Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023

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 1-3:00 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  
 
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad. Psalm 118 Refrain
 
 
April 9, 2023 - Easter Sunday
 
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:
Pat Bencharski
Pastoral Council Chair:


Mass 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., Apr. 10 – No mass

Tues., Apr.11 – 10:00 am Liturgy with Communion at the Lodge

Wed., Apr. 12 – 9:30 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - Thanksgiving by Swapna & Bijo

Thurs., Apr. 13– 9:30 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - +Annie Santos by Darcy, Dustin & Jim Thomas & Kelty Esau

Fri., Apr. 14 – 9:30 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - +Agnes Marie Morin by Audrey & Gilbert Griffiths

Sat., Apr. 15 – 5:00 pm (St Jude Parish, Green Lake) - People of God

Sun., Apr. 16 – 10:00 am (Our Lady of Peace Church & Facebook) - People of God

THIS WEEK IN THE PARISH

1. Parish secretary’s hours are from 1:00 to 3:00 Tuesday to Friday.
2. Liturgy of the Word with Communion at the Lodge on Tuesday, April 11.
3. Fr. Doug has an Evangelization and Catechesis Commission Meeting Tuesday evening from 6-8:00 pm
4. Diocesan Financial Webinar at 7:00 – 9:00 pm Wednesday Apr. 12
5. Parish Finance Council Meeting this Thursday, Apr. 13 at 1:00 pm (Parish Office Closed)

 
Sunday Collection – March 26:  Meadow Lake $3319.60          Green Lake – $591.00
                                                March CAFT $2160.00
                                   
The Pope’s Prayer Intention for April – For a culture of peace and non-violence – We pray for the spread of peace and non-violence, by decreasing the use of weapons by States and citizens.
 
Easter Season – The seven weeks from Easter to Pentecost are celebrated as one great Feast Day. St. Athanasius called them “the great Sunday.” Christians sing the “Alleluia” during these days in their rejoicing. Taken from Ordo: the Liturgical Calendar page 211
 
Fr. Doug will be available for liturgies and meetings this week but will not be in the Parish Office during the day! In case of an emergency please call the Parish Cell Phone!
 
Meadow Lake Parish Annual General Meeting – This year we will have a Parish AGM for the first time since 2019. To avoid a long meeting and to enable us to have a clear focus, we will have two meetings, one will focus on our Parish Ministry and one will focus on our Finances and Facilities. Prior to the meetings we will distribute reports concerning our Pastoral Ministry and our Finances and Facilities. Our first AGM in Meadow Lake will take place immediately after mass on Sunday, April 16, and will focus on the Pastoral Ministry of the Parish, and we will have elections for our Parish Pastoral Council.
On April 30th we will meet again immediately after mass, and we will focus on our Finances and Facilities. We will review our Financial Statement for 2022 and we will look at our Budget for 2023. We will also look to adding a few additional members to our Finance Council. The reports provided before the Pastoral Ministry Sunday and the Finances and Facilities Sunday will give us the opportunity to think deeply about what we need and want for our parish community. Please mark these dates on your calendars and plan to attend. Depending on the questions and ideas that surface, the meetings should not take more than 45 minutes.
 
Doctrine of Discovery – Recently you may have heard various news outlets saying that the Vatican, in response to requests from Indigenous Peoples in Canada and around the world, has rescinded the Doctrine of Discovery. They have also published various reactions to the information. You can read the Vatican statement for yourself by following this link: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2023/03/30/0238/00515.html
And you can read the statements made by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops by following this link here:  https://www.cccb.ca/letter/statement-by-the-permanent-council-of-the-canadian-conference-of-catholic-bishops-on-the-joint-statement-of-the-dicastery-for-culture-and-education-and-the-dicastery-for-promoting-integral-human-deve/
 
Meaning of Easter Season - Taken from Source Book for Sundays, Seasons and Weekdays 2023:  The Almanac for Pastoral Liturgy, LTP Liturgy Training Publications Copyright 2022, 3949 South Racine Avenue, Chicago, IL 60609, pp 149-150.

The Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year state: Since Christ accomplished his work of human redemption and of the perfect glorification of God principally through his Paschal Mystery, in which by dying he has destroyed our death, and by rising restored our life, the sacred Paschal Triduum of the Passion and Resurrection of the Lord shines forth as the high point of the entire liturgical year.
     These three days make up the heart of the liturgical year and, in turn, the very spiritual life of the Church. Christianity is built on the paschal mystery: Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. The Triduum revives the Christian narrative of these mysteries as each festal day flows into the next. Martin Connell notes that the celebrations of Holy Thursday and Good Friday do not end with direct dismissals as a typical Mass does but are rather marked with “ritual ellipses,” which bring us into [the next day’s] liturgy (Eternity Today, volume 2, p. 128). Thursday’s story cannot end with the Lord’s Supper. We are submerged into Christ’s death on Friday, and yet his death is not the end, either: hope remains in the resurrection!
      Praying with the many signs and symbols of the Sacred Paschal Triduum is a powerful experience. Holy Thursday invites us to engage with the story of the Last Supper, bringing out themes of the Eucharistic banquet and service, as portrayed by the washing of the feet. Bread, wine, and water are central to this celebration. The Church fasts from all sacraments except penance and anointing of the sick between Thursday evening and the Easter Vigil, so the Mass of the Lord’s Supper is the last Mass celebrated until Saturday night. This might surprise parishioners – even those who attend the Triduum liturgies every year – so liturgical catechesis is key to the connection between Thursday and Friday. Although the Eucharistic banquet is essential to this celebration, many parishioners likely equate Holy Thursday with the footwashing. We see both themes represented in The Roman Missal texts of the day: the opening collect of Thursday’s Mass dubs this the “banquet of [Christ’s] love,” while the entrance antiphon looks ahead to the cross:
               We should glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
              in whom is our salvation, life and resurrection,
              through whom we are saved and delivered.
Water cultivates community and cleanses us on Thursday, while on Good Friday water and blood flow from the body of Christ on the cross.
     The central ritual of Good Friday is, of course, the adoration of the cross. An ancient rite, this public action unites our individual and communal suffering with that of Christ, the Suffering Servant described by the prophet Isaiah. It is notable that the adoration of the cross takes place after we have heard and prayed the solemn intercessions. We place these prayers at the foot of the cross, “on which was hung our salvation,” and together we pray for the salvation of our Church and world. When looking upon the cross, we grieve as though looking at death. Good Friday puts into practice the Benedictine way of “keeping death daily before our eyes” (Rule of St. Benedict, chap. 4). While most of us probably don’t think of death daily, the Triduum places death in front of the Church in a visceral way, with both John’s lengthy account of the passion and the physical, tangible cross.
     The cross leads, of course, to the hope of the resurrection celebrated first at the Easter Vigil. Throughout Saturday night’s liturgy we recall salvation history through many elements: the swirling chaos of creation, dust, water, darkness, light, and fire. The Easter Vigil is the “mother of all holy Vigils” as we celebrate the joy and light of the resurrection breaking through the darkness of the night! The Vigil can feel like time outside of time as we set fire to the past, hear the Exultet proclaim that “this is the night,” and prepare a new paschal candle. While many parishioners have never attended an Easter Vigil, those who have usually never forget their Vigil experience. In order to truly make this the “mother of all holy Vigils” at which the Body of Christ gathers and participates, catechize your congregation about its importance and invite the wider community to the Easter Vigil. This is the heart of our liturgical year.
     These three days can be particularly hectic for liturgical ministers. Ensuring that preparations are made well in advance can aid the ministers’ prayer during this sacred time. While the Church calls for fasting throughout Friday and Saturday, it is important to prioritize care for oneself and for your ministry team. Consider having an honest conversation with the liturgy preparation team before the Triduum about what each person will do to maintain self-care amid the call to fast. Your team might assemble a plan to eat as usual while fasting from other things such as technology, dessert, or alcohol. The Triduum requires our active, bodily participation in its sacred rituals. Ensure that those who prepare and “run” the liturgy have a chance to participate in each action! Take an opportunity to see the Vigil fire and to joyfully sing, “Glory to God in the highest,” and “Alleluia!” As the Triduum deeply nourishes our communities, we must participate in these embodied rituals so that our faith might also find joy in the resurrection of Christ.
 
 
Scripture Insights – Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord
Taken from Source Book for Sundays, Seasons and Weekdays 2023:  The Almanac for Pastoral Liturgy, LTP Liturgy Training Publications Copyright 2022, 3949 South Racine Avenue, Chicago, IL 60609, pg. 166.
 
            “The Lord is truly risen, alleluia,” proclaims today’s entrance antiphon. All three readings speak to this foundational confession. In the Acts of the Apostles, Peter witnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ Jesus and draws out its significance for us: “Everyone who believes in him will receive forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:43).
             Paul, in his letter to the Colossians, also expresses the meaning of Christ’s death and resurrection for us. Since we have been raised with Christ, our focus should not be on things of this world, but we must “seek what is above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God” (Col 3:1).
              One figure central to all of the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ resurrection is Mary Magdalene. The early Christians called her “the apostle to the apostles.” She was the first to break the news to the disciples of the empty tomb and the first to witness the risen Lord.
              In today’s reading from John’s Gospel, Mary, on discovering the tomb to be empty, tells this news to “Simon Peter and the other disciple whom Jesus loved” (Jn 20:2). The two run to the tomb. The Beloved Disciple arrives first but, out of deference, allows Peter to enter the tomb before him. Peter sees the burial cloths lying there. When the Beloved Disciple enters, the narrator deliberately comments that “he saw and believed” (20:8). Until this time, they had failed to understand Jesus’ teaching that “he had to rise from the dead” (20:9). The Beloved Disciple was the first to believe. Only through love does one come to grasp the mystery of Jesus’ resurrection and God’s love for us.
             

• Be gracious. Do not use today’s homily as a time to judge or berate those who are attending today and whom we probably won’t see again. Today is a day for hospitality! Preach about God’s all-embracing love – for all!
• Like the disciples, we acknowledge that belief in the resurrection is a mystery. Scripture continues to sustain us in that belief. And the living witness of those whose faith is concretized in lives of care, concern, and reconciliation is the clearest proof that the Lord is risen and active among us. Let us always continue to intensify our witness to the resurrection by continuing the risen Lord’s ministry.
• In today’s first reading, Peter speaks to the household of a Gentile man, Cornelius, who has come to believe in Jesus. Peter summarizes the essence of the paschal mystery: Jesus’ life and ministry, his passion and death, his resurrection and post resurrection time with those witnesses who were chosen by God. Those witnesses now preach and share the Good News of Christ with others.

 
 
DIOCESAN NEWS & BEYOND
 
From Catholic Missions in Canada – The Tastes of Heaven Gala will be livestreamed on Thursday, April 27, 2023, beginning at 5:00 pm Eastern Time (3:00 pm here in Saskatchewan). This event is a fundraiser for Catholic Missions in Canada. Faith communities here in our Diocese receive some funding from Catholic Missions in Canada. Both Waterhen Lake and Green Lake receive funding from Catholic Missions. The goals of the Fundraiser include raising $250,000.00 and making known the work of Catholic Missions in Canada. Please mark your calendars and inform yourselves of the work of the Church in Canada. This year (2023) Catholic Missions in Canada will disburse $4,834,441.00 to parishes across our Great Country. The funds are used to pay salaries, pay for travel, train lay people, provide funds for seminarians, help with Church repairs, provide utilities in remote areas to name just a few. If you would like to make a donation please contact Pat or Fr. Doug.
 
Rosary and Reflection – Once a month, from 6:30 pm – 7:45 pm, with Bishop Stephen. The next reflections will be offered April 15th, and May 27th! Livestreamed from Prince Albert!
 
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Dear Parishioners:
Once again, we are celebrating the central mystery of our faith: Easter, the death and resurrection of Jesus. On Holy Thursday we are reminded of the Last Supper and how the friends of Jesus gathered with him. They had a wonderful meal and Jesus reminded them that they are to be servants of their brothers and sisters. The lesson is not lost on us. We need one another. How far will we go in our acts of service. On Good Friday, Jesus demonstrated how far he was willing to go. He was willing to give his life for us. He did this not because we had earned his generosity but because he loved us. At the Easter Vigil we remember our history as God’s people. Throughout human history God has been reaching out to us. God’s commitment to us knows no bounds. God raises Jesus from the dead and not only Jesus, but God also raises us up too!
Perhaps as we celebrate Easter this year, we can stretch a little and make an extra effort to be patient, to encourage, to teach, to forgive, and to love. Perhaps we can once again reveal that God is at work in the world.
As you gather with family and friends let your love shine for all the world to see. Begin at home with your partner, your family and slowly widen the circle to include the earth that is our home! Happy Easter and may the Holy Spirit continue to shape us as disciples of Jesus Christ!

​Fr. Doug Jeffrey, OMI (Pastor) and Pat Bencharski (Parish Secretary)