“Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.” Lk 1,39

Dear parishioners,

There is a beautiful commentary on this Sunday’s gospel in the Living With Christ. 

“Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.”

It’s easy to forget how difficult it was for Mary to accept God’s plan. To be found pregnant out of wedlock was not only a source of shame, but against Levitical law. It could mean her death – a painful death by stoning. Still, Our Lady trusted in the Lord whom she loved and gave her fiat – let it be done. 

In today’s Gospel, we see the first fruits of that trust. In the early days of her pregnancy, when Mary arrived at her cousin Elizabeth’s home, she must have wondered how Elizabeth would react. Maybe Mary would be able to conceal her pregnancy for a few months… Mary had no reason to believe that she and her child would be met with anything other than condemnation. Yet, the moment she arrived, Elizabeth greeted her with love, already knowing of the pregnancy and congratulating Mary for her faith.

Even in times of danger, Mary consistently submitted herself to the will of God. She trusted in him. In return, God cared for her. Although she endured suffering throughout her life, she was always provided for by the God of love. We too can put our trust in God, because he cares for us. 

Gabrielle Johnson, Edmonton, AB

December 2021 edition of Living with Christ.

My personal take on this gospel: it is the story of Mary, a believer, bearing something of the holiness of God, visiting a fellow believer, Elizabeth, who is  also bearing something of the holiness of God. It’s about these two believers sharing their faith and their hope, and the blessings of God in their lives. This may be the Christmas season, but let’s face it, for most of us, it’s a difficult time, and for some of us, a very hard time. Why not think of a fellow believer out there who might be having a specially hard time during this second Covid Christmas, perhaps because they’re alone, perhaps because they’re haunted by a possibility of serious illness, perhaps because they’ve recently lost a loved one. The first Christmas is always hard. If there is a fellow believer, or just a friend, who fits one of these descriptions in your life this Christmas, why not reach out and visit them, either in person, online, or on the phone. And like Mary and Elizabeth, share the consolations of Christian faith and hope, and stories of God’s blessings in your respective lives. This would be a great Christmas gesture.

In other news, I should begin by addressing again the issue of the collection baskets. Understandably, some people are concerned about the fact that these baskets are touched by so many people. I think I’m in a position to be reassuring here. First of all, using long handles held by the ushers alone isn’t an option, since the pews are too long. So what’s to be done? Firstly, I point out that we all sanitize our hands upon arrival and as we leave, such that the probability of infection via the collection basket is very low. Secondly, you needn’t touch the basket at all if you’re not comfortable doing so. If you wish to make an offering, just deposit it in the offering box that is chained to the last pew in the centre aisle. Also, you might consider using the disinfectant and paper towels that are available in all pews to disinfect your hands after having touched the basket. if you happen to have a hand sanitizer, why not offer it to your neighbour in the pew…Finally, every three months, we have the entire church disinfected with a substance that kills all germs on contact, including all variants of Covid. When they return to disinfect in early January, I’ll make sure they disinfect the collection baskets as well.  Hopefully, this allays most fears surrounding the collection baskets. 

Given the beginning of an “omicron wave” of this pandemic, Dr. Bonnie Henry announced new restrictions on Friday. Fortunately, as churches, we seem to have been spared any further restrictions. So just a reminder, heading into Christmas: masking is required in all religious gatherings, and all religious gatherings are restricted to half of capacity, in terms of the number of people in attendance. We are allowed a certain flexibility in the application of this rule, but the rule remains, such that we will count people coming to each mass on Sundays and at Christmas and New Year’s masses, and should the number significantly exceed half of capacity, which is just 350, we will simply have to close the doors.  Please, please, spread the word… The schedule of masses will be posted on the door of the church. If you aren’t allowed in, you’ll see there the alternate mass times for the same event, where you might try again. We learned on Friday that these rules are in effect until at least January 31st. I remind those of you who might be reluctant to come under these conditions that we are live streaming the 11:15 and 3:00 p.m. masses every Sunday, and on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day as well. Just go to our Youtube channel. 

A reminder: There will be two priests available for confessions between all masses this Sunday, and there will be six priests available to hear confessions from 7:00-9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 21st

Finally, a reminder that we have surpassed our archdiocesan goal for Project Advance, which means that every penny of what we donate to Project Advance from now till December 31st comes straight back to the parish, and goes into our Building Fund, which now stands, by the way, at $2.5 million!

This will be the last parish bulletin of the year. The next edition of the bulletin will appear on January 2nd.

I take this opportunity to assure you of my prayer for a happy, and above all, a safe Christmas season for you and your loved ones.

Fr. Guy