Our Lady of Victory / St-Malachy

	FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT

CELEBRATION OF THE EUCHARIST
Our Lady of Victory		St. Malachy
Sunday - 9:00 A.M.		Saturday - 7:00 P.M.

Q U E S T I O N O F T H E W E E K
FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT Overcoming temptation
Reading I	Genesis 2:7-9;3:1-7 (the fall of humankind)
Reading II	Romans 5:12-19 (humanity's sin through Adam)
Gospel	Matthew 4:1-11 (the temptation of Jesus)
Key Passage	Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. (Matthew 4:1)

*Adult*	What helpful advice could you offer someone faced with a temptation?
*Child*	What helps you do the right thing when you want to do something wrong?

Pastor	William Marrevee s.c.j.
Email	w.marrevee@sympatico.ca
Rectory	490 Charles Street Gatineau, Québec J8L 2K5
Secretary	Monday and Thursday 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Telephone	(819) 986-3763
Fax	(819) 986-9889

A sincere welcome to those who are new among us. We hope you find a warm and welcoming faith-home with us. Please introduce yourself after Mass and call the Rectory to register.

FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT (A) FEBRUARY 13, 2005

WED.	16 - 9:00 a.m.	Edward Lemieux Sr. by Regis
SAT.	19 - 7:00 p.m.	Mildred Scott Murphy by the family Jack, Marilyn and Peter Roos by the family
SUN.	20 - 9:00 a.m.	Albert & Margarete Muller & Christel Bergmann by Marianne Lotz & family

SANCTUARY LAMP - O.L.V.:
January 30 - February 26, for the special intentions of Margaret Dorion.

SANCTUARY LAMP - ST. MALACHY:
February 12-25, for the special intentions of the donor.

BAPTISM PREPARATION :
This preparation consists of a visit at home from members of our baptism team followed by three evenings of reflection on the significance of the request made by the parents. We start the reflection sessions on Tuesday, February 22; and the baptism will be celebrated on April 3.

LENT - WE CLIMB THE HOLY MOUNTAIN OF EASTER :
We have begun the 90-day period that is crucial for us Christians. We spend 40 days (Lent) in preparation for the Three Great Days of Christ's Death and Resurrection (Easter Triduum) after which, for 50 days, we celebrate Christ's victory over darkness, sin and death (Easter season closing at Pentecost). That explains the 40-3-50 which will mark our Sunday bulletins until May 15.

This 90-day period has everything to do with the shaping of our identity as Christians. We want to make it count! "Becoming more Christ-like" and "having Christ come to perfection in us", that is what we are about. Only God's grace can accomplish that in us.

THE BANNERS FOR LENT :
Finding appropriate images to capture the Lenten spirit is a bit of a challenge, but the ones you see up front in the church may serve the purpose. One banner depicts a pilgrim, a mountain climber guided by the Spirit. That is us as we make our way to Easter. What is the luggage we bring with us? The three traditional Lenten practices of praying, fasting and almsgiving as depicted on the other banner.

PRAYER

The Sunday liturgies provide the basic orientation for Lent. How about making a special effort to use the Question of the Week that is found on the front page of the Sunday bulletin. If we reflect on that and possibly discuss it with each other at home during the week, then the Scripture readings do not simply stay in the church, but serve as food for our Christian living.

FASTING

We diet, we cut down on food and drink for a variety of reasons. Do we still dare to deliberately refrain from food, from a drink, from a party, from a video as a gesture of solidarity with those who have no choice in these matters for the simple reason that they do not have them? But do we also dare to do it for ourselves, showing that we can distance ourselves from so much of what our consumer society says we need.

ALMS

This flows naturally from the previous two practices. The money we save with our fasting could be made part of the "Share Lent" or "Development and Peace" collection which will be taken up later in Lent. Almsgiving says we care for others even to the point of depriving ourselves from something. It is a way of saying our world is bigger than my own little circle.

BURLAP FOR OUR HOMES :
The piece of burlap you receive today is meant to find a noticeable place in our homes during this 40-day Lenten period. It may remind us daily of the season we are in as Christians. It may also point to the rough edges in ourselves that we need to attend to in this grace-filled period of Lent. Once Lent is over, on Holy Thursday, we can remove it as a sign that we are ready to celebrate with renewed heart the Easter Mystery. You may want to bring the burlap to church on Holy Thursday.

ASHES AND SAND - WE AWAIT THE LIFE-GIVING WATER OF EASTER :
As part of the "Lenten decor" the baptism font at the entrance to the church has been replaced by a pot filled with sand and ashes. Why? The Israelites spent forty years in the desert/wilderness on their way to God-given freedom. Jesus spent forty days in the desert/wilderness to sort out where he stood in relation to the battle between the Reign of God and the reign of darkness. As disciples of Jesus we have entered the 40-day Lenten period on the way to Easter to sort out to what degree the Risen Life of Jesus is really ours. That is what the sand and ashes evoke: our desert/wilderness.

Once we have made that 40-day Lenten journey, the life-giving water of baptism will come over us again at Easter to deepen and strengthen the Risen Life of Jesus in us individually and in our parish community.

ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE ON TUESDAY EVENING - IT WORKED :
To accommodate the parishioners of St. Aloysius and St. Columban we had put the Ash Wednesday service for Our Lady of Victory and St. Malachy on Tuesday evening. And it worked thanks to your understanding and cooperation.

Will there be a Mass on Easter Sunday morning at Mayo? Not sure yet. If Mayo has one, then Quinnville has to have one too. And vice versa. I am spending a fair amount of time on trying to find a priest, explaining where and when and what. And really, is it so difficult for the two parishes (O.L.V. and St. Malachy) to gather in one Church on the most important day of the Church year and to celebrate the all-important eucharist together?

CONGRATULATIONS to Huberte Berndt who celebrates her birthday on Wednesday.

ST. MALACHY WARDENS :
Meeting, Monday, February 14, 7:30 p.m.

CEREAL BAR DRIVE :
O.L.V., February 20 .

RAFFLE :
Tickets on sale at O.L.V. for a painting donated by Jeanine Cressey. Drawing at the St. Patrick's Tea.

ST. PATRICK'S DANCE :
Saturday, March 12, 8:30 p.m.-1:00 a.m., Centre Recreatif Forestier, Julie/Chantal, 1361 Rte 315, L'Ange Gardien , Sponsored by Canada Day Committee.

Weekly Receipts	O.L.V.	St. Malachy
Regular	$ 535	$ 229	THANK YOU!
Support	$ 440	$ 138
Brazil Missions	$ 175	$ 192

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