How will your Christmas be different this year?

* Rev. John Rosson, pastor, St. Mary's, Cooperstown: "I gave a homily on Gaudete Sunday and talked about how to joyfully celebrate Christmas this year when it doesn't feel like Christmas. We have to remember that the key to our celebration is Jesus Christ. For me, Christmas has lost its sentimental aspect. Every time I address an envelope or send a Christmas card, I think of how fragile life is. It just reminds me that we really are a national family. The timing of the release of the Osama bin Laden tape this past week couldn't have come at a worse time -- the middle of Advent. It has just opened up the national wound [of pain and grief] all over again."

* Theresa Rodrigues, parishioner of St. Vincent's in Albany and a recent Red Cross volunteer in New York City: "Every day is different for me in the wake of 9-11. It really underscored the fragility of life and the need to make the most of every day. Having reached out to families in New York City, I realize the need to reach out to similarly affected families in Afghanistan. These families are at the top of my Christmas list in terms of helping them through Catholic Relief Services. Our whole family has talked about this. We're all focused on doing something, each in our own way."

* Rev. Anthony Diacetis, pastor, Our Lady of Grace parish, Ballston Lake, and National Guard chaplain who spent time at Ground Zero: "I certainly plan on being together with my own family. For most people, I think there will be a heightened sense of the closeness of family life and the need to express that love for one another. With 9-11, we got a sense that life is very fragile. Those people in the buildings were dying, and they called [relatives] to say, `I love you.' That's what it brings to mind for me: The need to say, `I love you,' and the closeness of family."

* Richard Touchette, executive director, diocesan Cemetery Office, and a Catholic Charities WTC aid volunteer: "We have the realization that we live in a different world now. I'm saddened by the loss of life and the loss of our way of life. I don't think we're going to be celebrating any differently. [My family] is going to St. Louis; my family is there and my wife's family is there. [In New York City,] I realized on a personal level the ripple effect of what happened. There are people very indirectly connected with it that are affected: taxi drivers, limo drivers, ad people. It's sobering to think about."

* Rev. Robert Hohenstein, pastor, Our Lady Help of Christians parish, Albany: "Sept. 11 has affected all of us. We can place priorities in our lives and see how important people are. In an instant, we can lose somebody that's important to us. Christmas will be different this year because I don't think we can celebrate Christmas without thinking of those people [who lost loved ones in the attacks] and their pain. We're all members of the same body of Christ, so we hurt when others are hurting and we rejoice when others are rejoicing. But no matter how difficult the road becomes, we do have salvation. Christmas is always that season to renew hope."

* Rev. Robert Purcell, pastor, Sacred Heart, Margaretville: "This year, I nearly died two times. As a result of that experience, I feel very grateful to God that I am still here and able to continue to perform my work as a priest. As a matter of fact, I feel better today than I have in the past 20 years! In my Christmas homily, I am talking about the focus on peace: how we can bring about peace in our own lives and in our family life. We can then let it become a ripple effect, and it will spread. When we focus on the birth of Christ this Christmas, we should focus not on the historical event but rather on Christ being born in our hearts today, this Christmas, this moment. That's when we can find peace in our hearts and in our lives."

* Rev. Winston Bath, pastor, St. Mary's parish, Hudson: "With our economy the way it was before Sept. 11, it seemed to me that, given enough time and money, we as a nation could have accomplished anything. The terrorist events have proven just how fragile life is and how much we need God's blessings and grace. Now I wrestle more with faith issues. Why do such things have to happen? Each day, I am more aware of people and events around me. Now we have a different way to look at the events of the Incarnation. It's made me a lot more reflective."

(Editor's note: These responses were compiled by Kate Blain, assistant editor, and Pat Pasternak, staff writer.)

(12-20-01) [[In-content Ad]]