More than a few of our parishioners fondly remember parishioners Phil and Marlene Carl who moved away from the parish and Village a number of years ago. Every Christmas a visit to their home was a special treat as they had a collection of creches spread all over their house. It was indeed a pleasure for me and others to see the various artistic expressions of Jesus in a manger with Mary and Joseph on either side of him humbly praising and thanking God for the most wonderful gift God ever gave humanity, His Son, Jesus Christ! I am blessed to have in my possession a small but beautiful creche that belonged to my grandmother and the creche is close to 100 years old. She, my Uncle Jim and others, including myself, always enjoy setting it up and looking at it during the Christmas Season ( and now that it's with me all year long). Its uniqueness is in the fact that it includes a sheperd, a sheep dog and a whole flock of sheep. I have to admit that this year, for the first time, I have come to a new insight about this scene that, perhaps, was in the mind of the one who created this creche with its figurines so long ago. It now speaks to me of the adult Jesus who speaks of the "Good Sheperd" who never leaves his flock untended. We hear in the Gospel of Luke (2:15-20) that the sheperds heeded the voice of the angels who announced the Savior's birth to them and decided "to go to Bethlehem to see this thing that the Lord has made known to us." (Lk 2:15). Like the "Good Sheperd," Jesus Christ, or, in this case, sheperds from their field they took their flock with them in order to see the baby who was lying in the manger. I am reminded now every time I look at my grandmother's creche scene of not only the great truth of our faith that God came down from heaven to share in our humanity and redeem and save us, by his passion, death and resurrection, but also Jesus, the Good Shepherd who never leaves us, but is always at our side to lead and guide us to heaven. Maybe, as we look at the creche at home, at our church, or at other places, we can (and perhaps should) look more deeply at what or who is there and ALL THAT HE TAUGHT AND DID that hopefully makes our lives joy-filled, love-filled and hope-filled every day! A Blessed Christmas Season to all of us! Be assured of my prayers for all of you in this wonderful parish family!