2. ADVENTNA NEDELJA 2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT SLOVENSKA ŽUPNIJA SV. GREGORIJA VELIKEGA | ST. GREGORY THE GREAT SLOVENIAN CHURCH 49/52 Številka - Number / Leto - Year 4. 12. 2016 Fr. Drago Gačnik, SDB ŽUPNIK - PASTOR NASLOV - ADDRESS 125 Centennial Pkwy N Hamilton, ON L8E 1H8 TEL.: 905-561-5971 FAX: 905-561-5109 E-MAIL Gregory_sdb@ stgregoryhamilton.ca WEB PAGE www.carantha.com HALL RENTALS CELL: 905-518-6159 E-MAIL Hallrental@ stgregoryhamilton.ca VESTNIK Pripravljanje Gospodove poti Evangelist Matej Janeza Krstnika primerja preroku Eliju. Oba sta v puščavi uresničevala svoje poslanstvo in opominjala k spreobrnitvi. Utirala sta pot Gospodu. Janez Krstnik je pokazal, kako je mogoče to nalogo uresničiti: da se preoblikuje vse, kar se zoperstavlja Kristusovemu prihodu. Da se izravnajo doline, znižajo hribi ošabnosti, razširijo poti, ki vodijo v človeška srca. Čeprav prizadevanje za socialno pravičnost ni vedno uspešno, odpira prostor prihajajočemu Kristusu. Lačen in zasužnjen narod ne posluša oznanjevalcev. Delo lahko opravimo le z osebnim, brezpogojno predanostjo. Tudi v tem nam je Janez svetal zgled. Odrekel se je hinavščini tempeljske pobož­nosti in raje postal glasnik prihajajočega kralja. Z življenjem je sporočal, kakšno bo prihajajoče novo stvarstvo. Njegove besede so odpirale srca, ker so bile skladne z življenjem. Judje so ob njegovih pridigah presenečeni obmolknili. V svet je kričal pomembno vest: »On, ki pride za menoj, je močnejši od mene in jaz nisem vreden, da bi odvezal njegove sandale.« V molitvi je črpal moč za zgledno življenje in svojo preroško nalogo. Farizerji so bili prepričani, da bodo zveličani, saj je bilo njihovo življenje veliko zglednejše od Rimljanov in poganskih sosedov. Tudi mi drugega pogosto dolžimo, da je pričel prepir, da je prvi izrekel žaljivko, da je ... In ko bi bilo potrebno spremeniti svoje življenje, odlašamo in prelagamo delo na jutrišnji dan. Vendar bo ogenj sodbe tudi nas preizkusil in če bomo del gadje zalege ... Ne moremo pričakovati božjega usmiljenja. 446 | VESTNIK 2016 448 | VESTNIK 2016 450 | VESTNIK 2016 452 | VESTNIK 2016 454 | VESTNIK 2016 456 | VESTNIK 2016 PRAZNIK MARIJINEGA BREZMADEŽNEGA SPOČETJA, 8. DECEMBER V četrtek, 8. decembra, obhajamo praznik Marijinega brezmadežnega spočetja. Praznik nje, ki je bila obvarovama madeža izvirnega greha že ob samem spočetju. Bog jo je hotel imeti tako zaradi vzvišenega poslanstva, da je lahko postala mati Jezusa, našega odrešenika. Njena duša je bila vseskozi čista kakor kristalna vaza ali čisto okensko steklo, skozi katero je neovirano sijalo sonce božje ljubezni in milosti. Prav zaradi tega je imela dano vse, da bi lahko postala Mati božjega Sina. S tem pa še ni rečeno, da se ji ni bilo potrebno truditi, da je to čistost v sebi tudi ohranila. Bog je kljub temu »velikemu« zapčetku potreboval pozneje njeno osebno odločitev, privolitev, da je hotela biti Mati Odrešenika. Mi sicer nismo bili obvarovani izvirnega greha in s tem tudi ne nagnjenj h grehu. Vendar je Bog tudi nam omogočil imeti čisto dušo. Najprej nas je posvetil pri sv. krstu. Vedno znova se očiščujemo pri zakramentu sprave. Niti za tre­nutek nam ne odtegne svoje naklonjenosti, ljubezni in milosti, če le hoče­mo. Težava je samo v tem, da pustimo umazati našo dušo z grehi in se ne potrudimo, da bi jo očistili. Brez prizadevanja, premagovanja in obvladova­nja pa ne bo šlo in tudi ne bo pravega duhovnega napredka. Marija Brezmadežna naj posreduje pri Bogu za nas in nam pomaga ohranjati našo dušo čisto. CWL - MAŠA ZA POKOJNE ČLANICE On Wednesday, November 30th the Catholic Women's League held their annual Memorial Mass. Thank you to all the family members, friends, parish and league members, who attended. We honored and remembered our deceased "sisters", all of whom were vital members of our parish, mothers, daughters, sisters and friends to us. We are very grateful to Fr.Drago for his assistance in preparing the mass; to the English choir for adding their beautiful voices and music and to our members participation in the mass format. We greatly appreciate the kindness and generosity of those members who provided their delicious baking and refreshment for our enjoyment at our reception following the mass. We all shared in a lovely evening of community, where we were able to honor and remember our deceased. HVALA VSEM. CWL - GENERAL MEETING FOR DECEMBER Our monthly General Meeting will be held on Wednesday, December 7th in the YOUTH ROOM, immediately following 7:00 pm mass. Following our meeting agenda, we will have a little "Festive" enjoyment. Hope to see you there. VESTNIK 2016 | 447 VESTNIK 2016 | 449 VESTNIK 2016 | 451 VESTNIK 2016 | 453 VESTNIK 2016 | 455 OBISK SLOVENCEV IZ TRSTA V nedeljo, 20. novembra 2016, se je Kanadsko slovensko zgodovinsko društvo srečalo v Torontu s skupino raziskovalvcev /Boštjan Kolarič, Renato Podbršič in Matjaž Rustja (Trst)/ pod vodstvom g. Ivota Jevnikarja, voditelja knjižnice Dušana Černeta v Trstu. V Torontu so predstavili dolgoletno delo, zdaj že rajnega tržaškega kulturnega delavca Marjana Pertota, ki je zbrane podatke o kanadskih Slovencev objavil v knjigi »V senci javora in lipe«, gledališko in kulturno delovanje Slovencev v Kanadi med leti 1927-2010. Knjiga je na razpolago v knjižnici Sv. Gregorjija Velikega v Hamiltonu in si jo lahko ogledate. Namen potovanja pa je bil tudi zbiranje pričevanj o dogodkih v Sloveniji po končani drugi svetovni vojni. Ker te podatke zbira tudi KSZD, so v ponedeljek odpotvali v Cleveland in tam uspešno zbrali precej podatkov. Na poti iz Clevelanda nazaj v Toronto so se ustavili v naši župniji, saj imajo v Trstu veliko zbirko Vestnikov in drugih podatkov o naši skupnosti. Župnik, g. Drago jim je podaril še manjkajoče letnike Vestniko, tako so sedaj tudi ti shranjeni na več mestih. Skupina je bila silno presenečena, kaj vse smo ustvarili v naši skupnosti, nam čestitali in želeli še veliko uspeha. RESPONSIBLE STEWARDS OF CREATION Close to five million litres of water are taken from Wellington County daily for a water bottling plant. This extraction of large amounts of water adversely affects the ecological balance of nature over a large area while depriving those who rely on wells of their right to water. Close to seventy-five percent of plastic bottles end up in land fill sites, thus contributing to contamination of the soil for thousands of years. Bishop Douglas Crosby, OMI, urges all parishes in the Diocese of Hamilton to refrain from using bottled water in church facilities. As stewards of Creation may we be leaders in the responsible use of our sacred mandate. CHRISTMAS EVE PAGEANT Once again we are preparing for the Christmas Eve pageant on December 24, 6:00 pm Mass. We encourage all the chil-dren of our parish to participate in this event as it is been a very special part of our Christmas celebrations for many years. We welcome all children to partici-pate. Practices are planned for Saturday December 10 and 17 at 12:30 pm. For more information or to let us know you will be participating please contact Sonya Podrebarac at 905-902-6311 (jspodrebarac@cogeco.ca) or Mary Miklavcic 905-664-4927 (mtmik@sympatico.ca). NOVINA TO THE INFANT JESUS The Sisters of the Carmel of Saint Joseph will pray for you during the Novena to Infant Jesus, December 16th to December 25th, 2016 Are you troubled? Do you need spiritual support? You can participate in the Novena to Infant Jesus. Send your prayer intention slip with your name and address to Carmel of Saint Joseph 1127 Carmel-Koch Road, R.R. #1 St. Agatha, ON N0B 2L0 THE LONGEST NIGHT PRAYER SERVICE If Christmas is a sad time for you because of the loss of a loved one, please consider attending this ecumenical service. Wednesday December 21 at 7:00pm at St. Francis of Assisi Parish, 49 Blueridge Ave. Kitchener This will be an evening of prayerful reflection in solidarity with all who have gone home to Jesus and those who grieve their loss. A reception will follow. OGNJIŠČE 2017 - NAROČNINA Naročnina za leto 2017: kdor še želi prejemati Ognjišče v letu 2017 prosimo, da potrdi in čimprej plača naročnino. Cena za Kanado za leto 2017 je 82 kanadskih $. Hvala! 2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT Response: In his days may righteousness flourish, and peace abound forever. First Reading Isaiah 11:1-10 Even when everything around seems full of up-heaval and threat, the Lord’s justice and love for his people promises hope, and a future of peace and knowledge of his friendship. Second Reading Romans 15:4-9 Hope in God’s great love for us is the foundation of a deep security, which frees us to offer true friendship to all people, regardless of how differ-ent they seem from us. Gospel Matthew 3:1-12 The coming of Jesus is a moment of promise but a moment, too, of a difficult message for those like the Pharisees. The promise of God’s love in Jesus calls for repentance, a change of life built on an honest humility about who we really are. “I baptise you in water for repentance… he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Illustration For many of us, particularly in Western indus-trial societies, the links between the seasons and the production of food can be barely noticed. We get used to summer foods being available in the middle of winter, and can take for granted warmth and light when the days are cold and short. Yet to be mindful that in nature there are patterns of plenty and of scarcity can be an important part of deepen-ing our awareness of our dependency on God’s love. The wisdom that comes from living closer to these patterns – maybe simply through keeping a small garden – teaches us that, even when the ground seems bare and lifeless, there are mysterious things taking shape below the surface. Without our being very much involved, shoots do, eventually, appear, flowers bud and fruits set. Of course, what any gardener will want to add is that this fruitfulness always requires hard work and patience. Earth needs to be cleared, dug over, fed and planted if the barren months of winter are to hold any promise for the seasons of harvest. Gospel Teaching The realities of planting and growth are never very far from biblical texts. The prophetic vision of Isaiah sees the coming Messiah as just that kind of shoot of green that heralds new life. For John the Baptist, too, the coming kingdom is compared to that ruthlessness that all farmers and gardeners know: what is fruitful is nurtured, but what fails to bear fruit is harshly treated. Indeed, fruitfulness depends on hard pruning, strenuous digging and ploughing, and surviving through the barren times of winter. These images of plants and growth are not only beautiful images of God’s mysterious provi-dence; they are also a summons to some hard la-bouring in the fields. It is in this way that we can hear John the Bap-tist’s call to prepare the way – and, in particular, his demanding call to repentance and the confession of sin. This turning over of our lives is like the toil of the plough turning over cold, hard ground; it is a necessary work for the blessings of the Holy Spirit, which Jesus brings us, to take root and grow in us. Enduring apparent barrenness, and keeping up the constant work of digging over, is the activity of hope we are drawn into especially in Advent. As Paul makes clear, it is “when we refuse to give up” that we learn the meaning of hope, and become able to befriend one another properly in Christ. This Advent hope is no passive, weak opti-mism. Rather, it provides a strong pattern and rhythm to the seasons of Christian discipleship. Christian hope is what makes sense of the hard la-bours of our daily life – the digging and the prun-ing; it is a hope that drives us on to build friendship and unity, to make crooked ways straight, for the coming of Christ into the lives of all people. Application In our daily life we are surrounded by news that can make hopefulness seem a foolish response to the complexities of injustice and human sinful-ness. But the Advent hopefulness that we celebrate today is not only a virtue built on God’s sure promis-es, but also a hope that calls to action – to the hard work of repentance, of changing the direction of the ways we live. St Augustine is attributed with saying: “Hope has two beautiful daughters: their names are anger and courage. Anger that things are the way they are. Courage to make them the way they ought to be.” Augustine knew that, in the face of our own sins and those of others, we are not, as Christians, lamely to say, “Well, I hope it gets better.” Rather, we are to hope with that passionate action which grows from being rooted in the Father’s will for jus-tice and peace, and conversion towards the king-dom. So, if we are really to learn hope better, let’s allow ourselves to be properly challenged by John the Baptist’s call to repentance – to know our sins, to repent of them and seek forgiveness from those we hurt, and from the love of Christ expressed in the sacrament of reconciliation. Let’s actively treat others – all others – with the friendship with which God has treated us in Jesus. Perhaps there are two or three small changes of routine – small “conversions” – which can make this hope a concrete work of preparing the way for Christ to come into the lives of all we meet. MIKLAVŽEVANJE - ST. NICHOLAS Slovenska šola pri sv. Gregoriju Velikem v Hamiltonu vljudno vabi na Miklavževanje, ki bo to nedeljo 4. decembra, 2016. Po 10:00-ti maši bo v dvorani film za otroke. Ob 12:00 bo v cerkveni dvorani odlično kosilo, nato pa pride Miklavž s spremstvom. Prosimo, da za rezervacijo kosila čimprej pošljete email Sandy Ferletič ( sferletic@gmail.com ) ali pokličete na telefonsko številko: (905) 977-8464. St. Nicholas will this Sunday be visiting our parish once again. The Slovenian School invites you to our annual St. Nicholas Cele-bration on Sunday December 4, 2016. After the 10:00am Mass there will be a children's movie from 11:00am to 12:00pm. A delicious lunch will be served at 12:00 noon, after which St. Nicholas and his angels will come to visit our parish's children. For reservations, please call Sandy Ferletič at (905) 977-8464 or by email at sferlet-ic@gmail.com. If you would like a specific table please call early as seats are given on a first come/first serve basis. OBVESTILA - ANNOUNCEMENTS PEVSKE VAJE V četrtek, po večerni maši so pevske vaje za mešani pevski zbor. DOGODKI V BLIŽNJI PRIHODNOSTI . 4. december: Miklavževanje: Slovenska šola - St. Gregory the Great, Lipa park, London-Triglav . 11. december: Bled - Božičnica-Christmas lunch; Slovenski park - Miklavževanje . 15. in 16. december: Sv. Gregorij Veliki - Duhovna obnova, spoved ob 5:30 p.m. . 18. december: Sava-Breslau : Maša ob 12:00 noon, Triglav-London: Maša ob 4:00 p.m. v St. John the Divine Church . 20. december: Sv. Jožef - Božičnica . 26. december: Lipa park: Maša - 3:00 p.m. . 31. december: Silvestrovanje: St. Gregory the Great, Bled, London-Triglav, Lipa park, Sava-Breslau. GIFT BEARERS - DAROVE PRINAŠATA . 4. december, 10:00 a.m.: Family Taylor-Dundek . 11. december, 9:30 a.m.: Emilija Mertuk in Gizela Hauzar . 18. december, 9:30 a.m.: Karol in Milka Ferko . 25. december, 9:30 a.m.: Stanko in Jožica Vegelj IZLET V SLOVENIJO - 2017 Jože Razpotnik zbira informacije, če bi se nabralo dovolj zanimanja za izlet v Slovenijo in Madžarsko (Budimpešta). Predvideni čas je od 25. junija do 10. julija 2017. Za več informacij ga pokličite na telefon: 1-519-461-0653. BOŽIČNI KONCERT - DOM LIPA TORONTO Poseben BOŽIČNI KONCERT v podporo DOMA LIPA bo v cerkvi Brezmadežne na Browns Line v soboto, 10. decembra, ob 7:00h zvečer. Nastopili bodo zbori: Naša Pesem, Plamen, Croarte Chorale, Klapa Maestral in Mladinski zbor Brezmadežne. Vstopnice so $25 vključujejo tudi prigrizek v dvorani po koncertu. Vstopnice lahko kupite pri Moya Financial kreditni banki. NEW YEAR'S CELEBRATION New Year's will be here soon! We invite everyone to come out and ring in the New Year with your Parish Community with friends and family. St. Gregory the Great along with Društvo Bled will be hosting an eventful evening where you will be sure to have a fabulous evening. The band set to entertain us is Spotlight Orchestra. Come and enjoy some appetizers, a tasty dinner, a compli-mentary welcome drink, prizes, raffles, a midnight buffet and a good time! Tickets are on sale now. Contact Ivan Krušič at 905-393-6594 (email: ivankrusic@hotmail.com) to pur-chase your tickets and reserve your seat! We look forward to seeing you all on New Year's Eve. Moya Financial - Hamilton Branch NEW Hamilton Office Hours Tuesday 1:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Thursday & Friday 1:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday *** 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon *** Closed on Saturday from May long Weekend - September Long Weekend. SVETE MAŠE - MASS TIMES: Ponedeljek/Monday – Petek/Friday: 7:00 P.M. Sobota/Saturday: 8:00 A.M. – slovenska / in Slovenian 5:30 P.M. – slovenska / in Slovenian - Nedelja/Sunday: 9:30 A.M. – slovenska / in Slovenian - 11:00 A.M. – angleška / in English KRSTI / BAPTISMS: Po dogovoru, prijava 1 mesec prej. - For an app’t, call one month before. POROKE / MARRIAGE: Prijava eno leto prej. / For an app’t, call one year before the wedding date. SPOVED / CONFESSIONS: Vsak prvi petek ob 6:00 P.M. / First Friday of the month 6-7:00 P.M. (or by appointment) BOLNIKI - Sporočite, če je kdo bolan ali v bolnišnici, da ga obiščemo. You are welcome to call for a personal conversation (person counselling) with your priest – please call during business hours for an appointment. Tel: 905-561-5971. DON BOSCO MARMORA V četrtek, 8. decembra, na praznik Brezmadežne, ste vabljeni na romanje v Marmoro. Letos je že 25. let od začetka romanj v ta kraj. Ob 8:00h zjutraj bo sveta maša v naši cerkvi, avtobus pa odpelje iz parkirišča ob 9:00h in se vrne okrog 8:00 p.m. Ob 1:00 p.m. je v Marmori molitev rožnega venca in križevega pota. Cena po osebi je $40. Za rezervacije lahko pokličete: Catharine, Tel.: 905-318-2242; Elsa, Tel.: 905-662-5898; Barbara, Tel.: 905-560-5945; Angela, Tel.: 905-930-7442; Joyce, Tel.: 905-332-0405; Halina, Tel.: 905-573-6499 DUHOVNA OBNOVA - BOŽIČNA DEVETDNEVNICA Letošnja duhovna obnova bo v četrtek 15. in v petek, 16. decembra. Spovedovanje se bo oba dneva začelo ob 5:30 p.m., ob 7:00h zvečer pa je sveta maša z nagovorom. Prvi dan bosta spovedovala lazarista, g. Leopold Valant (novi kaplan v Torontu pri Mariji Brezmadežni) in g. Borut Pahor iz Slovenije. Prvi večer bosta spovedovala oba, drugi večer pa samo eden. V petek, 16. decembra, zvečer bomo začeli tudi z BOŽIČNO DEVETDNEVNICO. Vabljeni, da pri maši skupaj prepevamo in molimo in se tako pripravimo za božični praznik. DAROVI Za gradbeni sklad /streho/ so darovali: - $100 Anica Miklavčič - $100 Frank in Jožica Erzar - $50 Olga Čulig Oltarnemu društvu za rože Hvala vsem za vaše darove. Bog vam povrni. DRUŠTVO SV. JOŽEFA: MEMBERS’ ANNUAL CHRISTMAS PARTY Tuesday, December 20th, 2016 at 7:30 PM - Light dinner & entertainment - Poinsettia draw fund raiser for Venerable Bishop Baraga Fund. - Čas je tudi da člani poravnate članarino za Društvo sv. Jožefa. Vabljeni tudi novi člani, da se včlanite. Članarino plačate pri Franku Erzarju in dobili boste tudi člansko izkaznico za leto 2017. VILLA SLOVENIA RESIDENTS’ CHRISTMAS PARTY On Friday, December 16 at 4:00 PM - The St. Joseph Society will be holding its Annual Christmas dinner. All residents are invited to attend with one family member. 2. ADVENTNA NEDELJA 4. DECEMBER Barbara, mučenka † †† † † †† Za žive in rajne župljane Stane Napast, obl. Jernej in Lucija Ponikvar Ivan Tompa Bronco Balažic Benjamin Markoja & John Glavač MIKLAVŽEVANJE - ST. NICHOLAS 10:00 A.M. 12:00NOON Družina Pinter Družini Ponikvar in Desanti Verona in Joe Tompa Jenny Antolin z družino Jenny Antolin z družino Župnijska dvorana PONEDELJEK-MONDAY 5. DECEMBER Saba, opat †† † † Pero in Ljuba Jurkič Irma Gerič Albina Baznik Bogu in Mariji v zahvalo 7:00 P.M. Ana Tadič Elizabeth Farkaš Milka Kastelic N.N. TOREK - TUESDAY 6. DECEMBER - Nikolaj,šk †† Za verne duše v vicah 8:00 A.M. N.N. SREDA - WEDNESDAY 7. DECEMBER Ambrož, škof †† † † † CWL Janifer Wall Alojzija Novak, obl. Stjepan Đundraš 7:00 P.M. CWL - KŽZ Manja Erzetič Sin Frank Novak z družino Sestra Ljuba Babič ČETRTEK - THURSDAY 8. DECEMBER Brezmadežno spočetje Device Marije †† †† † †† †† Po namenu Pokojni iz družine Kološa Marija in Alojz Mes Stane Udovč Pokojni bratje Marija in Štefan Kovač 8:00 A.M. 7:00 P.M. Romarji v Marmoro Majda Salajko Družina Mes Magda z družino Ljudmila in Frank Zadravec Hči Ljudmila & Frank Zadravec PETEK - FRIDAY 9. DECEMBER Valerija, mučenka †† †† † Ernest, Sidonia in Marija Zrim Pokojni iz družin Hull in Ferko V čast sv. Duhu Vida Pirc 7:00 P.M. Hči Irena z družino Milka in Karel Ferko A. T. Družina Majzelj SOBOTA SATURDAY 10. DECEMBER Loretska Mati Božja Judita, sp. žena † †† †† † † † Pavel Novak Pokojni strici in tete Pokojni iz družine Truden Bogu v zahvalo Ana Veselič Martin Doma Tonček Rožman 8:00 A.M. 5:30 P.M. Toni in Marija Bukvič Marija Košir Družina Truden Družina Truden Dorothea Ježovnik Karel in Marija Volf Sestrična Jožica z družino 3. ADVENTNA NEDELJA 11. DECEMBER Damaz I., papež † † † Za žive in rajne župljane Tilka Vengar Pavel Novak Slavko Štern 9:30 A.M. 11:00 A.M. Max in Jožica Pavličič Max in Jožica Pavličič Žena z družino SVETE MAŠE - MASSES Od 4. 12. 2016 Do 11. 12. 2016