We want to bring to your attention that the roof of the Church is in need of repair. The repair work will begin in early August and will conclude in late September. This is a major expense of approximately $500,000 that will be funded by our reserve fund.
In the fall, the finance committee will be outlining some ways and means to begin replenishing the funds over time.
We thank you for your understanding and patience during the time of the roof repair.
As you are aware, our parish has committed to sponsor a Ukrainian refugee family to Canada as permanent residents. Our sponsorship makes us responsible to support and assist this family during their first year in Canada. Our Parish committee of 20 members will assist them with everything from securing and equipping housing, language training, education where needed, banking, shopping, recreation, medical appointments and all the other things it takes to settle into our country.
This will be the fourth refugee family our parish has assisted in the last 10 years. The prior three families are all doing well and all have become Canadian citizens.
We have yet to be matched with a Ukrainian family but we are aware of a local church that has received their refugee family.
We will, of course, need your financial assistance to make this sponsorship a success. The government of Canada requires us to raise a minimum of $35,000 to support a family of 4. To achieve this we are now accepting donations through the parish office.
With your support we can live the gospel to which we are called.
From Mathew 25: For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in.
Thank you.
For the third year, St. Gabriel’s has received a Canada Summer Jobs grant from the federal government for a Gardening Helper, between the ages of 15 to 30, to assist with gardening tasks 30 hours per week for 9 weeks, beginning late May. Work can include, but not be limited to watering, weeding, planting, transplanting, soil preparation, pruning, harvesting, mulching, cleaning up debris and care of garden tools.
For more information, email sgpgardenministry@gmail.com.
To apply, please send your resume to stgabrielsparish@bellnet.ca.
Meetings in preparation for the R.C.I.A. (Rites of Christian Initiation of Adults) will begin in October. These meetings 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.
Registration will continue until September 18th. 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 by email at StGabrielParishRCIA@gmail.com or by phone at 416-221-8866.
We remain grateful and want to thank all the parishioners of St. Gabriel’s Passionist Parish for their ongoing support during this period of great difficulty and uncertainty.
Under Step 3 of the provincial reopening plan as of July 16th, there is no capacity restriction on all liturgical celebrations. However, attendance will be limited by the physical distancing requirement.
In order to attend Sunday masses, a reservation for each attendee is required.
Please review the Protocol for Sunday Mass celebrations before making any reservations. Please click Sunday Mass Reservations. If you have any difficulty in registering, please call the parish office during regular office hours.
There is no reservation required for the 9:00 am Monday to Friday weekday Mass but sign in upon arrival is required.
For the safety and health of our community, please remain home if you show or have any signs or symptoms of Covid-19. Under a City of Toronto by-law, all attendees are required to wear non-medical grade masks or face coverings throughout their entire time of attendance at church while at the same time respecting the physically distance rules of 2 metres (6 feet).
We continue to thank you for your financial contribution during this time. If you cannot attend the Masses, you can mail or drop off your envelope contribution to the parish office. As well you can sign up for Pre Authorized Giving by picking up a form in the parish office or printing the form, completing it and submitting it to the parish office.
We are looking forward to seeing you.
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.
