Dear friends on the journey,

Every Saturday was chore day. Each of us three kids always had age appropriate tasks, from dusting low furniture and sweeping to cleaning glass and dusting higher places to eventually vacuuming and laundry. During the week, we set and cleared the dinner table and later helped with cooking. As a family of five with two working parentings, it was necessary for all of us to keep our house in order and running. As family members age, we care for each other in different ways: prayer, finances, living situations, emotional support, child care and so on. More than just necessity all this is right and good. We love and live in relationship. That’s what family does.

We know in first century living a household was not only an immediate family but extended family. Jesus, Mary and Joseph likely lived with older and younger generations. They all had jobs and tasks to keep the house running and everyone cared for. It was necessary, right and good. They loved and lived in relationship.

So too with our human family. Jesus’ message can be summed up in just a few words: love God and love others. And he taught us exactly how to do it: comfort the sick and lonely, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, care for the dying, give preference to the marginalized, and love those who are struggling physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. He not only taught it; he showed it and lived it, no matter who they were. To love and live in relationship with our human family is necessary, right and good.

At our baptism, we are born into God’s family, the Church. We live out our baptism and discipleship in a parish family. Today we are the parish family of Padre Serra Parish. We love and live in relationship with each other as well as our greater Camarillo and human family. It is right and good.

Each year we express this relationship in a concrete way. Through our parish covenant, our Pastoral Team makes promises to you our family members and you as parishioners make promises to God in relationship with the parish family.

There’s one for single people and another for households with parents and children. Take one home this weekend to prayerfully review it and consider how you will respond. The goal is for each of us to commit to living our discipleship and membership in our domestic, human and parish families. Complete and sign the covenant then lay on the altar before or after Mass on January 11 and 12, the Feast of Jesus’ Baptism.

Siempre Adelante and Happy New Year,
​
Teresa Runyon
Faith Life Minister

Vigil / Rosary
Friday, January 17 2020
6:00 pm
Conejo Mountain – Chapel of the Hills

Funeral Liturgy
Saturday, January 18, 2020​
9:00 am
Padre Serra Parish
5205 Upland Rd, Camarillo, CA 93012

Funeral Following Liturgy
Conejo Mountain

Funeral Liturgy
Saturday, February 1​
2:00 pm
Padre Serra Parish
5205 Upland Rd, Camarillo, CA 93012

Holiday lights are a treat. Ever since I discovered the amazing decorations over on Gemini Street, here in Camarillo, I’ve visited them yearly to enjoy all the extra special effort the people there go to making the season bright. As much as I enjoy the cartoon characters, it’s the lighting that I really love.

The light that is shed by people whose day to day kindness springs from their love of Jesus is even more nurturing and important, pointing to Jesus in quiet ways. Shall we be a light? I find a special joy in Christmas parties. I have one every year at the parish house, alternating between deacons and the parish staff, along with their spouses. It’s a high point for me, sharing my home with people who work so hard and give so much. I also delight in gatherings at the homes of friends and family. What is better than good food with friends?

The ministry of Jesus was all about gathering people, healing their wounds, forgiving them and feeding them in their hunger. Shall we be a healing, forgiving and nourishing community? I don’t think any season of the year can compete with Christmas for great music. It’s a passion for me. I have 578 carols in my two Christmas playlists! Nothing gets me into the holiday mood more than the sound of carols. And don’t get me started on how much I enjoy our Christmas concert! It really lifts my spirits.

James 5:13, encourages us, “Is anyone in good spirits? Let them sing praise.” The very memory of the birth of Jesus might be enough to put us in good spirits. Shall we not just hear the carols in the background, like the soundtrack of our lives, but actually sing praise with grateful hearts?

There are so many beautiful Christmas cards – specially chosen greetings to communicate how we feel about the season and the people who receive them. I find such encouragement in reading and embracing the kindness and affection I sense in the cards.

John’s Gospel begins with a hymn, referring to Jesus as the Word, present to the Father from the beginning who came to us, His own. This Word proclaims good news to a weary, frightened and, perhaps, jaded world. Shall we make a point of bearing good news, hopeful and caring words to one another?

I have a nine-foot-tall Costco special Christmas tree with lots of lights. I also have long pine garlands on
my banister and the fireplace mantle, with pinecones and red berries for accents. Evergreens show up all over the place!

Jesus was born for us, that we might have life – everlasting life – and have it to the full. Shall we not, like the hope bearing trees that remain green in winter’s depths, encourage others to lives lived fully, kindly and happily?

I hope you are able to find more than a small amount of joy – even if times are difficult. Even more, I encourage you to be a blessing for others this Christmas. May the Christ Child find a warm place to be at rest in your hearts this Yuletide!

Fr. Patrick Mullen
Pastor

Funeral Liturgy
Saturday, January 11, 2020​
11:00 am
Padre Serra Parish
5205 Upland Rd, Camarillo, CA 93012

Funeral Liturgy
Saturday, February 15, 2020
10:00 am
Padre Serra Parish
5205 Upland Rd, Camarillo, CA 93012

Funeral
Following Liturgy
Oakwood Memorial Park
​22601 Lassen St, Chatsworth, CA 91311

It was about 15 years ago when I learned that I’m orange􀀳green colorblind. Prior to that time, I had automatically assumed my color deficiencies were with mixes of red or green as is often the case, so I never asked to clarify. Nonetheless, though this has created interesting choices in my clothing in the past, I know that personally, colorblindness is a misnomer. I do not always interchange orange and green. I do at times however see their intensity a bit muted.

Mind you, I’m not complaining. I so appreciate the beauty of God’s creation found in the fall colors of maple leaves, rainbows and hues created or applied to canvas by artists among us. I am reminded of the Lord’s infinite love whenever I notice my wife’s blue eyes or the blue shades of the Saint Vincent de Paul Society.

I’m further inspired and moved when our liturgical colors transition throughout the year. We wear green during ordinary time, red on feasts of the Holy Spirit and celebrations of the Lord’s passion. Violet is worn twice a year during Lent and Advent where preparation, penance and renewal are the themes. White is a festive color representing light, joy and glory. Today, we await the white of Christmas.

Used only twice a year, rose comes in the midst of our violet seasons. Gaudete Sunday is one of these days. Gaudete, Latin for rejoice, aptly qualifies this third Sunday of Advent as we delight in the nearness of Jesus’ birth, present, and return. We pause for a time from our preparation and consider how far our journey has taken us during the past three weeks. We pray that our pathway toward holiness has also grown. You might say that we are reflecting on our own spiritual transition represented metaphorically from violet through different shades of rose on our way to white.

The depth and mix of our spiritual colors are as individual as we are. Some of us find that our preparation ‘rose’ shows more blue than red or white while for others the opposite is true. Both are perfect in God’s time for our spiritual pathway is not measured against others. Rather, our hope is to persistently and patiently become a slightly better version of ourselves accepting and recognizing the little steps along the way as grace. Saint James invites us this way: “See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. You too must be patient.” May you find the same patience in your own transition to white as together we continue our preparation and reflection toward the wonder of Christmas.
​
Endless Blessings,
Deacon Luc Papillon

Illuman is a ministry for men, by men, to honor the uniqueness of male spirituality and committed to support who are seeking to deepen their spiritual lives.  Bimonthly group gatherings are designed to help become better, more authentic men.

The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe commemorates the apparitions of Mary, the Mother of God, 500 years ago to San Juan Diego. The course of events which transpired can readily be found through any internet search. I would like to convey what this feast means to me today. The appearance of this Palestinian woman is significant in her resemblance to the people of Mexico at a time when imperialistic dismantling of indigenous cultures brought their humanity in question, let alone whether those people had a soul. The hymn of La Guadalupana states her bearing and face were Mexican. The Mother of God is like us!

The significance of La Morenita is in the accompanying presence of Jesus. Her “Yes” to God’s role for her implies Christ’s presence in our “Yes” to God’s role for us. My role as a fire chaplain is one of accompaniment and witness to our human reaction of irrevocable loss. The reaction of the Marine’s mother at Borderline and the reaction of the wife of the campesino crushed by equipment in a strawberry field were elicited from the permanent physical separation of a loved one. To this I give witness, the separation at the border gives the same result. However, this border condition is impermanent and reversible. The dreamer that I am, imagines the day when the travesty of injustice at the border is humanely solved, to the delight of our Father, sisters and brothers.

Holy scripture for this feast speaks of a dragon wanting to devour a child and the mother fleeing to a place prepared by God [Rev. 12: 46] and Mary greeting Elizabeth in the Gospel of Luke. I ask you to join me in prayer. Walk alongside me as I walk my dogs, that the dragon is defeated and families can visit one another without fear, and safely walk in streets. My Marian devotion consists of reflection of the mysteries of Mondays and Thursdays are days when I fast and pray for families: pregnancies, births, baptisms, marriages and the preparation of couples of those people that come to mind. The other days I
prayerfully call to mind the individuals and families sorrowing through death, illness, and insecurity interspersed with praise and gratitude. The mood may vary from Let It Be, Good Day Sunshine, or Imagine. Pray for the reformation of laws and policies that separate us from one another and from God, is my default mode.

I believe Jerusalem does not need another wall. I believe that we have responsibility for our collective role as a country for the conditions at the border. If you think detention and deportation is the sole solution, please read the government publications I have listed. It is from such the alien is in our midst. I believe with God’s help we can make Jerusalem the city where the tribes go up.

May this Advent Season bring us to the Word made flesh dwelling among us.

Deacon Arnold Reyes

The Evolution of Los Zetas in Mexico and Central America: Sadism as an Instrument of Cartel Warfare apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a599872.pdf
Gangs in Central America fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL34112.pdf

Vigil / Rosary
Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019
6:30 pm
Conejo Mountain – Chapel of the Hills

Funeral Liturgy
Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2019
10:30 am
Padre Serra Parish
5205 Upland Rd, Camarillo, CA 93012

Funeral
Following Liturgy
Conejo Mountain

Also visit: Funeral Planing, Lazarus Ministry,  Bereavement Ministry

Dear Faith Family,

Happy New Year!

As you may know, with the beginning of Advent in our Church, we also celebrate the liturgical new year.
During our normal New Year’s celebrations it is not uncommon to have a countdown to midnight while sharing quality time with friends, but the most common tradition for New Year’s is the resolutions we keep for the betterment of ourselves. Might I suggest we do something similar for Advent?

Obviously, Advent is the countdown for one of our greatest feasts: Christmas! The birth of our Lord is obviously crucial for the loving Redemption that God has for us, but the celebration of Christmas is also such a wonderful opportunity for us to grow closer to God and to become better disciples.

In what ways can we spend more quality time with God? And what type of “New Year’s Resolutions” can we do during Advent? (It is the New Year, after all.)

Thankfully, we at Padre Serra are so blessed to have so many opportunities to dive into the season of Advent, and one of the most beautiful events is our Advent Penance Service on Wednesday, December 4.

For those who have not gone in a while, I can assure you that it is worth it. Whether is has been years, or days, I have never known a priest at our service to be upset with the length of time it has been since someone has gone to Reconciliation. In fact, I know plenty of stories of priests celebrating when people overcome their fears and go to Reconciliation. If you feel called to go, but are a little scared, I can assure you, IT IS NORMAL TO BE AFRAID OF RECONCILIATION.

During my time here at Padre Serra, I have been blessed to run the Year 2 Confirmation retreat. At most retreats, we offer Reconciliation for the candidates. The anxiety of the teens when they find out that the Sacrament is available is palpable, but every year the teens still go. It’s quite amazing. What is even more amazing, though, is the peace they have once they go and receive the grace of the Sacrament. It’s one of my favorite moments that I look forward to every year.

Again, if you are worried, I just want to assure you that you are not alone. If you haven’t gone in forever and forgot how it works, that’s fine! Reconciliation can be a scary thing. Even as someone who goes frequently, it is still a scary thing for me. But let me tell you, it’s definitely worth it.

I look forward to celebrating “the most wonderful time of the year” with all of you! With all of you, I am counting down the days to Christmas and am looking forward to another encounter of Christ.

God Bless,
​
Brett Becker
Youth and Young Adult Minister