My Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, the Parishioners of St. Peter’s Parish:
I hope and pray that this letter finds you and your family well and safe.
At the Pastoral Council meeting at the beginning of May, it was suggested by the members of the Council that I should reach out to you again with another update. I thought that I would wait until the Solemnity of Pentecost, which is celebrated this year on Sunday, May 23rd.
The reason that I wanted to write to you on Pentecost is because this is the day that the Church was founded. On that day, the Holy Spirit came down on the believers and they were changed. Although they had hidden away in fear after Jesus was arrested and died, His many appearances to them throughout the forty days after His resurrection had convinced them that He was alive. When the Holy Spirit was poured out on them at Pentecost, they were transformed into the living Church, the Body of Christ, and they left their homes to continue His mission. Pentecost marks the day that the Church was founded and began its mission.
As we approach, what I hope will soon be the end of the Pandemic closures, our own parish community is in need of a sort of re-founding and rejuvenation. Soon, I hope we, like the early disciples, will be re-emerging from our homes and fear that has isolated us from our community and the sacraments. As we return to our community celebration of Mass, I would like very much to ask you to consider different ways that you can be involved at St. Peter’s Parish.
This year, St. Peter’s will celebrate its 125th anniversary as a parish community. God willing, the Pastoral Council and I, are planning to have a celebration of this anniversary in September of 2021. We are hoping to host it on the weekend of September 18 and 19. This weekend has been chosen because it is Stewardship Sunday throughout the Archdiocese of Toronto. As St. Peter’s has always been a very vibrant community, with much lay involvement, this weekend has been chosen to invite all of our parishioners to return to active parish life and become more fully engaged in the parish community.
On Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came down on all the believers and moved them to continue Christ’s mission in the world. Each one of us, through Baptism and Confirmation has also received the gift of the Holy Spirit and is called to have a role in the Christian community. Please consider if there is a ministry that you would like to be involved in or that you would like to be responsible for leading.
Often in the life of our community, some have told me that we should have a ministry for a certain group—the young, seniors or another group. When I offer to let them start it, they are surprised that I do not want to lead it myself. Please, if there is a group you would like to have at St. Peter’s Parish, consider how to make it work, and be willing to take a role in leading it.
As we look at restarting our parish community, there will also be some exciting developments taking place around our parish in the coming months. After almost six years of constant construction and building, the renovations on the church property will soon come to an end. The Centre, where our parish offices used to be located, will soon be completed. This building will house several Archdiocesan offices. The Office of Catholic Youth and the Office of Refugees for the Archdiocese of Toronto will soon be housed in this building. It is my hope that some of their activities will bring additional life and activity to our parish. Fr. Joshua Roldan, who will be the new Director of Youth Ministry for the Archdiocese, will be living in residence at St. Peter’s and assisting from time to time with the celebration of our parish Masses. The Archives for the Archdiocese will also be housed in the Centre. For those who still may not have visited our new parish offices, they have been located for more than two years now in the rectory at the doorway under the arch that connects the church and the rectory. The other half of the rectory is occupied by the Sisters of Life.
There have also been many others types of changes in our community since we were last able to gather at Mass regularly. Sadly, some of our brothers and sisters have died and gone to be with the Lord. There have been some who have moved away for various reasons. Advancing age will mean that some parishioners may not be able to re-emerge from their homes, even though the pandemic may not require them to stay there. We all need to acknowledge the loss and pain that has been encountered by many during this pandemic.
The pandemic has also taught many of us a great deal. We all like to think that we are in charge of our lives. This pandemic has reminded us that life is a gift and there is so much that is out of our hands. We have had to learn patience through these difficult times. More importantly, we have had to learn that only God is really in charge and that no matter what life brings our way, it is only our faith in God, and His power to overcome death, that we can ultimately rely upon.
During this time of pandemic, my own faith has been strengthened, as I have grown in my confidence in the power of Christ to sustain me throughout, whatever may come my way in life. When the pandemic began, I thought that I needed to find solutions for the problems and challenges facing myself and the parish. As we have all learned throughout this time, so much is out of our control. We must learn to hand things over to God and to trust in His loving providence in our lives. Sometimes, it is only by making this move in faith that we are able to see God’s hands sustaining us throughout our trials.
As this experience has taught us the need to rely on God, I would invite you in the coming months to reflect upon how you would like to be re-engaged in the parish community when we are allowed to safely return to “normal.” Let’s take the time this summer to relax and re-charge and be ready to reengage enthusiastically this coming September. In the Fall, the parish will host many ministry training events. Please stay tuned for announcements in the bulletin and be ready to get involved. Your parish community needs you as we plan to get re-started with our community life.
Personally, my own reason for wanting to write this letter to you was to offer you all my profound thanks for your support of the parish during this difficult time. It would not have been possible for the parish to survive without your generous and ongoing support. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for all of the support that you have given to your parish community during this difficult time.
I hope and pray that you have a blessed and safe summer. I am very much looking forward to seeing you again in church in the near future when it is safe to do so.
Yours sincerely in Christ,
Rev. Michael McGourty
Pastor
