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Lent, an encounter with fasting and feasting!
The 40-day season of Lent begins this week with Ash Wednesday. This year, we invite you to look at Lent not only as a sombre season of fasting but also a season of feasting.
Throughout Lent this year, we will have a series of special edition weekly emails, sent each Wednesday that we hope will provide you with a means to really connect to the season and encourage you to deepen your experience. Starting this Wednesday, Fr. Markus will have a special Ash Wednesday video message for our faith community, so keep an eye on your inbox!
The week prior to the Holy Week, the Chaplaincy will be hosting a Lenten Mission. We'll be honoured by the presence of our new Auxiliary Bishop, the Most Reverend Bishop Lobsinger, who will be leading the mission! We invite our entire faith community, both the church and chaplaincy, to participate and reconnect with one another, and grow spiritually as we experience this Lent unlike any that has come before. More details to come!
To help you prepare for this journey of fasting and feasting, we invite you to check out a few articles about Lent " Why Ash Wednesday Isn't a Downer", " Almsgiving and Joy during Lent" and " Lent through the Lens of Grace".
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OHOS, what a journey it’s been!!!
From 8am (‘ish) Saturday mornings with the Finance and Stewardship Committee, way back in 2019, to now the beginning of 2021, OHOS has truly brought us together as a community of faith, long time members, students, alumni, even visitors and friends near and far.
As you know, it’s been a great success! Over the past weeks a final $100K legacy bequest was added to our total, and a few final donations have come in from commitment weekend. All of these totaled, we have a total pledged and given amount of $367,058!!!!!
Of this total, $251K has been donated and received. The remaining $166K will be payed by installment from many of you (and me!) over the next three years.
Because we have so much already donated and received we can immediately begin work on our projects (office, hall, student centre, sanctuary), and the setting up of our endowment fund. The Finance Committee will meet to discuss the ‘over our goal’ amounts to ensure these are applied to the projects already identified, or directed to other areas of need. We’ll keep you up to date, every step of the way!
It’s not a competition, but as far as we know, we have the highest total above our minimum goal ($100K) of any parish in the diocese! We also ended with one of the highest participation rates, 65.8% (the average was 30%!). Wow.
We should be so proud, I am so proud and so humbled! THANK YOU to everyone involved; our OHOS Committee (Mike Daly, Norm Klassen, Priya Moraes, our honorary chair, Nick Zaffiro), Sr Mary, our OHOS volunteers (!), Tom from the Steier Group, and so so many others; for your prayers, support, and vision to make this the success it was, and is. God, you, all together, the generosity is amazing.
O.K…let’s get to work! Let’s continue, ‘Inviting, Forming, Sending...(and being) disciples of Jesus Christ’! THANK YOU ALL!!!
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Do you miss milling about on the steps of the Church after Mass? Chatting with friends, and getting face time with Fr. Markus and Sister Mary? The main reason we attend Mass on Sundays is to be with the Lord, of course, but the fellowship before and after is a blessing too!
Since we can't yet mill about on those steps together, join Fr. Markus for some virtual "face time" on Fridays between 10 and 11 am during his "Fridays with Father"!
Are you working from home? Drop in for a quick hello! We still get coffee breaks when we work from home, right?
Are you unfamiliar with Zoom? It's easy! You don't even need to download anything, just click the link, and join through your browser!
Join us via Zoom: https://tinyurl.com/FriwFr
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Have you listened to last week's reflection? Do you know who the hunted and hunters are?
We will have another one for you tomorrow! Click the graphic to check it out. |
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Join our community in visiting other parish communities, virtually!
So much good is happening throughout the church in this time of need and so we will be offering live-stream feeds and websites from other parishes throughout this time of lockdown, in addition to Fr. Markus' Sunday Reflection. Join us in finding the Lord in so many places, until we can come to our spiritual home again!
If you're a night owl...
Port Elizabeth Oratory, Parish of St Bernadette, Republic of South Africa
February 14, 1:30 am
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Saint Stephen's Cathedral, Brisbane, Australia
Sunday, February 14, 5:00 – 5:31 pm
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Also, Mass from the Cathedral Basilica will be televised on Cable 14 at 2:00 p.m. on Sundays.
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Our mission continues! Great thanks to all for your continuing contributions, especially those who have signed up for recurring donations through our website. We continue to need your support. For those who prefer to donate through weekly envelopes, these can be dropped off at the office trailer mailbox, between 11 am & 4 pm, on Wednesdays or Saturdays.
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Last Sunday, the students launched a new weekly event, Firelight, which gives a casual space for students to share an aspect of the faith that they’re passionate about, and accompany each other in growing in holiness.
At the first Firelight, we learned about lectio divina, a way of praying with Scripture, and a style of mediation popularized by St. Francis de Sales. We got a chance to practice these ways of prayer and hear about each other’s experiences with each of them.
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The negative impacts of COVID-19 on our lives can cause feelings of anxiety, isolation, fear and depression. You may be feeling more unsettled and irritable than usual. We have good news though! You can manage the effects of the pandemic and other pressures that may arise in your life.
Join us to learn some practical ways to increase your own self-care, find ways of healing stress, and build resilience! Knowing how to navigate challenges successfully can help you survive and grow personally and spiritually!
Join us on zoom on February 25 from 7 to 8 PM and see how you might help yourself by practising self-care and building up your resiliency.
Check out the event page on our website for the Zoom link when it becomes available: https://tinyurl.com/WalkThruCOVID
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McMaster students will be on their Reading Week from February 15th - 19th.
Join us in praying for a restful and restorative break, so that they may return and finish the semester strong!
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This semester’s Stump the Catholic Event will be on March 4th. You can submit any and all questions you have about the faith using the google form linked below. Our expert panel of well-formed Catholics will answer every question they have time for! This event is open to our entire faith community, so anyone who has a question, or just wants to see what other people are asking, are welcome!
Do you think you can Stump the Catholic?
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Ecumenical Ash Wednesday Service
Join us from 12:00 - 12:30 pm this Wednesday, the 17th of February, for our yearly Ash Wednesday service hosted by the McMaster Chaplaincy Centre.
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🇶 Your name?
🇦Andrew K.-M.
🇶 How long have you been a member of our faith community?
🇦3 years.
🇶 How did you choose Canadian Martyrs, and what do you like most about being part of this community?
🇦We live nearby to the church and love how the church is actively involved in the local community.
🇶 Your favourite food?
🇦Shawarma, and poutine.
🇶 Favourite movie or book?
🇦The Bible, and, after that, the Lord of the Rings.
🇶 Tell us a boring (or interesting!) fact about you?
🇦I love to read ancient languages and can read 10 different languages.
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We wish you and your families a blessed rest on this Family Day holiday!
"The church values family love for the sake of the human person, the family unit for society. But the church's teaching goes even farther than this. It believes that the church itself depends on families for generating and modelling the kind of love to which the larger family of the church aspires. Families can help the church to be a truly human church."
~Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales, 2008
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These iron pillars that are at the border of the new and old buildings are being finished. Bottoms are wrapped in stone, and tops are being finished in drywall. Check out the other pics on our website of the building progress!
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If you would like to have a Mass celebrated for a special occasion, on behalf of a family member, a friend, or a deceased loved one, please call the office to have that intention put into the calendar.
This Week's Intentions
Sunday, February 14, 2021
For the Needs and Intentions of our Faith Community
Monday, February 15, 2021
Intentions of Jenner Bae
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
Intentions of Carmen and Frank Formiglio and Family
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
For the Needs and Intentions of our Faith Community
Thursday, February 18, 2021
✝Joseph & Louise Maklo
Friday, February 19, 2021
✝Giovanna Bianco
Saturday, February 20, 2021
✝Ernesto Caravaggio
Click the image above to see booked mass intentions and all dates that are available to book to pray and remember those who have died or for the needs of our family and friends. Any intentions noted above that fall on days where there is no public Mass will still be remembered in a private Mass.
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Click the banner above to read Bishop Crosby's latest Heart to Heart.
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MARRIAGE TIP OF THE MONTH - Marriage Tip 107: In February we celebrate Valentine’s Day, a day created to celebrate love and a great month to think back to the days of dating we experienced with our spouses! Days when we flirted, complimented, spent endless hours talking, hated to be apart and planned and went on dates! Now compare it to your time together today – have you given up all or most of these actions? Marriages that continue to have relationships that reflect their dating days feel connected, vitalized and loved. Why not consider making February a month of renewal for your marriage? Purposely create a relationship with your spouse where you give them your time and attention by making them your number one priority and ignite that same spark of love you felt in those early days of dating.
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The Diocesan Office for Evangelization and Catechesis and the Diocesan Office for Liturgy have prepared an Ash Wednesday program that can be celebrated at home – with the Gospel proclamation and a brief reflection by His Excellency, Bishop Douglas Crosby. Parents may bless their children by tracing the Sign of the Cross on their foreheads, marking the beginning of the annual Lenten journey. In addition to the liturgy, a resource sheet for families has been compiled that encourages a prayerful observance of this Holy Season. For more information and additional resources for celebrating Lent in pandemic times, please see our Diocesan website: https://hamiltondiocese.com/lent2021/
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