In Bishop Hebda's Christmas Message he talks about a similar tradition...

Each year as Christmas approached, the Sisters would construct a nativity scene out of whatever discarded items they could find and this always included an empty box placed where we would normally put the manger. All during Advent, when no one else was looking, the individual Sisters would put a single piece of straw in the box, representing some act of charity that they had accomplished that day. By the time that the community gathered for Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, the box would inevitably be overflowing with straw signifying the anonymous works of charity that the Sisters had embraced to prepare for the coming of the Christ child.

I’ve often tried to emulate the Sisters’ Advent practice, but more often than not have found my manger lacking in straw. When I mentioned this to the Sisters, they suggested that I broaden the project, inserting a straw not only for each act of charity, but also for each instance of gratitude.

I might have to join the kids next year during Advent as we prepare for Christmas. As we celebrate the Christmas Season it's important to look back with gratitude on the many blessings of the past year and carry that into the new year. Merry Christmas!

Read Bishop Hebda's Christmas Message at The Diocese of Gaylord

The following is taken from the Diocese of Gaylord Website.

Bishop Hebda's 2011 Easter Message

I have had the undeserved privilege of celebrating Easter in some of the most famous and important sites in Christendom (St. Peter’s in Rome, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, St. Basil’s in Red Square, St. Patrick’s in New York City, to mention but a few) and in some of the most picturesque spots in the world (in a Baroque Abbey nestled in the Swiss Alps and in a medieval monastery blocked from the world by a parade of cedars, right out of Under the Tuscan Sun).

Yet none of those Easters can compare with the Easter of 2005, spent with my family keeping vigil in a cramped hospital room in Pittsburgh. My Mom was battling for her life, having suffered a severe stroke which prompted a craniotomy on Holy Thursday as the rest of us gathered in the hospital chapel to commemorate Jesus’ Last Supper and, of course, to pray for a successful surgery.

That Good Friday we experienced the reading of the Passion differently, having spent the day in an intensive care unit in which death lingered around every corner. Holy Saturday crept in and we devoured with renewed interest the readings of the Easter Vigil, which promised new and everlasting life to all who choose to follow Christ, and on Easter morning, three generations of Hebdas gathered for Mass around a makeshift altar in that hospital room, joining in song with the Church throughout the world and throughout the ages: Christ is risen! He is truly risen! It was a message that sustained us and gave us hope. Six years later, my Mom has no recollection of that Easter morning but it will always be the one that I remember most.

While two thousand years have passed since that Sunday morning when the faithful women went to take spices to Jesus’ tomb and found that he had risen, the world continues to thirst for Easter hope. In spite of spring snowstorms and economic doldrums , health concerns and budget cuts, that empty tomb in Jerusalem continues to proclaim to the world that nothing—absolutely nothing--is stronger than God's love.

The message is found credible, however, only to the extent that it is seen to have changed the lives of those of us who claim to believe. A life transformed by joy, radiating forgiveness and unwavering compassion, speaks to the essence of Easter much more eloquently than even the most beautiful bonnet or the most intricately decorated egg.

In this year in which the Diocese of Gaylord marks its 40th anniversary, please join me in praying that we might use well the 50 days of the Easter Season to renew our commitment to "know Christ and the power of His Resurrection." Through lives that strive to imitate Jesus’ love and his humble and joy-filled service, may we become credible beacons of hope as we proclaim throughout this portion of the Lord’s vineyard: "Christ is Risen! He is truly Risen!"

For 18 Christmases, I had the opportunity to join thousands of Romans who wander the streets of their city during the 12 days of Christmas to visit the elaborate nativity scenes that would be erected in each Church. Following the Neapolitan tradition, the nativity scene would normally include not only the stable so familiar to us in the United States, with a smattering of shepherds, angels and kings, but also representatives of everyday Italian life -- the baker, the butcher, the mayor, the barkeep, and perhaps even a few soccer players -- all centered around the newborn king greeting the world from the simplicity of His manger. The message could not be any clearer: while there may have been no room in Bethlehem's inns, the Messiah makes sure that there's always room for everyone at His threshold.

During this Christmas season, let us be thankful for this wonderful shepherd who leads us with courage and grace. Thanks be to God for Bishop Hebda!

Read Bishop's Christmas message: Are we more like the innkeepers or the Lord? in the Charlevoix Courier

Bernard Hebda, 51, bishop of Gaylord: The paper-trail is unusually distinguished, even for an American bishop -- Harvard BA, JD from Columbia Law, JCL from the Gregorian, for 13 years a top-flight Vatican canonist as the #3 official at the Pontifical Council for the Interpretation of Legislative Texts.

Ask the folks back in Pittsburgh, though, and you’re more likely to hear stories of Bernie Hebda doing the “Electric Slide” at parish festivals on return trips to his hometown.

Over the course of his reign, B16’s shown a distinct liking for the Steel City, naming three more of its native sons to head dioceses (for a grand total of seven), sending the native-born former ordinary to the nation’s capital, bringing the energetic, pastorally savvy Bishop David Zubik home in Donald Wuerl’s footsteps... and above all, in Dan DiNardo, giving the Burgh its first-ever native-son to reach the brass ring and don the cardinal’s red hat.

The trend’s been wise -- if you’re rebuilding a bench, Steeler Country’s a great place to start; Eastern enough to boast a strong Catholic ethos, but Midwestern enough to be devoid of the ecclesiastical grandeur that’s only expedited the faith’s epic fall along much of the Amtrak/I-95 corridor. Moreover, Pennsylvania’s western edge prides itself on its down-home sensibility -- and like DiNardo before him, Hebda’s yearning to trade St Peter's for PNC Park became so well-known that, one night a couple years back, a friend in the Canadian hinterlands called with word that “Bernie wants out,” even if the "news" was never a pontifical secret.

It's not hard to see why we are so blessed to have Bishop Hebda in the Diocese of Gaylord.

On a related note, if you're in the Petoskey area tonight, head on over to the Marian Center where Bishop Hebda will be celebrating mass on the Feast of the Archangels. A reception will follow.

Read For the Future, Four to Watch at Whispers in the Loggia

Bishop Bernard Hebda of Gaylord, Michigan has decided to delay sending funds to CCHD from the 2010 collection while the organization is under review, LifeSiteNews has learned.

Candace Neff, communications director for the Gaylord diocese, emphasized that the bishop has not “discontinued” the collection for CCHD. “A tremendous amount of very important work is accomplished through the Catholic Campaign for Human Development,” she said

“After consulting with a number of advisors Bishop Hebda has decided that for this year (2010), while CCHD’s systems are under review, a donation will not automatically be sent to CCHD from funds donated through the Diocese of Gaylord’s Catholic Services Appeal Campaign,” she said.

Another step in the right direction for our diocese and Catholics everywhere!

Read Michigan Bishop Withholds CCHD Funds at LifeSiteNews.com

Also from the Diocese website:

On the eve of the ordination, Bishop Bernard A. Hebda will preside at Vespers for the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in the Presence of the Blessed Sacrament. The service, offered in thanksgiving to Almighty God for the generous response of Deacons Sylvestre and Gerald to the call to serve as a Priest of Jesus Christ in the Diocese of Gaylord and to pray for an increase in vocations, will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, June 11 at St. Mary Cathedral.

Read more about our two newest priests here.

I hope I can make it!

View Bishop Bernard Hebda's Ordination 12-1-09 at Picasa

Read Why so many Michigan bishops from Pennsylvania? in the Pittsburgh Catholic Newspaper