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Renewing the Earth with Spirit: Pentecost Sunday
At Pentecost we remember the descent of the Holy Spirit. I don't know about you, but often times I think of that in a personal way: What gifts has the Holy Spirit given me? What can I do with...
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On Earth as it is in Heaven: Ascension Sunday
"Gladden us with holy joys, almighty God" the Collect for the Ascension of the Lord begins "and make us rejoice with devout thanksgiving, for the Ascension of Christ your Son is our exaltation, and where the head has gone before...
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Words and Actions Speak: Sixth Sunday of Easter
Actions, as the old saying goes, speak louder than words. While that isn't to say that what we as Catholics say doesn't matter, it does help us to understand that our actions have consequences, positive and negative...
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A New Heaven & Earth: Fifth Sunday of Easter
The second reading for the Fifth Sunday of Easter is one of my favorites. We hear from John that there is a new heaven and a new earth because the former ones have passed away. God, we hear, dwells with...
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Hearing the Shepherd's Voice: Fourth Sunday of Easter
Jesus, and the first audiences for the Gospels knew their animals. The Gospels are full of references to animals, and it seems that many times it is sheep.
I'm from the suburbs, the amount of things I know about...
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"United in Prayer" - Ordination Vigil
Before this year's candidates for priesthood walk down the aisle of St. Michael's Cathedral Basilica, they will have been supported by parishioners and friends in prayer the night before.
Once again, the Office of Vocations, together with the...
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Living as Joyful Disciples: Words from Cardinal Collins
This week marks Catholic Education Week across the province of Ontario. To acknowledge this occasion, Cardinal Thomas Collins, the Archbishop of Toronto, is celebrating and recognizing publicly-funded Catholic Education with a special message.
While reflecting on...
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Renewed with Easter Joy: Third Sunday of Easter
In the Archdiocese of Toronto this year the Third Sunday of Easter is also the archdiocesan Neophyte Mass. The final period of the Christian Initiation of Adults is known as the Period of Postbaptismal Catechesis or Mystagogy. It is...
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A Mercy So Rich: Divine Mercy Sunday
"….the Church must consider it one of her principal duties-at every stage of history and especially in our modern age-to proclaim and to introduce into life the mystery of mercy, supremely revealed in Jesus Christ." (Dives in...
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Celebrating A Love That Cannot Wait: Easter Sunday
The following homily was provided to us by Fr. Michael McGourty, Pastor of St. Peter's Parish in Toronto.
The celebration of Easter is for all Christians the highpoint of our year of faith. At Easter we celebrate the fact...
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Christ Our Light: The Great Vigil
The Easter Vigil is the final liturgy of the Triduum. It is the night that we "keep the memorial of the Lord's paschal solemnity…listening to his words and celebrating his mysteries…" (from the Greeting of the...
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Behold the Cross: Good Friday
Good Friday and Holy Saturday are the only two times when the Eucharist is not celebrated. It is a time where the Church sits in the reality that Christ is in the tomb. We sit in the reality of what...
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The Eucharist: Anything but Ordinary
"On the day before he was to suffer for our salvation and the salvation of all, that is today, he took bread in his holy and venerable hands and with eyes raised to heaven to you, O God, his almighty...
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Conforming to Christ: Second Sunday of Lent
Sometimes, for me at least, during Lent, it is easy to focus on a particular kind of image of Christ. You can probably picture him: Christ beaten and bruised, hanging on the cross. It always seems like a good Lent...
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Preparing for Easter: First Sunday of Lent
The first Sunday of Lent is the day that is set aside in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults for the Rite of Election. It marks an important milestone in the life of the catechumen (the person...
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Ash Wednesday: A Call to Prayer
Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent. It is the start of that great period that leads up the Paschal Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil). It is marked by prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.
I don't...
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A Pilgrim's Voice: Letting God's Will Be Done
In January 2018, I attended a presentation on the then-upcoming 2019 World Youth Day and I decided I was not going to go. After all, it was going to be held during late January and I had a full...
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Continuing the Journey in 2019
As I return to my normal routine after a restful and fruitful Christmas break, I find myself at an interesting place in my seminary formation: exactly halfway.
I entered St. Augustine's Seminary and began my formation for the diocesan...
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