20th Sunday in Ordinary Time August 18, 2024

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

Office Hours: Closed Monday
Tuesday - Friday 1-4:00 pm
Office Phone:  306-236-5122 
Cell Phone: 306-304-7271

Parish Email: [email protected] Pastor Email: [email protected]
Facebook: Catholic Church Meadow Lake
Website: https://www.meadowlakecatholicchurch.com/
Address: 504-3rd Ave. East, Meadow Lake, SK S9X 1H5  
 
   Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Psalm 34 Refrain
 
 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. Uche Umechikelu, MSP
Parish Secretary:
Pat Bencharski
 
Masses
Intentions

When there is a funeral, the daily mass will normally be cancelled.  Check Facebook for the most up-to-date information.  On Tuesday to Friday and on Sunday, Our Lady of Peace masses will be livestreamed on Facebook.

Mon., Aug. 19 – No mass
 
Tues., Aug. 20 – 10:00 am Liturgy with Communion at the Lodge
 
Tues., Aug. 20 – 6:30 pm (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) -Anonymous

Wed., Aug. 21 – 6:30 pm (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook)-Anonymous

Thurs., Aug. 22 – 8:30 am Adoration before mass
 
Thurs., Aug. 22 – 9:30 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - Anonymous

Fri., Aug. 23 – 9:30 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - Anonymous

Sat., Aug. 24 – 7:00 pm (Our Lady of Peace Church) - People of God

Sun., Aug. 25 – 10:00 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - People of God

Sun., Aug. 25 – 12:30 pm (St. Jude’s Green Lake) - People of God

Sun., Aug. 25 – 3:00 pm (Our Lady of the Smile Waterhen) - People of God

THIS WEEK IN THE PARISH

1. The secretary will be away on holidays from August 17 to 24th.
2. Adult catechism will be on Saturdays before mass starting August 17th at 6:00 pm.

 
Sunday Collection – August 11:  Meadow Lake $1778.00  Green Lake $305.20   Children’s Collection $4.50
                                                           
Sunday Church Attendance – August 11 - Adults 177  Children  16   Total  193
 
The Pope’s Prayer Intention for August – for political leaders – We pray that political leaders be at the service of their own people, working for integral human development and for the common good, especially caring for the poor and those who have lost their jobs

​Please pray for Wayne Bettcher who passed away on August 11. Prayers were held Friday evening, Aug. 16 at 7:00 pm and his funeral took place Saturday, August 17 at 11:00 am in our church.  Please remember Wayne and his family in your prayers.
 
Please pray for Abbot Peter Novecosky who passed away August 15. His funeral will be held in Humboldt at St. Augustine’s Parish on Tuesday, August 20 at 11:00 am. May he rest in peace.
 
Parish Garage Sale – Our parish will be holding a garage sale on Saturday, September 21 in the Parish Hall. Donated items for the sale can be dropped off at the hall on Thursday and Friday, Sept. 19th and 20th.
 
Season of Creation - The 2024 Season of Creation will take place from September 1st to October 4th with the theme “To hope and act with Creation”.
                                               
Scripture Insights – 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Taken from Source Book for Sundays, Seasons and Weekdays 2024:  The Almanac for Pastoral Liturgy, LTP Liturgy Training Publications Copyright 2023, 3949 South Racine Avenue, Chicago, IL 60609, pg. 302.
 
 During these weeks when we hear the bread-of-life discourse from the sixth chapter of John’s Gospel, the first readings bring us passages from the Old Testament that highlight the importance of feasting, eating, and drinking in good times and in bad. The first reading today is from the Book of Proverbs, a collection of sayings written over the course of centuries that praise Wisdom in its many divine manifestations.
 The Book of Proverbs portrays Wisdom as a woman preparing food and drink to nourish those who come to her. Wisdom has prepared a table, and she calls our her invitation through the entire city: “Come, eat of my food, and drink of the wine I have mixed!”
While the first reading and the Gospel bring out the importance of wine in tradition – at Wisdom’s table and in Jesus’ words to the crowd – the second reading explicitly warns against drinking wine in excess. St. Paul cautions the Ephesians to think about their daily lives: They should behave moderately and make the best use of their time and abilities. In order to live as Paul encourages, we need wisdom, a gift of the Spirit, to teach us God’s ways. We also need to know our own gifts along with our lacks.
But even as St. Paul cautions against “debauchery,” and other Scripture texts occasionally recommend abstinence from wine, in today’s liturgy Proverbs and John encourage consumption – presumably in moderation and for a far better purpose than debauchery!
The beautiful passage from John is a continuation of the Eucharistic theology we have been hearing for a few weeks. The Gospel’s concentration on the “flesh and blood” of Christ in the bread and wine is, according to biblical scholars, a kind of sacramental realism. Outside of its religious context, this very specific encouragement to “eat flesh” and “drink blood” would sound strange indeed.
 
                    

• There is a famous poem by George Herbert, “Love Bade Me Welcome,” that pairs beautifully with today’s first reading. In it, the author speaks of his question of worthiness for a Love so beautiful, so perfect, so welcoming. Love, like Wisdom, persists in hospitality, sure that the sharing of a meal itself can do wonders in the way of understanding. Have we set today’s table with the same hospitality?

·         Again, our second reading begs us to consider how we spend our days, our preciously limited time on earth. How do we speak to one another? How do we show gratitude and reverence for God and all God’s blessings?
“You are what you eat.” Essentially, Christ is asking us to become more Christ-like by eating his Body and Blood. Everything that nourishes and sustains our body, the fuel that gives us energy to rise in the morning, to propel our organs, the lifeblood that invigorates our mind and heart should be the very stuff of divinity itself. With our beings fixed on this heavenly food, we consume our inheritance of everlasting life.