Happy Birthday Mary!

Today is the feast day that commemorates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary to Joachim & Anne (the grandparents of Jesus have their own feast day, July 26th).

Obviously Mary played a crucial and essential role in salvation history. With her fiat, that is, her saying yes to God, she ushered into our world the greatest miracle of all, Immanuel, (“God with us”) the Incarnation of the Logos.

Some of the more important feasts of Mary are:

Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God – Jan 1st
Annunciation of the Lord – April 4th
Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary – May 31st
Nativity (birth) of the Blessed Virgin Mary – September 8th
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary – August 8th
Immaculate Conception of Mary – December 8th

Tonight at our Faith Sharing get-together we will enjoy birthday cake in honor of Mary. St. Gerald Church has a vibrant and faith-filled Young Adult group.

Young Adult Ministry is a crucial area for the Catholic Church to focus on. This is traditionally the time in a person’s life when they are most apt to drift away from the practice of their faith. But it need not be that way - we simply must welcome the young adults we encounter and call them to active ministry in the Church.

Remember, our Lord Jesus first called twelve young adults to be his disciples. The Church was built on young people, and is sustained by them even today.