St. Leonard Catholic Parish M anotick, Ont "Celebrating 50 Years as a Catholic Community "

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Monthly E-Newsletter for Oct 1st

Welcome to the St. Leonard monthly E-Newsletter. It's all about community this month."Let us give thanks to the Lord." Check out the pictures from Father's Silver Jubilee and consider getting more involved in our community by volunteering for one of our many ministries.

Pastor's Message for October 1st Thanksgiving October is a special month for thanksgiving. What am I thankful for? I am thankful for many things including my faith, my family and my health. But this month there are two things that I am especially grateful to God for; my 25 years as a Priest and my community here at St. Leonard. Thankful for My 25 Years a Priest First, I am thankful that God has called me. I did not call myself. God has chosen me as His instrument and for that I am eternally grateful. Second, I am thankful to God for many people who supported my journey. My parents who nurtured me into the direction of the Priesthood through their material and moral support, prayers and love. My siblings who were there for me, even when I left the seminary on several occasions, and yet they never rebuked me, were angry, rejected me, abandoned me or withdrew their support from me. I am so grateful for my family, my friends and all the people that loved me. Third, I am thankful to God for giving me a spirit of love of the Priesthood all these years. I have never regretted becoming a priest. I love being a Priest and I love to serve the people. Thankful for the Community of St. Leonard I have had the honour and privilege of serving in a number of wonderful communities. But today I am particularly grateful to God for giving me the opportunity to serve here in St. Leonard Parish Community. It is a beautiful community filled with great love. I thank God for the opportunity to be in this Parish. This Parish has given me a lot. We have wonderful people who have supported me in my priesthood, and the work I do in the parish. The volunteers here are amazing! I am grateful to God to be here with you especially in this year we celebrate our 50th anniversary as a Parish community. So many blessings over the years! Thanksgiving, always and everywhere: our duty and salvation To be Catholic is to be grateful. There is a point in the Preface of every Mass where I say, “It is right and just, our duty and salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks, Holy Father, almighty and eternal God.” To give God thanks always and everywhere is our duty and our salvation. We are saved through thanksgiving this month and every month! I invite you to find a reason to be thankful to God in your life always. God bless you and those you love, Father Titus

10 Blessings We are Thankful for This Year at St . Leonard 455 Families Registered 140 Volunteers 44 Baptisms          85 First Communicants  73 Confirmations 5 Weddings      10 Funerals       4 Schools Supported 5 Charities and Missions Supported 1 Father Titus

Fellowship

Fr. Titus' Silver Jubilee Sept. 22 Even a tornado could not stop us from a joy-filled celebration of the 25th Anniversary of Father Titus's Priestly Ordination! We were joined by Fr. Emeka who shared memories of Father's early years and their time together in the seminary. CNN (Live from the Vatican) even sent their intrepid reporter JoAnne Christie (JC) to do an engaging and fun-filled interview with the "famous" Father Titus. Father was presented with warm greetings from the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau and an Apostolic Blessing from our Holy Father, Pope Francis. He was presented with a Rose chasuble from the Catholic Women's League and the Knights of Columbus and a beautiful olive wood carving from the Pastoral Council. Afterwards Father said we had caused him "much blushing" and he was very humbled by the love that was shown to him. A big thanks to all of the team that made this possible and a special thanks to Judy Wood for "making it happen".

Discipleship

Exploring the Eucharist Join us in the Parish Hall for four Thursday evenings in November as we explore the Eucharist. The course is based on Augustine Institute's " Presence: The Mystery of the Eucharist" and is a powerful 4-part series about Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist that invites us into an intimate union with God himself. It examines the effects of the sacrament, its setting in the Mass, and explores its scriptural foundation. This study is sure to move hearts and inspire families and friends to have meaningful discussions about God’s active involvement in our lives. Course will run from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm on three consecutive Thursday nights; Nov 1st, 8th, 15th and 22nd. To register for the course  click here  and for further information contact Judy Wood ( judyawood4@gmail.com ) or Barry Gauthier ( barrygauthier@rogers.com ).

Recommendation for October The Wild Goose is a 3 video series of the Holy Spirit, which is awakening in the hearts of all those participating God’s love and transforming power. This is a love that has been revealed to us by Jesus Christ and that leads us to our heavenly Father. As you walk through this series, pray for the Spirit to breathe life into your heart. Watch the video.

I f 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.

Pope to Meet with Bishops to Discuss Protection of Minors Pope Francis has convened the Presidents of all the Episcopal Conferences of the whole world for a meeting in Rome to discuss the prevention of abuse of minors and vulnerable adults. The meeting with the Pope will take place in the Vatican from 21-24 February 2019. The President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops is Bishop Lionel Gendron of Saint-Jean-Longueuil, Quebec.

Message from Bishop Barron Watch the New Short Film "Christ Calls You To Mission". Join Bishop Barron on a new evangelistic mission to Christify the world: Watch the Video.

Stewardship 2018 Mid-Year Parish Financial Update   We have just completed our mid year 2018 parish financial statements (visit website for details) and we are pleased to report that we show a surplus of $25,345. We were able to achieve these positive results primarily through an increase in weekly offerings/ revenue that exceeded 2017 YTD by $20,003. We are extremely grateful for the financial contribution you make to the parish and for the love and support you give us in being more welcoming and caring for each other. This increased funding has allowed us to undertake several significant capital improvement projects. As you may have noticed we have completed the installation of a new natural gas heating system and it is our intention to add air conditioning to this system next spring. In addition, we are proceeding with our Parish Hall renovation to make our basement more attractive and appealing. This will enhance the overall experience of our downstairs gatherings and provide for a more welcoming environment to our visitors. It is only with your continued financial support that these projects can be undertaken so we are extremely grateful for your generosity.  We would also like to highlight that the number of people using the pre-authorized monthly banking option has grown to 87 and that the pre-authorized payment givers now account for over 1/3 of our weekly contributions and have accounted for all of our offerings growth thus far this year. If you are not part of this group, we continue to encourage you to consider joining. Here is a link to the authorization form which can be dropped off at the church office.

Get Involved in our Community! Volunteer! The best way to get involved in our community is by becoming a volunteer. You will meet new people, grow in your faith and all while serving those in need and your Parish. Visit our Get Involved/Volunteer web page, check out the Ministries and complete the short form indicating your areas of interest. Your service is a wonderful gift to the community.

Musicians and Vocalists Needed Have you got a musical background?  Do you play the guitar or other instrument? Do you have a good singing voice? Are you looking for an opportunity to get involved musically? If yes to most of these questions, St. Leonard Parish’s Youth Mass Music Ministry (The Holy Tickers) is interested in having you join them.   Nathan Eckert, our Youth Music Minister, will unfortunately be stepping down in January due to career changes. Therefore, we are looking for someone to lead or co-lead this ministry starting as soon as possible. We are also looking for additional vocalists and musicians.    The Sunday 7 pm youth mass has gained a reputation for having a strong music ministry, playing top of the charts, uplifting Christian music suited to the mass. The Holy Tickers (Nathan, Bridget, Clara and Sebastian) welcome anyone interested to come and join them at any practice, Sunday evenings 6 to 7 pm (before the 7 pm Youth Mass) at St. Leonard Church or contact Nathan Eckert at 613-255-3533. If it has been on your heart to get involved musically, here is your chance. Come and check us out, you won’t regret it.

L'Arche Ottawa Presents L ’Arche Ottawa and film director Randall Wright invite you to a special celebration of the mission of L’Arche and Jean Vanier. “If we lived more like L’Arche, the world would be a better place,” Wright says. Join us on Oct. 26, 6:30 pm at the National Gallery of Canada in this fundraiser for the L’Arche community. Together, we’ll watch heart-soaring highlights from this groundbreaking film and then talk about what L’Arche can teach the world. For more information read the L'Arche Newsletter.

What's on in October? Wed. Oct. 3   Pastoral Council Meeting 7 p.m. Tues. Oct 9    Confirmation Information Meeting 7 p.m. Wed. Oct. 10 Knights of Columbus Meeting 7 p.m. Sat. Oct. 13   St. Leonard Parish 50th Anniversary Celebration  Tues. Oct. 16 Youth Group 7 p.m. Fri. Oct. 19  Youth Movie Night 7 – 10 p.m. Tues. Oct. 23 Youth Group 7 p.m. Wed. Oct. 24 CWL Meeting 7 p.m. Sat./Sun.   Oct. 27/28 CWL Bake Sale Mon. Oct. 29    Confirmation Session 1 6:30 p.m. Tue. Oct. 30   Youth Group 7 p.m. After the 9 am and 11 am Sunday masses in October coffee will be served in the Parish Hall. Click on the Parish Calendar for a full listing of upcoming meetings and events.

Parishioner Feedback: We Love Your Input! Dear Parishioners we are very interested in your feedback. If have any comments and/or suggestions as it relates to any of our Parish activities, including the E-Newsletter, please  click here. If you would like a direct response to your suggestion, please include your email address.

St. Leonard Electronic Communications Update St. Leonard Website Here are some of the capabilities that are available on our website: Online request form for Baptism Online request form for Marriage Celebration Online request for Mass Intention Ministry Schedule Monthly E-Newsletter Archive Mobile Application We are in the process of considering a new provider for our Mobiile App and will notify you when action is taken. In the meantime our current mobile app will not be supported. Facebook Don't have a smart phone or tablet? Like us on Facebook. Special events and reminders are posted continually on the St.Leonard Facebook page BUT you have to LIKE the page.  Do it now - go to the St.Leonard Facebook page and LIKE the page. SHARE with your friends!

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