October 21st, 2007
A couple of weeks ago when the parish had that birthday reception for me after the 12:30 Mass, one of the highlights of the celebration was when they sang ‘happy birthday’ in six different languages. My first year here at St. Gabriel’s was in 1960 – such a thing would not have happened back then. Our parish was pretty white and squeaky clean. It’s wonderful how the parish has changed through the years – we are a real ‘catholic’ – universal parish.
This past week I was at the annual workshop put on for the priests of the Archdiocese. Every year I seem to know fewer and fewer priests. I met one young priest who has been in Toronto for three months. He is from Mexico but studied in Brazil so he speaks Spanish, Portuguese and English and works in St. Anthony’s Parish down on Bloor. Years back St. Anthony’s was all Irish, then it became an Italian parish and now it’s Spanish and Portuguese. I think I may have mentioned before that Sunday Mass is celebrated in over 50 different languages in Toronto.
Today is mission Sunday. It’s a day we pray for and support the missionary works of the universal church. For years Canada has been sending priests, brothers and sisters to many countries around the world bringing the gospel to people of many lands. I remember the Breen family down the street from us in Saint John. Two brothers, George and Harold were priests. They were Holy Cross Fathers. In the 1920s they went of to the missions in India. The understanding was that they would never come home. They had one way tickets. That’s the way it was in those days, men and women made a life time commitment to the missions. They built churches, opened schools and hospitals, ran orphanages – they spread the faith through good works.
In those days the Canadian church was on the giving end of things. Now, the truth of the matter is, we are on the receiving end of things. The church in Toronto could not function without the presence of priests from Africa, India, the Philippines, Latin America, and Indonesia.
In our own Passionist Community, we have few vocations in Europe or North America. But the Passionist communities we established in the Philippines, India, and Indonesia and throughout Africa are strong and healthy. We are blessed to have Fr. Brando with us from the Philippines for another year. Every now and then I hear people from other parishes complaining about a new priest they have who is struggling with English. We can’t understand a word he says, they’ll complain. Passionists from the States went to Hunan Province in China in the early twenties. Can you image what the good Christians of that area had to endure as our men tried to learn and preach in Chinese? What goes around comes around. Because there are so few vocations to the priesthood and religious life here in Canada we need priests from other lands to keep the Canadian church alive.
In the second reading from today’s Mass Paul is encouraging Timothy to be faithful to what he was taught as a child – Paul’s words to Timothy can be addressed to all of us, “proclaim the message, be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable, convince, rebuke, encourage. We have been blessed with the gift of our Catholic Christian faith. We are meant to share that gift with others. It doesn’t mean going to another country or culture but it does mean living one’s faith right here, right now. Often when people come to take Mary Landry’s course of becoming a Catholic, the reason they give for making such a decision is how a Catholic friend or acquaintance made such a deep impression on them.
Years ago when I could shop at K Mart in the plaza there was an elderly gentleman who stood at a windy corner offering the Watchtower – the Jehovah newspaper. He would be there in all kinds of weather trying to share his faith with others. I always admired that man. How many of us would be willing to stand on a street corner and pass out information about our Catholic faith?
Mission Sunday is one day a year, but our mission, our responsibility to share our faith is a day by day reality. By the way we live our lives; by the way we relate to other people, we are to bear witness to our Christian Catholic faith by what we say, by what we do, always in the ordinary living of our ordinary lives.
I like going back to those words St. Francis of Assisi spoke to his friars. “Preach the gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
As we continue to celebrate this Eucharist we thank God for the gift of our faith, we pray for the men and women around the world involved in missionary activity and we ask for the willingness to bear witness to our faith by what we say and by what we do, every day of our lives.
| Posted in Homily |
For many years St. Gabriel’s Parish has participated in the annual Holocaust Education week. On Wednesday evening, November 8th at 7:30 PM there will be a showing of a documentary ” A Debt to Honor”, narrated by Alan Alda, describing how 30,000 Jewish men, women and children evaded the Nazis with the help of Italian citizens. Our guest speaker will be Ms. Esther Bem who was sheltered by an Italian family. We hope that the Italian Counsel General will be with us to speak on the same subject.
Total: $10,370
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For families registered in this parish. If your child does not go to St. Gabriel’s School but wishes to receive the sacrament of Baptism, First Communion, Reconciliation, or Confirmation, please pick up a REGISTRATION FORM in the Parish office. These forms should be returned to the Parish Office with a copy of your child’s Baptismal Certificate (for First Communion and Confirmation) as soon as possible.
Parents please bring completed registration forms to the parish office (Gabriel room) on any of the following evenings between 7:30 – 9:00 PM – Tuesday, October 23rd. A photocopy of your child’s Baptismal Certificate needs to accompany the registration for First Communion and Confirmation.
OCTOBER 24TH 7:30 – 9:00 PM This meeting is for the parents of children receiving their Confirmation this year. This is an information evening about the Confirmation process, so it is VERY IMPORTANT TO BE PRESENT. If you would like more information contact Otto Schmidt at 416 226 – 2332.
During the 12:30 PM Mass all confirmation candidates will be acknowledged at the altar. All confirmants who attend St. Gabriel’s School, the Children’s Faith Program and Private Schools are invited to attend. Please note that registrations for Confirmation will not be accepted on or after this date.
WILL BE AT 3:00 PM ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2007.
The Sacrament of the anointing of the sick is one of the Seven Sacraments. This Sacrament is celebrated with those who are seriously ill, those who are preparing for surgery, and the elderly. The preferred place for celebrating this Sacrament is in the Church with family and the members of the parish community present. All are more than welcome to attend.
The YOUTH GROUP will have their annual HAUNTED HOUSE EVENT in the Gabriel room on Sunday October 28th after the 10:30 AM and 12:30 PM Masses. Tickets are $2.00 per person, available at the door. Everyone is welcome.
For children 4 – 10 years old on Sundays at the 10:30 AM Mass. We are in need of volunteers to help us interpret the readings through discussion and activities. If you are interested call Tim Lychy at 416-953-0555 or email: tim@dibrinasure.com
The parish is looking to establish a new ministry to serve elderly parishioners and others with special needs who might require transportation to and from Church on Saturdays/Sundays, and to medical appointments. First we would like to ascertain the need of the community in this regard. At the same time, we are seeking volunteers who would like to participate in this ministry. Any parishioners who would like to avail themselves of such a service OR who can volunteer to help, please contact Fatima Lee at 416 221-8866.
The topics we have chosen are varied – a mixture of church history, church teachings and scripture. You are welcome to join us whenever you can. For further information call Mary Landry at 416-221-8866 ext. 224. Next meetings: Tuesday evening, October 30th at 7:30 PM Wednesday morning, October 31st at 10:30 AM.
Your prepared chicken rice casseroles (frozen please) will be collected at the Masses next weekend for delivery to the Good Shepherd Centre. More volunteers are encouraged to get a copy of the casserole recipe and a pan and give it a try. For more information, please contact Irene Albrecht at 416-221-2791.
is hosting a General Meeting, “Back to Grass Roots” on October 24th. Keynote speaker: Pat Cross (CWL Archdiocesan Council Past President 2005-2007). The meeting will be held at 1:15PM and again at 7:00PM to ensure that everyone interested is able to attend, whether they work during the day or have commitments in the evening. There will be an overview and explanation of the different aspects of being a CWL member. There will also be an open forum. Refreshments will be provided. All the ladies (all ages) of St. Gabriel’s Parish are invited.
a Catholic co-educational, private school for students in grades 5 to 12, will be hosting an Open House on Wednesday, October 17th from 7:00PM to 9:00PM for prospective students and their families for the academic year 2008 – 2009. The school is located at 131 Farnham Ave. Please contact the Office of Admissions at 416 969 – 8771, ext. 228 for more information.
Is this something that has crossed your mind or stirred your curiosity? If so, come join us for an informative and reflective Overnight Retreat starting on Friday evening November 9th, concluding with supper on Saturday, November 10th at Scarboro Missions, 2685 Kingston Road, Scarborough, ON. If you feel you might be called by God to be a missionary priest or lay missioner, we invite you to walk with us…it may change your life forever! To register contact us at 416 261-7135 ext 265 or ext 213 or email us at lmo@scarboromissions.ca
Saturday October 27th at 2:00 PM Archbishop Collins will preside at a special liturgy at St. Basil’s Church, 50 St. Joseph St., Toronto followed by a reception. The Canadian Bishops who founded Development and Peace have provided over $500 million to support 14,665 projects in 70 countries. For information contact jleahy@csj-to.ca
| Posted in Bulletin |
October 14th, 2007
We all know about the antagonism between the Jews and the Samaritans. One time Jesus and some of His disciples were on their way to Jerusalem and looked for lodging in a Samaritan town but because they were heading for Jerusalem they were refused hospitality. Because of this deep animosity there was no love lost between Jews and Samaritans.
Jesus grew up influenced by that animosity. The Samaritans were different, they were to be avoided. It took Him time to overcome this mind set as it took him time to overcome the normal mind set of the place of women in society. It took Him time to see the goodness in these people who practiced a faith close to but different from His own. Faced with the formalistic, lifeless religious leadership of His day, the strict observance of formalities, He would point to the Samaritans, the outsiders, as examples of those who lived their faith in God in far deeper ways than His own people.
We all know good people who do not share our faith but who live lives that express our faith better than we do ourselves in their compassion and care for others, in their sense of justice and fairness. In many ways they put us to shame.
Jesus often uses the Samaritans as examples of good people who are far better at living out the spirit of the law than His own people who gave the Law nothing but lip service. It was more than annoying to the scribes and Pharisees to have these heretics praised by Jesus. Today’s gospel is one example of such praise and then there is the example of the good Samaritan who cared for a total stranger, a stranger the priest and Levite avoided as much as possible lest they become unclean. We have the example of Jesus breaking the taboo of talking with the Samaritan woman at the well and offering her a new vision of both their faiths.
After cleansing the ten lepers from their dread disease Jesus tells them to go show themselves to the priests who would verify their being clean and welcome them back into the very society that excluded them. The cleansed Samaritan would not have been accepted by the priests so he doesn’t bother going, instead he returns to Jesus to thank him for the way in which He turned his life around.
There were other occasions when Jesus involved Himself in the lives of people who were non Jews. The Syro-Phoenician woman whose daughter was so ill. She begged Him for help and He cured her daughter and praised this woman’s great faith.
So often when we hear this gospel we think that its main point is the need for gratitude. We admire the effort of the Samaritan to come back to Jesus and thank Him, we wonder at the ingratitude of the other nine.
Maybe we could hear this gospel from another point of view- the view of Jesus as he recognizes and praises the goodness of this Samaritan, just as He recognized and praised the faith and generosity of others who did not share His Jewish faith and traditions. Jesus knew that God lives and loves in and through the lives of men and women who did not share His faith. He knew that God was praised and manifested in the lives of good people of any nationality. Peter came to that conviction through his association with the pagan Cornelius when he said, ‘the truth I have come to realize is this, that any person of any nationality who does what is right is acceptable to God.’
As we continue to celebrate this Eucharist together, we can pray for ourselves and for each other that we be graced to understand this awesome truth; that God’s grace and love and power is not confined to the Catholic church, nor the Christian faith and that good men and women of other faiths and even no faith are the instruments of God’s love and grace and mercy, in this world, maybe even to us.
St. Paul of the Cross was the founder of the Passionists (1720). Born in northern Italy in 1694, Paul experienced conversion at the age of 15 and began a lifetime of devotion to prayer and austerity. At age 20 he tried life as a soldier, but left after one year. Six years later, having had several visions, he determined that his vocation was to found an order dedicated to the Passion of our Lord. Officials declared the visions authentic and Paul withdrew to write a rule. He was joined by his brother, who remained with him for the rest of his life. By 1747, the Passionists had three houses and were preaching missions throughout Italy. At his death in 1775, Paul was establishing a congregation for Passionist nuns.
Total: $8,226
There will be a second collection next weekend to help with the work of evangelization around the world. Envelopes are in the pews.
Parents please bring completed registration forms to the parish office (Gabriel room) on any of the following evenings between 7:30 – 9:00 PM – Wednesday, October 17th; or Tuesday, October 23rd. A photocopy of your child’s Baptismal Certificate needs to accompany the registration for First Communion and Confirmation.
OCTOBER 24TH 7:30 – 9:00 PM
This meeting is for the parents of children receiving their Confirmation this year. This is an information evening about the Confirmation process, so it is VERY IMPORTANT TO BE PRESENT. If you would like more information contact Otto Schmidt at 416 226 – 2332.
The topics we have chosen are varied – a mixture of church history, church teachings and scripture. You are welcome to join us whenever you can. Next meetings: Tuesday evening, October 16th at 7:30 PM Wednesday morning, October 17th at 10:30 AM. For further information call Mary Landry at 416-221-8866 ext. 224.
WILL BE AT 3:00 PM ON SUNDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2007. The Sacrament of the anointing of the sick is one of the Seven Sacraments. This Sacrament is celebrated with those who are seriously ill, those who are preparing for surgery, and the elderly. The preferred place for celebrating this Sacrament is in the Church with family and the members of the parish community present. All are more than welcome to attend.
Fair trade organic coffees will be on sale after all the Masses next weekend. Regular ground coffee: $5 Decaffeinated: $6 Whole Beans: $5 Chocolate Bars: $4 incl. taxes Hot Chocolate and Cocoa: $4.50 Teas: $3.25 to $4 by variety
Thank you to the volunteers who prepared 38 casseroles for the Good Shepherd Centre for September. For October, your prepared casseroles (frozen please) will be collected at the Masses on the weekend of October 27/28 for delivery to the Good Shepherd Centre. More volunteers are encouraged to become active in helping to feed our less fortunate sisters and brothers. If you require more information or would like to get a copy of the recipe and a casserole pan, please contact Irene Albrecht at 416 221-2791.
a Catholic co-educational, private school for students in grades 5 to 12, will be hosting an Open House on Wednesday, October 17th from 7:00PM to 9:00PM for prospective students and their families for the academic year 2008 – 2009. The school is located at 131 Farnham Ave. Please contact the Office of Admissions at 416-969-8771, ext. 228 for more information.
October 7th, 2007
I’d like you to fantasize this scene: it’s Thanksgiving Day. The mother of the family spends the day preparing the thanksgiving meal. She cooks the turkey, makes homemade pies and cookies; she does the vegetables, sets the tables and then calls the family to supper. She serves the meal and enjoys the company of the family. At the end of the meal the rest of the family gets up from the table and heads to the rec room to watch Monday night football. She stands there and shakes her head in disbelief and says, “isn’t anyone going to say ‘thank you’?” The family turns from watching TV and says, “well sure, thanks, great meal, but isn’t that what you are supposed to do as wife and mother?” In other words, you have done only what you ought to have done.
Don’t even try to imagine the atomic explosion that hit that house after such a question, isn’t that what you are supposed to do?
The story Jesus tells in the gospel and especially the last sentence we heard seems awfully harsh. “When you have done all you were ordered to do, say “we are worthless slaves and we have done only what we ought to have done.” Thanks a lot.
At the beginning of the gospel we hear the apostles asking for an increase of faith – a greater strength to trust Jesus and His teaching. They were stunned by Jesus’ teaching about the dangers of wealth and the blessedness of the poor. His demand that He come first in their lives, before mother, father, brothers or sisters was quite severe. This was all new to them. They wondered if they could handle it all. So they ask,”Lord increase our faith.” In other words give us strength we need to trust you and the things to which you call us.
We’ve been taught that faith is a gift, something we can’t earn, something freely given. This gift gives us the ability to trust the truth that we are loved by God, trust the truth that Jesus loved us with such intensity that He was willing to die for us, live the truth that we are brothers and sisters to all who come into our lives.
We are not entitled to our faith, we are entrusted with it and so we are expected to accept and live the deepest truths of our faith; that we are created of love, for love and are to return to that love. As the church prays, ‘love is our origin and love is our constant calling, love is our fulfillment in heaven.’ In living our lives as Christian people, struggling to live the great commandment, “love on another as I have loved you” we are doing only what we ought to do.
This gift of faith is given us so that we who believe may become more like the person in whom we believe. This gift is given so that we who believe may ‘put on Christ’ in the way we live our lives, in all its dimensions.
In the story Jesus tells He would identify Himself with the servant, not the master. In His passion and death He did what He ought to have done, He kept His commitment to do the will of the Father, no matter what the cost. “I have come to do Your will.”
Take for example the person who is gifted, entrusted with the ability to play a musical instrument. They will practice and practice to develop that gift and in doing so they will have done only what they ought to have done with their gift. To say that is not belittling their efforts but it is recognizing the fact that they have appreciated the gift entrusted to them. In doing so they have given glory to the gracious God Who so gifted them. This can be said of any of the gifts and talents a person may have.
We’ve been entrusted with our Christian faith, a gift that requires of us we seek to become more like the person in whom we believe. This is a lifetime struggle and there are times when that struggle becomes quite intense, when we suffer the death of one we love, when we are hit with serious illness, when we lose a job, when we are hit with a situation that leaves us spinning and we question the very existence of God and beg from the bottom of our hearts, ‘increase our faith’.
As we continue to celebrate this Mass, we can pray for ourselves and for each other that we treasure the gift of faith entrusted to us, a gift to which we were not entitled. May each of us seek to become more like the person in whom we believe and accept the reality that in all our efforts to live a Christian life, we are doing only what we ought to do.
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