John the Baptist came and the sinners believed him.
(Matthew 21.28-32)
MESSAGES FROM THE BISHOP
Message from Bishop Guy Desrochers concerning the resignation of Fr. Justin Bertrand
Please read full letter here.
FROM THE DIOCESE
St. Columbkille 1500th Anniversary
Please find the link to the Prayer Service marking the 1500th Anniversary of the birth of St Columbkille: https://youtu.be/HGWJMNWXQk4.
Pastoral Appointments:
The Most Reverend Guy Desrochers, C.Ss.R., announces the following pastoral appointments:
- Reverend Steven Ballard has been appointed Pastor of St John Chrysostom Parish, Arnprior, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, Braeside. This appointment takes effect February 1, 2022.
- Reverend Justin Bertrand has resigned from priestly ministry and expressed his desire to seek dispensation from the obligations of the clerical state.
- Reverend John Burchat has been appointed as Pastor of St Lawrence O’Toole Parish, Barry’s Bay, Holy Canadian Martyrs Parish, Combermere, and St Francis de Sales Mission, Latchford Bridge. This appointment takes effect February 1, 2022. A priest of Madonna House will continue administration until the end of December.
- Reverend Patrick Dobec has been appointed Pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, Petawawa. This appointment takes effect February 1, 2022.
- Reverend Réal Ouellette will remain in the parishes of Saint-Thomas-d’Aquin, Astorville, Ste-Bernadette, Bonfield, and Sacred Heart, Corbeil.
- Reverend Peter Proulx will conclude his part-time ministry as parochial vicar at St John Chrysostom Parish, Arnprior.
- Reverend Robert Ryan will conclude his ministry at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, Braeside, as he continues his recuperation from cancer.
- Reverend Basil Tanguay has been appointed as part-time parochial vicar to the parishes of St James the Greater, Portage-du-Fort, Immaculate Conception, Bryson, Ste-Anne, Île-du-Grand Calumet, and St John the Evangelist, Campbell’s Bay. This appointment commenced on November 1, 2021.
Ordo Liturgical Calendars for 2021-22
Ordo Liturgical Calendars for 2021-22 are presently available for purchase at the Chancery Office for only $20/copy on a first-come, first-served basis. If interested, please contact Donna Biggs at 613 732-7933 ext. 203 or donnabiggs@pembrokediocese.com.
TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION
CCCB –Canadian Bishops, Assembly of First Nations, Métis National Council, and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Provide an Update on Delegation to Rome – Tuesday, December 7, 2021
After careful assessment of the uncertainty and potential health risks surrounding international travel amid the recent spread of the Omicron variant, the Canadian Bishops, Assembly of First Nations, Métis National Council, and Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami have jointly decided to reschedule a delegation to the Vatican in December 2021 to the earliest opportunity in 2022. (Read more…)
CCCB – Educational Resources for Indigenous Delegation
Please scroll to the bottom of the link page to listen to the video for Advent Week 3 – Intergenerational Effects.
THE EVANGELIZATION TEAM
An Evangelizing Church Is A Church That Prays
By Pierre-Alain Giffard, Director of Pastoral Work
An evangelizing Church is necessarily a praying Church. Why is this? It is because the Holy Spirit is the main agent of our salvation. Prayer prepares the hearts of people to believe in Christ when they hear or read the word of God. Their conversion is the result of God’s sovereign work in response to God’s people interceding for them. (Read more…)
FROM THE CCCB
Horizons of Hope: A Toolkit for Catholic Parishes on Palliative Care
Earlier in the month of November, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Joint Ad Hoc Committee on Palliative Care launched its much-anticipated toolkit for parishes. The free-of-cost resource is entitled Horizons of Hope: A Toolkit for Catholic Parishes on Palliative Care. The toolkit seeks to offer support and formation for parishioners with faith communities to assist them when faced with the illness and death of loved ones, particularly through the lens of palliative care, faith and Compassionate Communities. (Read more…)
MARRIAGE, FAMILY, YOUTH & YOUNG ADULTS
Diploma in Youth Ministry
The Archdiocese of Montreal is offering an online evening diploma course in Youth Ministry. They will offer winter 2022 and summer 2022 courses for adults wishing to work with youth. This diploma course is appropriate for parents, pastoral workers, catechists, youth ministry leaders or workers, teachers, social workers etc. See all the details here.
NET (National Evangelization Team)
NET is a team of young adults who serve by giving retreats to elementary and High School age youth. This year only one team is available this fall on a part time basis to book NET Live Virtual Retreats on Thursday mornings, Thursday afternoons or any time on Fridays. This same team will be free to go on a spring tour to offer in-person cohort style retreats. If you are interested in having NET do a retreat during their spring tour, please contact Yvette at yvettebourque@pembrokediocese.com. Please understand that the dates that can be offered are limited.
VATICAN NEWS
When the smallness of the Church is not insignificant
The Pope’s message to the Catholic Church in Greece is precious for everyone. (Read more…)
PARISH EVENTS
Latin Mass
A Latin Mass according to the Roman Missal of 1962 is offered at St. Columbkille Cathedral at 1:30 p.m. on January 1st. This is basically the same form of the Liturgy which nourished the faith of many Catholics for centuries. English translations of the entire Mass are provided.
ADVENT
For PARISHES – Free 3-day Advent retreat, “From Ritual to Relationship”
Advent Mission with Sr. Helena Burns fsp. This 3-day retreat is available for free online any time your group would like to gather. Everything is set up for your parish/group for whenever you plan your Mission:
- opening prayer
- proprietary link to 35-minute video talk for each day
- reflection/discussion questions
- closing prayer
For more information: www.sacredheartcollege.ca or call Jacob 705 808-4625.
OTHER
An Invitation for all who read this week’s Weekly Bulletin – “Have you ever thought of yourself as a ‘Vocation recruiter?”
“It is the role of every baptized Catholic to be who the Lord called you to be through your Baptism….and that is a “Vocation recruiter.” “With the amalgamation of Parishes in the recent appointments, we see a real shortage of vocations to the Priesthood in our Diocese and with the number of our priests growing older, who is going to take their place once they are no longer able to engage in full-time ministry? These vocations are going to come from the invitations which you (the Reader) are going to extend to the young men in your Parishes, and that is where they are going to come from.
WE ASK YOU to “Identify young men in your Parish, who have qualities that you would like to see in your future priests and then to ask those young men to consider the Priesthood.” They then can be in touch with your Pastor or Vocation Director and our Bishop. That’s it! “Recruiter Invitations” bring results!
Here is a short prayer to offer every day:
“Lord Jesus, open the heart of a young man today that he might answer your call to serve the people of our Diocese of Pembroke.” – Rev. Joseph O’Malley