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Diocese of Norwich Office of the Bishop 201 Broadway Norwich, Connecticut  06360 (860) 887-9294   January 4, 2021 Pro-Life Pastoral To be read at all Masses or published in the parish bulletin on the weekend of January 16-17, 2021. My dear sisters and brothers in Christ, January 22, 2021 marks the 48th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. The day is set aside as a day of prayer and penance. Traditionally, each year in Washington, D.C. there is the National March For Life. The theme of this ...

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English Spanish Kreyol Diocese of Norwich Office of the Bishop 201 Broadway Norwich, Connecticut  06360 (860) 887-9294   Christmas Message 2020 "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; Upon those who lived in a land of gloom a light has shone." (Isaiah 9:1) My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, These words of the prophet Isaiah, taken from the first reading proclaimed at the Vigil Mass for the Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord, seem particularly poignant for us this year. As ...

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September 6, 2020, 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time It’s all about reconciliation and conversion, not punishment. Relationships are not static adventures but wonderful gifts that continue to develop, grow, change, and mature. We are meant to be social beings, so isolating ourselves from others is rarely helpful. But, because human beings are on the one hand tremendously gifted, talented, and blessed creations, they are on the other also flawed, broken, and sinful. We all need to humbly admit that we are works in progress and not only capable of enriching each othe...

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August 30, 2020, 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time Secular pursuits only bring a temporary amount of satisfaction and fulfillment. As much as we may think that achieving worldly success, economic security, personal well-being, and self-fulfillment are worthy goals to obtain, they all are dependent on external variables and can lead to emptiness. We are trained to be very pragmatic and productive. Unless we are able to check off all of the boxes or comply with specific measurable requirements, our value and worth becomes questionable. Corporations, educational institution...

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GOSPEL MEDITATION - ENCOURAGE DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF SCRIPTURE 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time The only way to know God is to love God. Our minds will never fully grasp the mystery of God, but our hearts and souls can learn to love the mystery. Years ago, when life had a more innocent quality to it, we believed what we were told or witnessed, unless there was direct evidence otherwise. This was especially true if the information came from someone in authority. In a sense, we were a bit more gullible on one hand but also more trusting on the other. The latter is an admir...

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We are hardwired for wholeness and crave it. When something is broken, we want it fixed. If a part of our body is not working properly, we want it healed. How often do we find ourselves saying, “i’m tired of struggling with this cold, i can’t wait for my surgery to heal, or i want my treatments to make me better.” Wholeness and healing restore our relationships and make us free to love as we desire. We know very well how our limitations, imperfections, and brokenness really limit us. They can easily prevent us from being and doing what we want to do....

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19th Sunday in Ordinary Time Be still and know that I am God. Silence is sacred. Silence speaks the language of the soul and is the foundation of all life and eternity itself. Silence takes us beyond the limits of our minds and allows us to seek and to love the essence of all love, perfect love, and being. In silence, we can be non-verbally present to things and to God in ways that words cannot accomplish. We can discover, encounter, and be present to truths that our minds struggle to conceive and then set aside the boxes we put around things when comprehending them is c...

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August 2, 2020 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time Many people in our world are hungry and thirsty. This hunger and thirst go well beyond physical needs for food, security, and shelter. Many are emotionally and spiritually parched, too. Behind every act of violence is a soul who hungers. People live with relationships that actually starve them. They are abused, exploited, disrespected, laughed at, and marginalized. There is a lot of confusion and inner pain that needs to be acknowledged and expressed. We all long to be understood and loved, even when our inner demons or who ...

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July 26, 2020 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time A single mother who has a child with special needs works two jobs and sacrifices much of her own pleasures in order to be available for her son. Being the best mother possible is important to her and brings her joy. We are willing to make great and often heroic sacrifices for those people and things that matter most to us. Unless there is something of obvious importance to us in our immediate path, we can easily approach life in a more haphazard and chaotic way. We jump from one thing to another, responding to whatever it is ...

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