The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1913-12-27
DIOCESE OF LEAD.
LETTER OF BISHOP BUSCH.

Inc Dl0SS0Q f0dSC VI CuI1SCudS
urges me to send to you my sincerest
good wishes for a Happy Feastday.
Happy indeed should we be, when
we remember all the favors that
Christmas represents for us, all the
blessings that have come to us with
Christ, His wondrous Truth, His in
spring example, His tender mercy;
but, best of all, Himself.
While the outside world may feast
on the crumbs that fall from the
Masters table, we of the household of
the Faith, share the honor of His
Banquet board; while many who call
themselves Christian celebrate Christ's
Birthday as a hallowed memory, we
have Christmas as an every day
reality
Our every altar is crib, our every
Mass a Christmas, indeed the first
Christmas would be incomplete with
out Christ's presence on our altar,
and the goodness of the Father is
but family understood, unless we know
that He gave us His Only Begotten
Son as a personal pledge of His in
finite Love. Christs purpose would
have been but imperfectly fulfilled
did He not give Himself to us as an
individual gift. 81 am come" says
Christ, that man may have Life and
have it more abundantly.' But by His
own declaration, this Life, which He
came to give, is impossible for us, Gun
less we eat His flesh and drink His
| blood"
Christ in the Blessed Sacrament is
therefore the completion of Christ's
incarnation, and no one can rightly
call himself Christian unless there is
Christmas in his heart and the Christ
child on his tongue.
Vain would be our Christmas cheer,
if we in our imagination turned back
to Bethlehem to welcome Christ, but
in reality had no room for Him in the
inn of our heart.
Christmas to be truly happy for us,
must therefore mean an opening OF
our heart to Christ, a surrender of
of both our soul and body for wor-
thy reception of the Saviour.
Christmas for every true Christian
must mean a new conservation of him.
self to Christ, not a far-off Christ, but
the living Christ, the Christ living in
the Sacrament of His Love, living on
our altar.
His name was called Emmanuel
that is God with us, so should it be fol
us, God with us in the Blessed Sacra
ment, with us in the Holy Communion
of the Eucharist.
This blessed feast, that commend
rates Christ's first appearance among
men, must remind us that He stands
daily at our door, begging to be re
ceived, promising ito as many as re
ceive Him, to give them the power tC
be made sons of Cod"
This, therefore, is my wish to you:
that you may understand Christmas
not as it was reality to the shep
herds and the Magi, but as it is real
ity to you. And this is my prayer fol
you this Christmas, that you prove
your appreciation of this wonderful
development of Christmas, by re-en
acting in your own way, the devotion
of the shepherds and the Magi, in
their eagerness to surrender them
selves to this messenger from Heav
en-.
l appeal especially to the men of the
diocese of Lead, to band themselves
together, as Guard of Honor fol
Christ in the Blessed Sacrament; and
I request all the priests of the diocese
to urge the men of their several con
gregations, to enroll themselves as
members OF the Holy Name Society.
To the women and children l also
appeal, that they enroll themselves in
some pious Confraternity having g
monthly Communion as one of its OBJ
legations.
; To impress my wishes more emphat
ically upon the men of this diocese,
direct that on the Feast Of the Holy
Name, special exercises be held wher
ever possible, at which the men en-
roll themselves as members of the
Holy Name Society, If they have mo-
as yet joined this most excellent and
for our days, most necessary Society.
Praying God to grant you His every
Blessing, / am
Very sincerely yours in Christ,
NOS. F. BUSCH,
Bishop of Lead
Rapid City, Dec. Is, 1913.
Eagle Butte: Reverend John Vogel
pastor of All Saints Church, VISITED
Faith Sunday, December IA, where hi
celebrated Mass and preached. Rev
erend Chas. H. Wiring of Faith tool
Father Vogel's place, here. The TIVE
priests are planning to make similar
exchange during Easter time.
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