Bishop Timothy Senior made a pastoral visit to Trinity High School in Camp Hill on the Feast of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, December 8. The feast day has been celebrated since 1854 when Pope Pius IX formally recognized the dogma that the Blessed Mother was conceived without sin and via a miracle of the Holy Spirit became the “handmaid of the Lord” and gave birth to Jesus Christ in a humble manger scene in Bethlehem more than 2000 years ago. In 1854, the Sixth Provincial Council of American bishops declared the Blessed Mother the patroness of the United States to reflect the deep devotion the country had to Mary.
One hundred seventy years later, Bishop Senior spoke to students at Trinity about the Immaculate Conception. “Just like Mary was prepared in a miraculous way to live out God’s plan, he also has a plan for each one of us,” Bishop Senior said.
“Each of us is unique and unrepeatable – we all are, me, you…. We do not need to compare ourselves with others. A Catholic education and school teaches us that each of us has a special place in God’s kingdom,” he said.
“When I was in high school, I was afraid to talk about wanting to become a priest. I did not feel like I could talk to anybody about it until I was a senior and I told my best friend and then my parents. But it’s been wonderful to be a priest – more wonderful than I could have planned for myself,” he told the students.
In closing his homily, Bishop Senior said: “Like Mary, let’s say yes to God’s plan. He has charged each one of us to follow Him.”
(Photos by Chris Heisey, The Catholic Witness.)
By Chris Heisey, The Catholic Witness
