Our Lady of Victory / St-Malachy

SECOND SUNDAY

LENT

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

Genesis 15.5-12, 17-18

Responsorial Psalm

The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Reading II

Philippians 3.17 – 4.1

Gospel

Luke 9.28b-36

Food for Thought

In this moment of “transfiguration” God the Father affirms Jesus for who he really is: “This is my Son, my Chosen.” This must have been profoundly consoling. But, Jesus who he really was inevitably involved him going forward to do what he had to do.
Can I allow the father to affirm me for who I really am? Is there consolation for me?
Does being who I really am hold any terrors for me?

March 4th, 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.	Mar. 07th - 9:00 a.m.	OLV	Cathy Stanyar Dube by Margaret O’Reilly
SAT.	Mar. 10th - 7:00 p.m.	St. Malachy	Mary Elizabeth Byrne by her Estate
SUN.	Mar. 11th - 9:00 a.m.	OLV	Harold, Helen & Sean Cullen by the family Bernadette Woods by Alma Miller & family

LENT - WE CLIMB THE HOLY MOUNTAIN OF EASTER
Lent does not exist for itself; we observe it for the sake of Easter, the Church’s celebration of Christ’s victory over death and sin. There would be no Lenten season, if it was not for Jesus Christ having been crucified and having been raised from the dead for our sake. This is such an enormous event of faith that its celebration needs to be properly prepared. We do that in the Lenten season.

The traditional Lenten practices can play a significant role:

Prayer	Prayer, not to be restricted to church, but to be practiced at home as well. There is some reflection material at the entrance to the church. And taking the *Living with Christ Sunday Missal* home can be a helpful move too.
Fasting	Fasting in the form of refraining from some food, a drink, a party, a video or another form of entertainment can be a beautiful gesture of solidarity with the poor in our world. It can also be healthy for ourselves when it helps us gain a certain freedom from things we depend on or that imprison us.
Almsgiving	The almsgiving of Lent is based on the Lenten fasting. We put the money we save from our Lenten fasting aside and gradually build up our contribution to the Development and Peace collection (Share Lent) at the end of Lent. That is a good way of our “giving up something” becoming beneficial for others.

Naturally, these practices are not an end for themselves, but they are meant to help us grow in greater union with Jesus Christ. He is the one that stands central in it all.

READY FOR SOME MEATY LENTEN STUFF?
Is it chance or design/grace when you stumble upon a piece that really speaks to you? That happened to me when — by chance or by design/grace? — I read Daniel O’Leary’s Lenten reflection in The Tablet. Pretty powerful, in my estimation. That is why it is an insert in this Sunday’s bulletin. Who knows, it may speak to you as well.

Fasting and Abstinence - Outmoded?
This is a repeat from last year. It is part of an editorial, again in The Tablet, that makes some good points on the practice of fasting and abstinence that used to be such a “Catholic Thing” until the late sixties.

Fasting and abstinence had come to be associated with a particularly rigid and scrupulous attitude to church law -- eating meat on a Friday was a ‘mortal sin” to be confessed before one could receive Communion, and so on. That was never the point of it and while breaking that sense of over-scrupulosity was doubtless a good pastoral move at that time, the climate now is entirely different Any return to a more general practice of fasting and abstinence would have to be seen as an exercise in valuable self-discipline rather than as the empty observance of regulations, but that is something that modern culture, with its interest in “diets and detox”, could readily appreciate. If we are what we eat, then not eating for a set period makes a powerful point. Why should our bodies not worship as well as our minds and hearts? But to leave the choice entirely up to individuals would not be sufficient It has to become normative again, a regular and routine feature of Catholic life. In 1967 it was abolished from the top down.

Why not let it return to Catholic life from the bottom up, by the spontaneous initiative of local parishes seeking ways to deepen their faith?

Now that would be a healthy and constructive move! And if we then make the money we save with our fasting and abstinence into our contribution to the upcoming Share Lent collection from Development and Peace, then we really make our fasting and abstinence life-giving for others. And is that not part of Christian living?

HOW ABOUT GIVING OURSELVES A SPECIAL TREAT FOR THIS LENT?
A special treat in the form of a Lenten retreat that is offered next Saturday, March 10th, 9:00 am — 4:00 pm. And you cannot get any closer, because it is at our own premises! Here at O.L.V. in Buckingham. The theme for this retreat is Embracing our Belovedness (based on Luke 15, on Nouwen’s book and on Rembrandt’s painting). It is offered by L’Arche Ottawa. A free-will offering can be made to L’Arche Ottawa, but there will be a $10.00 charge for lunch and refreshments.

Please, register no later than this Monday March 6th by calling 613-282-8015 or by sending an e-mail message to linda.cameron@sympatico.ca

Embracing Our Belovedness: A Lenten Retreat with Henri Nouwen's reflections on "The Return of the Prodigal Son" (Luke 15:11-32). Offered by L'Arche Ottawa
L’Arche was founded in 1964 by Canadian humanitarian and social visionary, Jean Vanier who became distressed by the institutionalization, isolation and loneliness of people with developmental disabilities. He invited two men from an institution to live with him in a small house. He called the house “L’Arche”, a French word for “the ark” in the biblical story of Noah and the flood. L’Arche grew quickly and spread around the world, attracting many young people who wanted to help and opening new homes and workshops. L’Arche began in Canada in 1969. Today, there are 130 L’Arche communities in 30 countries on all continents. All of these communities are part of the International Federation of L’Arche Communities.

Members of L’Arche Ottawa’s outreach committee, made up of core members and assistants, are bringing the vision and values of Jean Vanier and L’Arche to residents of the Ottawa region. “Embracing our Belovedness” is a retreat which explores two themes: that you can only love others if you learn to love yourself and you can only love yourself if you learn to love others.

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

FIRST COMMUNION PREPARATION
The next session in the preparation program will be on Saturday, March 11th, 9:00 a.m. Parents and children join in the celebration of the Sunday Eucharist of the parish.

PRAYERS & SYMPATHY
- to the families of Elmer Delcourt & Louis Weatherdon who died recently. Please remember Elmer & Louis in your prayers.

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. Cost is $4.00 for adults, $2.50 for children 6-12 yrs. Children under 6 free. Adult servers will be on hand to cater to you. Cook Book will be on sale at the tea for $10.00. No Copies will be Available prior to March 17th. The church doors will be open at 9:00 AM to accept your goodies for the tea. This will give us time to prepare the items accordingly.

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). Music by Country Hill (Clifford Daly) Admission is $6:00. 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 on Saturday, March 17th at eight o’clock at the Royal Canadian Legion, 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. Tickets are available from St. Columban’s Wardens, Marty Bums, Jim Foley and Maynard Robinson or call 819-561-3352

W E E K L Y R E C E I P T S

Date	Collection	OLV	St. Malachy

Feb. 25th	Regular	$ 423.00	$ 281.00
Feb. 25th	Fuel	471.00	144.00