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.

GOOD NEWS
Father Gyan has returned from his Pilgrimage and is on his way to visit his family. All is well and he is enjoying his holiday...

MASS OF THANKSGIVING
Tom & Isabel Laframboise will be celebrating their 50th wedding Anniversary on October 18th. They are offering a Mass of Thanksgiving at OLV for the grace & blessings of 50 years of marriage. This Mass will be celebrated by Father Bob Smith on Saturday the 18th of October at 4:00 p.m. and will be in addition to the regular week-end mass schedule. The regular Sunday offerings will be collected at this Mass. Everyone is welcome to attend.

LITURGY OF THE WORD FOR CHILDREN ON SUNDAYS WORKSHOP
November 1st at St. Mark's in Aylmer from 9AM-12PM with Heather Reid (a co-author of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Celebrating the Liturgy of the Word with Children - Guidelines for Practice). In this workshop, participants will learn about what this Liturgy of the Word for Children on Sundays really means from start to finish, from the music to the homiletic moment, in all aspects. To register, please call St. Mark’s parish office at (819) 684-6926.

NOVEMBER - THE MONTH IN WHICH WE REMEMBER THE DECEASED
November is traditionally the month in which we give more attention to the remembrance of the deceased. Christians do so in a unique way based on what is central in our faith: the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

You will see for all of the month of November the so-called Book of Life at the front of the church. The Book of Life contains the names of deceased parishioners and relatives. Some additional pages are provided at the back of the book for that purpose, unless you decide to make up your own page to add to the book.

It is our way of expressing our faith that the dead find peace with God and will be raised to life when the Lord Jesus comes in glory. The Book is placed next to the Easter Candle which speaks of the ultimate victory of life over death, of light over darkness, in the dead and risen Jesus. We are called to share in that victory.

Since All Souls Day (or the Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed as it is known today) falls on a Sunday this year, the readings we hear today are the selections for this occasion and actually replace the Ordinary Time Sunday reading. As such, please note that there will not be any other Mass to celebrate this Solemnity.

FALL WORKSHOP FOR ALL LEADERS IN ALL ENGLISH PARISHES OF OUR DIOCESE
A note to both wardens groups as well as to all parish committees: please be sure that your 'homework questionnaire' is ready to bring with you on November 8th. If no one from your committee plans to attend, please be sure that you hand your completed document over to any one of the PPC members. Our focus at this workshop will be an Assessment of how our parish communities are doing in light of the challenge of Catechesis. Please make a point to be present and active on Saturday November 8th, from 9:00 a.m. to noon at Our Lady of Annunciation, 189 rue Archambault (Hull sector).

REFLECTION ON OUR EXPERIENCE OF THE MONTH OF OCTOBER THIS YEAR
We had one mass per week this past month and only at OLV with a visiting priest (Fr. Yves) while our own parish priest Father Gyan was away. How did that go? Your opportunity to reflect and respond to this is now. See the insert in this week's bulletin and then talk to any one of our PPC members before next Saturday's Zone workshop because one of the topics we will be discussing is dedicated to this very question/situation on what parishes will do in the absence of their parish priest.

Thanks,

HALF WAY THERE
- We are more than half way through the month of October with Fr. Gyan away on holidays and it is beautiful to see our two parish-community working/praying together -- especially in the light that those from Mayo would most certainly have to rearrange their weekend schedules in order to participate. Let us continue this joined-journey, leaning on each other with Christ in the middle to hold us up!

LOTS OF FOOD TAKE TO THE LOCAL FOOD KITCHEN - THANK YOU!
It came from the food that was brought to last Sunday's Thanksgiving Mass (the second of four combined parishes' Masses planned for the month of October). And it was beautiful! Three full baskets!! That made both the Mass and Thanksgiving real, sharing our very selves with those in need in our community.

DEVELOPMENT & PEACE FALL CAMPAIGN Last week, we told you we’d show how mining threatens people’s food sovereignty. Take a look at the leaflet inserted with this bulletin about the people of the Valle de Siria in Honduras and read their stories. The case of the open-pit gold mine in Honduras offers a striking example of the urgency to act and to convince the Canadian government to establish a legal framework overseeing the practices of mining companies. It also illustrates the threat that mining poses to food sovereignty. The story of the Entre Mares mine in Honduras is not an isolated case: this is a problem that Development and Peace partners are facing in Asia, Latin America and Africa, notably in the Philippines, Peru and the Democratic Republic of Congo. For last fall’s campaign, 200,000 action cards were delivered to Ottawa in May and the Development and Peace campaign was the subject of numerous questions in the House of Commons. We are close to achieving a real social change – we have to stay mobilized! Next week, you will be invited to sign the action postcard urging the Canadian government to introduce legal mechanisms to hold Canadian mining companies to account. Be prepared!

A second exposure trip – this time to Africa! At the 2007 fall campaign workshop, the Gatineau Diocesan Council of Development and Peace announced that it was planning an exposure trip for 2008. Those interested were asked to name which country (or continent) they wanted to visit. After many meetings during the past year with the management of Development and Peace in Montreal, our diocesan Animator was finally given the go-ahead during the summer to plan a 15-day exposure trip to Sierra Leone in Africa. Even though I’ve already participated in a D&P exposure trip, I am very excited about having the opportunity to go to Africa. As everyone knows, there is an enormous need on that continent and I am excited about visiting and meeting some of the partners and viewing projects funded by D&P. It has always been a desire of mine to visit Africa, where some of the most impoverished peoples of the world live. The D&P Project Leader for West Africa has just completed a 10-day tour of Sierra Leone and will be meeting with the group prior to our departure. Six Development and Peace members will be accompanying me. Two other members of the group are local residents; one from Masson and one from L’Ange-Gardien. You may recall that the last two campaigns have focused on mining, calling on the federal government to regulate how Canadian companies mine overseas. One of the documents distributed in 2007 highlighted some of the problems being faced by people in Sierra Leone. I have read much about Africa and the work that Development and Peace is doing on that continent and I am so looking forward to seeing first-hand the humanitarian works of our Catholic organization. Linda Cameron

GET TOGETHER FOR LEADERS IN ENGLISH PARISHES - SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 8TH
The English Zone Pastoral Council meets twice a year in an attempt to continue our combined efforts to wrestle with the vision of the document of our bishop: Discovering Jesus Christ: The Path to Freedom. Our focus this time will be an Assessment of how our parish communities are doing in light of the challenge of Catechesis. We urge all PPC members, wardens, members of parish committees, all parish ministries, and interested parishioners to be present and active there on Saturday November 8th, from 9:00 a.m. to noon at Our Lady of Annunciation, 189 rue Archambault (Hull sector).

CHRISTMAS TEA
The Society will be hosting the Christmas Tea on Saturday, December 6th, so you can reserve that date and it is also a good time to start making those Christmas goodies. Thanks. (signed Monique for the OLV Society).

HARVEST SUPPER
Tickets for St. Malachy’s and OLV Parishes Harvest Supper on October 24th, are sold out However, raffle tickets are available.