celebrate the Night of the Little Candles on December 8 at 5:30 pm.

Please, join me in this Colombian tradition in honor of our Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary and her Immaculate Conception. Besides this celebration, after Mass, I will share the Colombian traditional dessert for Christmas. Feel free to bring something to share in this gathering after the celebration. Come and participate in this beautiful Colombian tradition.

I am sharing with you some of the photos of this celebration of the different parishes I have been celebrating this Colombian tradition.

All are welcome!
God bless you, and may the Blessed Virgin Mary be with you always!

Fr. Jorge Ramirez