By: Fr. Peter Keller
I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by the movement of the Holy Spirit at work in our Church. At Easter, we experienced both the death of our pontiff, Pope Francis and the joy of the many newly baptized and initiated in our parish. This contrast pointed to the one movement of the Holy Spirit in the Church, which drives us forward to the kingdom.
This week we were also gifted with a new pontiff, Pope Leo XIV. It was surprising that the Cardinals so quickly chose this dignified moderate whose first priority is to “communicate the beauty of the faith, the beauty and joy of knowing Jesus.”
These next months are full of events that are fruits of the Holy Spirit and communicate the beauty of the faith. This weekend we celebrate, on Saturday, the Festival of Our Lady of Fatima and, on Sunday, the 50th Anniversary of Fr. Clare Coleman at St. Mary’s West Lorne. On May 24th there is the Women’s Retreat at Our Lady of Sorrows, Aylmer.
The Called and Gifted Program completed its first round of personal discernment; while Holy Angels celebrates eliminating their debt and beginning to build for the future; and St. Anne’s prepares to reboot the Festival as a parish-based event. All these happening are a gift of the Spirit.
I invite you to prayerfully discern how you are called to share your gifts. May we continue to grow together in faith as Pilgrims of Hope.
The Crowning of our Blessed Mother Mary, along with a full Living Rosary at Assumption Elementary School.
Thank you to Fr. John and Pastoral Minister Alida Dance for attending from Our Lady of Sorrows Parish.
Lent is indeed the “favourable time ” to return to what is essential, to divest ourselves of all that weighs us down, to be reconciled with God, and to rekindle the fire of the Holy Spirit hidden beneath the ashes of our frail humanity.
Pope Francis, 15 February 2025.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Our Advent journey as a Diocese has been a time of grace preparing us to celebrate the birth of our Saviour. Traditionally at Christmas, the joy of our encounter with
Jesus overflows in gatherings, meals and activities with family and friends. We are especially aware of those most in need in our communities and our hearts reach out to them in acts of charity.
On Tuesday, December 10th, we will have Confessions only from 6- 7PM, no Adoration.
Along with regular Tuesday confession, we will be available on Saturday, December 14th at St. Anne’s from 2-4 PM
The gifts were picked up by Christmas Care volunteers and were delivered successfully to Christmas Care to be distributed to those children in need. Thanks to our generous parishioners!
St. Paul, in dealing with many different communities ... 'parishes,' would often encourage the believers to recognize that there are a variety of gifts, but it is the same Spirit that gives the gifts, for the upbuilding of the body. 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 is an amazing passage where it illustrates that all the various parts of the body make up the Church. That we do not serve the world, but we serve Christ but serve one another. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you what gifts He has given to you and how to use them for the building up of the Church. To bring souls to Jesus.
November is a great month of remembering. We begin with All Saints and All Souls
Days later we of course will celebrate Remembrance Day on November 11th. St.
Ephrem, the Syrian, first mentions the practice of remembering the unknown martyrs at
the beginning of November in a homily in 373. It was Pope Gregory III who first proclaimed
All Saints Day on November 1st when he consecrated a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica to all
the unknown martyrs in Rome. Gregory IV made All Saints Day and All Souls Day a universal feast day in 831.
I mention all this because it has become fashionable to proclaim that Halloween is
some ancient pagan feast that the Church wished to suppress with All Saints Day. This is
simply not true on so many levels. Read more: The Ancient Irish Get Far Too Much Credit
for Halloween | Ancient Origins. Halloween is just a product of empty secular spiritualism.
On the other hand, All Saints Day, All Souls Day and the practice of praying for the dead
are foundational to our faith. We all have a sense that our deceased loved ones still live in
our thoughts and memories, yet we realize this is only partial and fleeting. How much
more does a person live on in the love of God, who knew and loved that person perfectly?
Yet, sin gets in the way of God’s love. The dead, particularly those close to us, need our
prayers to help them receive forgiveness so that they can become more and more open to
God’s love. When we remember someone in our thoughts we bind them to our memories.
More wonderfully, when we remember someone at mass or in our prayers we bind them
to God’s heart.
Those most open to God are the saints who continue to participate in the ministry of
God’s love in the Church. As members of Christ’s Church, our religious remembering binds us together as a grace-filled member of Christ’s Body. I commend you to pray for
all the members of the Church… both living and dead… so that we may all live in Christ.
September 22, 2024 – Welcome Back to Church Event
October 27, 2024 – Autumn/Thanksgiving Event
December 1, 2024 – First Sunday of Advent Event
March 30, 2025 – Lent Event
April 27, 2025 – Second Sunday of Easter Event
June 22, 2025 – Strawberry Social Event
Vacation Bible School at St. Mary's is off to a great start this week! Please keep all the families in your prayers as we continue learning how to better understand the Mass and deepen our love for Jesus in the Eucharist!
Horizons of Hope April 9—30, 2024 7:00 p.m. at the St. Anne’s Centre. Dates: April 9th, 16, 23 and 30th. This FREE 4-week program developed by the Canadian Conference of Bishops seeks to empower and educate parishioners and address questions surrounding palliative care, dying, death, suffering and bereavement holistically. Content includes Catholic moral and pastoral theology, medical expertise and the Compassionate Community model. Designed for those seeking to learn more about palliative care and the Catholic Church's teaching on end-of-life; persons who have recently been diagnosed with a terminal illness, and family members who need resources and guidance as they journey with a loved one who is seriously or terminally ill.
Holy Angel’s and St. Helen’s CWL hosted Linda Staudt, former director of the LDCSB on March 9th to share her experiences from the Synod in Rome last October.
Save the date! This year's vacation bible school program is set to run during the week of July 22-26, 2024, from 9am-12noon each day at the St. Mary's Parish Hall. The theme of this year's program is, "Marvelous Mystery- The Mass Comes Alive!" The week will be packed with rock-solid songs, unforgettable games, cool crafts, and interactive lessons that will motivate kids ages 4-12 to grow in their faith. More information coming soon!
Even though the new life of spring is in the air, there still the winter debris everywhere. This echoes our spiritual life during lent. The debris that gets covered up with the dark times of our life becomes more evident with the spiritual springtime of Easter Renewal. It is a time to look at the habits and clutter in our lives to make way for the newness of life. It is times to take stock and recognize the things we have been wandering around, or even tripping over that hinder our spiritual progress. Read More
You are invited to the Ultreya at Holy Angels’ Hall at 7:30 p.m. Someone will be at the elevator doors to admit you until 7:35. After that time, please contact Tom or Janice Robson at 519-318-8820. Next Ultreya is March 17