Fr. Matthew’s Homily for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time
September 27 – 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time
images – courtesy and used with permission – www.freebibleimages.org – copyright LUMO Project
Gospel MT 21:28-32
Fr. Matthew will be away – Sept.28 – Oct. 06 – Mass cancellations.
Fr. Matthew will be away – Sept.28 – Oct. 06.
Fr. Matthew will be away from the parish for one week to help with pastoral care of new missionaries during their training for a year of service with NET Ministries Canada Training. Please help pray for these young adults.
PARISH SCHEDULE CHANGES:
In Fr. Matthew’s absence, 2 Masses will be cancelled:
• 9am Mass, Friday October 2
• 9am Mass, Saturday October 3.
St. Bernard’s / Our Lady of the Assumption – Mass Attendance Registrations
Note: Registration for weekday Masses closes at 2 pm the day of the Mass, For Friday 9am and Saturday 9am Masses, cut-off for online registration will be 2pm the previous day. For all Saturday 5:00 PM and Sunday Masses, registration will close at 12:00 on Saturdays.
Also, even if registration has been closed or “deactivated” for a particular Mass, you can still see the total number of people registered (i.e. 23/43) – in this case it shows that there is plenty of room left. You can still feel free to attend Mass and register in person when you arrive.
Masses:
Wednesday, September 30 7:00 PM – St. Bernard’s SIGNUP FORM
Thursday, October 01 7:00 PM – Our Lady of the Assumption SIGNUP FORM
Friday, October 02 9:00 AM – Our Lady of the Assumption SIGNUP FORM – CANCELLED
Saturday, October 03 26 9:00 AM – St. Bernard’s SIGNUP FORM – CANCELLED
Saturday, October 03 5:00 PM – St. Bernard’s SIGNUP FORM
Sunday, October 04 9:00 AM – St. Bernard’s SIGNUP FORM –
Sunday, October 04 11:00 AM – Our Lady of the Assumption SIGNUP FORM
Tuesday, October 06 29 7:00 PM – St. Bernard’s SIGNUP FORM
STFX Chaplaincy Masses:
Sunday, October 04 11:30 AM Mass SIGNUP FORM
Sunday, October 04 2:30 PM Mass SIGNUP FORM
From Fr.Matthew – Instructions for Parishioners on Attending Resumed Masses
Sunday & Weekday Mass at St. Bernard’s Parish will resume on Saturday, June 6, 2020
Beginning with the Saturday 5pm Mass, our normal weekly schedule for Mass will resume:
- Tuesdays 7pm: St. Bernard’s Church
- Wednesdays 7pm: St. Bernard’s Church
- Thursdays 7pm: Our Lady of the Assumption Church
- Fridays 9am: Our Lady of the Assumption Church
- Saturdays 9am & 5pm: St. Bernard’s Church
- Sundays 9am: St. Bernard’s Church
- Sundays 11am: Our Lady of the Assumption Church
Also Please note that the STFX Chaplaincy has two Masses at St.Bernard’s.
- Sunday – 11:30 AM
- Sunday – 2:30 PM
Note: Registration for weekday Masses closes at 2 pm the day of the Mass, For Friday 9am and Saturday 9am Masses, cut-off for online registration will be 2pm the previous day. For all Saturday 5:00 PM and Sunday Masses, registration will close at 12:00 on Saturdays.
Also, even if registration has been closed or “deactivated” for a particular Mass, you can still see the total number of people registered (i.e. 23/43) – in this case it shows that there is plenty of room left. You can still feel free to attend Mass and register in person when you arrive.
This is to provide time to prepare and print attendance lists for use at the door at the respective Mass times. During this first stage of the reintroduction of public Mass, attendance is strictly limited to 50 participants (including the priest and volunteers). For this reason, we ask those who wish to attend Mass [to register using the link below]. This will ensure that we remain compliant with the current expectations from the Province and our Diocesan Guidelines.
Given these circumstances, it will mean that those wishing to be at Mass on any day will need to pre-register for every Mass they wish to attend. As health and safety measures are continually being reassessed, the situation and our parish plans will remain fluid and are subject to change. For this reason, it is important to remain patient, flexible, and also to check for news regularly with the parish. We are committed to providing prompt and accurate communication of changes concerning these directives, and our local parish plans. Our main means of communication is on the website – and we ask that you help keep our parishioners up to date by sharing updates especially with those who do not have access to the internet.
IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT REGISTRATION AND ATTENDANCE:
You will find on the registration form a few different categories listed. Please follow these instructions:
- ** Please register carefully – there is no way for you to cancel your own mistaken registration. [If you need to cancel please contact office@stbernardsparish.ca
- Including your phone number will be required for now, but adding email is optional. To skip adding your email, type ‘no’ in this field.
- People deemed to be at greater risk at this time are welcome to attend Mass, and are subject to the general screening for symptoms. These people officially include those who are 65 years of age or older, and those with chronic medical conditions. They continue to be encouraged to choose prudential caution by avoiding public gatherings. “All people attend Mass at their own risk.” (Diocesan Directives)
- If you are simply attending Mass without volunteering, please register as an “Attendee”.
- Register separately for each member of your household attending.
- The number listed on the right end of the registration table indicates the number of spots available or needing to be filled.
- If you are willing to help clean and sanitize the church at the end of Mass, please register as a “Cleaner”
- Other volunteer positions (Lector, Usher, Point of Entry) are reserved for organized teams of volunteers. If you are willing to volunteer as Usher or Point of Entry greeter, please contact Fr. Matthew or the parish office.
- VOLUNTEER POSITIONS MUST BE FILLED FOR THE MASS TO BE CELEBRATED.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR MASS
Other Valuable Points to Take Note of:
Bishop McGrattan’s decree dispensing Catholics from the Sunday obligation continues to be in effect. This means that even though public Masses have resumed, Catholics are not obliged to attend Mass and those who attend do so out of their own free will and prudential judgment.
- You can preview the Self-Assessment Questionnaire, and anticipate that these questions will be posed to you and your family/party before entry to the church. If you experience any of the symptoms listed, please stay at home. This questionnaire reflects the recommended AHS self-assessment tool.
- ENTRY & EXIT: Doors will be opened 30 minutes prior to each Mass, and locked at the start of each Mass, as per required. ** Please plan to be early to Mass to ensure ability to attend.
St. Bernard’s Church: Entry will be through the main doors of the church only, after check-in with greeters. After Mass, we will exit according to instruction or guidance from Father. (access will be possible through side door if ease of access is necessary, with help from a volunteer after check-in)
Our Lady of the Assumption: Entry will be only through the main doors of the church, after check-in with greeters. After Mass, with guidance from Father, exit will be through the North side door next to Mary’s niche.
- CHECK-IN: as you enter, you will need to confirm your registration with a volunteer. Before entry, each party will be asked Self-Assessment questions for health and safety screening. Attendance records will be kept for only the required 2 weeks for the purpose of contact tracing and communication if necessary, securely in the parish office, and then destroyed.
- MASKS: All attendees are asked to bring their own mask, and are expected to wear it during the Mass. * Very young children wear masks at their parents’ discretion.
- HOW TO RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNION: There is instruction defined for the procedure of receiving Holy Communion, according to the Diocesan Directives. You can watch this video in preparation of attending Mass. These measures are temporary, and will be relaxed in due course.
Web Stations of the Cross from our Parish Churches.
As a response to the current restrictions on gatherings imposed during the current situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we have created an online Stations of the Cross using the Station images from both St.Bernard’s and Our Lady of the Assumption. These are in the form of a slideshow slider. This slider will take one through the Stations of The Cross. The slides will automatically advance every 25 seconds, our you can bring up a set of controls to rewind, pause or forward through the slides by moving your mouse over the slide image.
Stations of the Cross at St.Bernard’s Church
Stations of the Cross at Our Lady of the Assumption
Thanks to Fr.Matthew for the photos, and for the concept.
Feast Days for the coming Week
Feast days for the coming week:
Sunday – September 27 – St. Vincent de Paul
Monday – September 28 – St. Wenceslaus
Tuesday – September 29 – Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael
Wednesday – September 30 – St. Jerome
Thursday – October 01 – St. Thérèse of Lisieux,
Friday – October 02 – Feast of the Guardian Angels
Saturday – October 03 – St. Ewald the Fair
Downloadable Prayer Cards Now Available
We have added a page with a selection of Prayer Cards for your enjoyment and use. These may be accessed from the main page menu, or from this link.
These cards are in Adobe PDF format, and will require a PDF viewer for viewing and printing.
Gospel Reflection – “Which Son Did the Father’s Will? “
Converting both heart and will to do what is good and pleasing to God The “rebellious” son told his father to his face that he would not work for him. But afterwards he changed his mind and did what his father commanded him. The “good” son said he would work for his father, but didn’t follow through. He sought his own pleasure, contrary to his father’s will. Now who was really the good son? Both sons disobeyed their father – but one repented and then did what the father told him. Jesus makes his point clear – Good intentions are not enough. And promises don’t count unless they are performed.
Daily Quote from the Early Church Fathers: The Father and his two sons, author unknown, from the 5th century A.D.
“Who is this if not the God who created all people and loves them with a fatherly affection, the God who preferred to be loved as a father rather than feared as a lord, even though he was Lord by nature? On this account, at the beginning of the commandments of the law, he did not say, ‘You shall fear the Lord with all your heart’ but ‘you shall love the Lord with all your heart’ (Deuteronomy 6:5). To elicit love is not characteristic of a lord but of a father. Of the two sons in this parable, the older one represents the Gentiles, since they come from their father Noah. The younger son represents the Jews, who come from Abraham. ‘And approaching the first, he said, “Son, go and work today in my vineyard.” ‘Today’ refers to this present age. How did he speak to his sons? He didn’t address them face to face like man, but he spoke to the heart, like God. Man only utters words to the ear, but God supplies understanding to the mind.” (excerpt from an incomplete Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, HOMILY 40)
Text and reflections, courtesy and used with permission – http://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org
A Stewardship Minute
Lord Jesus, change my heart that I may only desire that which is pleasing to you. Help me to respect your will and give me the strength, joy and perseverance to carry it out wholeheartedly.
First Friday Eucharistic Adoration
Until further notice Eucharistic Exposition and our typical holy hours will continue to be suspended.
