St.

Helen Church
DECEMBER 10TH, 2017 | SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT (YEAR B)
4106 Mountain Street | Beamsville, Ontario | L0R 1B7 www.sthelenscatholic.ca

Phone (905) 562-7427 | Fax (905) 563-0003 | office@sthelenscatholic.ca | www.sthelenscatholic.ca

St. Helen Church

Philip Pastor
presents Pastor
Fr. English
A Study: Reading Scripture Fr. English
Office Administration
Understanding how God speaks to us in the Bible can be difficult. In the Office Administration
second part of this drop-in discussion based study of Scripture, Dr. Aggie Agnino Ext. 1
Robert Holmstedt, Professor of Hebrew Scriptures, University of Toronto, Aggie Agnino Ext. 1
will teach helpful strategies for understanding the Old Testament Proph-
ets.

For three weeks on Thursdays, December 7, 14, and 21 from 7:00 8:30
p.m., we will learn together how to read the prophets as Gods instru- Mass
MassTimes
Times
ments of chastisement, judgment, and even encouragement. Also, since it
is Advent, we will discuss how the prophets were used in understanding
Saturday
Saturday --55p.m.
p.m.
Sunday-- 99&&11
the person and ministry of the Messiah. Meet us in the St. Helen Church Sunday 11 a.m.
a.m.
Great Hall. All are welcome to attend.

Schools Contacts
St. Mark School Reconciliation
Catholic Women's League
Principal: Steven Ward Before or after mass or by appoint- Michelle Mackey 289-235-8282
Phone: (905) 563-9191 ment.
Knights of Columbus
Marriage George L. Savage 289-566-9383
St. Edward School
Principal: Carla Bianco Six months notice; marriage prep Music Ministry
Phone: (905) 562-5531 required. Anthony van Engelen
cell/text 905-563-7067,
Anointing of the Sick Email adve1@yahoo.com

Sacraments Please let us know when someone

Ministry Scheduling
has a serious or prolonged illness or Rachel Reid 905-941-4150
Baptism ministryscheduling@sthelenscatholic.ca
is to have surgery. This sacrament
Available Sundays at 1:00 pm. Call
celebrates the healing of mind and
parish office. Fundraising Events
body and the forgiveness of sins. Joe Della Manna
First Communion & Confirmation josephdellamanna@yahoo.ca
Catholic Funeral Rites
Arranged through school. If your Youth Ministry
When a death occurs in your family,
child is not in a Catholic school or is sthelensyouthministry@gmail.com
please call the Parish Office and we
not baptized in the Roman Catholic
will assist you in making the neces- Facility & Grounds Maintenance
Church, contact the Parish Office. Craig Luey 905-988-6522
sary liturgical arrangements.
craig.luey@gmail.com

Kindly complete the following and place in collection basket

New Parishioner* Change of address Moving
Name________________________ Phone_________________ E-mail___________________
Address______________________________________________ City_____________________
I would like to use offertory envelopes* Postal Code______________

We welcome you and invite you to share in the spiritual and social activities of your parish.
 This week
Year B MASS INTENTIONS the
L & D (living & deceased) December 11 - 17, 2017 Sanctuary
Lamp
Day Requested for Requested by burns in
memory
Monday No Mass
of:
Tuesday
+ Maria & Gerald Murphy Paul Murphy
6:30 p.m. + Stephanie
Wednesday + Emmy Geczy, + Lilly Torek & Ruiss &
Alex Geczy + Allan Parker
10:00 a.m. + Emerich Borchok
Thursday The
+ Vince Mambella Stella Mambella
8:30 a.m. Sanctuary Lamp
burns to remind
Friday
us of Christs
10:00 a.m. + Jadwiga Wojtas Family
Menno Home presence in the
Blessed Sacra-
Saturday ment of the altar.
+ Giuseppina Romasco Connie @ Louis Elia
5:00 p.m. If you wish to
Sunday For the People of St. Helen sponsor the sanc-
9:00 a.m. tuary lamp for one
+ Mike Borsodi Lorraine Borsodi week the stipend
11:00 a.m. is $35.
Intentions of Belinda Quinn Belinda Quinn

Ministry Enrichment Sessions

Stewardship of Treasure
December 3, 2017 - Offertory (183)
Loose
Building Fund (12)
Facility Maintenance (3)
May God bless you for your faithful stewardship!
Ministry for the Sick and Homebound
We are grateful to those who give of their time and
care to bring Holy Communion to our parishioners
who cannot make it to church due to sickness or
infirmity. If you know of anyone who would like to re-
ceive communion in their home or while hospitalized
at West Lincoln Hospital, please contact the parish
office.
SVDP Society
MISSION - The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a
lay Catholic organization whose mission is: To live
the Gospel message by serving Christ in the
poor with love, respect, justice and joy.
VALUES - The Mission of the Society of St. Vincent
de Paul implies that as Vincentians we: see Christ in
anyone who suffers, come together as a family,
have personal contact with the poor, help in all pos-
sible ways.
Canadian Tire Money
We continue to collect Canadian Tire money to pur-
chase raffle prizes for fundraising events. It can be
brought to the office or in the collection basket.
Sanctuary Lamp available dates:
March 19 to 25, 2018, March 26 to April 1, 2018
As it has been some time since we began celebrat-
4,290 ing Mass in our newly built church, it is good to gath-
er together to review what the ministry entails, espe-
176 cially as we may have modified things since being in
the new location. Please take note of the selected
665
weekend for your ministry and plan to stay after
43 Mass for a few extra minutes while Fr. Philip reviews
your ministry. Whether youve served one year or
twenty years, your attendance is important.
For these ministries - after all weekend Masses:
Hospitality Ministers - Dec 9/10, 2017
Lector - Dec 16/17, 2017
Only one Session for Altar Servers - January 20,
2018 at 11:00 a.m.
Pope Francis Prayer Intention for the Month of
December - that the elderly, sustained by families
and Christian communities, may apply their wisdom
and experience to spreading the faith and forming
the new generations. (Apostleship of Prayer)
Offertory Envelopes
Please pick up your 2018 box of Offertory Envelopes
and carefully check the label notifying the office of
any errors or changes. Please wait until January
to use the new box of envelopes.
Prayer Shawls
The Prayer Shawl Ministry continues to create
handcrafted shawls for parishioners, their families
and friends who are coping with illness, loneliness,
pain or trouble. The shawls are made with compas-
sion and prayerfulness and are available to anyone
who needs one. Please call the office to request a
shawl or lap blanket or if you would like to join this
ministry.
 December 10 - Second Sunday of Advent
A Meta-Dream
Comfort, give comfort to my people. (Isaiah)
The day of the Lord will be unexpected. (1 Peter)
The Baptist foretells the Messiahs coming. (Mark)
Among the joys of the Christ-
mas season are the many perfor-
mances of the great oratorio by
George Frideric Handel, which he
composed in just 24 inspired
days. Now, nearly two centuries
later, the world still exults to the
strains of Messiah.
At the beginning, long before
the familiar Hallelujah chorus erupts in ecstatic tri-
umph, Handel recalls the world that waited in dark-
ness for the coming of the Messiah. In todays Gos-
pel, John the Baptist foretells Jesus coming, saying:
One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not
worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his san-
dals.
The first part of the oratorio draws upon Isaiahs
prophesies: Every valley shall be exalted, and every
mountain and hill made low, and the crooked
straight, and the rough places plain.
Now, two millennia later, the world still awaits the
coming of the Messiah. --Dc. Dick Folger
Christmas Campaign
Last year, a generous
benefactor matched all
Christmas donations that
were received in the special
Christmas Basement Cam-
paign Envelope up to
$10,000. With the overwhelming support, we were
able to complete the basement washrooms, storage
areas, lighting, ductwork, drywall and painting.
This year, our generous benefactor has agreed
again to match Christmas donations received in the
special Christmas Basement Campaign Envelope to
a maximum of $10,000. With your kind support, we
hope to finish the church kitchen or at least make it
into a functional space for our parish events. Enve-
lopes can be found in the pews.
Christmas Mass Schedule 2017
Christmas Eve: Singing Carols before Mass
5:00 p.m. (Childrens Mass)
8:00 p.m. & 12:00 Midnight
Christmas Day: 10:00 a.m.
New Years Eve:
5:00 p.m. (Vigil Mass, Mary Mother of God)
New Years Day:
10:00 a.m. (Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God)
Confessions
Saturday, December 16th
4:00 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.
Tuesday, December 19th
7:00 p.m. 8:00 p.m.
Saturday Before weekend masses or by appointment
CCWN - Ritas Angel Wishes
We hope you enjoyed shopping for Rita's
Angels. Please attach the profile card to
the gift and return to the church before
Dec. 10. Gifts maybe left under the table
in the foyer. Thank you for sponsoring a child.
St. Helens 3rd Annual
Memorial Christmas Angel Tree
The Memorial Christmas Angel Tree
glows with lights in memory of de-
ceased loved ones and friends. To
honour the memory of a loved one
with an angel, complete a Memorial
Christmas Angel Tree envelope
available at the entrance of the
church and place it in the collection
basket or simply stop in at the office
reception window during office
hours with your request. The tree will
be up during Advent.
Christmas Mass Schedule Sign-Up Sheet
Ministers, Sacristans, Altar Servers & Hospitality are
asked to fill in your availability over Christmas if you
are able to serve at any of the Masses. We thank
you for your continued commitment to service in
Ministry.
Christmas Flowers & Dcor
Envelopes to help pay for Christmas Flowers and
dcor are available in the pews or vestibule of the
church and can be returned in the collection basket.
"OPEN BETHLEHEM" Documentary
Right in time for Christmas, Development and Peace
is delighted to invite you to view the internationally
acclaimed documentary, "OPEN BETHLEHEM".
It is a "MUST SEE" movie for anybody who in inter-
ested in the current situation in Palestine and who
wants to know how the BIRTH PLACE OF JESUS
looks today. Open Bethlehem will be shown at the
First Ontario Performing Art Centre Film House
on December 13th at 7 PM. Open Bethlehem is a 90
minute documentary which tells the story of a home-
coming to the worlds most famous little town by the
film's director. The film spans seven momentous
years in the life of Bethlehem, revealing a city of
astonishing beauty and political strife under occupa-
tion. You can view a trailer of the film at https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=aivDpXxMhaA . Devel-
opment and Peace helped fund the making of the
film. NOTE: following the film, there will be a Q&A
Session with Wal Kabbani, Executive Creative
Director, Iambic Dream Inc.
Tickets are $9.00 or $7.00 for Film House members
and can be ordered from the Film House at the Box
Office or online at firstontariopac.ca starting this
Monday 27 Nov. The Film House is located at 250 St
Paul Street St Catharines.