To those in Texas

Chasuble for this morning's Mass

Nativity set that some one kindly gave me to set up in my room. Everyone is there except for the Lord! You all are there too through that little box, which I'll explain below...

Dear Friends and Family,

This post is especially for all those in Texas, with whom I was blessed to spend the past 15 Christmas's. Before I enter into the home stretch of this semester and final preparations for Christmas I wanted to write you. Hopefully after Christmas I will be able to sit down and reply individually to your letters, but in the meantime I wanted to at least write you this post.

As Christmas approaches you all are in my heart and mind in so many ways. Every Sunday when I chant Terce I think of the Sunday mornings when I had the privilege of chanting it along side the altar boys, then of vesting for Mass and hearing the different choirs chant, offering the Holy Sacrifice, coming down under the tent with you all, or speaking to a group of the children, then heading to San Antonio and being received so kindly by the good sacristan who had everything so well prepared for the Mass, and then Confessions and Mass, time with families, etc.; I think also now of candle-lit midnight Masses, of Christmas meals with the community at MDM, of our attempted staff party post-Christmas, of sharing with your families painful and joyful times, of Baptisms, of First Communions, and of so many other things. So much to be thankful for!

I will miss you all in a particular way at Christmas, but offer that sacrifice to the Lord asking Him to bless you all and Our Lady to greet you on Christmas morning for me. I know there is "no distance between souls" and so in what truly matters we can exchange gifts without any need of the post office. That little box with the purple ribbon is a reminder to me of that. One of you very kindly gave me that gift a year ago on behalf of the young children--saying that though the box was physically empty it contained the prayers that the children would be saying for me. Those prayers are extremely precious to me and the box has safely traveled everywhere I have gone in the past year. At the moment it sits next to the Virgin Mary awaiting the birth of Her Son.

Those prayers are particularly dear to me here in this mission territory, because England is truly mission territory. Without any exaggeration I can say that I'm now in a pagan country desperately in need of evangelization. This particular section of England has less than 1% of the population that goes to Mass on a Sunday, and there are more Catholics going to Mass than there are Christians going to any other service on a given Sunday... it is a tiny tiny group and most people are in need of evangelization and conversion. Congregations are tiny. For example it is not unusual for me to hear that a pastor will have two Masses on a Sunday, perhaps one with 20 people and another with 50. Here, in addition to the 12 sisters, there is a steady congregation of around 30, about half of whom are children. So midnight Mass will be closer to the numbers present at that first Christmas adoration with the shepherds and Mary and Joseph: we'll likely have about 12 parishioners, along with the 12 sisters of course. The Mass will be by candlelight, and I am very much looking forward to it--only two weeks to go now! And you all will be there because...

I was able to schedule a novena of Masses running from Christmas through New Years. Those Masses will be offered for all those whom God has confided to my care as a priest--and I certainly still consider you all in that category, even if my care is now primarily carrying you in may heart at the altar--as well as for all the benefactors who are supporting me or the sisters here, whether through prayers, sacrifices or other gifts.

On my end your prayers have certainly been fruitful (if mine have not been fruitful on your end then please pray harder for my conversion.... so that I can pray better). I miss you all very much and no doubt will miss you in a particular way on Christmas day, and yet God is taking good care of me here. He has provided a very good situation for prayer, a good community of nuns to support and be supported by spiritually, some good local families and a good bishop, as well as a situation that is allowing me to be in particular contact with people involved in the struggle at the heart of the Church today. All particular blessings. Above all I can see the hand of God challenging me, nourishing me, pushing me, etc. working on my soul, which still needs so much work.

As we enter now the final preparation for Christmas please know that you all in Texas will be in my heart and prayers in a very particular way. Please give your children a hug for me (or for the teenage guys put them in a headlock or something), and thank them for their prayers for me. That is the best Christmas gift I could receive.

In Cordibus Iesu et Mariae,

Fr. Tony Pillari