11th Sunday of Ordinary Time - June 13, 2021

Our Lady of Peace Parish
Also Serving Our Lady of the Smile parish, Waterhen Lake and St. Jude’s Parish, Green Lake

Office Hours For Parish Secretary: Monday - Friday: 2:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Office Hours For Fr. Doug: Tuesday - Friday 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Office Phone:  306-236-5122 
Cell Phone: 306-304-7271
Parish Email: olpsecretary@sasktel.net Pastor Email: olpmlpastor@sasktel.net
Facebook: Catholic Church Meadow Lake
Website: https://www.meadowlakecatholicchurch.com/
Address: 504-3rd Ave. East, Meadow Lake, SK S9X 1H5
 
“There is one thing I ask of the Lord, only this do I seek: to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.”  Psalm 26.4
 
June 13, 2021 - 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time
 
Our Vision:
A Community of Disciples
 
Our Mission
We commit to form disciples who joyfully and faithfully live out the mission of Jesus Christ
by enriching our relationship with God and neighbour through the intercession of Our Lady of Peace.

Pastor:  Fr. Doug Jeffrey, OMI
Parish Secretary: Lorraine Thibeault
Pastoral Council Chair: Doris Beaubien
 
Mass Attendance:  If you would like to attend mass on Saturday nights or Sunday mornings in Meadow Lake, please call the Parish Office 306-236-5122 BEFORE FRIDAY NOON and leave a message.  Reservations are necessary as we have limited capacity, and we do not want to turn someone away from the door.
 
SaskHealth/Diocese of Prince Albert Regulations – As of May 30 we may welcome more people to our liturgies. What that means for Our Lady of Peace Parish is that we can now welcome 25 family groups of people to our Parish Hall and to our Parish Church. The size of the groups will determine how many people we can welcome as long as we do not exceed one-third the capacity of our building or 150 people. We are still required to wear masks, to sanitize and to maintain 2-metre social distance, and we are still required to register for mass. The presence of the Covid-19 variants continues to cause concern among health care professionals as they spread quickly and seriously impact our health and well being. The virus has not gone away. Our Liturgies at Green Lake and Waterhen Lake are likewise limited by these regulations. 
 
Something to look forward to!  When SaskHealth notifies us that we have reached Phase II of the Vaccination threshold, and we are able to gather with fewer concerns, it is my hope to have an outdoor Sunday celebration of the Eucharist here at Meadow Lake. The decision to pray the Eucharist outside will be a decision taken on a given Sunday as we must deal with wind and rain and such. Once things open up a little, I encourage you come to the Sunday morning liturgy with some sunscreen and your lawn chairs so we can gather outside. I will let you know when we have received new guidance.
 
THIS WEEK IN THE PARISH

1. Join us for Songs at Seven Thursdays at 7:00 pm.
2. A reminder to all to please get vaccinated if your health allows you to do so! Don’t forget to register for your second vaccine when you are eligible!
3. The office will be closed Tuesday afternoon, June 15, so that the secretary can attend an appointment.
4. Painting the Rectory and Deck - Beginning this week, Walter LeBoeuf will be overseeing the sanding and painting of the parish rectory and deck. If you would like to help, please contact Walter at 306 240 0503!  The project will involve scraping and sanding, removal of loose caulking and securing loose siding. When this work is complete, we will apply primer and then two coats of paint (rectory) and stain for the deck. Please come dressed to get messy. All needed materials and equipment will be provided.  Given all things, we will have 3 work periods! Mornings from 10:00 am to 12:00 noon; afternoons from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm; and evenings 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm
   

Masses Intentions

Mon., June 14 – Personal Intention

Tues., June 15 – 9:30 am (Facebook) - Tim Rodrigue by Theresa and Glen Rodrigue

Wed., June 16 – 6:30 pm (Our Lady of Peace Church, Meadow Lake & Facebook) - Fr. John Malazdrewich & all Oblates by Don and Bev Campbell
 
Thurs., June 17 - 9:30 am (Facebook) - +Arnold Wegwitz by Carmelita Cameron
 
Fri., June 18– No mass – Fr. Doug is in Prince Albert - +Abraham Family and Friends by Alice Abraham
 
Sat., June 19 – 9:30 am (Facebook) - +Abraham Family and Friends by Alice Abraham
 
Sat. June 19 - 7:00 pm (Our Lady of Peace Parish Hall, Meadow Lake) - People of God
 
Sun., June 20 - 10 am (Our Lady of Peace Church, Meadow Lake & Facebook) - People of God
 
Sun., June 20 - 12:30 pm (St Jude’s, Green Lake) - People of God
 
Thanks for the Color - A special word of thanks to Peggy, Melba and Marie who purchased plants for the north side entrance of the Church. They rescued some plants from the east side of the Old Parish Office and transplanted them last fall. This spring they planted some flowers to give the entrance of our Church some color…they have been watering and weeding and tending these plants. Thanks so much for giving the front of our Church a splash of color and warmth!
 
RCIA Reflection Group – For the last month or so a group of parishioners have joined with Fr. Doug to take part in some live-streamed conferences on the RCIA – the process used to welcome people into the Roman Catholic Church. After the conferences, we have met in person and talked about how we welcome people into our Church, and how we welcome Catholics who want to return to the Church.  We found the information offered by our Conference Presenters, Nick and Diane, to be helpful. We noted that it is important for our whole parish to be welcoming of one another and of those who come to our community for liturgy. Extending greetings/talking and visiting with one another were deemed important actions for our community. We also thought that offering to accompany people whether they want to become Catholic or return to the Church is especially important. It is not easy to ‘break-in’ to a community that is new; we all want to belong and sometimes we need help to know we belong and that we matter.

When someone is thinking about joining or rejoining our community, we feel that asking and listening to the answers to the following questions would be helpful for the individual and for ourselves. What do you need? Where are you now? Where do you want to go? How will you get there? How will you know you have arrived?

We recognized that it is the work of each parishioner to be enthusiastic about our faith – to live honestly and with integrity. We are all sinners, and we stumble and fall. It is important for us to try again. We are not judges of one another; we are companions finding our way together. We felt that it is important that parish leadership and membership work together to offer ongoing faith education opportunities for people. Perhaps an open mic, question and answer session would be helpful for all parishioners and those interested in joining or rejoining our community. It was also mentioned that a greater knowledge of sacred scripture would be helpful for parishioners. When our SaskHealth regulations allow it, we would welcome opportunities for social gatherings so that we can reconnect with each other. We are ONE Body; we are ONE People, and we are responsible for each other and with each other to make sure that our community is a community that loves one another as Christ loves us.

A Step in the Process of Healing and Reconciliation:  Considering what is being reported in the news and in an effort to be all that we are called to be as a faith community, I am taking some tentative steps to open up conversations with the various Peoples of the Meadow Lake Cluster. I will meet with the People of St. Jude’s Parish in Green Lake to determine a next step for their community. This week when I am at Our Lady of the Smile Parish in Waterhen Lake, we will have an initial discussion to figure out what we might do as a Catholic Community.

Here, at Our Lady of Peace Parish, I am inviting the Catholic Indigenous people from Meadow Lake and Flying Dust to a meeting on June 17 at 6:30 pm for an initial meeting to share their responses to the legacy of the Indian Residential Schools and the structures and organizations that supported it. After their sharing, we will, together, determine what our next steps will be. It is my hope that in some way we, (Indigenous and Non-Indigenous People) can eventually understand and have some dialogue around the Recommendations that flow from the National Truth and Reconciliation Report that was tabled in 2015.

I believe that as Pastor in the Meadow Lake Cluster, this moment is a time of listening. My listening, our listening to one another will lead us to what the next step will look like. Please pray, asking the Spirit of God to bless the work that lies ahead of us here in Meadow Lake, in Green Lake and in Waterhen Lake. I will do my best to keep the membership of the Cluster informed of what is taking place (summary reports) as it takes place.

Indian Residential Schools:  The following poem was accessed on June 10, 2021 and taken from: https://www.kegedonce.com/new-poem-by-louise-bernice-halfe-sky-dancer-honours-the-children-of-the-kamloops-residential-school/  New Poem by Louise Bernice Halfe – Sky Dancer honours the children of the Kamloops residential school.
Angels: 215 >, 1820 – 1979  “The Past is Always Our Present”

A cradle board hangs from a tree
A beaded moss bag is folded in a small chest
A child’s moccasin is tucked
Into a skunk Pipe bag
Children’s shoes in a ghost dance.
A mother clutches these
Palms held against her face
A river runs between her fingers.
A small boy covered in soot
On all fours a naked toddler
Plays in the water, while her Kokom’s skirt
Is wet to her calves.
“How tall are you now?” she asked.
“I’m bigger than the blueberry shrub,
Oh, as tall as an Aspen
Where my birth was buried.
See my belly-button?”
Each have dragged a rabbit to the tent, a tipi
Watched expert hands
Skin, butcher, make berry soup for dinner.
Boy falls a robin with a slingshot
He is shown how to skewer the breast
Roast the bird on hot coals.
He will not kill
Without purpose, again.
The tipi, tent, the log-shack are empty
Trees crane their heads through
The tipi flaps, the tent door
Through the cracks of the mud-shack.
A mother’s long wail from 1890
Carried in the wind. A grandparent
Pokes embers, a sprinkle of tobacco,
Cedar, sweetgrass, fungus, sage
Swirls upward.
Children’s creeks
Trickle in their sleep.
A blanket of deep earth
Covered fingers entwined
Arms around each other.
We have been
Waiting.
It is time to release
This storm
That consumes all this nation.
Awasis, this spirit-light, these angels
Dance in the flame.
The bones
Will share their stories.
Listen. Act.
These children are ours.
Could be…………………Yours.
Copyright: Louise B. Halfe-Sky Dancer
This poem, written on June 3, was created for the National Parliamentary Website. Louise has asked friends and associates to share it publicly. The copyright remains with Louise B. Halfe.

 
Kamloops Residential School – The following statement was issued by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops: https://www.cccb.ca/announcement/cccb-statement-regarding-discovery-at-former-kamloops-indian-residential-school/.
The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate who helped to administer the Residential School at Kamloops released the following statement: https://omilacombe.ca/media-release/.
We have heard, seen, and read various stories on the news and on social media of the discovery of a cemetery and 215 graves at the Residential School in Kamloops, BC. Given what we have heard, what might we do here in the Meadow Lake Cluster to move forward with efforts to deepen the healing and reconciliation that is needed at this time? Please email your ideas to olpmlpastor@sasktel.net or phone the Parish Office 306 236-5122. This path forward we must walk together!
 

DIOCESAN NEWS & BEYOND
 
CATHOLIC FAMILY SERVICES: To register or for more information, call:   Catholic Family Services 922-3202 or 1-877-922-3202 or email   programs.cfspa@sasktel.net
CALMING THE STORM- Anger Management for Adults - THIS IS A VIRTUAL CLASS.  A new session is posted each Monday for six weeks. The participant has the full week to view the lesson and complete the assignments.  Date: Week of May 24 – June 28  Time: At the convenience of participant within each one-week period
Fee: $25 – This class is partially funded by Community Initiatives Fund
 
 What’s your Catholic IQ?   Last bulletin’s question and answer:  Of the following, the one that is not a gift of the Holy spirit is (d) anger.  The gifts of the Holy Spirit listed in the Rite of Confirmation are wisdom, understanding, right judgment, courage, knowledge, reverence, and wonder and awe in the presence of God.
This week’s question:  Besides killing, the fifth commandments which states “Thou shalt not kill” forbade: (a) deep anger (b) hatred (c) fighting (d) all of these.

Now it Springs Forth: Looking for Ecumenical Movement with Fresh Eyes -  June 16, 2021
https://www.padiocese.ca/ecumenical-commission  This event is bilingual (English and French), with simultaneous translation in both languages.  This online celebration is free for all who would like to attend, but a small contribution to offset the cost is welcomed.  Rev. Canon Dr. Scott Sharman will present the 2021 De Margerie Lecture on Christian Reconciliation and Unity.  The De Margerie lecture was named in honour of Fr. Bernard de Margerie, who established the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism in Saskatoon. The lecture will be presented online from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Wednesday, June 16 co-hosted by St. Thomas More College, St. Andrew's College, and the Prairie Centre for Ecumenism.
For more information and for links to this event, please follow the above link.
 
SOCIAL JUSTICE  https://www.padiocese.ca/social-justice - CREATION CARE SCHOOL
Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato Si challenges us to engage in environmental education and action inspired by a Christian spirituality of Creation. This new training tool provides interested volunteers with a firm foundation in caring for the environment as Christians.: The link to the Creation Care School includes 2 free courses. https://creationcare.teachable.com/ 
Laudato Si': A Revolutionary Encyclical - Care for our common home through prayer and action
Duration: less than an hour  Cost: FREE
Greening Your Church - These 10 steps will inspire your faith community towards sustainability.  Duration: less than an hour.  Cost: FREE

SHRINE OF ST. THERESA, 96thANNUAL PILGRIMAGE - Wakaw, SK
In Honor of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus - Sunday June 13, 2021 from 9:30 – 10:15 a.m.
PRESENTATION: Spirituality of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus
GUEST SPEAKER: Most Rev. Bishop Stephen Hero, Bishop of Prince Albert Diocese
EUCHARISTIC CELEBRATION @ 10:30 a.m. presided by the Most Rev. Bishop Stephen Hero
P.S: Due to pandemic restrictions, the full-day pilgrimage celebration has been canceled. However, the presentation will be live-streamed at 9:30 a.m. and Mass at 10:30 a.m. at the shrine of St. Theresa. Please join us at sttheresaparishwakaw.com or https://youtu.be/-Ez1GtdBwGo