The Parish Community of St. Kevin

Served by the Holy Cross Fathers

303 Niagara Street
Welland, Ontario  L3C 1K5

Email
905-735-5885

January 19, 2025

 

Ordinary Time

After the celebration of Christmas and New Year’s, we find ourselves in Ordinary Time that leads us to Ash Wednesday and the penitential season of Lent beginning on March 5th, 2025. Though it is called ordinary time, it is still an important time when the Church calls us to deepen our faith and our commitment to the Gospel.

Because the term ordinary in English most often means something that is not special or distinctive, many people think that Ordinary Time refers to parts of the calendar of the Catholic Church that are unimportant. During this time the church celebrates the fullness of the mystery of the Lord Jesus. The people of God offer praise by celebrating the Paschal Mystery of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. Even though the season of Ordinary Time makes up most of the liturgical year in the Catholic Church, the fact that Ordinary Time refers to those periods that fall outside of the major liturgical seasons reinforces this impression. Yet Ordinary Time is far from unimportant or uninteresting. Ordinary Time is called "ordinary" not because it is common but simply because the weeks of Ordinary Time are numbered.

 

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

This Sunday we reflect on Jesus’ first public miracle at the Wedding at Cana, where he turns water into wine. This act reveals his divine power and foreshadows the joy and abundance of the Kingdom of God. Mary’s intercession reminds us to trust in her son, who transforms our ordinary lives into something extraordinary. The gospel also invites us to reflect on the “empty jars” in our own lives-places where we feel lacking, exhausted, or in need of renewal. Just as Jesus filled the jars with the finest wine, he can transform our struggles, relationships and ordinary experiences into something extraordinary when we invite him to our lives. As we journey through Ordinary Time, let us remember that no situation is too ordinary for God to work in. With faith like Mary’s, let us trust in Jesus and be ready to witness his miracles in our lives.

As we are in the Jubilee Year 2025, let the miracle at Cana inspire us to trust in God’s providence. Like Mary, let us turn to Jesus with faith and hope, knowing that he will transform our lives and the world around us. Let us continue this journey together as Pilgrims of Hope, trusting in the one who makes all things new.

 

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2025

The theme of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (Jan 18th-25th) 2025 is based on a text from the Gospel of John: "Do you believe this?” (John 11:26) For this year, 2025, the prayers and reflections for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity were prepared by the brothers and sisters of the monastic community of Bose in northern Italy. This year marks the 1,700th anniversary of the first Christian Ecumenical Council, held in Nicaea, near Constantinople in 325 AD. This commemoration provides a unique opportunity to reflect on and celebrate the common faith of Christians, as expressed in the Creed formulated during this Council; a faith that remains alive and fruitful in our days. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2025 offers an invitation to draw on this shared heritage and to enter more deeply into the faith that unites all Christians.

 

Welcome Jency!

We are very excited to announce that we have welcomed a new member to our parish team - Jency James Mathai! Jency will be a part of our office staff and will be taking on a secretarial role.
We know that our parish community will welcome her with open arms and make her feel most at home. So please say hi to Jency next time you are by the office! And not to worry - Jessica, John, and Diana are all still here working away and are very grateful for their new coworker!

 

Blessed Basil Moreau, CSC - January 20th

On January 20th we celebrate the Memorial of Father Basil Moreau – the Founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross. The Congregation was officially established in 1835 in Le Mans, France due to his efforts in bringing together a small group of teaching brothers, as well as his group of preachers and auxiliary priests. Holy Cross, Sainte Croix in French, became the official name - la Congrégation de Sainte-Croix (the Congregation from Holy Cross). Holy Cross then went as missionaries to India, Bangladesh, Latin America, and Africa. Moreau was beatified, by order of Pope Benedict XVI, on September 15, 2007, the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, in Le Mans, France. We ask you to pray for the works of Holy Cross and that the Lord may bless us with vocations.

 

Sunday of the Word of God - January 26th

On September 30th, 2019, Pope Francis in his Apostolic Letter, "Aperuit Illis", instituted the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time as the Sunday of the Word of God. In this, Pope Francis "proposed setting aside 'a Sunday given over entirely to the word of God, so as to appreciate the inexhaustible riches contained in that constant dialogue between the Lord and his people' (Misericordia et Misera, 7). A day dedicated to the Bible will help the church “experience anew how the risen Lord opens up for us the treasury of his Word and enables us to proclaim its unfathomable riches before the world,” the pope said in the document establishing the special Sunday observance. This year it will be celebrated in Papal Basilica of Saint Peter, Rome in the presence of Pope Francis on Sunday 26th January 2025, as an integral part of the Jubilee Year. The motto chosen is taken from the book of the Psalms: “I hope in your Word” (Ps 119:74), it is a cry of hope: man, in a moment of anguish, tribulation, and confusion, cries out to God and puts all his hope in him.

 

Catholic Women’s League News

2025 Memberships are now due. They are $40 for the year. Please use the blue envelopes in the front of your box of 2025 Parish envelopes. Please pay by cash or cheque (made out to St. Kevin Catholic Women’s League) and put it in the collection basket or drop it off at the Parish Office.

Lenten Retreat 2025 - “Freedom in Christ: Understanding and Removing Common Blockers” presented by Domenic Ianneo. Wednesday, February 19th OR Saturday, March 1st. The cost is $50 with lunch included. Your CWL will pay half the cost for its members to attend. Deadline to register is February 7th – call Lorrie 905-734-4828 or email lmack@cogeco.ca. See poster in the foyer.

General Meeting – Thursday, February 6th, 2025, after the 9:00am Mass in the Hospitality Room. This will be our Budget Meeting.

 

Culture of Life Ministry Events

Choose Life Niagara Dinner 2025: The 2025 Respect for Life Dinner will be held on Saturday, March 1st at Club Roma in St. Catharines, featuring guest speaker, author and pre-law university student Liana Gordan, who went from being an adamant pro-choicer to a passionate pro-life advocate. Disillusioned by the culture’s obsession with self and the degradation of human life, she was set on a journey to find the meaning and purpose of her life. Liana recently challenged pro-abortion presenters at the 68th UN Commission on the Status of Women and is committed to equipping individuals to defend their pro-life convictions.  In her talk, she will present strategies and perspectives that can help advance the pro-life cause in Canada.
Come enjoy a delicious dinner, with fellowship, and an inspiring talk. Tickets are $60 for adults and $30 for students. Deadline for purchasing tickets is February 20, 2025. For more information please visit:
https://www.chooselifeniagara.com/events/2025-annual-dinner

 
 

Please remember the Poor Box as you leave the Church.
 

Worth Repeating

The items below you may have seen before but remain here if seasonally important information

or

General information that people need to review from time to time.

 

Housekeeping Reminders

  • Please place hymn books neatly back in their spots. Please be sure to dispose of tissues, wrappers, or other debris when leaving. And don’t forget your bulletin. Please do not leave behind daily Missalettes at the end of the month – simply recycle them.

  • When entering the parking lot please do so from Niagara Street and exit via Northcote. Please drive slowly in our parking lot as well. If you are parking on the side streets for Mass, please be respectful of road signs and driveways. Please be sure to lock your car doors when you come for Mass or any other function.

  • Please also be very careful with perfumes and colognes. Some parishioners tend to go very heavy with these and it can be difficult for fellow parishioners with allergies or breathing troubles. We have had many parishioners come to us about this requesting that we ask people to not wear scents. Please refrain or use the tiniest amount possible.

  • For those who place loose bills or coins in the collection – we would like to give you proper credit for income tax purposes. Please consider using our Visitor envelopes or asking Father/our Staff for a box of envelopes.

The Vineyard, the Diocese of St. Catharines journal has gone digital.

It can be viewed at http://saintcd.com/diocesan-directory/the-vineyard

 

Safety Reminder

We wish to remind Parishioners to please lock car doors when attending Mass and please do not leave valuables in vehicles, in the parking lot or on the street. Thank you.

Catholic Marriage Tribunal

If you are considering remarriage in the Catholic Church at some point, or hoping to enter a marriage with someone previously married, please speak to a priest, or contact the Diocesan Catholic Marriage Tribunal in St. Catharines at 905-687-8817. Information Pamphlets are available through the parish.

PLEASE READ THIS IMPORTANT NOTICE:

Due to the privacy laws, the hospital does not list our parishioners by address or parish unless you state your religion as ST. KEVIN PARISH when you are admitted. It would help the parish visiting team if when the hospital asks religion – you respond ST. KEVIN'S PARISH. If you or a family member enter a hospital for several days please be sure to call the parish office to let us know if you wish a visit. If you wish the Anointing of the Sick before an operation, either at home or while in the hospital, be sure to inform the parish office. A priest will come as soon as possible to administer the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. We also have a group of lay people from our parish who each week visit or bring communion to Catholic parishioners in the hospital. Please, we need to know that you are there!

A Review of Some Parish Policies

  1. Requests: We often receive requests for baptism or marriage, or Pastoral References for teachers, who are not members of St. Kevin's Parish. Examples would be: They might like our church and so want to get married here although they live elsewhere. Or: they were baptized here and so they would like their child to be baptized here although they live elsewhere. Or: I went to Notre Dame College School. The main point here is "they live elsewhere". Now – wherever elsewhere might be, there is a Catholic parish there. Our policy is to minister to the parishioners of St. Kevin's. We have more than 3400 families; there is a lot of ministry work for us to do here. Our focus and attention is first and foremost on our own parishioners.

  2. Parishioners should be registered: And here it is important to remember – that all of our parishioners should be registered in the parish, that is, on our books with names and phone numbers and addresses.

  3. Young Adults: There is a point when the young person must register in our Parish. It does not suffice to say my parents are members of St. Kevin's and I was confirmed at St. Kevin's when that person has been living on his or her own. The young adult should not depend on the faith and loyalty of parents or grandparents but must take ownership of his or her own faith. That means, as well, the young person should be engaged in the financial support of the Parish.

  4. Support of the Church: One of the precepts of the church – parishioners should be generous in supporting the material needs of the church. Today, we do this best by regularly using envelopes to help with the expenses of administering a very large parish such as St. Kevin's.

  5. Needing a Letter of Permission: Hospitality is a wonderful characteristic of St. Kevin's Parish. And we do want to be open and hospitable to folks who are not registered members in the parish. Yet – we must be careful to observe church laws and regulations. We will consider doing a marriage or a baptism of those folks from elsewhere. But – we must ask that the person or persons making this request of us have a "letter of permission" from elsewhere, that is, from the parish in which they are actually living - a letter from the Pastor of that parish giving us permission to do the baptism or marriage. Without such a letter of permission our policy must be to refuse to do such baptisms or marriages.

  6. Weddings: To be married in St. Kevin's, one should be registered in the parish. Please call at least six months in advance to make arrangements. If not a registered member of our parish, we must have a Letter of Permission from the Pastor in which the person(s) is registered. (See above.)

  7. Baptisms: To be baptized in St. Kevin's, one should be registered in the Parish. Please call as early as possible to arrange a baptism. If one is not registered, we must have a Letter of Permission from the Pastor in which the family is registered. (See above.)

  8. Pastoral References for Teachers: Pastoral references for teachers are given for those persons who are registered in St. Kevin's Parish. The Pastoral Reference for teachers testifies that the person practices his or her faith regularly. Sunday Eucharist is the great Christian norm for the practice of the faith. The Pastoral Reference for teachers inquires as to how active the person is in participating in different dimensions of parish or civic life.

  9. Godparents / Christian Witness for Baptism: At baptism, a Roman Catholic sponsor is called a Godparent. All Godparents for Baptism should be practicing Catholics. One of the sponsors at baptism must be a Roman Catholic, 16 years of age and already confirmed. A non-Catholic sponsor is called a "Christian Witness". (This presumes that the non- Catholic is indeed a practicing Christian and baptized in a Christian church). In choosing a Godparent for baptism, parents should keep in mind that a Godparent at baptism should also be the person's sponsor at Confirmation.

  10. Confirmation Sponsors: A Confirmation sponsor must be a practicing Roman Catholic, already confirmed and 16 years of age. We ask the sponsor at Confirmation to have a brief meeting with the Pastor of his/her Parish. Simply inform the Pastor of your desire to act as a Confirmation sponsor at St. Kevin's and kindly ask the Pastor to sign the Sponsor Form. The Sponsor Form itself presents in a clear way the expectations for a Confirmation Sponsor.

  11. Parish Pastoral Practice.
    •   If someone is seriously sick at home or in the hospital, please call the office. One of the priests will be happy to visit.
    •   If one is unable to come to Sunday Eucharist over a long period of time, please call the office and arrange for a communion visit on the part of our Eucharist Ministers.
    •   When spending time in the hospital, please indicate that you are Roman Catholic and a member of St. Kevin's.

     

REMINDER:

Are You Registered in Our Parish?

Please do not take for granted that you are registered in the parish just because you attend Mass here. If we have no record of your parish membership, it could be quite embarrassing to us, or to you or your family, when someone wishes to make wedding plans, have a baby baptized, or if you have been asked to act as a sponsor for baptism or confirmation. Please fill out a registration form. This form is on the shelf in the book stand in the foyer of the church. When you have completed the form, place in the collection basket or return it to the Parish Office