St. Leonard Catholic Parish
Manotick, Ont
Monthly E-Newsletter for March 2017
 
Thank you for subscribing to the St. Leonard's monthly E-Newsletter. This month our focus is on Lent and Stewardship. When we recognize that all gifts are blessings from God, we begin to take better care of them, use them for good and even share them with love. In return, we see Christ even more as the center of our lives and all that we have.

If you know someone who might benefit from this E-Newsletter, please forward it to them. 

Pastor's Message
Stewardship: The Giving of Our Time, our Talent, and our Treasure
  
On this first day of Lent, I will address the fourth key focus area of our Parish -  Stewardship. Simply stated, Stewardship is the proper managing and sharing of our time, talent, and treasure for building the Kingdom of God.

Everything we have is a gift - our life, our property, our
 health, our talents, our money. All are
 gifts from God. We are called to share these gifts with others - not in a single action, not in a hundred actions, but as a way of life. We are called to receive God's gifts gratefully, to develop them responsibly, and to return them to the Lord through sharing with others. Stewardship is a direct response to God's generosity and an expression of discipleship.

Time and Talent   
Last fall, in response to our appeal to grow discipleship through service, our volunteer community welcomed 40 new members. I wish to thank all volunteers who so generously support our many ministries.  For those of you who are not yet engaged, please consider serving in a ministry that best suits your available time and talent.  The harvest is abundant but the labourers are few. Mathew 9:37

Treasure
Over the past year your financial contributions to the Parish have allowed us t o meet our operating and maintenance expenses. Please see the Financial Update located on the St. Leonard Website. I am most grateful for this generosity. However, it is insufficient to support new activities and opportunities such as youth ministry, facility upgrades, and church expansion. The 2017 Parish Plan identifies the need to increase our financial base in order to provide required maintenance and upkeep as well as future growth. To this end, I am asking all parishioners to: give regularly; increase Sunday offerings; and, utilize our Pre-Authorized Debit system - the easiest and most effective way to financially support the Parish.  See the article on the benefits of Pre- Authorized Payment and how to sign-up in this edition of the E-Newsletter.

Many people believe that the Catholic Church is a very rich organization with endless amounts of money. To be clear, St. Leonard's receives no funding from outside  of the Parish. Our very survival and our ability to thrive and prosper is dependent on your stewardship.

As we look forward to Lent, I ask you to reflect on how you can be the best possible steward of your time, talent, and treasure. I am excited about the many opportunities we have at St. Leonard, but it is only with your active participation and commitment to Stewardship that we will realize the potential that God has set before us.

Thank you for your continued support.  May God bless you and those you love.  Father Titus
For many years now we have had a bank pre-authorized payment system.  This service allows you to donate your parish support contribution by way of a monthly pre-authorized bank debit from your chequing account. 

Benefits for the Contributor
  • Regular withdrawals help you budget for your household expenses
  • No more envelopes, cash or cheques to remember every Sunday
  • Completely confidential
  • Flexible - adjust your offering amount or cancel any time
Benefits for the Church
  • St. Leonard had 59 users of this system in 2016 which represents 13% of our population
  • These 59 users provide 24% of the Church donations
  • St. Leonard's receives a regular, dependable flow of contributions - helping us budget
  • Periods of lower attendance don't result in lower donations
  • Electronic payment programs reduce paperwork
  • Administrative costs are reduced
Click Here to sign-up.  Thanks for your support!

Reminder of the Lenten Supper with Bishop Riesbeck March 4th
 
Bishop Christian Riesbeck will be celebrating Eucharist at St. Leonard's on Saturday, March 4th at 4:30. Following the Mass, a simple Lenten Supper of soup and bread will be offered in the church hall. At the conclusion of the meal, Bishop Riesbeck will help us enter into the spirit of Lent with an address on renewal and discipleship - "From Maintenance to Mission." 
Growing your Faith 
Alpha Program Continues Throughout Lent
 
Our Alpha Program (an Introduction to Christianity) continues through
March. Sessions begin  at 7:00 pm in the Parish Hall and all are welcome to join us. These are the topics scheduled for the Month of March:
03/08 - Why and How Do I Pray? 
03/15 - Why and How Should I Read the Bible?
03/22 - How Does God Guide Us?
03/25 - Saturday Morning Encounter: The Holy Spirit 
03/29 - How Can I Resist Evil? 


 
FORMED: Featured in March  
'Yet even now,' says the LORD, 'return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments'" (Joel 2:12).

In many parishes, Ash Wednesday Masses are standing room only, while other Holy Days of Obligation are not well attended.

In our hearts we hear that still small voice, "return to me with all your heart," and are drawn to participate in a day of repentance.  Lent is an opportunity for the parish to use FORMED to meet that longing of the heart. 


Movie
Program
Audio


If you are new to FORMED, to get ongoing FREE ACCESS to all programs and downloadable PDF guides, movies and e-books please
visit the St. Leonard website for detailed sign-up instructions.   
Daily Devotional: Living Lent Daily

This Lent, foster a daily practice of spiritual calm where God is at the center. Living Lent Daily is a daily e-mail series delivering fresh reflections based on the Scriptures of Lent. Each day's message includes a quotation from the day's Scripture readings and a brief reflection to spur meditation, prayer, and self-examination. The messages also include suggestions for further exploration of Lenten themes through additional online articles and prayers.

Sign up to receive the daily messages from Ash Wednesday through Easter Sunday. 
Living Lent Daily  begins March 1, 2017. 
Development and Peace

Development and Peace is celebrating it's 50th Anniversary this year.  This coming weekend, in Ottawa, there will be a Mass and supper commemorating this achievement at the Basilica.  Archbishop Prendergrast and other bishops of Canada extend an invitation to all to attend.  The Mass begins at 5 pm. with supper and presentations following.  You may respond to this invitation using the following link:
click here.
To read the Pastoral letter from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops for the 50th Anniversary of Development and Peace Canada click here.
Amor Dei Ministry

10 Volunteers are urgently needed for help with the distribution of food to the less fortunate. Please contact Norm Chapman at nojo.chapman@rogers.com or 613 821-5155.

What's on in March   
March 1  Ash Wednesday - Mass at 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
March 4  Lenten Supper and Reflection with Bishop Christian Riesbeck   6:00 p.m.
March 7  Knights of Columbus Meeting   7 p.m.
March 8   Alpha
March 14  Pastoral Council Meeting at 7 p.m.
March 15  Alpha
March 21  CWL Meeting      7 p.m.
March 22  Alpha
March 25  Alpha
March 29  Alpha
 

After the 9 am and 11 am Sunday masses in March coffee will be served in the Parish Hall. Click on the Parish Calendar for a full listing of upcoming meetings and events.
 
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Update on St. Leonard Communications
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