O, heavenly Father:
We thank thee for food and
remember the hungry.
We thank thee for health and remember the sick.
We thank thee for friends and remember the friendless.
We thank thee for freedom and remember the enslaved.
May these remembrances stir us to service,
that thy gifts to us may be used for others. Amen.
Monday, October 12th is Thanksgiving Day.
There will be no 9:00 AM Mass and the Parish Office will be closed.
ANNOUNCED MASSES
October 12th to October 18th
MONDAY – THANKSGIVING – No 9:00 AM Mass
TUESDAY – NGUYEN THI MINH – Requested by Veronica Do
WEDNESDAY – NANCY FABRA – Requested by Mirian Fabra
THURSDAY – NADSA CORNELIO – Requested by Mark DesRoches
FRIDAY – PASQUALE GATTI – Requested by Linda Gatti
SATURDAY – GORDON OATWAY – Requested by Pat Oatway
SUNDAY – 10:30 AM – KAZ SWIDERSKI – Requested by Irene Swiderski
SUNDAY 12:30 PM – ANA LLANOS – Requested by Mirian Fabra
R.C.I.A. AND ADULT FAITH DEVELOPMENT
Meetings in preparation for the R.C.I.A. (Rites of Christian Initiation of Adults) will begin in October. These meetings are normally in person but, due to Covid 19, they will probably be online. They are for persons interested in learning more about the Catholic Faith. The exploration may lead the candidate to seek baptism, and become a member of the Catholic Christian community; or for Christians already baptized into another Christian denomination, the reception into the Catholic Church.
Adult Catholics who have not received the sacrament of Confirmation but who wish to do so are also encouraged to attend these sessions.
As well, these meetings may be an opportunity for “Born Catholics” to deepen their understanding of our faith. Very often, especially for those of us who received our religious instruction at an early age, we tend to grow physically, mentally, psychologically etc., but the understanding of our faith does not grow correspondingly. The RCIA may serve as a good opportunity for us to ask questions and to develop a more adult understanding of our faith.
If you are interested in joining the RCIA meetings or if you would like to have more information about it, please contact Sr. Maria Lucia at 416-221-8866.
MINISTRY FOR MATURING ADULTS
PHONE PALS OR EMAIL PALS: CONNECTING WITH EACH OTHER DURING THE PANDEMIC
While the first wave of Covid 19 was trying for everyone it was particularly difficult for anyone who was living by themselves or for those living with others but not feeling included, valued or welcome. As we prepare for a possible second wave of the pandemic, the team members of the Ministry of Maturing Adults would like to invite anyone who would like a telephone pal or email pal to contact the parish office or email us directly at stgabrielmma@gmail.com.
By providing us with your name, phone number or email, we will connect you with someone who would make periodical calls to check in on you at least once a week. These calls or emails could be used for a simple friendly chat, a chance to voice a concern to a compassionate ear, or a companion to pray with.
No one should feel alone… Each of us are weathering this storm in a different way, but we are all part of the same storm. Let us know if we can help!
ARCHDIOCESAN CATECHIST FORMATION PROGRAM 2020-21
Registration is now open for the 2020-21 Catechist Formation Program. The program runs from Sunday, October 18th, 2020 to Saturday, June 19th, 2021. It consists of a combination of online courses, seminars, retreat morning, as well as a Mass and blessing of catechists by Cardinal Thomas Collins, Archbishop of Toronto, at St. Augustine’s Seminary. There is a $250 deposit, refundable upon program completion, and the cost of books.
For more information see the brochure at http://bit.ly/OCFP-Brochure2020 or contact Connie Price at: cprice@archtoronto.org or 416-934-3400, ext. 513.
CHILDREN’S FAITH PROGRAM
We anticipate that the 2020-2021 Children’s Faith Program will follow a home-school model with email resource support from volunteer catechist. At registration, you will receive a textbook for use as a primary resource. Parents will home school the child, with guidance from the textbook material and email resources from the catechist. Registration will open soon.
THANKSGIVING FOOD DRIVE
You can make a difference in the lives of the hungry and homeless this Thanksgiving by participating in the annual Thanksgiving Food Drive.
Good Shepherd provides hot meals and shelter for the homeless in our city as well as a chance to start again.
Rosalie Hall provides a wide range of child development, community, residential and educational services.
Urgently needed items include:
Rice, pasta, pasta sauces, curry, garlic powder
Cereal, powdered milk, hot chocolate
salad dressing, tea bags, coffee
granola bars, protein bars, chocolate bars, hard candy
cookies and crackers, sugar
canned tuna, soups, stews, corned beef, fruits and vegetables
Please check the expiry date as we cannot pass on expired foods. Please no fresh or frozen foods. We thank you for your generous support!
2021 REFUGEE SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM
For Families of Parishioners
The Archdiocese Office for Refugees has a program to assist parishioners who would like to sponsor a family member that is in need of refugee sponsorship. This program is intended to assist parishioners only. If you are a parishioner, and would like to sponsor a family member, please contact the parish office to schedule a meeting with the pastor prior to November 15th. The Office for Refugees will look to the sponsoring family to provide the necessary funds for sponsorship.
The Process
Step 1: The Program is Announced at Parish by October 20th, 2020.
Step 2: The Parishioner Meets with the Pastor – Interested parishioners are to arrange a meeting with the pastor by November 15th, 2020
Step 3: The Pastor Sends Request to ORAT by November 29th, 2020
Step 4: ORAT Invites Parishioner to an Information Session – Following the receipt of the request from the pastor, ORAT will extend an invitation to the parishioner, inviting them to attend the Introduction to Resettlement Information Session. This is a mandatory session for the parishioner. The session will take place on or before Saturday, December 12th, 2020.
COLLECTION OF MILK BAGS
For the foreseeable future, we are stopping the collection of milk bags. There are no workshops being scheduled at this time and Sharon has many more than she can use. We will let you know when we can begin collecting them once more.
ST. JOSEPH MORROW PARK
Virtual Open House
October 14th at 7:00 PM
St. Joseph Morrow Park Catholic Secondary School will be hosting a Virtual Open House for Grade 8 students and parents that includes the following:
- An informational video that will be available on our school website beginning October 13th at 4:00 PM. Please visit www.tcdsb.org/stjosephmorrowpark for a link to the video.
- Virtual Town Hall on October 14th at 7:00 PM. to learn more about high school life at St. Joseph Morrow Park. Please use the following link to register for this event: St. Joseph Morrow Park Virtual Town Hall Registration.
BREBEUF COLLEGE SCHOOL
Virtual Open House
October 15th and 21st
Brebeuf College School is an All-Boys TCDSB Catholic School that focuses on Faith Development, Academics, Athletics, and Student Leadership. The applications for the 2021-2022 School Year are now available. To learn more, please join them at their Virtual Open House on October 15th and 21st. To register and further explore what Brebeuf can offer your son and family, please visit https://sites.google.com/tcdsb.ca/brebeufcollege and click on “Brebeuf Open House”. They look forward to seeing you then.
THE GARDEN SHED
Shapes of Autumn
When leaves fall and flowers exhaust themselves in seed formation, it’s a great time to observe shapes in the garden. For example, in the north garden there are arching Goji’s and flame-shaped hyssop pods, while, in the south garden, there are globular black seed heads of Virginia Mountain Mint, pearls of Pearly Everlasting and seed discs of Smooth Oxeye.
Sharing
While it saves labour to cut back seed stalks in the fall, rather than wait for the spring when they will be partly decayed and soggy, we also share the garden with birds and other creatures that depend on its seeds. So, we cut back some of the plants, like Blazing Star and Hairy Beardtongue in the fall and leave others, like Virginia Mountain Mint, Verbena, Smooth Oxeye and Pearly Everlasting until the spring.
For more information on St. Gabriel’s gardens visit the Garden Ministry web-page on the parish website. If you would like to participate in caring for our gardens, please email heathermjb@gmail.com.
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.
