A Letter from the SSMO Superior General
Dear Friends, Family, Sisters and Brothers,
Blessings to you in the Holy Season of Advent. Advent includes the four Sundays before Christmas. In this Advent season we celebrate and recall the annunciation to Mary of Jesus’s conception (which is celebrated on March 25 – foreshadowing Christ’s birth 9 months later) and the birth of St. John the Baptist (the herald of Jesus). Advent is the preparation for Christmas, for the Lord is coming, bringing redemption and salvation. God’s gift of love is beyond all understanding, but God gives us an awareness of His love in the birth, death, and the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord is truly holy, and God wants us to live and act in holiness. The love God offers has no limits or conditions; God’s love has set us free. In our freedom we have the power of self-determination. This means we deliberately choose to follow a course of action. The Church helps guide us in how to make choices. The Church is the community founded by Jesus Christ and anointed by the Holy Spirit. It is the sign of God’s will to save the human family.
The celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ on Dec. 25 is threefold. It is to celebrate the birth of the Son of our Heavenly Father, the human birth from Mary His mother and the spiritual birth of Jesus into the heart of every believer. We are believers and our faith is made possible through the help of the Holy Spirit which is freely given to us. St. Paul, tells us, “Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (Corinthians 3:16). From the beginning, we have been created in the likeness of God. “God created us in His image; in the divine image He created them; male and female He created them,” (Genesis 2: 27). Christmas is the start of the greatest redemption story ever.
Through the “yes” of Mary and by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus came into our world. We, the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon, have Mary as our model and patroness. Please know that you and your dear ones will share in a special remembrance in the Eucharistic Liturgy to be offered in our Motherhouse Chapel from Dec. 15 to Dec. 24. You are also remembered daily in the prayers and works of the Community.
I send our love to you, on behalf of all the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon.
Have a blessed and holy Christmas.
Yours in Christ,
Sister Michael Francine Duncan
