The Gospel of Luke today continues the series of parables that we have been listening to these past few weeks with parables about what true discipleship is about and will entail. For the Church, the greatest treasure that it knows of is Christ and the eternal life that He has won for us through His life, death and resurrection. The Christian is to have so much confidence in Christ, and His victory over death, that we are to be willing to give everything to obtain that salvation. Today’s Gospel passage tells us that we should not let even family and friends stand in the way of our relationship with Christ. However, because it is often difficult to remember that Christ has won salvation for us through His life, death and resurrection, Jesus has commanded us to celebrate the Eucharist every Sunday “in remembrance” of Him so that we may be strengthened to live our faith with the Sacrament of His Body and Blood.

This Sunday, I will conclude the three-part homily on the Mass by speaking about the high point of the celebration of Mass, the Eucharistic Liturgy and the Dismissal Rites, which send us out into the world to bring to others the same Christ whom we have received in the Eucharist at Mass. Let’s start with the Eucharistic Liturgy. Continue reading →

Last Sunday, the Gospel presented us with a parable about a rich man who wanted to build new barns to store all his many possessions. As he planned to do so, the story told us that he would be taken in the middle of the night and all of his work and possession would be in vain; if he did not also exercise care for his eternal well being. As the series of parables continues, this Sunday, we hear a parable about the need to be ready each day to encounter the Lord, for we never know when we will meet him. I certainly watch in fear many days, as parishioners cross in front of the church to and from the subway station, never looking for oncoming traffic. Each one of us could meet our end at any point. As a public service announcement, let me just remind you that there is a light a block away. Continue reading →

This Sunday, the Psalm asks that if today we hear God’s voice, we not harden our hearts and that we might keep them open to listen to His voice (Psalm 90). In the Gospel, Jesus speaks about the importance of realizing what our true treasures are and letting them be built up in Heaven. When you and I come to Mass, we have an encounter with God’s Word and receive the gift of Christ’s Body and Blood—the food intended to strengthen us on our journey to Heaven. Often, as we come to Mass, we may miss the deeper significance of what we are hearing and who we are encountering  at the celebration. For this reason, over the next few weeks, I would like to repeat a series of sermons on the Mass that I gave here one summer a few years ago. Continue reading →

Holy Trinity by Andrei Rublev

One of the world’s most famous pieces of religious art is the fifteenth century Russian icon of the Holy Trinity by Andrei Rublev. This icon is intended to capture the scene that we hear about in today’s first reading from the book of Genesis. In this Sunday’s reading from Genesis, we hear how the Lord God appeared unexpectedly to Abraham as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. Even though the passage makes it clear that it is God speaking to Abraham in one voice and Abraham answers God in the singular, the text makes it clear that Abraham saw three men standing there. This text, in which God is referred to in the singular, but spoken of as appearing in the form of three persons, has been seen by many as one of the first references in scripture to the Holy Trinity. This, however, is not the important point that this passage is trying to make. This reading is speaking more about the importance of being ready to greet God and welcome Him into one’s life at anytime that He might appear. Continue reading →

Citizenship Ceremony by Government of Prince Edward Island

This past Tuesday, July 1, 2025, as we celebrated Canada Day and Canada’s 158^th birthday, one of the “good news” stories that was reported on the Tuesday evening news had to do with the number of new Canadians who received their citizenship in different celebrations across Canada. As a priest, I have had the privilege of accompanying both friends and parishioners who have received their citizenship and it is always a very happy experience that usually comes at the end of a difficult and challenging adventure. For many, a new life in Canada has come at the end of a journey that entailed much hardship. Often, those who come to Canada have left family and loved ones at home. There can be many sacrifices in coming to a new country. Yet, despite the difficulties, those who do seek a new life in a new country often do so because they believe in the better future that lies ahead of them; either for themselves or for their children. The dream of a better future makes the sacrifices of the difficult journey worthwhile. Often, it is only the hope of that better life, and the security that it offers, that gives those who come to Canada the strength to persevere through the different and various challenges and tribulations.

The readings this Sunday are intended to remind us that as Christians we are also on a journey, that at times will involve trials and tribulations, to our true homeland that awaits us in Heaven. Continue reading →

We celebrate this weekend our parish’s titular feast day, the Solemnity of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. It is obvious why we call Saint Peter our titular saint— the parish being named Saint Peter’s; but perhaps the connection to Saint Paul is not so clear. It is because of the many years of faithful service that the Paulist Fathers rendered to this parish that we also honour Saint Paul as our parish’s other titular saint.

We are fortunate to have two such amazing saints as our parish’s titular patrons. Both St. Peter and St. Paul have so much to teach us. I believe these two great saints teach us by their lives both who we are and what we are called to become. Their lives show us the power of God’s grace to transform our lives and the way in which we are called to witness to what that grace is capable of doing in each of us. Continue reading →

Pentecost— Fulfilling the Promise to be With Us Until the End of the Ages (and inviting us today to take our place in His living Church)!

At the beginning of this Easter Season, you and I celebrated Easter by renewing our baptismal promises. In the Ritual for Infant Baptism, there are about a hundred different readings that can be used at a Baptism for a child. Despite this great variety, I find that I have used only one reading at almost all of the Baptisms that I have celebrated in my years as a priest. The reading that I always use at Baptism is the text from Matthew in which Jesus commissions His disciples to go out into the world and baptize all nations. The exact words that Jesus used are as follows: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the ages” (Matthew 28: 19-20). What strikes me most about this passage is the amazing promise that Christ has made to all of us through our Baptisms: “Behold, I am with you always, until the end of the ages.” Christ promises all of us that He is with us always, forever, until the end of time. Today, as we celebrate Pentecost Sunday, Jesus tells us that He will fulfill this promise to be with us always by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in our hearts. Continue reading →

“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13: 34-35).

There is a great song that summarises today’s readings. It goes like this:

We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
And we pray that our unity will one day be restored
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yeah they’ll know we are Christians by our love

We will work with each other, we will work side by side
We will work with each other, we will work side by side
And we’ll guard each man’s dignity and save each man’s pride
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yeah, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

This song describes the fact that often what attracted people to Christianity in the early Church was the charity and love shown to one another by the early Christians.

An example of this reality in our parish is the parish’s Winter Welcome Table Program that serves a meal to anyone in need in our community. Often Catholics, other Christians and non- Christians, come to the parish because of the Winter Welcome Table Program. When they see the great work that is done at this meal, they often want to know more about the parish and some even return to attending Mass. Continue reading →

“These are the ones who have survived the time of great distress; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb” (Revelation 7:14).

In the Easter season, the first and second readings that we hear at Sunday Mass are often taken from the Acts of the Apostles and the Book of Revelation. The reason for this has to do with the fact that Easter focuses our attention on two essential messages contained in both of these books. These two messages are as follows: 1) From the Acts of the Apostles we are reminded that Christ’s mission continues in the world through the community of the Church that He established and that you and I are called to be active members of that Church, making Christ present in the world today; And 2) From the Book of Revelation, because of the sacrifice that He offered for our salvation, Christ has opened the gates of Heaven and destroyed death so that we are invited at the end of our lives here on earth to the Kingdom of Heaven, where we are invited to be members of Christ’s Church for all eternity. So, to sum it up, it could be expressed this way: By His death and resurrection, Christ has re-established humanity in communion with the Holy Trinity and we are called to live in God’s presence today and for all eternity within the community of His Church- both on earth and in Heaven. Or, as we hear so beautifully expressed in the words of Jesus the Good Shepherd in today’s Gospel from John: “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they shall never perish” (John 10:27-28). Continue reading →