In our Parish

This week’s Mass Intentions (Daily Readings)

Wednesday December 18
Jeremiah 23:5-8; Matthew 1:18-24
9 AM – Helen Papin

Thursday December 19
Judges 13:2-7; Luke 1:5-25
9 AM – Sean Floyd / Mary Ferencich

Friday December 20
Isaiah 7:10-14, 8:10d; Luke 1: 26-38
9 AM – Elsa & John Lucas / In Thanksgiving – Maria Campos

Saturday December 21
Zephaniah 3:14-18a, Luke 1.39-45
5 PM – Jim & Mary Hourigan / Bella & Lawrence Menezes

Sunday December 22 – 4th Sunday of Advent
Micah 5:2-5a; Hebrews 10: 5-10; Luke 1:38
9 AM – Pro Populo (for the Parishioners)
11 AM – Kathy Hyatt & Alex Olender / Dr. Saad Tessy

Monday December 23
Malachi 3:104, 4:5-6; Luke 1:57-66 – No Mass

Tuesday December 24 – Christmas Eve
2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8-12, 16; Luke 1:67-79
5 PM – Bill O’Rourke

Wednesday December 25 – Nativity of the Lord
Isaiah 62:1-5; Acts 13:16-17, 22-25; Matthew 1:1-25
9 AM – Kathy Hyatt
11 AM – Pro Populo (For the Parishioners)

Thursday December 26 – St. Stephen
Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59; Matthew 10:17-22 – No Mass

Friday December 27 – St. John
1 John 1:1-4; John 20:2-8 – No Mass

Saturday December 28 – Holy Innocents
1 John 1:5-2-2:2; Matthew 2:13-18
5 PM – Sean Floyd

Sunday December 29 – Holy Family
Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28, 1 John 3:1-2, 21-24; Luke 2:41-52
9 AM – Andrew Svoboda
11 AM – Pro Populo (for the Parishioners)

Group Meetings

Wednesday December 18
Mass at Wellngton Park –11 AM
Women’s Group – 6 PM – Hall

Thursday December 19
Mass at AgeCare Brant – 2 PM

Friday December 20
AA Meeting – 8 PM – Hall

Monday December 23
Emotions Anonymous Meeting – 7 PM – WR

Friday December 27
AA Meeting – 8 PM – Hall

Other Announcements

The Parish Office will be closed from December 24 to December 31, 2024. We will reopen on January 2, 2025 Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year!

Sunday Offerings
Sunday, December 8, 2024: $5,213.30. Thank you for your generosity!!!

Our Building Maintenance Fund:
Has reached $22,043.04 and is growing – Thanks for your support!

Jubilee 2025: “Pilgrims of Faith”
Pope Francis has declared 2025 to be a Jubilee Year for the entire Church. We are invited to experience in a profound way the transforming power of God’s mercy and forgiveness, and a renewal of our faith and commitment to love God and our neighbour as God has first loved us. The theme for this Holy Year is: “PILGRIMS OF HOPE”. In our world suffering from the impacts of war, the ongoing effects of Covid-19, the climate crisis, economic hardships and countless afflictions of mind, body and spirit, Pope Francis is inviting us to rekindle the hope which is rooted in our faith: “Our sure hope which never disappoints”. The year begins with the opening of THE HOLY DOOR in St. Peter’s Basilica at Christmas Midnight Mass by our Holy Father. In our Diocese of Hamilton, we are beginning the Jubilee Year on December 29, the feast of the Holy Family in all the Parishes. We pray that all parishioners can attend one of that weekend’s Masses. Part of the Jubilee experience is to make a pilgrimage to sacred places, where prayer is offered, the sacraments celebrated and a plenary indulgence can be obtained for the remission of punishment due of our sins. Bishop Crosby has designated six (6) pilgrimage Churches, one in every deanery of the Diocese: St. Basil in Brantford, Immaculate Conception in Formosa, St. Andrew in Oakville, Cathedral Basilica of Christ the King in Hamilton, Basilica of our Lady Immaculate in Guelph, St. Mary, our Lady of the Seven Sorrows in Kitchener. Let us all be “Pilgrims of Hope”.

THE ANGEL TREE
The Angel Tree is St. John’s December project. The tree will be set up at the Brant Street Narthex from November 30 to December 22. Parishioners are asked to choose a donation suggestion from the tree. Please leave the item(s), unwrapped, in the containers by the tree. They will be given to families in our parish school community requiring support. Thank you for your generosity.

Preparing for the Nativity of our Lord Jesus (Christmas)
Special Confession Schedule
Tuesday, December 17: 6 – 7 p.m.
Wednesday, December 18: 12 Noon – 1 p.m.
Thursday, December 19: 12 Noon – 1 p.m.
Friday, December 20: 6 – 7 p.m.
Christmas Masses
Tuesday, December 24: 5 p.m. (Family Mass)
Wednesday, December 25: 9 a.m & 11 a.m.
Last Mass of the Year – New Year’s Eve
Tuesday, December 31: 7 p.m.
New Year’s Day Mass
Wednesday, January 1: 9 a.m.

Adult Preparation for Sacraments at the 2025 Easter Vigil
Our Parish Adult Catechetical Program resumes in our Hall. We would like to welcome adults, married couples and youths 9 years old and up who want to become Catholic and be fully initiated in the Catholic faith through Baptism, First Holy Communion and Confirmation. A fun learning course!  Please call the office for more information.

Knights of Columbus
Did you know that St. John’s has a Knights of Columbus Council? We were formed in mid June of this year. Our official name is St. John the Baptist Council #18496. We are volunteers ready to work in our Church. If you are a male 18 years or older you can join our team. The first step is to look at www.kofc.org and get a picture of what we do. The next step is to call John D’Addario 905-973-0474 and join the team!

PHOTO GALLERY
Please do not forget that our website features a photo gallery. If you are interested in viewing photos from past events, please find the gallery at: https://stjohnthebaptist.ca/photo-gallery

Pre-Authorized Giving at St. John’s Parish
Have you considered supporting the parish through pre-authorized giving? This allows you to give to the parish through scheduled monthly transfers from your bank account, and helps ensure regular, dependable contributions to the parish. Most of all, though, pre-authorized giving affords us the opportunity to re-orient how we think about giving. Rather than giving from what’s left over, this method of giving encourages us to discern a level of Parish support with greater intention. In this way, we respond more fully to the call to “honour the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your produce.” (Proverbs 3, 9-10). For more information or to enroll, please contact the parish office.

ST. VINCENT DE PAUL CONTRIBUTIONS
For contributions to the St. Vincent de Paul Society, please make all cheques payable to the St. Vincent de Paul Society and not to St. John’s Parish. Thank You!

The Sacrament of Baptism: Where Life in Christ Begins!
Our parish is on the lookout for dynamic volunteers to help us grow our Baptism Prep Ministry. Is the Holy Spirit inspiring you to get involved and help families prepare for the Sacrament that starts it all? Please contact Deacon Cam and Annette to find out how to join our ministry by emailing cjohnson@hamiltondiocese.com

SACRED HEART OF JESUS, HAVE MERCY ON US
Come and join us every Thursday at 9 a.m. for the Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Holy Mass.

Devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help
We would love to have you join our weekly Devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help immediately before the Tuesday evening Mass. We start at 7 p.m. and all are most welcome.

Visitor’s Envelopes
Kindly use a pink Visitor’s Envelope if donating a loose cheque and complete the front of the envelope in full or at least write your name. This helps immensely. If you would like a set of parish envelopes of your own, please visit or phone the office for assistance. Thank you!

Do you own a business that could serve our parish?
From time to time our parish may be in need of contracted work. We may need to go to outside companies without knowing if a parishioner is able to provide a product or service that we could use. If you own a business that could serve our parish and would like to be considered for future work, please contact Margaret Hribljan by emailing her at margaret.h@cogeco.ca.

LOST AND FOUND NOTICE
If you have lost something, please check the Lost & Found baskets located at the Brant St. entrance to the Church. All items that unclaimed after a month will be donated or discarded.

Parish Hall Rental
If you wish to rent the parish hall, please contact the parish office in advance of your event to make the necessary arrangements.

Volunteering at St. John the Baptist Parish
As a new year begins, we are looking for volunteers for various church events. Volunteers are required to read the description of volunteer roles (provided) and to fill out the Volunteer Information Form which has your contact information recorded for LOW risk volunteers. The HIGH risk volunteers are required to do the volunteer form along with a police check which includes: anyone working with children, handling money or working with vulnerable people. We will be offering dates in the next few weeks to anyone who needs assistance completing forms and with police checks. Please email the following coordinators for forms or any further questions: loismorrisonhuq@gmail.com or dinaknight779@gmail.com

Burlington Food Bank Collection
Please leave your donations of packaged and canned food items in the cupboard near the Brant Street doors if you are able to help with the food collection. Thank you so much for helping our neighbours in need. The Food Bank is extremely grateful.

 

In the Community

There are no events to report.

 

In the Diocese

PREPARING FOR THE JUBILEE:
Msgr. Kroetsch and Christina Mines will be hosting preparation sessions for Adult Faith Formation Leaders in anticipation of the Jubilee of Hope beginning on December 24, 2024. This is an important moment in the life of the Church! Four brief sessions will be offered around the Diocese of Hamilton throughout the month of November to equip pastoral leaders for adult programming initiatives throughout the Jubilee year. All are welcome to participate. For registration and more information contact:
https://hamiltondiocese.com/events/2024/10/preparing-for-the-jubilee-a-planning-day-for-pastoral-leaders/.

MARRIAGE PREPARATION:
Are you getting married this fall or in the early part of 2025? Marriage preparation is an important way that the Church reaches out to support your relationship. Once you have spoken to the parish and booked your wedding, be sure to register for one of our upcoming courses, which run from January to December of each year. Fall 2024 dates our posted on the website now. Find our more at Preparation for Marriage – Diocese of Hamilton (hamiltondiocese.com).

DID YOU KNOW …
Children in our parishes benefit from the Catechetical Correspondence Program each year for ongoing religious education and preparation for the Sacraments. We need volunteers to support the program! If you are willing to accompany these children in their learning journey, please reach out to the Office for Evangelization and Catechesis at catechesis@hamiltondiocese.com. To learn more about the Catechetical Correspondence Program, please visit: https://bit.ly/DOHCCC.

RESTART: Refresh, Renew, Revive Group
Our 10 week program offers education and support to anyone seeking to heal and move forward after divorce or separation. The sessions will begin again this fall and are held at the Chancery Office at 700 King St. West in person, or you are welcome to join our zoom classroom. Cost is $35 for materials, but no one is turned away. Fall registration will be on line soon, so look to register at hamiltondiocese.com under Upcoming Events, or contact Sarah at 905-528-7988 ext. 2249, or e-mail familyministry@hamiltondiocese.com.

Project Rachel
If you are struggling after an abortion – either your own or someone else’s, Project Rachel is available to help find hope and healing. Please contact us at 905-526-1999.