On this the eve of Ash Wednesday, we once again, as a parish family, prepare to begin our Lenten journey. Lent is truly about renewal. Renewing our relationship with God, and his son Jesus Christ. It is an opportunity to renew our commitment to daily prayer and the opening up of our hearts to God. A renewal in breaking open the Word of God and to see where God is speaking to us through Sacred Scripture. What animates us is the spirit, the soul within us. When we are fed with the Body and Blood of Christ and the Word of God, our spirit is fed. While many of us hunger for that spiritual food at the celebration of Mass, I consider the season of Lent to be a great gift to us, the body of Christ. These 40 days allow us to take a look deep within at our relationship with God and our neighbour. It is an opportunity for us to offer penance for the sins we have committed. And best of all, it presents us with the opportunity to not just change our lives, but to transform them as we rededicate our lives to God. This is my prayer for each of us. May this season of Lent be an opportunity to reignite our relationship with God, confident that Christ continues to navigate us through these times together. I pray that it be a time of refreshment for our souls as we draw closer to God. May it truly be a time of spiritual renewal. May we emerge from this time, and this season of Lent, renewed in mind, body, and spirit. I wish all of you a truly blessed and grace-filled season of Lent. Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, In this Sunday’s Gospel from Mark 1:40-45, we read about this leper coming forward to Jesus and miracle of the healing of this man. The miracles of Jesus can be grouped into seven categories.
It is interesting to note that more than 30 miracles of Jesus are recorded in the Bible, yet we know that there are far more, and counting. The miracles of Jesus continue to this day. So, what is required on our part? This is where the leper teaches us. This man whose name is unknown to us recognized that in Jesus all things are possible. He believed this in the very depths of his heart and soul. Are you in need of healing at this very moment? Perhaps it is physical healing. Maybe the pandemic has left you with the need for mental healing. Or maybe you are spiritually weak and are crying out for healing. Healing of body, mind, and spirit. Whether it is yourself or someone that you know or love, there is someone in need who is hurting in some way that needs some relief, compassion, comfort, strength, and yes, healing. Jesus is here to assist, and we, as God’s instruments here on earth, allow the Holy Spirit to work through us to provide comfort to those around us. With God, all things are possible. If you wish, you can make me clean. May God continue to bless each of you and those that you love. Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, Lord Jesus, send us your healing touch. “In the morning, while it was still very dark, he (Jesus) got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed” (Mark 1:35). In this Sunday’s Gospel, we once again see the importance of daily prayer in Jesus’ life. Just like Simon’s mother-in-law, we too cry out, Lord Jesus, send us your healing touch. As a Church, as a family here at St. Julia, we pray for all those suffering. Not just those that are sick, but everyone. We are all suffering. We pray for spiritual and physical healing, for comfort for all those isolated in their homes, hospitals, and long-term care facilities. For those mourning the loss of a loved one. For all those separated from their families. For those facing job loss, financial difficulties. For parents and single parents trying to juggle work and family lives. The list goes on, and it is different for each one of us And so, we too, need to find the strength to pray, mirroring Jesus, in that quiet place. The prayer can be this simple… Lord Jesus, send us your healing touch Please know of my continued prayers for all of your needs and intentions, both personally, and during the greatest prayer that we offer, the celebration of the Mass. May God continue to bless each of you and those that you love. Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, I Know Who You Are In our Gospel this Sunday from Mark 1:21-28, we hear the man with the unclean (possessed) spirit proclaim, “I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” Who is Jesus for you? Is he someone from “back then” that we read about in the Bible or hear about at Mass? Is he “out there” somewhere? Pope Francis, in quoting words of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, reminds us: “Being a Christian is not the result of an ethical choice or a lofty idea, but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction.” Like the stillness of the water in the above picture, we have been given the opportunity to truly reflect on this question. Being baptized in the faith, the most precious gift next to the gift of life, is one thing. Being taught about Jesus in grade school is another. Yet it is not until we have that encounter, that aha moment, that our relationship with Jesus becomes something real. And Jesus becomes more than someone from “back then.” Jesus becomes a friend, someone we can talk to, through prayer. Someone we can encounter through the sacraments. Someone who is alive in our world and in our hearts, through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is this knowledge that has seen us through difficult times in the past, and will see us through difficult times that may come. For it is indeed Jesus Christ who is navigator, today and always. It is Christ who provides us with strength, comfort, and hope. It is in Christ where we place our trust. In the silence of your hearts this week, think about that aha moment in your own life. Think about those encounters that you have had with Jesus on your earthly journey. Pray in your own hearts, “I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” Rest assured of my prayers for each of you and those that you love. Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, My dear friends, A hymn that I am quite fond of is “The Summons.” It is about the call to discipleship and was written by John Bell and Graham Maule of the Iona Community from Scotland. First published in 1987, it is set to the tune Kelvingrove, a traditional Scottish melody. The lyrics contain thirteen questions asked by Jesus in the first person: Will you come and follow me If I but call your name? Will you go where you don't know And never be the same? Will you let my love be shown, Will you let my name be known, Will you let my life be grown In you and you in me? Will you leave yourself behind If I but call your name? Will you care for cruel and kind And never be the same? Will you risk the hostile stare Should your life attract or scare? Will you let me answer prayer In you and you in me? Will you let the blinded see If I but call your name? Will you set the prisoners free And never be the same? Will you kiss the leper clean, And do such as this unseen, And admit to what I mean In you and you in me? Will you love the 'you' you hide If I but call your name? Will you quell the fear inside And never be the same? Will you use the faith you've found To reshape the world around, Through my sight and touch and sound In you and you in me? Lord, your summons echoes true When you but call my name. Let me turn and follow you And never be the same. In your company I'll go Where your love and footsteps show. Thus I'll move and live and grow In you and you in me. In this weekend’s Gospel taken from Mark 1:14-20, Jesus asks this very question to Simon, Andrew, James, and John, the first apostles. Yet, Jesus asks this very question to each and every one of us – his disciples, and even more profoundly, to future disciples. We are all called to follow Jesus Christ, who extends this personal invitation in our hearts. You might say there is a magnetic pull to follow Jesus. This was the case with the first apostles, who left everything behind to follow the son of a carpenter. Does Jesus call and invite us in 2024? Absolutely yes! All of us. Some may fight and resist it. Yet when we respond to that call Jesus has the power to transform our lives and to transform our hearts. That leads to happiness, a happiness that cannot be found in anything else here on earth. That happiness is found in a personal relationship with the Saviour, Jesus Christ. The sooner one responds to that call and invitation, the sooner one can experience a foretaste of heaven here on earth. That quite simply is what I want for each and every one of us! Rest assured of my prayers for each of you and those that you love. Keep safe and warm. Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,
With the season of Christmas (it seems like a distant memory now) behind us, we return to Ordinary Time in the life of our church. Yet as Cardinal Dolan states so beautifully, every day is extraordinary, a gift from God. And that it indeed is. Once again woven into our readings this weekend is the theme of God speaking to us. How does God speak to us? Through Sacred Scripture and through one another, for Christ dwells in each one of us, in the temple of our hearts. This becomes more richly evident to us when we pause and reflect, and count our blessings. This sounds so very simple, yet it brings us back to the basics and reminds us what it truly important. Faith. Our relationship with Jesus Christ. Family, and the connection to those with us here on earth and those who have journeyed to eternal life. The power and importance of prayer. Countless reminders that God is with us, and that we are followers of Christ and people of hope. Everyday God desires to pour out grace and mercy upon each of us. In the ordinary. Be sure to take the time to count your blessings today, and every day. May God bless you and those that you love. Thank you for being a blessing in my life. United in prayer, your friend in Christ, Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia,
Today, a Light has shone. We no longer are to walk in darkness. The name of this day “Epiphany” comes from the Greek word “epiphainō” which literally means “to shine upon”. God wants all the nations of the world to know who Jesus is, why He came, and what His coming means for us today. Who were they? Kings, Magi, Star-gazers, Wise Men, Astrologers… They have been called all these names. Regardless, they represent the fact that Jesus came as King of All Nations, King of the Whole World, King of the Entire Universe, King of All Creation: “Christ the King.". The Kings bring us with them to the manger. Ponder that for a moment. The Kings bring each and every one of us with me. So, what does this all mean? God wants all people to be saved and no one to be lost. No one is excluded. Ultimately, this is the meaning of today’s celebration. May the Light of Christ shine ever brighter in 2024 one each of you and those that you love, on our diocese, and in our world. Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, Last week, we celebrated Christmas on December 25th. This is the day we thank God for one of the most humble, loving and generous gifts in our human history: God became one of us. God took on the human condition. He entered our experience and changed us forever. We call this “The Mystery of the Incarnation” and it’s so important to us that we bow every time we mention it in the creed. By becoming human, Jesus took every human experience that is not sin and made it holy. Our laughter, our pain, our tears…every human experience from the most mundane to the greatest, God has made a part of Him forever. That’s love and that love is ours forever. In the Feast of the Holy Family that we celebrate this weekend, we remember with joy that the first experience our God chose to have on earth is the experience of being part of a family. If we look at the creation account, we see that God, who is a community of persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), immediately created a community of persons when he made us. He made a man and a woman as the first expression of Himself on earth. For us then, family is everything. Family matters to us, not just in the fact of its existence, but in the duty of our little human families to imitate the community of love that is our origin: God. Pray together, eat together, seize every moment you can to love, serve and be with the family that Jesus has given you. So many wonderful families join us during this Holy Season and throughout the year, and that is a blessing for our parish. On Monday, New Year's Day, we celebrate Mary, the Mother of God, and it brings the octave of Christmas to its spiritual completion. There is significance in celebrating Mary during the heart of the Christmas season. Pope Paul VI, in his apostolic exhortation Marialis Cultus (1974), called the Solemnity of Mary “a fitting occasion for renewing adoration of the newborn Prince of Peace, for listening once more to the glad tidings of the angels (Luke 2:14), and for imploring from God, through the Queen of Peace, the supreme gift of peace.”. I pray that God touches your heart and soul this Holy Season and fills you with His love and peace. I pray that you find here at St. Julia a place where you feel welcome to join us every week as we strive to know and live God’s love and peace. Thank you for the honour of being your priest and pastor. You are the gift God has given me and I am filled with gratitude and joy. May God bless each of you and those that you love in 2024! Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, The Fourth Sunday of Advent has arrived. We have journeyed together throughout this season of preparation for the coming of Christ this Christmas. In many ways it is a journey and a calling home. Advent is a joyful celebration of the condition we find ourselves in as Christians. It announces that God is always moving towards us. God is at work in the world and in our lives, ever creative and ever renewing. God continues to create and to reveal his love for each of us. The good news is that we are pilgrims on the move and are going home to God's house. The only worthwhile baggage to carry on that journey is good works and acts of loving service performed for Christ. As we light the fourth candle on our Advent wreath, we are reminded of the great love that God has for each and everyone of us. Never forget this. May we reflect this same love in our words, deeds, and actions, from the greatest to the least. Remember, what seems like something small or insignificant to us just might mean the world to someone else. 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 Fourth Sunday of Advent together, go home, and then return for the great celebration of the birth of our Saviour at Christmas! Fr. Greg Dear parish family and friends of St. Julia, As we continue to journey through this season of Advent together as a parish family, we are drawing close to celebrating the birth of our Saviour. The Lord, our Lord, is very close to us. Our passages from Scripture remind us of this, and it is the recurring theme in the season of Advent. The fact that our Lord is near to us, I pray, should bring comfort to all believers. Our Saviour took on our human flesh, to be one with us and to walk with us. He showed us how to live and how to love, both our God and our neighbour. He showed us how to be people of hope, peace, joy, and love. As we enter now the Third Week of Advent, may we continue to embrace this season of preparation and the preparing of our hearts. Make the most of this time, and be the light of Jesus to someone this day. 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 Third Sunday of Advent together. Fr. Greg |
AuthorFrom Our Pastor Archives
April 2024
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