Praying for our Holy Father

PRAYER FOR POPE BENEDICT XVI
Lord, source of eternal life and truth,
give to your shepherd, Benedict, a spirit
of courage and right judgment, a spirit
of knowledge and love. By governing
with fidelity those entrusted to his care,
may he, as successor to the Apostle
Peter and Vicar of Christ, build your
Church into a sacrament of unity, love
and peace for all the world. Amen.
V/ Let us pray for Benedict, the pope.
R/ May the Lord preserve him,
give him a long life,
make him blessed upon the earth,
and not hand him over
to the power of his enemies.
V/ May your hand
be upon your holy servant.
R/ And upon your son,
whom you have anointed.

Holy Week Celebrations

HOLY THURSDAY - MASS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
On Holy Thursday we commemorate the Last Supper that Christ had
with his Apostles. At the Supper he anticipated his death and offered
them his Body and Blood under the appearances of bread and wine.
He commanded his apostles to repeat this action saying “Do this in
Memory of Me”. At the beginning of this Mass, the tabernacle is
empty, since we are remembering the First Eucharist.
This evening we also remember the “New Commandment” that Christ
left us at the Last Supper, “Love one another as I have loved you”.
Some parishioners will have their feet washed by the priests to
remember how Christ humbled himself and washed his disciples feet.
As Christians we are called to humble ourselves and serve others. It
is only by frequently receiving Jesus in Holy Communion that we can
be transformed into his likeness and love as he loved. After this Mass
is concluded, the Blessed Sacrament is carried in procession to the lower level of the Church for prayer and adoration. This is to recall
Christ’s Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane where he went to pray
with his disciples. Peter, James and John fell asleep. Christ asked them
“Could you not spend one hour with me?’ We spend time in prayer
and adoration this night to make reparation for all the times we have
fallen asleep and failed to keep vigil with Christ. We are pleased to welcome Bishop Ustrzycki to lead us in this celebration which begins at 7:00 p.m..

GOOD FRIDAY
On Good Friday, we commemorate the death of Jesus on the cross for
our salvation. There will be two celebrations on Good Friday, 11:00a.m. and 3:00 p.m. On this day our parish also sponsors a Fishy Fry from 4:00-7:30pm at the Knights of Columbus Hall. We also mark the Stations of the Cross (lead by our youth) at 7:00pm.

HOLY SATURDAY
Holy Saturday remains a day of mourning, fasting and prayer – joining
Christ in his descent among the dead. We commemorate the
“absence” of Christ by refraining from celebrating the sacraments
during the day.

We mark the custom of blessing the food for Easter celebrations at 1:00pm


EASTER VIGIL
The Easter Vigil, which begins at 7:00p.m., is the highest point of our Liturgical year. On this night we commemorate Christ’s Glorious Resurrection from the dead.

The evening begins in complete darkness – to represent the darkness that
covered the world without Christ. The Easter fire is lit at the back of the
Church and blessed. From this fire we light the Easter candle, which
represents the risen Christ emerging from the tomb and enlightening the
world. The congregation carries small candles of their own which are lit
from the Christ candle. As the presider reaches the front of the Church,
he chants an ancient hymn known as the “Exultet” announcing the
Church’s joy at the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Vigil continues with a series of readings from the Old Testament,
beginning with the Creation of the world, and summarizing the whole
history of Israel. We reflect upon all of the great deeds God has done for
us throughout history. Before the New Testament Reading and Gospel,
the Glory to God is sung – and the lights in the Church are raised to full
power as we hear of the greatest deed of God – the death and resurrection
of his Son, that has saved us from sin and death.

After the Homily, the Baptismal font is blessed and together the
congregation renews its baptismal promises. It is Jesus Christ, risen
from the dead, who gives the baptismal water the power to forgive sins.
Those who have been preparing to become Catholic receive the
Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation. They will make their First
Communion that evening as well. We are welcoming 11 new members into our faith this evening.

While it is true that the Easter Vigil is the longest rite in our Liturgical
Calendar (2 ½ hours), the solemn and celebratory spirit makes it move
quickly. It is an opportunity to support those entering the Church and to
reflect on our own Baptism and Confirmation. While it may be difficult
to attend with small children, it is a wonderful opportunity for older
children to witness the richness of our Catholic Faith. The vigil Mass is
usually less crowded than the Masses on Easter Sunday. Please plan to
attend with your family this year.


EASTER SUNDAY

The Easter Sunday Mass is the model for all of our Sunday Masses
throughout the year – each and every Sunday is like a “little Easter” –
where we participate in the death and resurrection of our Lord. On
Sunday Morning, we continue the joy that filled the Easter Vigil. We
will renew our Baptismal promises and the presider will sprinkle the
congregation with Holy Water. The victory over sin and death that we
have received in Christ must permeate the rest of our year.

Lenten Parish Mission

The countdown to our Parish Mission is on. A Parish Mission is a time of GRACE. It is a time in which, as a parish family, we dispose ourselves to the blessings of God bestowed upon us so that His Grace can enter our hearts. A Parish Mission is a time of GOODNESS. We take time to reflect upon the goodness of God within our lives, and in the life of our parish family, and seek a greater portion of that goodness. A Parish Mission is a time of GODLINESS. We find ourselves more open to seeing the presence of the Lord in our midst and to seeking to imitate Him. I encourage you to join us for our Parish Mission.

PARISH MISSION - LENT 2010
Freedom and renewal in Jesus
Guest: Father Graham Keep

Sunday, March 21st, 2010
Eucharistic Adoration
Who do people say that I am?
Exposition will take place in the Church following the 11:00a.m. Mass. The Church will remain open during the day for quiet prayer as we begin our Mission.

7:00 p.m. Benediction with Homily
Reception to follow in Parish Centre.

Monday, March 22nd, 2010
Solemn Vespers
Who do YOU say that I am?

7:00 p.m. Vespers Service
Reception to follow in Parish Centre.

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010
Celebration of Eucharist
Healing for mission!

7:00 p.m. Celebration of Eucharist
Reception to follow in Parish Centre.

Wednesday March 24th, 2010
Celebration of Reconciliation
Un Bound and Set Free !

7:00 p.m. Penance Celebration (Six visiting priests present)

CHILDREN’S PROGRAM
A program for children aged 3-8 will run each evening in the Parish Centre. Please bring your child directly to the Parish Centre before the start of the Mission. This program will be led by some of our Children’s Ministry Leaders.

Haiti Update

I am delighted and overwhelmed at the magnificent response of our parish family to our appeal for the victims of the tragic earthquake that struck Haiti. The special collection resulted in $17,495.00 and some 2,348 Haiti Health Kits for the Sisters of St Joseph of Hamilton Diocese and their medical outreach ! There has never before been such an outpouring of generosity and love through a special collection for our brothers and sisters who have lost so much. Such generosity will be a blessing for the people of Haiti but it will also be a blessing for those who opened their hearts.

My heartfelt thanks.

Lent Begins

Each year the church invites us to reflect on how we live our Catholic faith. Lent is a time for us to reflect and to review our life in light of the teachings of Jesus Christ and the Gospels. One of the prayers that may be used as the priest imposes ashes on our head is the words of St. Mark Gospel, “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel”, Mark 1:15

As we begin our journey through Lent, I encourage all Catholics to continue our traditional Lenten practices: increased prayer, appropriate fasting, penance, and a continued effort to undertake and to foster charitable giving.

During our journey through Lent, I encourage each one of us to reflect on how we conform our lives to the principles and to the values of the Gospel. How good it would be if each one of us spend some time reading the Gospel and reflecting on how we conform our lives and attitudes to the Heart of Christ.

Our Holy Father Pope Benedict in his Lenten message spoke about the culture of justice and reminded us that evil and injustice many times comes from our own hearts. It is my hope that we would all place special emphasis during this Lenten season on the virtues of justice and charity. That we would respect each other for who we are, “children of God created in his likeness and image”; and that in all our relationships that we would treat each other as Jesus treated the people with whom He had contact with, and as revealed to us in the Gospels. Let us continue to look to Jesus as our hope and as an example of how we should live our lives for He is “the way, the truth and the life.”

Catastrophic. Devastating. In ruins.

These terms cannot begin to describe the destruction that the 7.0 scale earthquake has caused in the island nation of Haiti, and especially its hard-hit capital, Port-au-Prince.

In many areas nothing is left but widespread devastation. The major infrastructure has been destroyed. Hundreds of thousands of Haitians are expected to be dead. Survivors are in shock and wandering the streets, homeless, hungry and hopeless. Haiti needs massive amounts of supplies to care for the millions of people affected from the quake.

We must respond at once to prevent enormous loss of life from thirst, starvation, disease and untreated injuries.



How You Can Help Haiti
In response to the recent devastating earthquake, St Mary of the Visitation Parish will be working hand in hand with the Sisters of St Joseph of Hamilton Diocese (who are present in two hospitals in Haiti) and Canadian Food for Children with partners already on the ground in Haiti.

You can get involved in three ways:

Pray: for the people of Haiti and for relief workers. A special Prayer has been prepared and all in the parish are united in this prayer - copies available

Give: Make your donation out to St Mary’s and designate it for Haiti Relief. We will be partner with the Sisters of St Joseph of Hamilton Diocese who have assured us that 100% of donated funds will be going to Outreach Efforts in Haiti where they have been present in two hospitals for over 20 years.

Spearheaded by our high school youth group - Da Crew- we will Assemble Haiti Health Kits. All parishioners will be invited to gather these over the next two weekends and Canadian Food for Children will transport them directly to Haiti.

Haiti Health Kits:


Canadian Food for Children is able to be most efficient by having a precise system for kits. Please follow these instructions exactly and don’t add anything to your kit as this will delay shipment.

Place these items inside a sealed plastic bag:

1 washcloth

1 comb (large and sturdy, not pocket-sized)

1 bath-size bar of soap

1 toothbrush (single brushes only in original wrapper, no child-size brushes)

Box of adhesive plastic strip sterile bandages

Drop off kits at the "Donation Station" located in our Parish Centre. Members of our High School Youth Group - Da Crew - will be present to collect these and ensure they are packed and sent to the Canadian Food for Children.


Please help the nation of Haiti recover from this terrible blow by making a donation



Our Schools & Youth are Helping Haiti !

Our parish, which already along with Our Lady of Fatima School, sponsor three children - Darby, James and Franceska in Haiti, remains committed to finding information and providing for the needs of these three children.

Our two parish elementary schools of Our Lady of Fatima and St Elizabeth are working with the parish in a collaborative effort to raise funds. Our Lady of Fatima School has established a goal of $3,000 to be raised before the end of the month to help the Sisters of St Joseph.

Our Children's Ministry and Kids Klub will be holding a special "Pennies for Haiti" appeal. The goal of $500 to be raised

Our High School Youth Group - Da Crew - is spearheading the Haiti Health Kits appeal

Celebration Weekend!

Today is the Feast of Christ the King. One year ago on this Feast, we presented the idea of a Place for Everyone! This weekend, with the Dedication of our Parish Centre by Bishop Bergie, that Place for Everyone is a reality! As we gather, first and foremost we rejoice and give thanks to Almighty God who has made this all possible!

I am immensely grateful to all who have been a part of making this a reality. To all at Schiedel Construction for their diligent work. To our Finance Council and Fundraising Committee members, project team and parishioners who helped with demolition and helped move out last Spring and move in last week. To so many of the subtrades and construction workers who have all laboured to bring this project to this day. All gave of their time and talent to do the little extras we marvel at today.

Yet, my hardiest thank you goes to you, the parish family of St. Mary of the Visitation. With the favourable support of 93% of our parish, we undertook this journey - and due to your faithfulness, spiritual and temporal, because of your patience, daily and weekly, and as a result of your goodness ... we truly today have a Place for Everyone - accessible, ample and accommodating for our growing community. Today is a day of Abundant Joy! May Our Lady of the Visitation continue to be our inspiration, model and guide.