4. ADVENTNA NEDELJA 4TH SUNDAY OF ADVENT SLOVENSKA ŽUPNIJA SV. GREGORIJA VELIKEGA | ST. GREGORY THE GREAT SLOVENIAN CHURCH 51/51 Številka - Number / Leto - Year 20. 12. 2015 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 Christmas 2015 Dear friends, Goodness abounds! This Christmas, as a counter-point to the destructive forces of misery and terror that we have wit-nessed these past months, we must not forget that goodness abounds! More than not forgetting, let us be ready to point it out when we see it. A few weeks ago, I was invited to join a small group of people who help at the Out of the Cold break-fast program in Hamilton. These very good folk agreed in the autumn to get up early every Thursday morning from November through March to make their way to a small kitchen outlet to prepare a hot breakfast for over 120 men and women. The volunteers are part of about 400 remarkable and gener-ous people who make the program work. They arrived in the quiet ear-ly morning hours and were spirited as they took up their duties, each one pitching in to assure that every-thing was ready for the arrival of the guests. Steve showed me how to whip up pancake batter and how to cook the pancakes. Not too difficult – we worked together. Two hundred pancakes later, I was asked to help Karen and Frank serve the break-fast: pancakes, sausages, cereal, fruit, juice and the prerequisite cof-fee or tea. Morning greetings were friendly and sincere; the guests were known and called by name. As the serving line thinned out, I moved again, now to help with the washing of dishes. It gave me a chance to chat with Rob, who had done everything, including picking me up, to make the experience pleasant for me. The time passed quickly and, even before I left, I knew that I had participated in something good, something beauti-ful, something sacred! The same thing happens every day in many communities in our country and around the world. Ter-rorists may get front page media coverage, but quiet unassuming goodness such as I experienced that morning wins hearts and souls! It won mine, and I know it won the guests’. Goodness abounds! This Christmas we have begun the Year of Mercy called by Pope Francis. Feeding the hungry is one of the seven traditional corporal works of mercy. Many good people feed the hungry every day – often against great odds. When I think of the single unem-ployed parent worrying about how the three children will be fed that day, I know that my problems are small in comparison. Recently, I was reminded that before original sin, there was original good. The biblical story of crea-tion reminds us that God considered the created world to be “good”. And the human was “very good”! Original good came before original sin – and in Je-sus Christ, the first born, that goodness is restored. Christmas is a time to remember that in spite of the horrors of evil, good abounds. This Christmas, let us look for the goodness of others, and allow the good in us to shine – so that God’s compassionate mercy might be revealed through simple, everyday kindness. And when we see the good deeds of the other, acknowledge them and affirm them. A simple “thank you” is easy enough, and is actually quite effective. Thank YOU … and Merry Christmas to you, your families and your loved ones! +Douglas Crosby, OMI (Most Rev.) Douglas Crosby, OMI, Bishop of Hamilton 446 | VESTNIK 2015 448 | VESTNIK 2015 450 | VESTNIK 2015 452 | VESTNIK 2015 BOŽIČNICA DRUŠTVA SV. JOŽEFA V torek, 15. decembra, se je ob običajni večerni uri v prostorih društva svetega Jožefa v Hamiltonu nabralo precej, slovesno urjejenih, članov. Razlog te slovesne oprave je bila božičnica - vsako leto se zberejo skupaj iob dobri večerji in prijateljskem klepetu. Tokrat sta pripravila večerjo Milena in Ivan Krušič, pri razdelitvi pa sta pomagale še Magda Benc in Marija Miketič. Vse navzoče je v začetku pozdravil predsednik društva g. Jerry Ponikvar. Po večerji je s prijetno glasbo razveseljeval Branko Pouh. Ob koncu so izžrebali še »božične zvezde« izkupiček pa namenili za Baragov sklad. VESTNIK 2015 | 447 VESTNIK 2015 | 449 VESTNIK 2015 | 451 NEW YEAR'S EVE - HOSTED BY ST. GREGORY THE GREAT AND DRUŠTVVO BLED New Year's Eve ... Tables going fast! This New Year's Eve promises to be a fantastic celebration. Almost all our tables are already reserved, but we do have some seats still available. So... don't miss out, call or come to the church vestibule and reserve your spot for New Year's. Don't take the chance of missing out on an exciting cel-ebration ringing in 2016. It is sure to be a fun night out! For Reservations con-tact Heidy Novak: 905-317-6002 or no-vakh@sympatico.ca or Ivan Krusic: 905-393-6594 4TH SUNDAY OF ADVENT Response: Resto us, O God; let your face shine that we may be saved. First Reading Micah: 5:1-4 A child will be born out of Bethlehem Ephra-thah, who will establish a kingdom of peace to the ends of the earth. Second Reading Hebrews 10:5-10 Christ abolishes the ritual sacrifices of the law by offering his own body. Gospel Luke 1:39-45 Mary sets out as quickly as possible to visit her cousin Elizabeth. When she greets Eliza-beth the child in Elizabeth’s womb leaps for joy. “The child in my womb leapt for joy.” Illustration Parents often make a great effort to find a particular present that their child wants for Christmas. It doesn’t seem ridiculous for the parents, if it is done out of love for their child. The gift in time may be forgotten, abandoned at the back of a cupboard, but the love shown in the gift will never be lost. If the parents cannot find the special present then the child may be disappointed, but the disappointment will not last for ever. The promise parents make to a child does not depend on providing that special present, but upon doing their best for their child by constantly loving the child. This is the greatest gift a child can be given, and without this all other gifts are empty signs. Good parents love their child no matter what happens to the child, no matter what the child does. Gospel Teaching Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, proclaims Mary as the most blessed among women. Mary has been blessed in the child she is carrying, and Eliza-beth’s own unborn child, John the Baptist, leaps when Elizabeth hears Mary’s greeting. Mary, the one who believed, is blessed because the child in her womb is the fulfilment of God’s promises. Like a child who receives a special gift at Christmas, the unborn John cannot contain his joy. However, there is an important and essential difference. Whereas the presents children receive at Christmas are often forgotten or left behind as the child grows, the gift John reacts to is one he will never forget or out-grow. With Christmas presents it is not so much the present in itself that has lasting value, but the love expressed in giving the present. In the gift of Jesus Christ the present and the expression of love are identical. Jesus Christ is the expression of the love of the Father, the Word of love spoken in eternity. The Holy Spirit, through whom Elizabeth proclaims this loving gift, has made this gift present in Mary. John’s growth and maturity will come as he grows in love of this gift. He will never outgrow the gift, because the gift is the source of his growth. So also with Mary; her life as a mother is to be given to her son, but he will give his life for her and for all people, so that we too can grow. Although Mary is initially confused when the angel announces the good news to her, she never doubts the love of the giver. The child in her womb is the fulfilment of God’s promises, the perfect expression of love, which is given through Mary as a gift for each of us. As the child grows and matures there will be joy in Mary’s life, but also sorrow. John, who leapt for joy, will meet a violent fate, and Mary’s own child will be cruelly tortured and crucified. Mary’s openness to God’s love will bring her to the foot of the cross, where human hatred meets God’s love. But her be-lief in God’s love will not prove empty, for in the resurrection Jesus Christ will leap for joy, as will all who trust in him and accept the gift of new life. Application God our Father is the loving parent who never withdraws his love from us. If we turn away from God’s love, we look for things to replace that love. We search for other presents, other presences, which we think will bring us the joy we long for. We become like a child who mistakes a Christmas pre- sent for the love expressed in the present. A child will grow in maturity by recognising that the most important thing is not the present, but the love of the giver. As children of God, human beings had turned away from God’s love and sought other things to replace that love. Through sending us his Son, Jesus Christ, God the Father has made present to us his love. Like Mary we are invited to welcome this gift of God’s love into our life. Each of us is invited to reflect on the things in our life that prevent us from saying yes to God’s gift, those things with which we try to replace God’s love. We can only do this through the gift, through the overwhelming love that floods into our life when we open our hearts to Jesus Christ. In this our hearts leap for joy; through this we too can be called blessed. Z otroci in učiteljicami Slovenske šole smo imeli v soboto dopoldne mašo, ob zaključku prvega polletja. Po maši so s svojimi okraski okrasili smrečico v atriju cerkve, nato pa so se ob filmu »Frozen«, pizzi in dobrotah poveselili v mladinski sobi. Po dvanajti uri so mnogi ostali ša na vajah za program, ki ga pripravljajo za božični večer. OBVESTILA - ANNOUNCEMENTS PEVSKE VAJE Pevske vaje za mešani pevski zbor bodo v sredo, 23. decembra po večerni maši. DOGODKI V BLIŽNJI PRIHODNOSTI . 20. december: Sava-Breslav - maša ob 12:00 in Miklavž-Santa; Triglav-London at St. John the Divine Mass at 4:00 p.m. nato srečanje v dvorani. . 24. december: Christmas Eve: first mass at 6:00 p.m. in Englsih, second mass at 10:00 p.m. in Slovenian. . 26. december - Sv. Štefan: St. Gregory: morning mass: 10:00 a.m., Sunday evening mass: 5:30 p.m., Lipa park - maša ob 3:00 p.m. . 31. december: Silvestrovanje at St. Gregory - maša ob 6:00 p.m. nato Silvestrovanje. Silvestrovanje bo tudi v Lipa parku, Savi-Breslavu in pri Triglavu. . 10. januar 2016: maša pri društvu Sava-Breslau ob 12:00h in v Londonu - v cerkvi St. John the divine ob 4:00 p.m. . 17. januar 2016: v župniji bo SAMO ENA MAŠA OB 10:00h - Ob 1:00 p.m. je v hamiltonski katedrali etnična maša. . 23. januar 2016 - sobota zvečer: Spaghetti dinner - Girils Club PRINAŠANJE DAROV: GIFTE BEARERS Gift bearers. We are still in need of gift bearers to sign up for following remaining Masses in 2015. Dec 20th - 9:30am Mass: Vera Gonza in Marija Hočevar Dec 24th - 10:00pm Mass ______________ Dec 25th - 9:30 Mass- Jožica Vegelj & Eva Erzetič. Dec. 26th -10:00a.m Mass _______________ Dec 27th - 9:30am - Gizela Hauzar @ Emilija Mertuk Dec 31st - 6:00pm ____________________ The schedule for 2016 will be posted on the notice board in the foyer. Church cleaning schedule 2016. The new schedule for 2016 is posted on the notice board in the foyer. Please see Pamela if your team would like a personal copy. For the 11:00am Mass parishioners are encouraged to make a commitment by using the sign up sheet or by speaking to Sonya Podrebarac. OGNJIŠČE Tisti, ki želite Ognjišče prejemati tudi v letu 2016 prosim, da to sporočite, da bomo naročili pravo število izvodov. Naročnina za leto 2016 je 80 kanadskih dolarjev. DAROVI Oltarnemu društvu je za rože darovala Marija Miketič. Za cerkev so darovali: $100 Zdravko Troha, $50 Vida Sajder v spomin na + Steva Sajder in $50 v spomin na + Steva Booth. Za cerkev sta Maks in Milena Pavlič darovana dve smreki, ki sta v cerkvi. Hvala vsem za vaše darove. SAVA-BRESLAV, LONDON-ST. JOHN THE D. V nedeljo, 20. decembra bomo imeli pri društvu Sava-Breslav sveto mašo ob 12:00h. Prilika bo tudi za sveto spoved. Po maši pa pripravljajo še kratek program z Miklavžem. Sveta maša se bo darovala za ++ iz družine Zupan in ++ iz družine Košir - za mašo darujeta Jože in Majda; sveta maša se bo darovala tudi za + Danila Osovnikar - za mašo daruje Zinka Mirt. Popoldne ob 4:00h bo sveta maša tudi v Londonu, pri župniji St. John the Divine. Sveta maša se daruje za + Ignaca Kotnjeka, po namenu Olge in Jožeta Hanca. Pred mašo bo priložnost za sveto spoved, po maši pa se, kot je že dolgoletna tradicija, dobimo ob dobrotah, ki jih v dvorani pripravijo dobre gospodinje. REFERENDUM Danes 20. decembra 2015 imate priliko, da se udeležite referenduma na konzulatu, 747 Browns Line, od 9h do 5h popoldan. Glasujejolahko osebe, ki imajo slovensko državljanstvo. Državni zbor (parlament) Republike Slovenije je 3. marca 2015 sprejel Zakon o spremembah in dopolnitvah Zakona o zakonski zvezi in družinskih razmerjih. Po tem zakonom definicija ‘Družine’ ne bo več “zveza moškega in ženske”, ampak “zveza ‘dveh oseb’ z možnostjo posvojitve otrok”. S tem zakonom se torej ukinja “zakonska zveza moškega in ženske”, omogoča pa zakonska zveza istospolnih ter tudi posvojitev otrok! Se strinjate s tem zakonom ali ne? O tem bomo glasovali! Slovenski škofje so svetovali, da naj ne podpremo tega zakona in glasujemo PROTI novemu zakonu! LETNE KUVERTE Nedeljske kuverte za 2016 imate v atriju. Če je kakšna napaka na naslovu, prosim, da opozorite, da bo naslov pravilen, ko bomo pisali za incometax potrdila. Če kdo ni na seznamu za kuverte, pa bi jih želel imeti, naj prav tako sporoči. Če se je kdo od lanskega leta preselil, pa nam ni še sporočil novega naslova, naj to čimprej stori. Lahko ga napišete tudi kar na »nedeljsko kuverto«. Pred nami je neposredna priprava na Božič. V sredo zvečer inamo generalko z otoroci, ob 6h zvečer, maša bo v kapeli, po maši pa imata vajo šo mešani župnijski zbor in angleški zbor. Na prvi strani oznanil imate pismo in voščilo našega škofa, g. Douglasa. Zelo bogato branje. Tudi sam želim vsem faranom, prav tako tudi bolnim in tistim, ki so morda v bolniščnicah ali domovih za starejše, da bi Kristusov mir prišel tudi do njim. Naj nas vse napolnjuje z globoko radostjo božčna skrivnost, po kateri prihaja tudi k nam, danes, Odrešenik. Odprimo mu svoja srca, da jih bo napolnil s svojim mirom. SLOVENSKA ŠOLA - ŠTRUDELJ Iz slovenske šole sporočajo, da imajo na razpolago tako jabolčni kot tudi sirov štrudelj. Cena jabolčnega štrudlja je $15, sirovega pa $22. Če se zanimate, da bi ga kupili prosimo, da pokličete Sandy na telefon: 905-977-8464. 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 4. ADVENTNA NEDELJA 20. DECEMBER Evgen, muč. † †† † †† †† za žive in rajne župljane Ivan Sobočan Pokojni iz družine Sobočan Ignac Kotnjek Pokojni člani drutva Sava Pokojni člani društva Triglav 9:30 A.M. 11:00 A.M. 12:00 NOON 4:00 P.M. Žena in družina Cecilija Sobočan Irma Gerič in hči Rose Sava - Breslav V cerkvi St. John the Divine PONEDELJEK - MONDAY 21. DECEMBER Peter Kanizij, duhov. †† † †† †† Pokojni iz družine Rajbar Carmela Cini Marica in Alojz Ipavec Jožef in Eufemia Tompa 7:00 P.M. Ana in Zoltan Gergyek Manja Erzetič Marija in Ivan Ipavec hčerka TOREK - TUESDAY 22. DECEMBER Frančiška Cabrini, ust. †† † † †† Ana in Gusti Škrban Štefan Tkalec Elizabeta Ferko Mihael in Helena Kolarič, obl. 7:00 P.M. Sin z družino Družina Škrban Toni Ferko z družino Terezija in Ignac Sarjaš z dr. SREDA - WEDNESDAY 23. DECEMBER Janez Kancij, duh. †† † †† †† Za mir Za verne duše John Recek Ivan in Louise Sarjaš, obl. Francka in Jože Pust 7:00 P.M. Slomškovo oltarno društvo Gizella in Štefan Ray Žena z družino Alojz in Agata Sarjaš Družina Pust ČETRTEK - THURSDAY 24. DECEMBER Adam in Eva Sveti večer † † †† †† Marija Grebenc Karl Zorčič, obl. Frančiška in Stane Napast Pokojni iz družine Kološa 6:00 P.M. 10:00 P.M. Lojze in Peter Grebenc Jožica Vegelj z družino Družina Pinter Majda PETEK - FRIDAY 25. DECEMBER BOŽIČ GOSPODOVO ROJSTVO †† † † † Za žive in rajne župljane Janze Kosednar Rufina in Štefan Marija Grebenc 9:30 P.M. 11:00 A.M. Žena Hema z družino Hčerka Marija Glavač Lojze in Peter Grebenc SOBOTA - SATURDAY 26. DECEMBER Štefan, diakon † † † †† † †† Štefan Gonza Štefan Hozjan Štefan Zadravec Štefan Plevel in pokojni iz druž. Jože Seljak, 30. obl. Franc in Ivana Kodra 10:00 A.M. 3:00 P.M. 5:30 P.M. Martin in Kathy Simončič Družina Hozjan Žena z družino Žena z družino Francka Seljak /Lipa park/ hčerka SVETA DRUŽINA 27. DECEMBER Janez, evangelist † † za žive in rajne župljane Štefan Prša Steve Sajder 9:30 A.M. 11:00 A.M. Žena in družina Žena in družina SVETE MAŠE - MASSES Od 20.12. 2015 Do 27.12. 2015