As we conclude 2020 and look forward to the New Year, I take this moment to offer my prayers for all the faithful, friends and all those present in the Diocese of Rockford.

 

Much has already been said about the sadness and challenges to life, livelihood and faith that have been part of 2020. The reasons to continue and deepen our prayer for so many intentions are well before all of us.

 

We began the year with the constant news of the evolving COVID virus that has so dominated our lives. The year also confronted us once more with incidents of social injustice, outbreaks of violence and subsequent protests.

 

Even as 2020 draws to a close, we find ourselves praying again for victims of senseless violence around our nation, especially in Nashville and in our own diocese. We end the year in Rockford praying for healing for the victims and families of the mass shooting at Don Carter Lanes. And of course we carry the weight of all these concerns on top of all the everyday challenges faced throughout the year by individuals and families.

 

Still, the Christmas Season and the New Year remind us that we are always people of hope. The coming of Jesus reminds us that each year will have its joys and its sorrows. But our hope recalls that every year brings us closer to meeting Christ. As we reflect on the joys of the Kingdom to which we are invited by the very fact of Christ’s birth into this world, we are compelled to deepen our faith, our moral conduct, our love for each other, and to constantly listen to God’s calling.

 

I pray that for each of us, 2021 will bring numerous moments at which God gives us the grace to serve Him and our brothers and sisters. May our faith be deepened and our preparation to be part of God’s eternal Kingdom be further advanced each day.

 

A Blessed New Year to all.