At the Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, at St. Francis Solano Catholic Church, Pastor Fr. Alvin Villaruel said a special prayer and blessing for all the wineries of the Sonoma Valley. More than a dozen wineries were represented, among them Sebastiani, Cline and others were there to celebrate the holiday season, give thanks and to look forward to the year ahead.During the Mass, Fr. Villaruel mentioned how fortunate we are to be in a prosperous wine-growing region and to enjoy its bounty as well as its beauty.
And, while he gave thanks for the many blessings and prosperity of our wine country of Northern California, he dedicated the Mass to the needs and issues of the world as he had the ‘prayers of the faithful’ during the Mass recited in several languages. Families within the Sonoma Valley that speak the various languages represented in prayer at the Mass stepped up to the altar to recite a prayer/petition asking for God’s help in attending to the particular needs of the world.
Fr. Villaruel said that while we humans may seem like “a speck of dust” when compared to the vast expanse of the universe, humanity must never give up, that life is a gift and that God is always there with us. “This is the message of Christmas.”
— Text and photos by Jonathan Farrell
let us leave the catholic church