Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator
As we celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of these United States of America, we can also celebrate the 64th birthday of our founding by Mrs. Laure Brunner, a Belgian 
émigré. On December 8, 1947, the first group letter, GL 1, was mailed to the first eight members of CUSA with Mrs. Brunner as its leader and Fr. Tom Finn as its Spiritual Advisor. Included in the group was Jerry Filan, the first official CUSAN in the United States.
Today's Gospel reading features the Angel Gabriel greeting Mary with the words "The Lord is with you." Indeed, it was these five short words that made the entire story possible. Mary realized that if the Lord was truly with her, she could do anything that was asked of her. Her willingness to hand herself over to God was founded on these simple words.
For all of us who struggle on a daily basis with the pain of illness or the frustration of disability, these words still ring true. If we readily accept the fact that God is with us, we are capable of anything as the Lord's strength is ours to supplement our feebleness, the Lord's fidelity is ours to complement our own, and the Lord's grace is ours to aid us in the pursuit of holiness, our vocation no matter what our station in life. Celebrate sixty four years of living in God's loving embrace.
Happy Birthday, CUSA.