Mark McCormick offers the reflection this weekend. In it, he shares: “We are called to be servants of one another, modelled on our service to Christ. In our modern age, we are mostly used to serving ourselves or being served. We try hard and we work hard to support our households and we do this using the gifts and the talents God has given us. Self-serve is the default option in the 21st century — whether at the grocery store or the gas station. Our independence is prized when we have attained it. Its loss is one of the greatest tragedies we can imagine in this modern age. This ethic of autonomy and self-service has brought us to a position where we see ourselves as sole architects in charge of our human journey. We tend to place ourselves at the centre, rather than placing God at the centre. In doing so, we risk losing our humility…The readings today encourage us to fundamentally reconsider our position in relation to God and to one another.”
Liturgical Resources
- Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time – August 22 2021 – Liturgy of the Word for use at home
- READINGS FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME – 2021
- Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time 2021 – Prayers of the Faithful
- Mission Prayer
The History of Development & Peace at St. Joe’s
In Part 18 of the St. Joe’s Parish History Series with Terry Byrne, Joan O’Connell shares the history of Development & Peace in the Parish and about her involvement over the past decade.
Parish Update
St. Joe’s Supper Table BBQ sauce raffle
Tired of the same ol’ bbq? The basic store bought sauce not giving you the flavour and colour you want on your grill? Buy a raffle ticket and enter for your chance to win a 1 on a kind 1L jar of Supper Table sauce. This southwest BBQ sauce is our in house bbq that sauces up our pulled pork, burgers, ribs, and fish sandwiches. It’s sure to bring a conversation and some extra snap at your next backyard bash! Buy a ticket today: 1 for 1$ or buy a lucky 7 pack for 5$ Prize is 1L of supper table sauce. (Ingredients include: Brown sugar, ketchup, Worcestershire, spices (mustard, other) Fridge stable for 6months. Proceeds support the social justice outreach of the St. Joe’s Supper Table. Contact front office for ticket purchase (credit accepted): 613-233-4095, ext. 251.
Sunday Offerings for August 15, 2021 : $5,064
Thank you for your generosity. We are grateful for your support during the pandemic, especially as our expenses continue. If you would like to continue giving in this period, but have not yet returned to in-person Mass, you can mail in your offering envelopes/cheques to the parish front office, donate through Canada Helps or call us at 613-233-4095, ext. 251 to donate through credit card.
A Message from Development & Peace: Haiti needs our support
At 8:29 a.m. on Saturday, August 14, a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck Haiti’s Tiburon Peninsula, about 150 kilometres west of the capital, Port-au-Prince. By Monday, it was being reported that the death toll had crossed 1,300; that 13,600 homes were severely damaged; and that 800,000 people were directly affected. The victims were also bracing for a coming tropical storm. Development and Peace’s partners, ITECA and Caritas Haiti, swung into action, sending relief trucks and assessment teams to the affected areas. These are the very regions whose recovery you had generously supported after Hurricane Matthew in 2016. Now, our partners need your support once again to step up their relief efforts and to develop a sustained recovery program. Learn more here.
Vocation Reflection: “Freedom to Choose”
By Susai Jesu, OMI – Vocation Team – West
“Jesus never forced anyone to follow him. Jesus knows that the only thing that has moral value and which helps us to grow is what is done freely. Virtue is when we have a choice to do good or evil. Virtue also cannot be imposed. It has to be freely chosen. In fact, virtue has great strength when it deliberately chosen.”
Read the reflection here (published on Friday August 20): https://omilacombe.ca/become-an-oblate/
Also, in the next Vocations Café Fr. Jarek will be chatting with Fr. Susai Jesu OMI and Fr. Mark Blom OMI from Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples in Edmonton, AB. They will share their personal vocation story and experience of ministry with Indigenous People #OblateVocations All are welcome to join the conversation! It will be streamed LIVE fb.me/missionaryoblates next Thursday, August 26 at 3:00pm Eastern Time (1:00pm MDT)
Thank you for praying for and encouraging vocations to the Oblate religious life!
