THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT

PASTOR’S CORNER

This coming Thursday at 7:00 p.m. we will celebrate the Sacrament

of Reconciliation in our parish. To help you properly prepare to con-

fess your sins, I want to offer you a few guidelines to keep in mind

this week and in the future:

1. Your presence in the confessional is the wondrous work of the Ho-

ly Spirit. You are there first because the Holy Spirit prompted you to

go. So enter into the confessional confident that you are there by the

grace of God.

2. Do not waste your time or Father’s time with your scrupulosity.

Only mortal sins need to be confessed according to the kind and num-

ber.

3. Simply and clearly state ONLY your sins without excuse, explana-

tion, or decoration. It is rather pointless to confess your sins with

flourish or verbal adornment. The priest really does not need to know

why you committed a particular sin. He will ask you if more infor-

mation is needed.

4. You shall not use the “face to face” option as an excuse to chit-chat

with Father. Confession is not about story time nor is this option a

chance to ask Father for advice on a complicated spiritual issue. Make

an appointment with him for that. You have a whole lot of people be-

hind you waiting to confess.

5. Finally, you shall ask questions about your assigned penance if you

do not understand it. Do not leave the box wondering what it is you

are supposed to do for your penance. Just ask Father to quickly clarify

his assignment. He will welcome this because it shows you are seri-

ous about the sacrament.

Fr. Slawek

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR THE ALTAR SOCIETY

This service is on a two week rotation once per month on a Friday morning and entails clean-ing the holy vessels, filling the Holy water fonts and ensuring that the Sacristy is kept clean and tidy. This would take 30 minutes of your time. Volunteers are also needed, again on a two week rotation, to pick up the altar linen to be laundered and ironed. This can be picked up after Mass on the weekend and returned the next weekend, providing there is a good supply of linen in the Sacristy. We need your help! These two positions are in God’s service, think of the blessings you will receive. If you can find it in your heart to vol-unteer, please call Carlene Henry at 647-210-2345

2017 OFFERTORY ENVELOPES

Envelopes are also available for pick up from the Parish office during office hours. Please use 2017 envelopes starting Jan. 1. Pr int your full name, address, phone number and donation clearly on the envelope for the month so the Parish office can record the number to your name. If you have a change of address please list it on your envelope or notify the of-fice. Please DO NOT USE 2016 or older envelopes. Discharge last year enve-lope. This old number is no longer assigned to you. Please DO NOT SCRATCH OUT the number and put your own number.

Thursday, December 15

Day of Reconciliation 10 a.m.—12 noon

1 p.m.—2 p.m.

7 p.m. Penitential Service followed by Sacrament of Reconciliation

Holy Spirit Roman

C A T H O L I C C H U R C H

Name(s)________________________________________________

Other family members____________________________________

Address________________________________________________

City___________________________ Postal Code_____________

Phone ( )___________________________

CHECK ONE:

New Registration

Change of Address Moving out of Parish Renewal Please drop this form into the offertory basket. Note: Use of this form does not automatically register you

with the church. You will be contacted by the Parish Office to confirm registration.

December 11, 2016

Christmas Assistance Program Saint Vincent DePaul Holy Spirit Conference

This weekend we delivered our Grocery Gift Cards to our Neighbors in need. There are many in our neighbour-hood who are experiencing difficulties. The stories are

as varied as the number of Families who must come to us for assistance, es-pecially at Christmas time. Some of those are the working poor, single mothers and the elderly. All of them are struggling to make ends meet and the price of food keeps going up. The value of these gift cards is from $75.00 to $175.00 depending on the size of the family. With our parishioners generous support over the last 2 weeks we were able to assist 78 Families. Your generosity is greatly appreciated by those in need.

Again, Thank You and God Bless!

MASS INTENTIONS

Tuesday, December 13 9:00 a.m. (+) Patrick Tierney req. by his wife Elaine. Wednesday, December 14 9:00 a.m. (+) Harry Yu req. by Jacqueline Yu . Thursday, December 15 9:00 a.m. (+) Rosa Ferrari req. by Ceserina Cologna.

Friday, December 16 9:00 a.m. (+) Maria Luu Tien req. by Kim Luu. Saturday, December 17 4:30 p.m. (+) Magdalena Valdez Ladia req. by the Ladia family. Sunday, December 18 9 a.m. (+) Juan & Perpetua Caparanga req. by the Caparanga family. 11 a.m. All Parishioners.

YOUR HEALTH : As cold and flu season approaches, to ensure the health of the entire community, parishioners are encouraged to stay home from Mass and parish functions if they are experiencing symptoms of the flu virus, colds, etc. Respect and concern for the common good takes precedence. Thank you for your cooperation! To minimize risks please use the hand sanitizers that are located at each entrance!

Youth Group News !!!

We had a wonderful turnout for our Service Project at Sheppard Lodge. A fun time was had by residents and youth! There will be no Youth Group gatherings

on Friday, December 23 or 30 due to Christmas holidays. Our get-togethers will

resume on Friday, January 9, 2017.

Children's Liturgy News: Attention Parishioners with small children... Just a friendly reminder that the Chil-dren's Liturgy is offered Sunday mornings at the 9:00 am Mass only. Fr. Slawek will invite our young parishioners to come forward at the beginning of Mass with a warm welcome then send them forth with the Children's Liturgy Team Members to hear the message of Jesus proclaimed at their level of understanding with stories, songs and activities. After the Homily the Team will escort the little ones back upstairs to join their families in the Liturgy of the Eucharist. We look forward to engaging your children in this beautiful ministry. God Bless!

R.C.I.A. Catechumens Please pray for our 5 RCIA Catechumens, Phil, Mariam, Jen, Monjay and Han-an, as they continue their studies on their journey of faith.

SENIOR’S GROUP

The seniors meet every Wednesday after the 9 a.m. devotion of Our Lady of Per-petual Help. Come out and socialize, play cards, make new friends in your parish commu-

nity. Coffee, tea and snack are provided. Cards are available for any seniors interested in playing. Everyone welcome!