November 18th, 2017
Saturday, December 2nd from 12:30 PM to 4:00 PM
St. Gabriel’s Church
Please join us for the Advent Retreat. It will be a wonderful way to prepare our minds and hearts for Christmas. The retreat will be preached by Father Robin Ryan, a Passionist priest and theologian. Father Ryan teaches at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He is author of numerous books, articles and recordings on theological and spiritual topics, and a much sought-after retreat director.
Among his work are Catholics on Call: Discerning a Life of Service in the Church (Liturgical Press, 2010) and God and the Mystery of Human Suffering: A Theological Conversation Across the Ages (Paulist Press, 2011).
Pope Francis is calling all baptized Christians to renew their relationship with Christ and the Church. In this parish retreat, Father Ryan will explore with us the vision of the Church that Pope Francis presents and reflect on its implications for Christian living.
For more information, please call Parish Office at 416 221-8866, or email Fatima Lee at fatimalee@bellnet.ca.
Weekend of November 25th and 26th
The St. Gabriel’s Youth Group has decorated Advent wreaths which will be on sale on the weekend of November 25th and 26th after all the Masses.
Money raised will go toward sponsoring the youth group activities. Please support our Youth Group!
Sunday November 26th at 2:00 PM
There will be a presentation on Cyber Safety here at the Church on Sunday, November 26th at 2:00 PM. It will be led by Peter Sloly, a former parishioner. Mr. Sloly was a member of the Toronto Police for 27 years and the Deputy Police Chief of Toronto Police Services. All are welcome to attend.
November 20th to November 25th, 2017
MONDAY – MICHAEL BOBYK – Requested by Miroslaw & Alicia Bobyk TUESDAY – SOULS IN PURGATORY – Requested by Mary & Ravi WEDNESDAY – ANNA & PETER – Requested by Their Parents Robert & Maria THURSDAY – SOULS IN PURGATORY – Requested by Mary & Ravi FRIDAY – GUS CALDERONE – Requested by the Marie Calderone SATURDAY – MARJORIE SKAZIN, ANITA MARKLE & PATRICK MCGROARTY – Requested by Bill & Carolyn Markle
Sunday, November 26th at the 12:30 PM Mass
The Confirmation Enrollment Ceremony for all Confirmation candidates will be held on Sunday, November 26th at the 12:30 PM Mass. All Confirmation candidates must attend.
Candidates are reminded to submit their letters requesting Confirmation to Fr. Brando through the Parish Office by this Sunday, November 19th.
Wednesday, November 29th at 7:30 PM
St. Gabriel’s Church, Gabriel Room
On Wednesday, November 29th at 7:30 PM there will be a meeting in the Gabriel Room for parents of children who will be receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time.
This Weekend, November 18th/19th
As members of our Catholic community, we regularly benefit from the tireless service of our priests. Called by God and ordained to care for His people, our priests serve our families, in churches, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, missions and on the streets.
This weekend, there will be a second collection for The Shepherds’ Trust. The mission of The Shepherds’ Trust is to help ensure that elderly and disabled priests are provided with sufficient financial resources to lead a dignified life after many years of ministry. Your generous gift will help our priests to maintain a modest but active and independent lifestyle in their retirement years. For priests who are ill or otherwise infirm, the Trust ensures they have access to nursing home facilities and medical care. Thank you for your support of this important work.
Saturday,December 2nd to Sunday, December 17th
During Advent, the Society of St Vincent de Paul will have a Giving Tree in the Gathering Space.
The tree will be decorated with gift tags. Each tag will have the gender and age of a child. We invite you to take a tag, buy a gift or a gift card of about $25.00 for that child and return the unwrapped gift, with the tag attached, to the box provided in the Gathering Space. If you are a knitter, there will be mitten tags. Please take one and return mitts to the box in the Gathering Space.
At this time of the year, we are also thinking of the young mothers and babies of Rosalie Hall. If you wish to help, you may choose a “Christmas Stocking” from the tree to purchase pyjamas or undershirts for babies ages 6 months to 4 years.
Unwrapped Items with the original stocking tag attached can be left in the box provided near the “mitten” tree no later than Sunday, December 17th. Toys for these little ones would also be appreciated.
For the Moms, we are suggesting gift cards from Tim Horton’s, Walmart or MacDonald’s. These can be placed in the envelopes provided and brought to the Parish Office. Thank you for your generous support.
Development and Peace has launched a new campaign “Women at the Heart of Peace”. This campaign invites Canadians to learn more about the vital role women play in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. To learn more, visit devp.org/campaign.
Saturday, December 2nd to Sunday, December 17th
We are having a Christmas Toy Drive again this year for the Catholic Children’s Aid Society. You can help by dropping off an unwrapped new toy for a child newborn to 12 years old. Containers will be set up at the doors of the Church from Saturday, December 2nd until Sunday, December 17th.
Your prepared frozen casseroles will be collected at the Masses next weekend for delivery to the Good Shepherd Centre.
More volunteers are needed to help feed the hungry in our city. Three recipes are available on St. Gabriel’s website. Printed copies of the recipes are also available in the Parish Office. Please remember to mark the label on the pan lid with the name of the casserole.
For more information, you may contact Irene Albrecht at 416 221-2791.
Each month the food we collect is sent to Rosalie Hall and the Good Shepherd Centre. The good people of St. Gabriel’s have been extremely generous in their support of these two important centres.
Rosalie Hall assists young parents and their children to realize their potential through the provision of a wide range of child development, community, residential and educational services.
Good Shepherd provides hot meals and shelter for the homeless in our city as well as a chance to start again through the Resettlement or DARE Programs.
Please check the expiry dates before donating since we cannot pass on food that has expired. Thank you for your tremendous support!
Weekend of November 18th and 19th
St. Gabriel School is holding a poinsettia fundraiser this year. Order forms are available after all the Masses this weekend, November 18th and 19th in the Gathering Space or from the Parish Office. Plants will be available for pick up at St. Gabriel School on Friday, December 8th. Funds raised will help subsidize activities and materials that benefit all students at the school. Please support St. Gabriel School.
Wednesday, November 22nd from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM
St. Margaret Parish Hall
Friends of the Street is a group in St. Margaret of Scotland Parish that prays for those who have been pushed to the margins of society through drug use or their lifestyle. Each month we hear from people who have lived on the street, or from those who support them downtown.
The next meeting is on Wednesday November 22nd from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM in the parish hall at 2134 Avenue Road, Toronto. The speaker will be Kelly who will talk of her life of addiction and her journey to recovery.
Tuesday, November 21st at 7:00 PM
Madden Hall, 100 St. Joseph Street, Toronto
Please join the Faculty of Theology, University of St. Michael’s College as Professor Emeritus Dr. Michael Vertin presents the 8th annual Meagher Lecture, a talk entitled Theology in the Church. The event takes place at 7:00 PM on Tuesday, November 21st 2017 in Madden Hall, at 100 St. Joseph St., Toronto. Admission is free, and no registration is required
Let’s Talk About Mental Health
Tuesday, November 28th at 7:00 PM
Blessed Trinity Parish Hall
Please join Blessed Trinity CWL for an evening with Dr Andrea Levinson, Psychiatrist in chief. Health and Wellness, University of Toronto. This talk will provide an overview of the continuum from mental health to mental illness. Issues pertaining to the impact, stigma, gender differences, key signs and symptoms, common illnesses and ways to access help will be covered. Refreshments will be provided and a $10 donation would be appreciated. For more information, please contact Kay Booker at 416-357-5378.
Wednesday, December 6th at 7:30 PM
Koerner Hall, Telus Centre
On the first Wednesday in December at the acoustically magnificent Koerner Hal the Toronto Choral Society, 22 members of the Talisker Players and some great soloists present Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. Tickets start at $45 and can be ordered from the website: https://www.torontochoralsociety.org/concerts/2017/12/6/christmas-oratorio-at-koerner-hall.
Win great prizes! Deadline for submissions January 8th 2018
Students aged 14 to 18 are invited to write a 500-word essay on the theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, celebrated January 18th to January 25th, 2018. The Theme is “Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power” (cf. Exodus 15:6). Students should read the Scripture passage from Exodus 15: 1-21 and respond to the following question in the essay:
Just as the Israelites sought deliverance from enslavement, in contemporary society the dignity of all people is threatened by new enslavements to poverty, violence, injustice and addictions. In what ways can Christians of all denominations work together to stave off these assaults to human dignity? Explain.
First Prize: iPad Pro (128 GB). Second Prize: Kobo Aura H2O Edition 2. Third to Sixth Prizes: one-year subscription to The Catholic Register and other prizes. Winning essays will be edited and published in The Catholic Register. Deadline for entries is January 8th, 2018. For entry details, please visit http://bit.ly/studentwritingawarddetails.
| Posted in Bulletin |
November 12th, 2017
About this same time last Sunday a group of about 50 men, women and children gathered at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs in Texas. As we do today so they did a week ago, they gathered to worship and praise Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Their gathering of worship and praise was turned into a blood bath as a mentally disturbed man shot and killed 26 of them and wounded many others.
Can you imagine how traumatized our parish family of St. Gabriel’s would be if such a similar thing happen within these walls? What might be the lasting effects of such a horror?
How will this small faith community in Sutherland Springs survive their senseless tragedy? They are supported by the other faith community in their small town and the prayers of people across the land. They will survive and live their faith lives more deeply because they believe, as we believe, the words of Paul in today’s Mass;’ we do not want you to be uninformed about those who have died, so that you do not grieve as others who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus; God will bring with him all who have died.
The survivors of that tragedy in the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas will move on and live on and love on. They will not grieve their great loss of family and friends like people who have no hope, men and women who see their death as an entrance into nothingness. These good people believe, as we believe, that Jesus Christ, through his death and resurrection is the Lord of life and the conqueror of death. They believe as we believe that death is not the end of life, it is the beginning of new and endless life.
This month of November with its many sunless days is the month of the Holy Souls. We remember those family members and friends who have died. We often see death as something that separates us from those we loved but the truth is that those who die in grace go no further from us that God and God is always near. They are with us as God is with us. They are with us as we remember, make present the past, what they said, what they did, their faults and failings, the good things they said and did. They are with us.
As we continue to celebrate this Mass, we make present the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus, that great event that assures us all of endless life with God, we remember our faithful departed and especially we remember and pray for the men, women and children of the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas who died one week ago today. We pray too for the healing of body and mind of those good people who survived that awful day.
May a tragedy like last Sunday’s help each of us to appreciate the gifts of faith and life with which we have all been blessed.
| Posted in Homily |
November 11th, 2017
A Book of Remembrance will be placed on the altar for the month of November. You are invited to write the names of your deceased relatives and friends in the book. They will be remembered at all the Masses celebrated in November.
Wednesday, November 15th at 7:30 PM
Gabriel Room
This year’s D & P campaign is “Women at the Heart of Peace”.
Given the increasing number of violent conflicts and their dramatic repercussions on civilians, we must find new solutions to promoting peace. Please join us for a vigil to pray for and stand in solidarity with women who play a key role in conflict prevention and resolution, as well as building and sustaining an inclusive, lasting and fair peace.
November 19th after the 12:30 Mass
Robert Cordy, our landscape designer, will be holding a gardening workshop on Sunday, November 19th after the 12:30 Mass on Orchard Tree Planting. Everyone is welcome.
November 13th to November 18th, 2017
MONDAY – SOULS IN PURGATORY – Requested by John Chan TUESDAY – JESSICA HO – Requested by Paul, Wai Chin, Irene, Pauline, Amy & Judy Hwang WEDNESDAY – ALL DECEASED – Requested by Chiara & Tina Intini THURSDAY – BERTHA RICKETTS & MARY ALLORE – Requested by their Family FRIDAY – MARY MISHRIGUI – Requested by the Mary Zakher SATURDAY – MIKE PALAZZO & CHRSTOPHER DI LALLO – Requested by Val Palazzo
Candidates are reminded to submit their letters requesting Confirmation to Fr. Brando through the Parish Office by next Sunday, November 19th.
Among his work are Catholics on Call: Discerning a Life of Service in the Church (Liturgical Press, 2010) and God and the Mystery of Human Suffering: A Theological Conversation Across the Ages (Paulist Press, 2011). Pope Francis is calling all baptized Christians to renew their relationship with Christ and the Church. In this parish retreat, Father Ryan will explore with us the vision of the Church that Pope Francis presents and reflect on its implications for Christian living.
Over the course of the past several weeks, hurricanes, tropical storms and violent earthquakes have devastated a number of countries in the Caribbean and Mexico.
In an effort to support people in that region who have been impacted by these disasters, the Archdiocese of Toronto is accepting funds that will be sent through Catholic relief channels.
Those wishing to help may do so in the following ways:
We offer our prayers for all those impacted by these tragedies. Thank you for your ongoing efforts to assist those in crisis.
Wednesday, November 15th from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM
Volunteer milk bag weavers will be meeting Wednesday afternoon, November 15th from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM in the Gabriel Room to continue their great work, making sleep mats for third world countries All are welcome! For further information about this program please visit www.milkbagsunlimited.ca or contact Sharon Gusz at sharongusz@gmail.com.
November 18th/19th
On November 18th and 19th there will be a second collection for The Shepherds’ Trust. The mission of The Shepherds’ Trust is to help ensure that elderly and disabled priests are provided with sufficient financial resources to lead a dignified life after many years of ministry. Your generous gift will help our priests to maintain a modest but active and independent lifestyle in their retirement years. For priests who are ill or otherwise infirm, the Trust ensures they have access to nursing home facilities and medical care. Thank you for your support of this important work.
Development and Peace is launching a new campaign “Women at the Heart of Peace”. This campaign invites Canadians to learn more about the vital role women play in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. To learn more, visit devp.org/campaign.
Your food donations are more important than ever as the numbers of needy people continue to increase. Please check the expiry dates before donating since we cannot pass on food that has expired. Thank you for your tremendous support!
Weekend of November 18th/19th
Fair trade organic coffees will be on sale after all the Masses next weekend. Regular ground coffee: $5.50 Decaffeinated: $6.00 Whole Beans: $5.50 Chocolate Bars: $4.50 incl. Taxes Hot Chocolate and Cocoa: $6.00 Teas: $4.25
Saturday, November 25th, from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
High Park Station, 35 Quebec Avenue (bus terminal exit)
Young adults (18-39) are invited to join us for an opportunity to slow down with God and enjoy the beauty of nature. We will look for the beauty in all things, as inspired by St. Francis of Assisi. RSVPs appreciated: call Kataryna Ryba at 416-467-2645 or visit www.faithconnections.ca – a ministry of Fontbonne Ministries, Sisters of St. Joseph, Toronto.
Let’s Talk About Mental Health Tuesday, November 28th at 7:00 PM Blessed Trinity Parish Hall
Please join Blessed Trinity CWL for an evening with Dr Andrea Levinson, Psychiatrist in chief. Health and Wellness, University of Toronto. This talk will provide an overview of the continuum from mental health to mental illness. Issues pertaining to the impact, stigma, gender differences, key signs and symptoms, common illnesses and ways to access help will be covered. Refreshments will be provided and a $10 donation would be appreciated.For more information, please contact Kay Booker at 416-357-5378.
Grades 11 & 12
November 25th from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM
Our Lady of the Airways Parish, Mississauga
The Office of Vocations is hosting a day retreat at Our Lady of the Airways Parish, Mississauga, on Saturday, November 25th from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. This retreat will provide time to pray, interact & socialize with other young Catholic men. Seminarians deliver talks on practical aspects of faith. The day includes Holy Mass, Adoration & Confession. Registration for the retreat is to be done online at: www.vocationstoronto.ca (under Programs) or http://bit.ly/2xh8uMA.
For more information please call the Office of Vocations at 416-968-0997 or email vocations@archtoronto.org.
Support CJI’s “Tell Ten” campaign to promote livelihoods
Tuesday, November 28th
CJI’s “Tell Ten” Giving Tuesday campaign on November 28th raises awareness about livelihood support. It is a “preferential option for the poor” which promotes justice and the dignity of every person. CJI invites you to “Tell Ten” of your friends and family about our Livelihood Support campaign, pray for those in need of livelihood support, subscribe to our newsletter , and donate $10 to reach small-scale farmers in Zambia, tea plantation workers in Darjeeling, India, and small-scale producers in Latin America. For information and to donate call 1-800-448-2148 or visit www.canadianjesuitsinternational.ca/giving-tuesday-tell-ten.
If you are new in the community please print your name and address clearly on your envelope so that your donation may be properly accredited to you.
Please do not use envelopes from previous years since that envelope number may have been reassigned to another parishioner.
If you are moving out of the Parish or have changed your address, please contact the Parish Office at 416-221-8866 so that we can update our records. Thank you.
November 4th, 2017
November 11th is Remembrance Day, a day to remember all who have served, and continue to serve in our armed forces, especially those who have died and those wounded in battle. We pray for healing and peace; that one day, all peoples will lay down their arms and embrace one another as brothers and sisters in one human family.
BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE
This year’s D & P campaign is “Women at the Heart of Peace”
On Saturday October 21st five altar servers from St. Gabriel’s Parish received the “Bishop’s Altar Server Award for Service during the 2017 Annual Altar Servers Awards Ceremony at St. Paul’s Basilica. We offer our sincere thanks and congratulations to the following altar servers: John Aguila Matthew Bradbury Mitchell Bradbury Edward Na Joy Tolledo
The parish is truly grateful to all of its altar servers for their participation at the celebration of the Eucharist and ceremonies throughout the Church year.
November 5th, November 19th after the 12:30 Mass
Robert Cordy, our landscape designer, will be holding gardening workshops this Sunday, November 5th and Sunday, November 19th after the 12:30 Mass on Orchard Tree Planting. Everyone is welcome.
English Mass will be celebrated at St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church (432 Sheppard Ave. East, west of Bayview Ave.) every Sunday beginning on November 5th at 6:00 PM.
Please join us for the Advent Retreat. It will be a wonderful way to prepare our minds and hearts for Christmas.
The retreat will be preached by Father Robin Ryan, a Passionist priest and theologian. Father Ryan teaches at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He is author of numerous books, articles and recordings on theological and spiritual topics, and a much sought-after retreat director.
November 6th to November 11th, 2017
MONDAY – SOULS IN PERGATORY – Requested by John Chan TUESDAY – ERNIE KEEGAN – Requested by his Family WEDNESDAY – JOAN RUEST – Requested by her Family THURSDAY – SOULS IN PURGATORY – Requested by Mary & Ravi FRIDAY – PAULINE FUNG CHIU – Requested by the Chiu Family SATURDAY – VICTOR PAUL – Requested by Sophia & Candida Pereira
Candidates are reminded to submit their letters requesting Confirmation to Fr. Brando through the Parish Office by Sunday, November 19th.
Relief workers from the official Catholic relief agency, Caritas Internationalis, are on the ground. Caritas Mexico teams are determining how the earthquakes have affected local populations. Catholic partners in other affected regions are also actively caring for the victims of these disasters and determining the long-term needs for recovery.
As members of our Catholic community, we regularly benefit from the tireless service of our priests. They have been tangible instruments of the Lord’s mercy in our lives. Called by God and ordained to care for His people, our priests serve our families, in churches, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, missions and on the streets. The Shepherds’ Trust ensures our priests can live their retirement years with dignity.
The Shepherds’ Trust collection will take place in all parishes in the Archdiocese during the weekend of November 18th/19th. This fund does more than just support our priests in their retirement years; it represents a very tangible gesture of thanks for the blessings we have received. Your generosity is greatly appreciated.
Development and Peace is launching a new campaign “Women at the Heart of Peace”. This campaign invites Canadians to learn more about the vital role women play in conflict prevention and peacebuilding. To learn more, visit devp.org/campaign
Volunteer milk bag weavers will be meeting Wednesday afternoon, November 15th from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM in the Gabriel Room to continue their great work, making sleep mats for third world countries All are welcome! For further information about this program please visit www.milkbagsunlimited.ca or contact Sharon Gusz at sharongusz@gmail.com
Thank you to the volunteers who prepared 48 casseroles for October. For November, your prepared casseroles (frozen please) will be collected at the Masses on the weekend of November 25th/26th for delivery to the Good Shepherd Centre.
More volunteers are urgently needed to help feed the hungry in our city. You may pick up a copy of a casserole recipe and a pan from the Parish Office. Three recipes are also available on St. Gabriel’s web site. Please remember to mark the label on the pan lid with the name of the casserole. For more information, please contact Irene Albrecht at 416 221-2791.
Grades 11 & 12 November 25th from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM Our Lady of the Airways Parish, Mississauga
For more information please call the Office of Vocations at: 416-968-0997 or email: vocations@archtoronto.org.
High Park Station, 35 Quebec Avenue (meeting at bus terminal exit) Young adults (18-39) are invited to join us for an opportunity to slow down with God and enjoy the beauty of nature. We will look for the beauty in all things, as inspired by St. Francis of Assisi. RSVPs appreciated: call Kataryna Ryba at 416-467-2645 or visit www.faithconnections.ca — a ministry of Fontbonne Ministries, Sisters of St. Joseph, Toronto.
October 29th, 2017
The words and advice in our first reading were written over 3000 years ago. These words still challenges our hard hearts and they have the same force and validity today as then, especially those about how we should treat strangers who come to our land, how we care for the poor in our land and how we deal justly with one another.
It is no secret that the political atmosphere south of the border has become very toxic; it is divisive setting one group of people against another. White supremacy is tolerated if not encouraged and police brutality toward Black citizens appears to be tolerated. Mexicans and Latin Americans who sought sanctuary in the country are classed as dangers to national security. Moslems have their loyalty to the country questioned. Our neighbour to the south is a divided country like never before.
But toxic fumes do not respect borders and some of the toxicity to the south has settled in Canada too. We’ve witnessed the killing of Moslem men at prayer. A town refused to sell land to a Mosque to use as a burial ground. In different parts of the country Mosques and Synagogues have been vandalized and Jewish homes have been defaced with Nazi symbols. Recently the Quebec government passed Bill 62 banning Moslem women from covering their faces. It is estimated that less than 100 Moslem women wear the nigab. One journalist described this bill as ‘a ludicrous claptrap of Islamophobia.’
All these actions, these mind sets are in stark contrast to what today’s scriptures call us. We all have our prejudices, our likes and dislikes and we’re uncomfortable with the different, the unknown. But these are demons we must fight. They are un-God like, they are un-Christian. We are all immigrants to Canada. As individuals and as a Christian community we try to drive the demon of division and prejudice from our lives, from our community.
Christ puts before each of us every day of our lives this challenge, this commandment: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind and you shall love your neighbour as yourself’.
The point of today’s scripture is to make us watchful in the way we treat any one of God’s sons and daughters. We are to look at each person who crosses our path, each one, rich or poor, friend or stranger, obnoxious or likeable, as a person under the protection of God who is Father to us all. By God’s help may we make sure that we do not cause any person to cry to God by what we say or do to him or her. May we join with God is losing all patience with those who would pollute of lives and relationships with the stench of bigotry and hatred.
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