Six months until Christmas! Tomorrow, 24 June is the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. We just began the summer season, but the days are growing shorter. St. John the Baptist refers to this when he ponders about the relationship between himself and his cousin, Jesus: “He must increase while I must decrease.” Thus, the Solemnity of St. John is situated in late June when the length of daylight in the Northern Hemisphere decreases.
“The Atlantic” Magazine in December of last year offered an article about cousins. The article lamented the decline in the number of children and extrapolated this to a decline in the number of cousins. The article laments this decline because of the vital role that cousins perform. “Cousins exist in that strange gray area between closeness and distance because they don’t follow a strict playbook.” “Despite being related by blood and commonly in the same generation, cousins can end up with completely different upbringings, class backgrounds, values, and interests. And yet, they share something rare and invaluable; They know what it’s like to be part of the same particular family.”
St. John and Jesus were related by blood, and they were of the same generation. Yet they approached their ministries from different perspectives. Both emphasized the urgency and the need of repentance, for John this was to avoid the wrath of God; for Jesus to experience the mercy of God. John followed an ascetical playbook that was like the prophets of the Old Testament. Meanwhile, Jesus followed a spontaneous playbook that was guided by love and the promise of redemption.
As we celebrate the Birth of St. John celebrate the relationships that we have with all our extended family. Offer a prayer for your cousins – first, second, or once removed. Blessings!
Periodically we will provide updates on the priorities and goals of our Next Generation Parish initiatives. Today’s focus is on the Youth Mass.
School liturgies frequently feature the talents of the students. Students are lectors, cantors, gift presenters, altar servers, and they coordinate the music for the Mass. For example, the Ring Mass at Archbishop Carroll was enhanced by the presence and participation of the Junior class members of the school’s Jazz Ensemble.
It is natural that a school Mass would feature the talents of its members. Our First Friday Masses at Notre Dame de Lourdes are coordinated at the grade level with students from that grade participating in various roles in the liturgy. While the Mass features the talents of our youngest members it is still a parish Mass and a parish celebration.
The goal for the Youth Mass is to strive to bring our middle school and high school population closer to Jesus. The designated Youth Mass will have middle and highschoolers act as ushers, offertory gift bearers, and lectors of the Word. The Youth Mass will alternate between Our Lady of Peace and Notre Dame de Lourdes. We believe by integrating our youth community into Mass, it will lead to strong involvement in Mass and other parish activities. Rather than offering a Mass that is isolated from the parish schedule, the Youth Mass will be celebrated within our weekend Mass rotation.
The strength of a parish includes statistics based on Mass attendance and finances. The vibrancy of a parish is based on its activities and the robust nature of its participants. We look forward to witnessing the talents of our young parishioners as we join as one to worship and praise the Lord.