Joyful Anticipation
Dear Mater Dei Community,
Advent is upon us and we await with joy the coming of Christ into our hearts. It is a joyful anticipation, as we can be certain of His coming if we but dispose ourselves properly. We look forward to the fruit of our prayerful preparation.
In this month's newsletter we pay tribute to our beloved Bishop Sirba. We are also happy to share a video from our recent Rosary Walk and Marian Procession. Please keep our apostolate in your prayers and we close out this calendar year. We are humbled by your support. May God bless you this Advent and Christmas season.
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Ad Jesum Per Mariam
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
Day-to-Day at Mater Dei
In addition to the classical core curriculum at Mater Dei Apostolate, which is keeping the students quite busy, we offer a variety of enrichment elective courses. Elective courses at Mater Dei are meant to prepare students to become confident, successful, well-rounded adults.
Students in our Life Skills course are currently making their own cribbage boards. The first step was cutting the wood and drilling the holes. The next step will be finishing work...sanding and staining. Students in our Fitness and Wellness course have created individualized exercise routines they are to complete each day. They are also keeping food journals and will finish up their unit on nutrition with a presentation from a local registered dietitian next week.
Remembering Bishop Sirba
The first day of December marked the one year anniversary of the sudden death of Bishop Paul Sirba, who holds a special place in our hearts at Mater Dei. We took time with the students to honor his memory by praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet together.
During his homily at our first Mater Dei Mass last year, Bishop Sirba compared our endeavor to a “Bethlehem model” as he gestured towards the stain glass window depicting the Holy Family at the birth of Christ. From our humble beginning just over a year ago, we have been going forward with faith into the unknown, as he likened to the Holy Family taking flight into Egypt.
Though we continue this journey without the presence of our beloved Bishop, his words of encouragement and guidance remain with us. As he completes his own journey into everlasting life with our Heavenly Father, we anticipate his powerful intercession. May he and all the souls of the faithfully departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Rosary Walk Video
One of our Mater Dei supporters generously offered his time and talent to capture video footage of our Rosary Walk and Marian procession. A short 3-minute video compilation is now complete and posted on our website. We are grateful to have the memory of that blessed day so beautifully depicted. We are hopeful the video will serve to inspire unity among Catholics and all Christians in our nation during these uncertain times. United we stand.