Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

This weekend we will light the second candle on our Advent wreath, in our spiritual home and own private homes.  In three weeks time we will celebrate Christmas and the coming of the Son of God among us as our prophet, our priest, and our king. 

To really know who Jesus is, we must recall the faith of the people who looked out for him.  We must look to the writings of the Old Testament to see what they say about the promise of God to visit his people - and during these coming weeks we will read and break open the Word of God from the prophets.  We will recall those who prepared the way for his coming - and we will recall the work of John the Baptist.  We will reflect on how the Christ child comes to birth in our world through our faith and discipleship, and we will remember Mary whose faith and acceptance of the invitation of God inaugurated the whole Christian era.

Let us find those precious moments, to stop and pause, and in silence note that this moment is an important turning point in our year and in our lives 2022 years later.
 
O come, O come, Emmanuel.

May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I look forward to seeing you at mass this weekend as we celebrate the Second Sunday of Advent together.

Fr. Greg

 
Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

This weekend we begin a new liturgical year with the Season of Advent.  With each passing day from now until Christmas, we will lose about 20 minutes more of daylight.  There is something about darkness.  We slow down, and in the case of reflecting upon the Season of Advent, we prepare.
 
The message we will be hearing throughout the season of Advent is exactly that.  Preparing – preparing our hearts, for our God is sending a Saviour, Emmanuel, which means God-with-us.
 
This preparing involves prayer and our active participation in the liturgy and sacraments of the Church, and our willingness to serve and to be of service to one another.  Advent draws us in and invites us to do all this, with the help of Holy Spirit, to meet our God, who comes to us in the form of a baby.
 
As we begin this Advent journey as a parish family, may we ponder the birth of our Saviour some 2000 years ago as we unite our prayers together to prepare for the coming of Christ into our hearts this Christmas. 
 
O come, O come, Emmanuel.

May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I look forward to seeing you at mass this weekend as we celebrate the First Sunday of Advent together.

Fr. Greg

Feast of Christ the King
 
Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

Here we are, the last Sunday of Ordinary Time.  This weekend we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King.  The Feast of Christ the King was given papal recognition by Pius XI in 1925 with the calendar celebration set as the last Sunday in October.  In 1960 when the liturgical calendar was revised, the Feast was moved to the last Sunday of the Year before Advent.  

I pose a simple yet profound question for all of us.  Is Jesus the King of your life?  This is the question that we are to ponder this Sunday.

Bishop Barron sees the Liturgical Year as kind of a grand procession, at the end of which comes the most important person, Jesus Christ, the Lord, the King of the Universe.  The Latin word for “Lord” is “Dominus”.  It is a good word because it invites us to ask ourselves whether or not Jesus is the dominant influence in our lives.  If we say anything other than Christ is the King, then we need to revisit what Christianity really means.  If we only think of Jesus as a good, kind person, that is not enough. If we let him into only one or two rooms of our house, we are playing games. This is not real Christianity.  He should be the King of every room.  That is the real challenge of this Feastday.

My canon law professor put it this way:  In your personal life you should feel comfortable having Jesus sitting next to you while you are doing whatever you are doing.  If you try to hide from God, even if no one else knows about what you are doing, then Christ is not the King of your life.  Acknowledging Christ as King means that you are in steady contact with the Lord, so that all we do is dedicated to him.

Jesus must be the “Dominus,” the dominant influence in our lives.

May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I look forward to seeing you at mass this weekend as we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King.

Fr. Greg

Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

Since my arrival here at St. Julia in July of 2019, my goodness have we been through alot together.  In midst of it all, many good things have taken place in our parish.  Most of all, I pray that we have grown in our faith.

Please consider this your invitation to join me this Monday evening, November 14th, in our Divinity Room from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Faith for today.  Vision for tomorrow.

As a caring Roman Catholic Community, it is my blessed opportunity to nourish each of you in your faith for today.  Together, we look to the future, as we share our vision for tomorrow.  Powered and inspired by the Holy Spirit, and fueled by Synod, we face these opportunities and challenges together.

I have included the agenda for the evening in this newsletter, and the minutes will be included next week.  I hope to see you there.
 
May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I look forward to seeing you at mass this weekend.

Fr. Greg

Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

It has been a busy and blessed start to the month of November here at St. Julia.  From the celebration of a funeral for a founding member of our parish, All Saints mass on Tuesday, All Souls mass on Tuesday morning, a funeral chapel service Wednesday afternoon, our Memorial Mass Wednesday evening, our Holy Hour this morning, a BLD mass this evening at the Cathedral at 8:00 p.m. (open to everyone), a chapel funeral service Saturday morning, and our masses this weekend.  I have been most blessed to witness how the Holy Spirit is alive in our parish and community.
 
In my now six plus years of priesthood, as I noted at our memorial mass, celebrating the anointing of the sick and journeying with families as they say goodbye to their loved one has been some of the most touching and moving times in my ministry.  It is at these times when hearts are moved, reminding one of the importance of our faith, our relationship with God and our creator, and that we will see our loved ones again in heaven.  Just as important is that we need to continue praying for those who have gone before us, and that those prayers are what continue to keep us connected.
 
Yes, the funeral is for the beloved family member or friend who has died.  But the funeral mass is for the living as well – all those who mourn the loss of a loved one or friend.  It is meant to bring comfort, strength, and peace to all, and to assure the family that they are not alone, and that this parish family is here to pray alongside them.  So why should the funeral be held at the church?  It is in the church where we welcomed that soul into the family of faith, at baptism, and it is at the church, at the funeral mass, where we entrust that soul to the love and mercy of God.  The beautiful mass, and the eucharistic prayers are offered just for that loved one – your loved one.  Plus, as I say, we are no closer to our loved ones who have gone before us than at the celebration of the mass – every mass.
 
As we pray for all the departed souls who have gone before us, I pray that each of you, who mourn the loss of the loved one, whether it be recent or many years ago, be assured of my prayers and the prayers of your family here at St. Julia.  May these prayers bring you comfort, strength, and peace.

This weekend we welcome the seven-year-old children from our parish preparing for the sacraments of reconciliation and the Eucharist at our 9:00 a.m. Sunday morning mass.
 
May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I look forward to seeing you and welcoming you to mass this weekend.

Fr. Greg

“[Jesus] looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name!
‘Zacchaeus!’ he said."
 
Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

This weekend we once again return to the Gospel of Luke and meet Zacchaeus, a short man who is the chief tax collector and a wealthy man.  Immediately we can pick up that Zacchaeus is not a proud man.  Think of this short man running ahead of Jesus and climbing a tree to see him.  Just think of the enthusiasm he has to know the Lord and to see Jesus.

Do we have that same enthusiasm to know our Lord?  To go to mass?  To get on our knees in praise and thanksgiving?  To break open our (study) bible to continue to learn and grow in our faith?  

Jesus never turns people away, and Jesus knows each of us by name.  Think about that for a moment.  Jesus know my name.

May we have the enthusiasm of Zacchaeus to come and seek out Jesus.  Zacchaeus is ready to give up a lot in order to follow Jesus (though he does not give up absolutely everything).  What are we willing to give up?  Would I be willing to make a fool of myself so that I can see Jesus?

It is my prayer that we continue to seek out our Lord.  May we ask our Lord for whatever it is we need.  May He call you by name when you approach the altar this weekend to receive His real presence into your heart.
 
May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I look forward to seeing you at mass this weekend.

Fr. Greg

Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

I have had the honour witnessing the marriage of a number of couples, and have been blessed to witness the excitement of welcoming a new life into this world.  When a baby is born, there are many emotions.  I have witnessed tears, laughter, hugs, relief, and joy.  It is an honour and it is indeed one of life's most significant and meaningful events.  Yet birth is not the ultimate goal.

At every baptism I find myself saying to the parents, next to the gift of life, the greatest gift you can give your child is the gift of faith.  This is a gift, and it is every parent's responsibility, in my opinion, to have their child baptized, and to raise their child in the faith, all for the salvation of that child's soul.  That is why I was ordained - for the salvation of souls.  Because birth is not the ultimate goal.  Birth is the beginning of an exciting journey.  Birth is the beginning of a life of promise, hope, and redemption.  A life of being open to God's plan and will for us.  Yes, there will be great successes along the way.  There will be some missteps too.  The ultimate goal, my friends, is nothing that can be found here on earth.  The ultimate goal is heaven.

When a life comes to its earthly end, the greatest gift you can give your loved one is a funeral in the church.  It is here where we pray for that soul, as that soul journeys from life here on earth to eternal life in heaven.  At funerals I have witnessed tears flow as they ease our sadness, yet I have also witnessed laughter, hugs, relief, and joy.  More times than not, the second reading is from our second reading this weekend from 2 Timothy:

I have fought the good fight. 
I have finished the race. 
I have kept the faith.

This is what the Christian life is all about.  It is my prayer that each of us will be able to utter these words in our heart from St. Paul when we are called home.

May God bless each of you and those that you love,

Fr. Greg

 
Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

Our R.C.I.A. (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) journey has begun.  This is always a blessed time to see the faith that I love through the eyes of those that the Holy Spirit has brought to our parish.  At the end of the day, I simply want these children of God to fall in love with God and his son Jesus Christ.  That is what I want for all of those entrusted my care.  It is only with the help of the Holy Spirit working through me that this is possible. 

The central focus of our Roman Catholic faith is the crucifixion and death of Jesus, and it is the Cross of Jesus that is our most precious symbol of our beloved Saviour.  Each Mass celebrated in the Catholic Church recalls the suffering and death of Jesus on the Cross as the sacrifice for the sins of man.  Jesus died on the cross for each and everyone of us.  And Jesus would have done so just for you.  Think about that.  Just for you.

As defined in the Catechism, the Cross is the instrument of execution on which Christ died; a symbol of the unique sacrifice of Christ as sole mediator between God and man.  Jesus invited his disciples to take up their cross and follow him, in order to associate with his redeeming sacrifice those who were to be its beneficiaries.  Catholics begin their prayers and actions with the Sign of the Cross “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.”  A devotional cross with the figure of Jesus suspended on it is called a “crucifix.”

For us as disciples of Christ, it all comes back to the cross, the sign of our Christian faith.  When we keep our eyes, hearts and minds focused on the cross and the figure of Jesus on it, the crucifix becomes our compass on our earthly journey.  May we raise our eyes to Christ, our magnificent and merciful Saviour.

May God bless each of you and those that you love,

Fr. Greg

 
Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

Pleasant fall days and cool nights, and another Thanksgiving is upon us. 

As we continue to navigate through these times together, seeing all that is taking place in our world, we remember that we place our trust in God and God alone, and we give thanks for the gift of our faith..  Indeed, Christ has been our guide, leading us and providing us with hope.  As we gather this weekend for Mass at our parish of St. Julia, either in person or virtually, we are reminded of the tremendous blessings God continues to pour out upon our community.  And as we gather with our families this weekend, perhaps in larger numbers than in years past, we thank God for the gift of our families, friends, and loved ones. 
 
May we be a sign of God’s goodness and hope for one another as we offer our prayers of thanks, not only on this Thanksgiving weekend, but each and every day.
 
May God bless each of you and those that you love, and I thank God for each of you, my spiritual family, and this community of St. Julia.

United in prayer,

Fr. Greg

 
Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,

As we begin a new month, there is no shortage of people and things to pray for.  In a special way, in this month dedicated to our Blessed Mother Mary and the Rosary, we have a most powerful tool at our fingertips and an intercessor we can turn to who will take our prayers and petitions to her son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
 
This weekend we welcome our Confirmation candidates and their families from our parish to our 5:00 p.m. Mass.  I met with these youth from our parish and their parents a week ago, discussing the beauty of this Sacrament and the power of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit they will receive this November.  We need to pray for these youth, as this is an important year for them in their faith journey.
 
This past week I met with the seven-year-old children from our parish family and their parents as they prepare to encounter Christ in the Sacrament of Reconciliation this fall and First Communion next May.  May the joy in the eyes of these children and the excitement of receiving Jesus for the first time – and we pray 1000’s of times after, set the faith of their parents on fire – or reignite the faith if that may be the case.  We need to pray for these children and their families.
 
Our new initiative at Denis Morris Catholic High School is slowly gaining traction.  Cassi Werkman, our new Youth Leader, will join the Grade 9's on their retreat next Wednesday, and the Grade 12's on their retreat after Thanksgiving to discuss how putting Christ at the center of her life has truly transformed her life.  Her testimony I pray with touch the hearts of these youth.  Cassi will also visit the classrooms of the Grade 10's and 11's.  Her invitation will lead to the Discovery Faith Study during the two lunch periods here in our Divinity Room, and the vision, a youth group in the evening.  We thank Cassi for giving so generously of her time.  We need to pray for these youth and their families.
 
We need to pray for those who are sick.  I am currently journeying with a number of people facing a cancer diagnosis, one twice my age, another person my age, whose cancer has returned, and another, ten years younger than myself.  May their encounter with Christ in the Sacrament of the Anointing of Sick bring them comfort, strength, help, healing, and peace.  We need to pray for all those facing illness and for their families.
 
Last but not least, we need to pray for an increase in vocations to the priesthood and diaconate, and that more men desire to encounter Christ in the Sacrament of Holy Orders.  We will launch a Men's Discernment group here at St. Julia that will meet monthly, with details in this newsletter.
 
Come Holy Spirit!  Blessed Mother, please intercede for us.  Loving God, hear these our prayers.

Please know of my prayers for each of you and all your intentions, and may God continue to bless each of you and those that you love.

I look forward to seeing you at Mass this weekend.

United in prayer,

Fr. Greg