Welcome!

To the people of God and parishioners of
St. Thomas the Apostle Church and St. Patrick Mission

Message from the desk of the Pastor:

God speaks to us in many ways, including through the Sunday Scripture readings. The Sunday Connection provides useful background and activities to better understand the upcoming Sunday's Scripture readings, helping you to connect the Scripture to daily life in a meaningful way.

First Sunday of Advent

Sunday, November 27, 2022

Gospel Reading                                                                                                     Matthew 24:37-44
Jesus tells his disciples that the coming of the Son of Man will catch many people unprepared. Jesus tells his disciples that they are to always be ready for the day of the Lord.

Background on the Gospel Reading

Today is the first Sunday of Advent, which is also the first Sunday of a new liturgical year for the Church. The Advent season includes the four Sundays that precede Christmas. It is a time of preparation for the coming of the Lord. In this season, we recall two central elements of our faith: the final coming of the Lord in glory and the incarnation of the Lord in the birth of Jesus. Key themes of the Advent season are watchful waiting, preparation, and justice.

In this new liturgical year, the Gospel of Matthew will be the primary Gospel proclaimed (Lectionary Cycle A). In today's Gospel, we hear Jesus speak about the need for wakefulness, for watchful waiting, for the coming of the Son of Man.

Matthew's Gospel is dated by most scholars after 70 A.D. Most believe that Matthew wrote for a primarily Jewish community, but one that was no longer centered on the Temple in Jerusalem. These were Jewish Christians trying to come to terms with their relationship to Judaism in a new situation: Judaism after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. There may have been Christians who believed that the events of the world around them gave evidence of the imminent return of the Lord in glory.

The passage from Matthew we read today is rather straightforward. No one knows the precise time of the coming of the Lord in glory, so watchful waiting and vigilance are required. The passage speaks to the uselessness of looking for signs; there will be none. As a thief sneaks in during the night, so will the Lord's coming in glory be.

The question for us as members of the Christian community, then, is how do we prepare for this? Today's passage speaks more about the manner of waiting, rather than the details of the preparation. Jesus compares the vigilance required of Christians to the vigilance of a homeowner who knows the plans of the thief. If one knows that the thief's action is imminent, one remains watchful. As Christians, we know that our Lord is coming even if we cannot know the precise timing. Jesus calls us to be watchful and vigilant, like the homeowner. If we become lax in our Christian living, we may be caught unprepared.

From the Pastor's Desk

Baptisms - you will need to contact the church office to schedule. 

Confessions - before each Mass or contact church office to make an appointment. 

Adoration on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and on Sundays prior to 8:30 a.m. Mass.

We are a welcoming Catholic community called by God to live out the message of Christ in love and service to all people. Our parish mission is: 

Parish Mission Statement

Religious Education	Our Faith	Sacraments
Parish Photos	Events Calendar	Maps & Directions

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Mass Times

St. Patrick Mission:
Saturday Vigil @ 4:00 p.m.

St. Thomas the Apostle:
Saturday Vigil @ 5:30 p.m.
Sunday Masses @ 8:30 a.m. &                                          11:00 a.m.

WEEKDAY MASSES @ ST THOMAS
MONDAY - No Mass
TUESDAY: @ 12:00 noon
WEDNESDAY @ 12:00 noon
THURSDAY @ 12:00 noon                            (Holy Rosary 11:40 a.m.)
FRIDAY @ 12:00 noon                                 (Divine Mercy 11:45 a.m.)

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