St.

Helen Church
DECEMBER 17TH, 2017 | THIRD 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 18 - 24th, 2017 Sanctuary
Lamp
Day Requested for Requested by burns in
memory
Monday No Mass
Intentions of Hendriks & deKoning Families of:
Tuesday
Helen & Andy Hendriks
6:30 p.m. L&D + Gino Cipro
Wednesday +Peter MacDonald and the intentions of his
Shirley & Ernie Brunet The
10:00 a.m. family
Sanctuary Lamp
Thursday burns to remind
Special Intention Anonymous
8:30 a.m. us of Christs
presence in the
Friday + Cindy Smith Mary Smeenk Blessed Sacra-
10:00 a.m.
Albright Manor + Rachelle Greco Marlene Bourdeau ment of the altar.
If you wish to
Saturday sponsor the sanc-
+ dec. members of DAlessio & Elia Fam. Connie & Louis Elia
5:00 p.m. tuary lamp for one
Sunday For the People of St. Helen week the stipend
9:00 a.m. is $35.
+ Angelo Agnino & + Benito Boncori Family
11:00 a.m.

Stewardship of Treasure Ministry Enrichment Sessions

December 10, 2017 - Offertory (175)
Loose
Building Fund (51)
Facility Maintenance (4)
Deo Gratias (2)
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-
4,436 ing Mass in our newly built church, it is good to gath-
er together to review what the ministry entails, espe-
255 cially as we may have modified things since being in
2,297 the new location. Please take note of the selected
weekend for your ministry and plan to stay after
190 Mass for a few extra minutes while Fr. Philip reviews
50 your ministry. Whether youve served one year or
twenty years, your attendance is important.
For these ministries - after all weekend Masses:
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
Remaining 2018 Offertory Envelopes are in the
board room. Please wait until January to use the
new box of envelopes. For new parishioners or
those who wish to use envelopes, fill out the tear off
section at the front of the bulletin or call or drop by
the parish office.
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 17 - Third Sunday of Advent
The Question of a Lifetime
The prophet announces glad tidings and vindication.
(Isaiah)
Awaiting Christs promised return. (1 Thessalonians)
There is one coming among you... (John)
If John the Baptist were going
through a security check at the
airport, he might have grumbled
as he removed his sandals and
put them in the carrier. He might
have said: Here are my sandals,
but I am not worthy to unloose
the strap of the sandals of one
who is coming.
The security officers might have looked at his
passport, questioning if he was the Messiah or Eli-
jah. They might have patted him down and asked
him to step into an adjoining room where they could
question him further. Who are you? Why do you
baptize?
After the security team gave up, finding nothing,
John was cleared. As he headed for his gate, John
may have dared to call back: There is one among
you whom you do not recognize, the one who is
coming after me. --Dc. Dick Folger
Christmas Campaign
Off to a good Start!
This year, our generous
benefactor has agreed
again to match Christmas
donations received in the special Christmas Base-
ment 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. Envelopes can be found in the
pews.
Childrens Christmas Pageant
All children are welcome to participate in the dram-
atization of the Gospel at the Children's Christmas
Eve Mass, December 24th at 5pm. Those wishing to
be angels, please wear white shirts. Those wishing
to be shepherds, please wear bathrobes with towels.
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.
Tax Receipts - Deadline for 2017 donations for in-
clusion on 2017 tax receipt is December 31st, 4th
Sunday of Advent (11 a.m. Mass).
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 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
We encourage each person of the parish to make
efforts to be reconciled more deeply in this season of
love and expectation. Try to participate in this Sac-
rament of Mercy and Peace, in preparation for the
Christmas feasts.
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
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 re-
quest. The tree will be up during Advent.
The Christmas Readings
The readings for the three Masses of Christmas
have formed part of the liturgy of the day by long tra-
dition.
The Mass at Midnight originates from the 5th cen-
tury celebration in the cave chapel at St. Mary Ma-
jor in Rome.
The Dawn service (sometimes called the Mass of
the Shepherds) originated from a service to honour
the Byzantine Greeks who lived in Rome and was
celebrated in their church of St. Anastasia.
The Day Mass is the oldest and original celebration
and centres on the reading of Johns Prologue and
the light that comes into the world.
Texts for the Vigil Mass (celebrated in the evening
before the Night service) are also included in the
Missal.
Mediaeval writers saw in the three Masses of Christ-
mas a reflection of Jesus threefold birth or coming:
Jesus as the eternal Word of the Father (coming in
eternity), as Son of Mary (coming in time), and his
birth (coming) today in the hearts of believers.
Holy Family reflects on Jesus childhood and family
life.
The Solemnity of Mary speaks of the mystery of her
motherhood and the naming of Jesus.
Epiphany reflects on the universal call to salvation.