In this week’s bulletin, the Parish Lenten Retreat, Recovering a Sacred Balance, and the ShareLife collection.
From the desk of Fr. Paul
While Lent and Easter come a little later than usual this year, it is nonetheless fast approaching. This year the parish will be launching a special Lenten program: Lent 4.5.
The Lent 4.5 program is developed by the Passionist Earth & Spirit Centre based in Kentucky, USA. (It is an unusual name, but in time you’ll hear more about it.) Through the program, we approach the Lenten season of purification and repentance with a particular focus on how our lifestyles affect creation, as well as the poor of this world. It gives the traditional Lenten practice of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving a whole new meaning.
Beginning February 27th, each week during Lent, there will be an additional insert to our Parish Bulletin, covering a variety of themes, such as Christian simplicity, food, energy, water. Each week the particular theme will be explained in the insert, along with what the Church teaches on the subject. There will also be simple actions suggested so that if we decide to, we can make a difference in caring for the poor and for God’s creation.
We encourage you to take a few moments each week, using the insert to ponder and reflect. Hopefully this Lent will be for you a new experience of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.
March 14th – March 19th 2011
MONDAY – JOHN WARE Requested by Moira & Bob TUESDAY – MARY FLANAGAN Requested by the Family WEDNESDAY – PABLO DY SANGCO Requested by Maria Lourdes Luz THURSDAY – NORA DALY Requested by Desmond Daly FRIDAY – MATTHEW SEITH Requested by Mary Ann Mailhot SATURDAY – OLIVIA BARRON Requested by the Family
Stations of the Cross will take place each Friday evening during Lent at 7:30 PM. We also encourage your attendance at our daily Mass throughout Lent.
March 21, 22, 23, 2011 7:30 to 9:00 PM
Where do you find the Sacred? How do you pay attention to God? During this year’s Lenten parish retreat Finding God in Everyday Places: Sharpening Your Spiritual Vision, we will investigate how to find God in the everyday, ordinary, normal, and even out-of-the-way and places of daily life. We will focus on what it means to embrace the world as a sacred reality.
Father Joseph Mitchell, a Passionist from Louisville, Kentucky, will be directing our Lenten retreat this year. He is the Director of the Earth & Spirit Centre there and the driving force behind the Lent 4.5 program, of which you will hear more throughout this Lenten season.
Our retreat will be held on March 21, 22, and 23 (Mon., Tues., and Wed.), from 7:30 to 9:00 PM.
Suggested donation for each evening $10, or whatever your means allows. Please mark your calendars and join us and sharpen your spiritual vision! Please call 416-221-8866 or email fatimalee@bellnet.ca to register.
March 26th at St. Gabriel’s Church at 10:00 AM
First Reconciliation for children attending St. Gabriel’s School, those in the Children’s Faith Program and children attending Private Schools will be held at St. Gabriel’s Church on Saturday, March 26th at 10:00 AM.
The Story of the Mass Wednesday, March 23rd at 10:30 AM Tuesday April 5th at 7:30 PM
A Saturday Workshop March 19, 2011 from 9:00 AM to 2:30 PM
We live in a vibrant world of deep interconnections. Yet we can easily find ourselves weary and estranged from the world in which we live. Often, it seems, we are too busy to enjoy the gift of life and the simple abundance of the Earth. We have created a dangerous imbalance.
Join Father Joseph Mitchell, C.P., to explore how we arrived at this point in our human journey, how a modern mindset has created a sense of alienation, and how we can achieve peace of mind, by embracing the world in which we live. We have much to learn from our Catholic faith to bring about a human presence on this planet that is socially just, environmentally sustainable and spiritually fulfilling. It is about recovering a sacred balance.
The multi-media workshop will be held on March 19, 2011, from 9 am to 2:30 pm in the Gabriel Room. Bring a simple lunch. Beverage and dessert will be provided. Please join us for what promises to be a lively and enlightening workshop!
Please call 416-221-8866 or email fatimalee@bellnet.ca to register.
Together we can continue to work WONDERS
“The guiding principles for our rich tradition of Catholic stewardship emphasize the importance of sharing time, talent and treasure with those around us. Ultimately, our lives are defined by how we’ve used the gifts we’ve received. We need to be active and engaged in our society, sharing the blessings we have, as best we can. That involvement can take many forms, one of which is charity. In our region, we have the chance to exercise Catholic charity in a truly meaningful way through ShareLife, our annual charitable appeal. Please consider supporting ShareLife, the annual fundraising appeal of our Archdiocese, during this Lenten season.”
— Most Rev. Thomas Collins, Archbishop of Toronto
1st ShareLife Sunday – April 3, 2011 Together, we can work WONDERS!
Fair trade organic coffees will be on sale after all the Masses next weekend.
Friday, March 11th, 6:00 to 8:00 PM Saturday, March 19th, 12:30 to 2:30 PM Pauline Books and Media, 3022 Dufferin Street, Toronto
Archbishop Thomas Collins will be at Pauline Books and Media, on Friday, March 11th from 6:00 to 8:00 PM and Saturday, March 19th from 12:30 to 2:30 PM to sign his new book entitled Pathways to Our Hearts. The book is drawn from his popular monthly Lectio Divina Series at St. Michael’s Cathedral. Light refreshments will be provided.
March 5th/6th Our operating expenses average $14,000 per week.
Loose Change – $1,189 Envelopes (415) – $8,293 Weekly Portion of Pre-Authorized Giving (146) – $2,950 Total – $12,432
Highlight from Lent 4.5 Bulletin insert:
“ … 800 million people suffer from hunger or malnutrition while the majority of corn and soy grown in the world feeds cattle, pigs and chickens for wealthy eaters. Consuming less meat is one of the most significant ways to lower your impact on God’s creation.”
This Bulletin entry was posted on Sunday, March 13th, 2011.
Founded by St. Paul of the Cross, every Passionist takes a special vow to spend his or her energies in promoting remembrance of the sufferings of Jesus, the memory of the Cross, and reflection of the meaning of the Cross for the world.
Learn about Passionists and our insignia »
Companion for the Walk of the Stations of the Cosmic Earth
St. Gabriel’s Garden – Guided Sensory Reflective Walk