St.

Helen Church
DECEMBER 3RD, 2017 | FIRST 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 5 - 10, 2017 Sanctuary
Lamp
Day Requested for Requested by burns in
memory
Monday No Mass
+ Emmy Geczy, + Lilly Torck & of:
Tuesday
Alex Geczy
6:30 p.m. + Emerich Borchok
Wednesday + Giuseppina
+ Maria & Gerald Murphy Paul Murphy Romasco
10:00 a.m.
Thursday + Luigina Monda Lino & Maria The
8:30 a.m. Intentions of Helen Carambia Belinda Quinn Sanctuary Lamp
burns to remind
Friday + Maria Di Iorio Vito Di Iorio & Family us of Christs
10:00 a.m.
Albright Manor + Matthew Franko George & Nora Franko presence in the
Blessed Sacra-
Saturday ment of the altar.
For the People of St. Helen - St. Mark School Family Advent Mass
5:00 p.m. If you wish to
Sunday + Eugenia Patea Connie & Louis Elia sponsor the sanc-
9:00 a.m. tuary lamp for one
+ Fortunato & Angela Patea Barbitano family week the stipend
11:00 a.m. is $35.
+ Harry, Frank & Adrian de Laat Pam de Laat

Ministry Enrichment Sessions

Stewardship of Treasure
November 26, 2017 - Offertory (165)
Loose
Building Fund (17)
Deo Gratias (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.
As it has been some time since we began celebrat-
3,398 ing Mass in our newly built church, it is good to gath-
er together to review what the ministry entails, espe-
164 cially as we may have modified things since being in
the new location. Please take note of the selected
609
weekend for your ministry and plan to stay after
120 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:
Eucharistic Ministers - Dec 2/3, 2017
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.
Immaculate Conception of
Holy Mary
Friday December 8th
This solemnity celebrates the sin-
lessness of Mary. The link between
her conception and the Annuncia-
tion gospel is the angel Gabriels
words, Hail, full of grace! These
words are one of the bases of the
dogma that Mary was from the first
moment of her conception, by a singular grace and
privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits
of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, pre-
served immune from all stain of original sin.
(PiusIX,IneffabilisDeus(1854);Catechism of
t h e C a t h o lic Church, 491)
Sanctuary Lamp available dates:
March 19 to 25, 2018, March 26 to April 1, 2018
 December 3 - First Sunday of Advent
(Liturgical cycle B)
Alert to the Signs of the Times
A sinful people await Gods presence. (Isaiah)
Gods gifts prepare the Corinthians for Christs re-
turn. (1 Corinthians)
Be alert for the coming of the Lord. (Mark)
Hachiko might be the most
faithful dog in the world. Eve-
ry day he was on hand to see
his owner go off to work. Eve-
ry afternoon at 4 p.m., when
the train pulled into Japans
Shibuya Station, Hachiko
was there to greet his owner. After some pats and a
warm hug, they would walk home together.
One day, Hachikos owner didnt get off the train.
He had died at work and never returned. But Ha-
chiko still waited in fervent hope. The next day at 4
p.m., the dog returned to the train station to await his
masters return.
For the next ten years, Hachiko never gave up
hope. He continued to live with his owners family
and went to the train station every day. When Ha-
chiko died the local townsfolk erected a bronze stat-
ue of him and put it at the spot where he always
waited.
Since the beginning, the early prophets foretold
the coming of a messiah. Just like Hachiko, we still
wait for the return of Jesus. Todays gospel calls us
to be vigilant and faithful, like Hachiko. We are
warned: Stay awake. --Dc. Dick Folger
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.
Exciting News - Christmas Campaign
Last year, a gener-
ous benefactor
matched all Christmas
donations that were
received in the special
Christmas Basement
Campaign Envelope
up to $10,000. With the overwhelming support, we
were able to complete the basement washrooms,
storage areas, lighting, ductwork, drywall and paint-
ing.
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.
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.
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.
St. Helens 3rd Annual
Memorial Christmas Angel Tree
The Memorial Christmas Angel
Tree glows with lights in memory
of deceased loved ones and
friends. To honour the memory of
a loved one with an angel, com-
plete 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.
Christmas Bazaar - Thank You
Sincerest gratitude to all who baked, shopped, vol-
unteered and participated in our Bazaar. The Ba-
zaar was a great day of fun and with your support
we raised over $4500 towards our debt reduction.
A special note of thanks to Rebecca Williams who
worked tirelessly to organize another great bazaar!
Collection 1st Weekend of the Month