SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST
Our Lady of Victory		St. Malachy
Sunday - 9:00 A.M.		Saturday - 7:00 P.M.

F O O D   F O R   T H O U G H T

Reading I 1 Samuel 26.2, 7 -9, 12 – 13, 22 - 25 Responsorial Psalm The Lord is kind and merciful. Reading II 1 Corinthians 15. 45-50 Gospel Luke 6.27 - 38 Food for Thought When I read Jesus’ words, what is my first response? Does their familiarity leave me tranquil? Do they seem simply excessive? Do I need to say to the Lord, “this is more than I can manage1”? Perhaps the key is. “Be merciful as your father is merciful.’ Only in so far as I experience the mercy and love of God can I move in the direction of the life that Jesus is calling me to. How is God trying to show me this mercy and love?

February 18th, 2007

Pastor	William Marrevee s.c.j.
Email	w.marrevee@sympatico.ca
Rectory	490 Charles Street Gatineau, Québec J8L 2K5
Secretary	Monday and Thursday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Telephone	(819) 986-3763
Fax	(819) 986-9889

ARE YOU NEW TO OUR PARISH? WELCOME!
Welcome to those who want to make our parish their faith home. You may have come from other places. You may have been “away for a while”. Be assured that we love to have you among us. We would appreciate it very much if you identified yourself at Mass. It would also help if you would take the time to fill out a registration form. The next time you are with us, you may leave it in the collection basket or give it to one of the ushers or to the priest. Thank you and welcome.

M A S S       S C H E D U L E WED. Feb. 21st - 9:00 a.m. Feb. 21st - 7:00 p.m. OLV NO 9:00 A.M. MASS ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE SAT. Feb. 24th - 7:00 p.m. St. Malachy Peter & Marilyn Roos by the Roos family. Mildred Scott by Ellen & Alvin SUN. Feb. 25th - 9:00 a.m. OLV Ed Dunlop (17th anniversary )and Bea Dunlop (8th anniversary) by their family Deceased members of the McFaul family by Hugh

ASH WEDNESDAY - OUR MOUNTAIN CLIMBING TOWARDS EASTER BEGINS
This coming Wednesday our church will look a little different: it will have a Lenten look. The cross, the burlap, the ashes, the banners, the purple, they underline the fact that as Christians we are signing up for renewal on the way to Easter. That is when we will have our baptism renewed. The Scripture readings and the music will sound different too as part of the Lenten repertoire.

However, that Lenten spirit is not to be safely kept in the church building. While it is important to come together in the church building, the Christian life is not lived there. That is why we try to bring all that is touched upon and pointed to in the church building to the places where we really live.

ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE - 7:00 P.M.
It is a traditional and well-founded practice for Catholics to receive the ashes, a sign that we are serious about the upcoming season of renewal and conversion.

But let us not lose sight of Easter. After all, we do not observe Lent for its own sake. It is meant to get us in shape to celebrate the central mystery of our faith: the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. That core mystery of our faith will be celebrated right after Lent during the Three Great Days of Holy Thursday evening, Good Friday, Easter Saturday and Easter Sunday: April 5-8. How about marking those dates on our calendar now and deciding now to take part in all we do as Church on those three most important days for us as Christians?

So this Wednesday we start our 40-day trek to Easter. We can mark the journey with the traditional Lenten practices of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. The supplement to this Sunday’s bulletin gives a more elaborate explanation of these practices.

LENT - A PRIVILEGED SEASON TO RE-CLAIM OUR CHRISTIAN IDENTITY
I came upon a delightful tale that I may want to keep before me in the next forty days:

A Cherokee elder, telling his grandchild about a fight going on inside himself said it is between two wolves.
One wolf is evil. It is filled with anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
The other wolf is good It is filled with joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.
The grandchild thought about it for a minute and then asked the aged grandfather, “Which wolf wins?”
The old Cherokee replied simply, “The one I feed.”

Which wolf do I feed? Surely, my belonging to Jesus Christ based on my having been baptized in his name has something to say about that.

IF “GIVING UP” IS PART OF OUR LENTEN VOCABULARY.... MONDAY, FEBRUARY 26TH, 7:00 P.M.
There is more to Lent than “Giving Up”. But it is one of those words that for Catholics is almost ingrained. Instead of giving up on “Giving Up “, how about giving it a new orientation? That is what Mia Crosthwaite is trying to do on the basis of Catholic social teaching. She identifies seven key themes of Catholic social teaching and elaborates on them a bit. It speaks more to the U.S.A. scene, but it can be helpful for us as well. And in a creative way we can get a sense of our Church’s social teaching. You find her musings as another supplement to this Sunday’s bulletin.

We plan to have an evening to discuss the author’s suggestions. That will be on Monday, February 26th, 7:00 p.m . at St. Aloysius. Please, use the entrance at the Rectory.

STATIONS OF THE CROSS DURING LENT
Stations of the Cross will be Friday evenings at 7:00 p.m.

OLV CHOIR PRACTICE
Interested in joining us at our next choir practice? We would love to see you there! Please meet us at 6.00 pm instead of 7:00 pm, at OLV. This is in order to have time to practice the special hymns we have for the Triduum. --those 3 biggest days of our Christian calendar beginning on April 5th! Come and sing!

FIRST COMMUNION PREPARATION
The next session in the preparation program will be on Saturday, February 24th, 9:00 a.m. This is a session for parents and children.

FRIENDSHIP CLUB
The Friendship Club will be holding their annual bazaar on Wednesday, February 21st, from 1:30 to 4:00 pm., with Bake, Kraft and novelty tables. There will also be games and a light lunch will be served. Admission is $1:00. Everyone is welcome.

ST PATRICK’S DAY TEA
The St. Patrick’s Tea will be held on Saturday March 17th, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the parish hall. More details will follow.

THE CANADA DAY COMMITTEE
The Canada Day Committee is sponsoring our annual St Patrick’s Dance to be held on Friday March 16th, at 8:30 p.m. It will be held at the Centre Recreatif Forestier, Julie/Chantal 1361 Route 315 (Mayo Road). For information or tickets, please call 281-5487 or 986-3534.

ST. COLUMBAN’S ANNUAL ST. PATRICK’S PARTY
St. Columban parish will be holding their Annual St. Patrick’s Party onSaturday, March 17th at 8:00 pm at the Royal CanadianLegion, 231 Maloney Blvd. West , Gatineau . There will be a Country Music Band and Irish Entertainers. Great prizes and lunch will be served. Cost is $8.00. Tickets are available from St. Columban’s Wardens, Marty Bums, Jim Foley and Maynard Robinson or call 819-561-3352.

INCOME TAX RECEIPTS - OLV
Please drop off a self-addressed stamped envelope in the collection basket or at the rectory, if you wish to receive an Income Tax Receipt for 2006.

W E E K L Y     R E C E I P T S   Date Collection OLV St. Malachy      Feb. 11th Regular $   425.00    $   187.00