It is one thing to be locked in a room with no exit. It is another thing to lock yourself in a room because you believe that the world beyond the door is hostile, and that if you leave the room you will meet with certain death. The world may not get into your room, but neither can you get out. In today’s Gospel this is the scene John writes to depict the condition of the disciples following the death of Jesus. Into this room of trapped people Jesus comes with peace. He breathes the Holy Spirit on his disheartened followers m. As the risen Jesus breathes on them, the disciples breathe in the Spirit. Only in the gift of the Spirit is fear changed into freedom. Only in the Spirit are the disciples empowered to understand the past anew and see the future with hope. The Holy Spirit is the exit from the hopelessness of being locked into a cruel and fearful past. The Spirit is the exit that leads into the streets and the market places where number of people may seem to walk freely, but where so many feel trapped in their own lives. Through the disciples of Jesus the Holy Spirit will reach these people. The same Spirit if God is in our midst here. As St. Paul says, it is the same Spirit “working in all sorts of ways in different people”. The Spirit is not shy of difference, but is free to deal with people as individuals: there is a variety of gifts. That great variety emerges from the one Spirit in which we were all baptized. It’s not that our differences are smothered by the spirit; rather our differences are funded by the Spirit who works not to standardize everyone to factory proportions, but to make variety his mark. He is the Spirit of all sorts. Part of our own task is to discover how the Spirit has gifted us in individual ways, and to appreciate the Spirit’s different gifts in other people. In the Spirit difference has a future. Hell is where everyone is the same because nobody has a future different from the present. There’s no variety of gifts in hell. If he’ll locks everyone into the same room with no exit, the Spirit of God is the power that frankly opposes that condition of hopelessness. Let’s invoke the Spirit to awaken us to the gifts he has graced us with, and we thank him for their variety. When we do that we can stay in Peace.
I wish you all Happy and Holy Pentecost. I should also say Happy birthday to all of you because Pentecost as you know the day of coming and outpouring of the Holy Spirit is also the birth of the Church for we are the Church.
SUNDAY
MASS:
Mass
will be live-streamed every Sunday at 10 am on our website and YouTube page.
You can also watch the mass later in the day. If you a parishioner, please consider
dropping off your church donations in the mailbox, newly installed at Atwater
Ave Church entrance door .
POPE
FRANCIS’S PRAYER TO MARY :
(For
protection from the Coronavirus)
O
Mary, you shine continuously in our journey as a sign of salvation and hope.
We
entrust ourselves to you, Health of the sick. At the foot of the cross you
participated in Jesus’ pain, with steadfast faith. You, Salvation of the Roman
people, know what we need. We are certain that you will provide, so that as you
did at Cana of Galilee, joy and feasting might return after this moment of
trial. Help us, Mother of Divine Love, to confirm ourselves to the Father’s
will and to do what Jesus tells us: He who took our sufferings upon Himself,
and bore our sorrows to bring us , through the cross, to the joy of the
Ressurrection. Amen. We seek refuge
under your protection, O Holy Mother of God. Do not despise our pleas-we who are
put to the test-and deliver us from every danger, O glorious and Blessed
Virgin.
YOUR
PARISH NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT:
Dear people of God .
At
a time like this I feel uncomfortable to talk about giving. Our primary concern
is health and well being of our parishioners. However, No doubt you are aware
that our Parish relies on the support of our parishioners to operate parish
salaries, programs and ongoing operating costs (Heating, Water,Electricity etc)
are funded through the generosity of our parish community. It will be a
challenge for our parish to maintain operations without the weekly offertory
collections.
Here
are the ways you can continue to support our parish at this time.
-
Drop off or mail your regular offertory contribution to the parish mail box
fixed at Atwater Church entrance door
-Contribute
to your parish offertory by credit card.
-
Contribute through ore-authorized giving.
For
more ways to give go to
https://www.archtoronto.org/covid19/Pages/support.aspx
Thank you for your many contributions to our parish community. God bless you all
REST
IN PEACE :
+
Janet Lisboa
+
Helmtrud Krampert
+
Dominic Baah
+Nicola
Cicoria
+
Ann Marie Cameron
+
Genoveva Martins
+
James Roy Hollohan
THANK
YOU!
Thanks
for all your support and cooperation. Our Parish Council Members Lisa Hyginus
and Branca Noronha may contact you at this difficult time just to make sure you
are ok. We are here to serve you and will address any issues to the best of our
ability. Stay safe and healthy. Missing you all and Praying for you ! God bless!
