The Gospel is from John 2:1-12. There are many lessons we can learn from this incident in Christ's life: for example, Christ's approval of marriage–there were some heretical sects later who said marriage was sinful, unfit for a Christian. Or we could see in it the intercessory power of our blessed Mother. Christ anticipated his "hour" for working miracles in order to grant her request. But the theme of today's readings is the goodness 'and kindness of God and we surely have a convincing proof of that loving kindness in today's gospel story.

The mystery of Christ’s baptism in the Jordan by St John, the Precursor, proposes the contemplation of an already adult Jesus. This mystery is infinitely linked to the Solemnities of the Lord’s birth and the Epiphany that we have just celebrated, as in some ways it takes up and represents their significance to us. At Christmas we have contemplated the human birth of the Word incarnate by the Virgin Mary. In the 4th century, the Fathers of the Church deepened the understanding of the faith with regard to the Christmas mystery in the light of Jesus’ Humanity. They spoke of the Incarnation of the Word already working like the ‘Christification’ of that humanity that he had assumed from His mother.

Chris Teves will lead us through The Crux. The first Session is "Who Am I?" - All those questions you had about our Faith, the true Bible teaching, what Jesus taught, clarifying Catholic beliefs - many will be answered during THE CRUX. We will continue THE CRUX on Zoom on these dates: Possibly - Sunday, January 2 - 6pm to 8:30pm (Re-do for Session 1)(ICYMI) Friday, January 7 - 6:30pm to 9:30pm (Session 2) Friday, January 14 - 6:30pm to 9:30pm (Session 3)

This is the last Sunday of our preparation for Christmas, the anniversary of Christ's birth. Like Joseph, we can all feel unworthy of the honor of welcoming him into our hearts and our homes. We are indeed unworthy, not because we have little of this world's goods, but because we have so little humility, so little charity, so little faith and trust in God's goodness. Let us try to imitate Joseph and Mary, the humblest of the humble, the kindliest of the kindly, and the greatest-ever believers in God's goodness and mercy. We can never hope to equal them, but we can follow them humbly, from afar.

"Rejoice: the Lord is nigh." As Christmas draws near, the Church emphasizes the joy which should be in our hearts over all that the birth of our Savior means for us. The great joy of Christians is to see the day drawing nigh when the Lord will come again in His glory to lead them into His kingdom. The oft-repeated Veni ("Come") of Advent is an echo not only of the prophets but also of the conclusion of the Apocalypse of St. John: "Come, Lord Jesus," the last words of the New Testament.

“As the journey of Advent continues, as we prepare to celebrate the nativity of Christ, John the Baptist's call to conversion sounds out in our communities. It is a pressing invitation to open our hearts and to welcome the Son of God Who comes among us to make divine judgement manifest. The Father, writes St. John the Evangelist, does not judge anyone, but has entrusted the power of judgement to the Son, because He is the Son of man.

Check out the Youth Ministry schedule of events for the month of December. For more information and to register for any of these events, contact Youth & Young Adult Ministry Coordinator, Karen Loebl, kloebl@rcchawaii.org or text 808-258-4505

The First Sunday of Advent marks the new Liturgical Year, and the Church shifts into a new Lectionary Cycle for Sundays, with 2021-22 from Year C, the Gospel of St. Luke. In the Sunday Gospel (Luke 21:25-28, 34-36) Jesus invites us to recognize the signs of the last days. This is a reminder that Advent is not just looking back at the first coming of Christ at Christmas, but our personal preparation for His Second Coming: "Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man."

We are pleased to announce that Mary, Star of the Sea School will host its first golf tournament early next year. The “Diamond Cup” fundraiser is to be held on Wednesday, January 26, 2021 from 11:30 – 6:00 pm at Coral Creek Golf Course. This exciting event will raise funds for facility upgrades and other school improvements and there are many opportunities for you to show your support.  We have different sponsor levels. A Diamond Sponsorship will cover the cost of the tournament. If this is currently not an option, we welcome your support at any other level.

The Gospel is from the Gospel of Mark 13:24-32. There are some obscurities in this extract from St. Mark. Firstly, because Christ was discussing and answering questions on two distinct topics : the destruction of the temple and the end of the world. Secondly, because we may not have the ipsissima verba of Christ here, as many exegetes suggest. The message we must learn from today's gospel comes across without any ambiguity or doubt : we must always be ready to face our judgement for we know not the day nor the hour when we will be called from this life.

The Gospel is from the Gospel of St. Mark 12:38-44. Our Lord's severe condemnation of those Scribes whose exaggerated opinion of their own importance made a mockery of the religion they professed to live, is a serious warning to all his followers not to look for the praise and esteem of their neighbors when doing their good works, but rather to hope for God's praise and esteem in the future world.

The Gospel is from Mark 12:28-34. The personal lesson which comes over loud and clear for every sincere Christian from today's gospel, is that the solid foundation of our Christian religion is love of God and neighbor. As our Lord says: "there is no other commandment greater than these." All the other commandments are expansions of these two and indications of how we are to put these two commandments into daily practice.

Faith is a path of illumination; it starts from the humility of acknowledging one's need of salvation and arrives at the personal encounter with Christ, who calls [one] to follow him on the way of love. On this model the itineraries of Christian initiation have been established in the Church, which prepare for the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and the Eucharist.

The Gospel is from St. Mark, 10:35-45. Our own natural inclination most likely would be to react like the other ten Apostles and become vexed with James and John and to tell them what we thought of their selfish worldly ambitions. However, our Lord's gentle answer: "you do not know what you are asking" shows us that ignorance of the nature of the kingdom he was going to set up, was the cause of their very human ambitions. They, with the other Apostles, had still the common Jewish idea of the messianic kingdom.

Check out the Youth and Young Adulty Ministry schedule of events for the month of October. For more information and to register for any of these events, contact Youth & Young Adult Ministry Coordinator, Karen Loebl, kloebl@rcchawaii.org or text 808-258-4505

The Gospel is from St. Mark, 10:17-30. By coming to Jesus with his problem this man has done all Christians a good turn. We have learned from Christ's answer that over-attachment to worldly goods is one of the big obstacles to entering heaven. The man in this story was a good-living man, he kept all the commandments from his youth upward and he had an interest in eternal life, while many of his compatriots of that day had not. Reading this man's heart like an open book, Christ saw that not only was he fit for eternal life but that he was one who could have a very high place in heaven if he would leave everything and become a close follower of his. Not only would he become a saint, but he would lead many to sanctity.

The Gospel is from St. Mark, 10:2-16. On the "divorce" section of this Gospel see today's first reading. Christ clearly states that from the very beginning, God's plan for marriage was that it should be a life-long unity of one man and one woman. Its purpose is the procreation of children and their education, as well as the mutual love and fulfillment of the husband and wife. These demand this life-long bond. Divorce, which tries to break this bond, breaks the law of the Creator who decreed what was best for the temporal and spiritual welfare of the human race.

The Gospel is from St. Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48. There are two very practical lessons we must learn from today's Gospel: the grave obligation we have of not causing scandal to our fellow-Christians or indeed to any man or woman and secondly, the willingness we should have to sacrifice any earthly possession which is a cause of sin to us.

The Gospel is from St. Mark 9:30-37. The Apostles were still very worldly-minded. They were full of the hope that Christ would establish an earthly messianic kingdom, that he would not only free their holy land from the hated pagan rulers but that he would set up a worldwide empire for the people of God. Many of the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament spoke of a worldwide kingdom; all nations would submit to the descendant of David; Jerusalem would be the magnet which would attract all peoples. The prophets, however, were speaking of the true messianic kingdom, the spiritual kingdom that Christ would establish. The Apostles were as yet unable to see the true meaning of these prophecies.

The Gospel is from St. Mark 8:27-35. We need not be surprised at the slowness of the Apostles in grasping the messiahship of Jesus. He did not want the crowds who flocked to him to know this until later — after his resurrection — because they had the idea that the Messiah would be a political leader who would set them free from their subjection to pagan Rome. It was not until this occasion, near Caesarea Philippi, somewhat over a year after he had called them, that he admitted to his Apostles that he was the Messiah. He charged them not to make this fact known outside of their own limited circle. To forestall and erase any wrong ideas of a political leader which some of the Apostles might have, he immediately foretold the sufferings and death he would have to endure at the hands of the leaders of the Jews. He would be conquered and humiliated by his enemies but their victory would be short-lived -- death would not hold him -- he would rise triumphant on the third day.