Parish Bulletin for Sunday, October 7, 2007

27th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

At the end of November, we will finish reading the Gospel of Luke and open the Gospel of Matthew for the year ahead. Luke has been our companion since last December. As we have listened Sunday by Sunday to Luke, we have heard elegantly told stories like those that surround Jesus' birth. We have noticed how Luke's Gospel sharpens some of the stories Luke shares with Matthew.

For example, Matthew's "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" is a bit easier to take than Luke's sharper, more direct "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God." We have seen Luke pay great attention to the Bible as he knew it – he knew and understood the Old Testament.

The characters Luke draws in Jesus' parables can impress us deeply even when they receive only a few words: the father and his two sons, for example, in the Prodigal Son story; or Lazarus and the rich man; or, during this month of October, the widow and the judge. Luke gives us masterpieces of storytelling like his account of the two disciples on the way to Emmaus or the repentant thief on the cross or Zacchaeus the short tax collector who climbs a tree to get a better view of Jesus passing by and then ends up hosting at a dinner.

Luke puts great emphasis on how Jesus took meals with all kinds of people. These meals are foreseen for us already when Luke tells us in his introductory stories that the new-born Jesus was laid in a manger, the feeding trough of the farm animals. And at the end of Luke's story, when Jesus stands in the midst of the disciples and says he is no ghost, he seems to demonstrate just how real he is by asking the question: "Have you anything to eat?" They find some broiled fish and he takes it and eats it in their presence. Between the manger and the broiled fish, Jesus has fed people and been fed by them, including sitting at table with both the arrogant and the outcasts.

When the two disciples who had walked to Emmaus with a seeming stranger later tell how they recognized Jesus only when he broke the bread, Luke was, of course, telling the church what it already knew so well. All of Luke's readers, like us, had come to recognize the Lord in the breaking of the bread.

The parable this morning tells us unequivocally that faith is given to those who ask – but not so that they are set apart for special treatment or so that they may lord it over others. Faith is given so that those who believe may become more like the one in whom they believe: like the person who has come among us as one who serves. This parable reminds us of our place and how tempting it is to want to exchange roles. God is God; we are creatures – no more, no less. And yet faith must grow in us so that we can each meet the demands of discipleship.

It is not so much what human beings can do, but what God can do in human beings. Faith is an ever deepening openness to God's power. Let us pray today for the grace to be open to the workings of God's Spirit so that we may be as fruitful as the mustard seed.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

On this Thanksgiving Day, let us pray with gratitude for the increase of all that is of God.

Thanks be to God!

TUESDAY, Oct. 9

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Carmen Baptiste

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 10

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Antonio De Berardini

THURSDAY, Oct. 11

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Mary Deakin

FRIDAY, Oct. 12

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Don Carmichael

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, October 14, 2007

28th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

"WHO ARE THE OUTCASTS"

Today's Gospel story brings us a valuable lesson concerning the appropriate attitude of the believer toward the outcast. Unfortunately, some outcasts seem to invite our mistrust and desire for avoidance. Homeless persons, for example, sometimes have an air of desperation about them because the lack of a valid address deprives them of so many other rights and opportunities. With no address, they cannot receive mail, apply for jobs, receive financial aid, Without an address, they have relatively little access to baths and washing machines and are sometimes unkempt and smelly. With so many struggles to bear, the homeless may resort to acts of desperation or exhibit attitudes that are unwelcome. How easy it is to justify distancing ourselves from such people.

Other outcasts may find themselves in that predicament due to illness. Disease – in particular, serious disease – is frightening in that it is not entirely understood. Even more frightening are those diseases and conditions for which there is no known cure. While leprosy may generally be controlled in this day and age, other illnesses such as HIV and AIDS are not, and those who suffer from these diseases suffer doubly. Besides the debilitating effects of the disease, HIV/AIDS patients suffer spiritually and socially due to the fears, ignorance and even malice of others. Many of us have seen the Tom Hanks film from 1993 called Philadelphia. It depicts the story of a lawyer fired because of his illness and bore powerful witness to the all-too-real struggle that many continue to face 14 years later. And what about those whose sexual orientation has been judged to be abnormal or sinful? The struggle to face attitudes that range from anger to loathing to condemnation continue to plague those who are considered different.

Official Church teaching states that "those persons who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity" and advises that "every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided." (Catechism of the Catholic Church nn. 2357-2359.) This attitude is not always reflected in the attitudes and actions of so called Christians. Yes, it is safe to say that we do understand the term outcast!

What does today's Word have to say to us? Jesus did not hesitate to reach out to the outcasts of his day. There is only kindness, caring, and a proactive concern that must needs challenge us to similar kindness and compassionate caring. To do otherwise is to betray who we are as believers and to betray the One in whom we believe. Jesus chose to identify with the outcasts of society; therefore, when we reach out to the homeless, to the victims of dreaded diseases and to those who are different from us we are, in effect, reaching out to Jesus. If we deny or turn away from them, we deny Jesus. We are called to be faithful followers of the Christ. We are also called to offer thanks and praise to the God who has loved us, continues to love us and has promised to love us into eternity. Let us, along with the Samaritan leper, offer our thanks for all that the Lord has given us. Alleluia, Alleluia!

TUESDAY, Oct. 16

St. Marguerite D'Youville

8:30 a.m. - † Antonia Fung

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 17

St. Ignatius of Antioch

8:30 a.m. - † Don Carmichael

THURSDAY, Oct. 18

St. Luke

8:30 a.m. - † Antoine Arsenault

FRIDAY, Oct. 19

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Monty and Rose Montgomery

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, October 21, 2007

29th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

World Mission Sunday

"The Widow and the Judge"

This weekend we hear one of those stories that come to us only in Luke's Gospel, the parable of the widow and the judge. This story echoes some insights and ideas that occur often in that Gospel. Like bits of melody that return again and again in a symphony, these may be the keynote to this entire Gospel.

"There was judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being." That's how it starts. We can nod our heads: Yes, we know people like that. "A widow in that town used to come to him and say, ‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.'" Notice that she "used to come to him." Not once or twice. She had to come often, and we learn, as the story continues, that "for a long time the judge was unwilling" to have anything to do with her case. That sounds like a pretty good assessment of the lot of the poor in this world. They don't make the laws, they don't become judges, and they learn not to expect very much. But sometimes they keep coming back.

This judge didn't want to involve himself in the widow's case. Jesus seems to imply that those with power didn't get there by worrying about poor widows. Characters like this judge serve their bosses best when the system hums along as usual – status quo, so to speak. By now, those listening to the story may be nodding: Yes, we know. That's just the way it is. Justice belongs to those who can pay for it. But then the story takes a sharp and unexpected turn. Listen to what Luke tells us: She wore him down and she wore him out. "This widow keeps bothering me," says the exasperated judge. "I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me." The judge here presumes that the widow will use the same violence that has been used against her. He also knows that the decision she wants made is a just decision!

The churches Luke is addressing probably had few if any judges in their membership and few if any people with power. Very likely, they were made up of people who could identify with this widow who had suffered injustice. Most had learned, as poor people everywhere learn, that if you set yourself out to be too loud, too outspoken, to call too much attention to injustice in the city, you're in for a lot of grief and maybe worse. But always there are a few like this widow who keep on pestering the authorities, the regime, the powers-that-be.

This particular parable nearly loses us when it turns out that nagging is the way to go. Not what we expected! This "not what we expected" runs deep in Luke. All these years later we may not get it the way Luke intended. The dangerous stories have been turned into stained-glass windows. Luke made a remarkable effort to tell a story that would be heard as true to the longing for justice and longing for peace that flows deeply in the scriptures. How could Luke know that the sting of these stories would become sugar-coated beyond recognition? Are we today feeling ‘Good for you!' in our hearts when we hear the poor widow prevail? Are we celebrating the widow's triumph over the crusty judge? Are we excited to be among those who will never give up demanding justice no matter how weary we get or how impossible it seems to get a hearing?

Sunday by Sunday we practice here the world we are meant to demand and to make a world where we share and share alike at every table as we do at this holy table. We do this with some inkling that if this Gospel we hear means what it says, we, like the widow in today's story, must be about witnessing to what is possible. This is not work for our leisure. It is our life's dearest and constant work in a world where we are daily trained not to see and not to care. It is here in the Sunday celebration that we pledge to what we believe – to demand what the widow demanded and to do it day in and day out until justice is done for all.

TUESDAY, Oct. 23

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Christina and Pasqual Bermudez

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 24

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Evelyn Palmero

THURSDAY, Oct. 25

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Michael and Marta Virgilio

FRIDAY, Oct. 26

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Victorina Merc

Parish Bulletin for Sunday, October 28, 2007

30th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Feast of All Saints

See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called children of God. On this day, we honour all the saints of God. Sometimes, the saints seem unapproachable in their goodness, unlike us who struggle day by day. Actually, Paul frequently refers to those to whom he writes as "the saints" (both letters to the Corinthians as well as to the Romans) – those sanctified, "set apart" by God, for God. In this sense, we are also saints, and today is our feast day.

Let us realize that they too were once battling temptation and sin, and that, if we ask them, they will help us in our struggles. We thank you, Lord Jesus, for calling us to join you with all your saints in light. On this day, we gather to remember and praise God for all those who have gone before us and who now rejoice n God's presence – saints of God, holy men and women of every time and place.

Feast of All Souls

"Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed, in an instant, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." 1 Cor 15:51-52

Today especially we pray that our dear ones who have gone before us may quickly complete their final purification and enter heaven. We sometimes forget that besides needing our prayers for themselves, they are happy to pray for us and our needs, because they love us. Together we are the communion of saints, and we on earth should renew our friendship with the saints in heaven and the blessed departed in purgatory.

We will, after all, be neighbours throughout eternity and we should start getting along together now. Perhaps the most comforting truth about the communion of saints is the belief that our beloved dead continue to act on our behalf. If love overcomes death, then how natural it is that those who loved us in life will continue to love us after death. St. Therese of Lisieux brought this thought into words in one of her final conversations before her death: "I want to spend my heaven in doing good on earth."

Every Sunday we profess our faith in these truths: "I believe in the holy, catholic, church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins and life everlasting. Amen." – I believe! So be it! The word among words that gives approbation, agreement and acceptance. The communion of saints – all of us together offering praise and glory to the God who has loved us, loves us now and will continue to love us through eternity.

Dear Lord, grant eternal rest, light and peace to our dear departed, who eagerly await the moment when they see your face. AMEN.

TUESDAY, Oct. 30

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Florencia Austriaco

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 31

Weekday

8:30 a.m. - † Frank Topping

THURSDAY, Nov. 1

Feast of All Saints

8:30 a.m. – Good and gracious God, at our baptism each one of us was marked for sainthood. Give us what we need to be the holy men and women you call us to be. We ask this is through Christ our Lord. Amen.

FRIDAY, Nov.2

Feast of All Souls

8:30 a.m. - † For those of our community and our families who have died and for all those who have been buried from this place of worship during the past year, especially – Angelina Manarin, Joan Martina Doo Mernik, George Dermarker, Ida Fedorchuk, Margaret LeBlanc, Rocco Stephen Visconti, Alfred Van Nieuwenhove, Aileen Patricia Alton, Catherine Grew, Elizabeth Lillian Davidson, Antoine Arsenault, Aurelio Santo Morasutti, Elizabeth Ann McTernan, Murray Vallance, Donald McMillan, Erena Fernandes, Otto Pelzl, Betty Crocco and Donald Carmichael

Let us pray to the Lord.