A Great Gift Idea

The Standing Holy Family.
by Timothy P. Schmalz

St. Vincent de Paul Society

Adopt-a-Family: This is a Holy Spirit Christmas project, providing individuals, families, or groups an opportunity to reach out and share their blessings with those less fortunate within our parish bounded by Hwy 401 to the south, Hwy 404 to the west, Kennedy Road to the east and Huntingwood to the north.

      When we say family, we really mean households, and these may range in size from a single senior living alone, to larger families with children. Sponsors, if they have a preference, may choose the size of family they would like to help. Both the sponsor and family will remain anonymous.

      How it Works: Sponsors can sign up at any mass between now and Dec. 6, or they can call (416) 293-0664 and leave their name and number. We'll follow up to -provide information on your adopted family and a reference number to label your boxes or gifts to identify the right family for delivery.

      Sponsors are asked to drop off their completed care packages to the church basement after any of the weekend masses no later than Dec. 14. St. Vincent de Paul will handle the delivery.

      What a Sponsor Provides: A gift (or toy) for each adopted member of the family. A box of non-perishable food adequate for the size of the family (note: a grocery voucher will also be provided by St. Vincent de Paul). Food Ideas: Canned meat or fish, peanut butter, pasta and pasta sauce, canned vegetables, juice, cereal and baby food.

Toy Drive: Tags are available at the back of the church. Tags should be returned to the back of the church with a new unwrapped toy by Dec.14.

Food Drive: Donations of non-perishable food items will be collected at the back of the church on Dec. 13 and Dec.14

Volunteers are always welcome: Volunteers are needed to help pack on Dec. 14 after the 10:00 a.m. mass. Sign-up sheets are available for drivers to help deliver on Dec. 20.

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, Dec., 14, 2003

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

Pastor’s Message

Today's watchword is joy. Paul tells us to “Rejoice in the Lord always . . . For the Lord is near.” In case you are thinking that this seems a strange command in this period of preparation, please understand that Paul is not talking about the Pollyanna shallowness that is sometimes sickeningly sweet nor is he recommending a naive optimism that cover reality with a very thin veneer that is not permanent and can be scratched away like old paint.

Christian joy is profound; it comes from deep within and cannot be moved. It is a permanent way of being and colors everything we do and everything we say. This does not mean that we cannot feel sorrow, grief and sadness; on the contrary, we feel these emotions and respond to them very deeply. So too do we face the happiness in our lives, always knowing that the challenge comes from the recognition that the call to follow Jesus, the call to conversion that John is preaching at the Jordan, is the call to true holiness; it is a call that will involve suffering as we follow a way that is so counter-cultural.

John's answers to the questions put to him in today's Gospel call for a change of heart. His solutions are no mere placebos designed to make us feel good for the moment and carry on with our lives thinking that we have solved such earth moving questions. True conversion call us into a life-long process of letting go of the me-centered mentality. It is an emptying of the self to let God fill us up – the God who is love will fill all our spaces and live within us. This complete filling with the love of God means that we have accepted the life-long challenge to a journey of faith, trusting in the Lord to guide and keep us and knowing that we must struggle to sustain those moments when we are successful, when God's love is reflected in our treatment of others, in everything we say and everything we do.

Imagine yourself just for a moment in the crowd listening to John. You are one of the people asking What should I do? Think about John's answer for just a minute. It is as challenging to us today as it would have been if you had received this answer beside the Jordan. Share your possessions and food, treat each other fairly and justly, and be satisfied with what you have. In the rush to buy the best present, the desire to have more and more, the constant bombardment on TV that you must have the latest and greatest to compete, and our own inner voice telling us that we deserve it, is it any wonder that his answers may not be just exactly what you wanted to hear? Are you surprised that John's call is not any more palatable today than it would have been in the time of the Gospel? If we truly get his message and we truly understand what it is he is calling us into, then we realize that the joy Paul is talking about involves a lot more than happiness. It leads us to the peace of Christ and discipleship leads us to radical conversion for all of our lives.

John is preparing the way for the One who is coming. The Messiah's arrival is near. The longed-for hero of the Chosen People will shake all expectations and turn the world on its' heels. Jesus will bring the good news to everyone and invites all to salvation and new life. Everyone is welcome to share in the joy and peace that fills our hearts when the Good News is a lived experience. Today as we celebrate this Third Sunday in Advent, let us savor the anticipation of hopes fulfilled and let our prayer echo the call to rejoice. “Rejoice in the Lord always: Again I will say Rejoice.”

— Rev. Thomas G. Moore Christmas wishes from Dodger and Santa

LITURGY OF THE WORD

Dec. 4, 2003 marks the 40th anniversary of the Vatican II document on the constitution on the Sacred Liturgy - Sacrosanctum. Through celebrating the Liturgical Year the full mystery of Christ is unfolded. The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy explains that Sunday as the Lord's Day is the first holy day of all. The Council Fathers urged us to embrace Sunday as a day of joy and of freedom from work. Sunday is deemed the foundation and core of the Liturgical year.

Each Sunday, each eighth day, the Church celebrates the Paschal Mystery. It is on Sunday that the people of God must gather together to hear the word of God and participate in the Eucharist. In celebrating the Liturgy the baptized call to mind the passion, death, resurrection and glorification of the Lord Jesus and they thank God who “has begotten them again unto a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)