EASTER VIGIL 2016 Excerpts from HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS Vatican Basilica Holy Saturday, 26 March 2016

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1 EASTER VIGIL 2016 Excerpts from HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS Vatican Basilica Holy Saturday, 26 March 2016 Peter ran to the tomb (Lk 24:12). What thoughts crossed Peter s mind and stirred his heart as he ran to the tomb? The Gospel tells us that the eleven, including Peter, had not believed the testimony of the women, their Easter proclamation. Quite the contrary, these words seemed to them an idle tale (v. 11). Thus there was doubt in Peter s heart, together with many other worries: sadness at the death of the beloved Master and disillusionment for having denied him three times during his Passion. There is, however, something which signals a change in him: after listening to the women and refusing to believe them, Peter rose (v. 12). He did not remain sedentary, in thought; he did not stay at home as the others did. He did not succumb to the sombre atmosphere of those days, nor was he overwhelmed by his doubts. He was not consumed by remorse, fear or the continuous gossip that leads nowhere. He was looking for Jesus, not himself. He preferred the path of encounter and trust. And so, he got up, just as he was, and ran towards the tomb from where he would return amazed (v. 12). This marked the beginning of Peter s resurrection, the resurrection of his heart. We, like Peter and the women, cannot discover life by being sad, bereft of hope. Let us not stay imprisoned within ourselves, but let us break open our sealed tombs to the Lord each of us knows what they are so that he may enter and grant us life. Let us give him the stones of our rancour and the boulders of our past, those heavy burdens of our weaknesses and falls. Christ wants to come and take us by the hand to bring us out of our anguish. This is the first stone to be moved aside this night: the

2 lack of hope which imprisons us within ourselves as if our problems were the centre of our lives. We see and will continue to see problems both within and without. They will always be there. But tonight it is important to shed the light of the Risen Lord upon our problems, and in a certain sense, to evangelize them. To evangelize our problems. Let us not allow darkness and fear to distract us and control us; we must cry out to them: the Lord is not here, but has risen! (v. 6). He is our greatest joy; he is always at our side and will never let us down. This is the foundation of our hope, which is not mere optimism, nor a psychological attitude or desire to be a courageous Christian. This hope does not disappoint us because the Holy Spirit has been poured into our hearts (cf. Rom 5:5). The Paraclete does not make everything look appealing. He does not remove evil with a magic wand. But he pours into us the vitality of life, which is not the absence of problems, but the certainty of being loved and always forgiven by Christ, who for us has conquered sin, conquered death and conquered fear. Today is the celebration of our hope, the celebration of this truth: nothing and no one will ever be able to separate us from his love (cf. Rom 8:39). The Gospel also reminds us of this: in order to kindle hope in the hearts of the women, the angel tells them: Remember what [Jesus] told you (v. 6). Remember the words of Jesus, remember all that he has done in our lives. Let us not forget his words and his works, otherwise we will lose hope and become hopeless Christians. Let us instead remember the Lord, his goodness and his life-giving words which have touched us. Let us remember them and make them ours, to be sentinels of the morning who know how to help others see the signs of the Risen Lord. Dear brothers and sisters, Christ is risen! And we have the possibility of opening our hearts and receiving his gift of hope. Let us open our hearts to hope and go forth. May the memory of his works and his words be the bright star which directs our steps in the ways of faith towards that Easter that will have no end. Fr. Libor Svorcik The Lord is Risen Indeed Vesele Velikonoce! Luke 24:34 Fr. Andrew Wesołych Świąt Wielkanocnych! Fr. Prasanth

3 EASTER SUNDAY- April 16, 2017 Living the Gospel by evangelizingg our faith in the greater world.. St. Anthony s Parish in the Diocese of Guntur in India has nine mission stations which are between kilometres away from the parish. There are nearly 350 Catholic families and five hundred children going to school from these areas. As the mission stations are a distance from the parish, the faithful do not experience many religious activities. Father Mayakuntala Kumar, Pastor of the parish, with the support of the Pastoral Mission Fund and ShareLife, is conducting a Children Faith Formation Camp to help the children to become rooted in the Catholic faith. With our support, Father Kumar is helping to evangelize the faith not only for today, but for the future as well. Next ShareLife Sunday is May 7, 2017 Happy Easter from all of us at Guardian Angels! Blessings to you and your Family!

4 Readings: Easter Sunday We ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. Acts 10.34a, Seek the things that are above, where Christ is. Colossians According to the Scripture: Jesus must rise from the dead. John Mass Intentions Holy Saturday April 15 7:30 pm Solemn Easter Vigil Mass: Dona Novosky Reception to follow in the parish hall Easter Sunday April 16 Resurrection of the Lord Second Collection: Church Projects 9:00 am Mass: Gerry Elbers 11:00 am Mass: Bill & Helen Steffler 1:00 pm Baptism of Kloé Manon Bowen Easter Monday April 17 Parish Office Closed 9:00 am Mass: People of the Church Tuesday April 18 10:00 am Baptism of Aisha Santos 12:10 pm Mass: Frank McMillan Wednesday April 19 12:10 pm Mass: Anselmo Ayson Jr.

5 12:10 pm Mass: Maria Segna 12:10 pm Mass: Pat Renehan Thursday April 20 Friday April 21 Saturday April 22 9:00 am Mass: Lena & Eugenio Borrelli 5:00 pm Mass: Patsy Robbins Pro-Life Dinner to follow in the parish hall Divine Mercy Sunday April 23 9:00 am Mass: Sean Oxby 11:00 am Mass: Jackie & Harold Derochie Divine Mercy Sunday Devotion to the Divine Mercy will be held in Guardian Angels Church Sunday, 23 April at the 11:00 am Mass. Reception to follow in the parish hall to celebrate the 16 th year of the Adoration Chapel. Parishioners and visitors are welcome to attend! Patrick Fogarty Fundraiser-Friday, April 21 Patrick Fogarty Music Department is hosting a fundraiser Cabaret Dinner at 6:00 pm. There will be New York Style Pizza, Salads, Desserts, Soft Drinks, Water and Juice. Students will be singing along with the Jazz Band throughout the evening. Also a Silent Auction during the dinner. The cost is $15 for adults and $7 for kids. Tickets can be purchased by calling Patrick Fogarty School at ext 356.

6 CWL Rummage Sale Guardian Angels Catholic Women s Leaguee Monday, April 24 is Our Lady of Good Council Feast Day Dinner beginning with Mass at 5:30 pm and Dinner at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $25. Please call Sue at or Lorna at Deadline to reserve is Wednesday, April 19. Ladies come out and enjoy a great meal with good fellowship! The Rummage Sale will be held on Saturday, 29 April from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm (Noon). Donations of clean gently used clothing and household linens can be dropped off at the Church Friday, 28 April labelled Rummage Sale Items. No housewares or children s furniture or toys accepted as we are unable to handle them. Faith Formation-Movie Risen Enjoy the movie Risen, a stirring telling of the Easter story through the eyes of a Roman Soldier. There will be two showings at Guardian Angels in the parish hall. Wednesday, April 26 at 6:30 pm and Thursday, April 27 at 1:00 pm. Popcorn will be provided. For the afternoon showing bring a sandwich; soup is provided. No charge, bring a friend! 1 st Annual ShareLife Dinner Our first annual ShareLife Dinner will be hosted by the ShareLife Committee Saturday, 6 May. Beginning with Cocktails at 6:00 pm and Dinner at 7:00 pm. Dinner consists of Salad, Lasagna and Breaded Pork Cutlets with Marinara Sauce, Roasted Potatoes, Vegetables and Dessert; Tea and Coffee for $ Our Special Guest Speaker will be Arthur Peters from the Archdiocese of Toronto. Tickets will be on sale on the weekends of April 22/23 and 29/30 or contact Patsy Cranney at or Mike Holjevac at

7 Other Up Coming Masses & Events April 19 Bus Trip to St. Michael s Cathedral Departure 9:15 am April 20 Champlain Manor Mass: Francis Pereira 10:00 am April 22 Trillium Manor Mass: Gary Gaudaur 10:30 am 8:00 am Sacred Heart Mass: Patsy Robbins 8:00 am Sacred Heart Mass: Lorne & Audrey Burnie 1 st Holy Communion: Émile Hilts-Lesperance Baptism of Éloïsé Marie-Adele Hilts-Lesperance