God is With Us—in the Twists and Turns of Life
This weekend we hear the word “Emmanuel,” which means “God is with us,” both in the first reading and the Gospel. This message, pure and simple, is the message of Christmas, the message of the incarnation. What is also compelling to me is how God is with us in the twists and turns of life. We hear in the Gospel, the adventures that Joseph faces. His betrothed wife, Mary, is found with child, and he knows it is not his. (This sounds like a soap opera!) So he decides to divorce Mary quietly, so as not to cause scandal or harm to her. And then an angel appears to him in a dream, and shares God’s plan with him. So much for Joseph’s plan to divorce Mary quietly! He decides instead to stay with her, and to trust.
I think this is a comfort to us. How often do our plans change? We come up with some idea, some way of moving forward, and then something happens—someone gets sick, or we lose a job, or who knows what . . . and we have to change our plans. We have to adapt. This is the story of the Holy Family, it is the story of how the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Change and the need to adapt is written into our salvation history, it is written, if you will, into our DNA. Mary and Joseph had to adapt from the very beginning. And yet, they could do so because God was with them. So also, God is with us. We are undergoing incredible challenges. I talk to people who are afraid due to immigration enforcement, I hear the financial struggles of people in this challenging economy. And yet we also move forward with great trust: God is with us.
A great sign of our trust was how many people came to celebration Our Lady of Guadalupe last week. It was so joyful, so encouraging! I want to thank you all for coming to celebrate with us. I especially want to thank Adiel and Yolanda Morales who led the food sales and helped make it all so joyful. In January we will give a full report. But for now, let me thank them and you all. We continue our Advent wait in hope, because God is with us.
We invite you to visit the “Other Announcements” section to learn about additional events and activities happening in our parish.
The novices are about to wrap up their Long Retreat, and we are confident they have benefited from the prayers. In December, we are praying for Jesuit vocations
We will present photos and brief biological information about various Jesuits from our province who are in the formation process. Please pray for them!
This week we pray for Tran, Nathaniel.
This week we pray for Tran, Nathaniel.
We are grateful for your contribution of time, talent, and treasure. With your support, we can continue to serve our parish community. Consider making your Sunday Offering online by visiting olgsd.org/giving.
Thank you for your ongoing support!
Celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe – Part 1
🕊 We are pleased to announce that the following children were baptized in our Catholic Church last Saturday, December 6, 2025.
- Evianna Tolentino Niebla
- Jeison Gonzalez Lopez
Welcome to the family!
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Criminal abuse that is reported or suspected is reported to law enforcement in accordance with civil law.