One of the things about being here at St. Peter’s Parish that I find a little funny at times, is that often I will be walking between the Centre and the Church, and as I do so someone will roll down their car window, and stop me on Bathurst Street, to demand that I give them a blessing as they are driving by on the street. My first inclination is to try to have a conversation with them to find out what they think that a blessing signifies. However, as the traffic is often heavy and they are in a hurry, they frequently get a little angry with me and demand that I stop my small talk and quickly give them the blessing that they are seeking before they drive off. These experiences have helped me to realize that many people may not even know what a blessing signifies or be aware of what is required for a blessing to really be of any value. Continue reading →

Every year, on the first Sunday following Christmas, the Church celebrates the beautiful feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. The purpose of this beautiful feast is to remind each and every one of us that the most important place where we are to encounter God’s love for us is within the family. Like all of us, Jesus was born into a human family so that we might all be reminded that it is first and foremost within the family that we are to make Christ’s love present to our brothers and sisters and where we are to encounter the love and acceptance that we all desire and long to know. This beautiful feast is to remind all of us that every family—mine and yours—is a sacred place where God’s love is to be encountered. Continue reading →

This past year at St. Peter’s Parish, especially the past few months, has been a time of great transition and change. For those of you who may be visiting, or may be here only for Christmas, over the past few months the parish has welcomed the Sisters of Life to the newly renovated Centre for Life in the rectory. We have also finished the renovation in the rectory and moved our parish offices from the Centre and returned them to the rectory. For those who are unaware of this, our parish offices are now located at the door under the archway here at the side of the church. What surprised me about this move and the renovation project which came to a conclusion over the past few months was how much of my own time it consumed and how many problems could arise in the course of a project. For months we awaited the arrival of the doors which we kept being told would arrive next week—always next week for about six months. When they finally did arrive, we were told that they were the wrong kind and that the locks would not work. Often while commuting back and forth from Holy Rosary Parish, I would arrive at the church to find someone else was parking in my parking spot and that I would have to beg them to let me use the parking spot assigned to me. Some days, I spent hours on the phone trying to resolve issues about the transfer of phones and other services needed to run the office. Through all the delays and disruptions that had to do with the construction, I kept making myself promises that as I arrived at the parish each day I would not let myself get distracted by the construction and superficial affairs of the renovation. I vowed I would focus on being a parish priest and serving the community of St. Peter’s and not allow myself to become overly involved in the renovations. Sadly, I would arrive at the parish and find myself caught up with questions from the contractor and architect and find it a real challenge to visit the sick or be present to the parishioners. To those who caught me on one of my bad days, after a difficult conversation with the architects, my apologies. Things got so bad, that as we had to move our offices just last week during the busy season of Christmas, there were times that I was feeling so busy, I feared that I would not be able to get into the Christmas spirit this year. Concerned that I myself might become this year a Grinch at Christmas, one day I decided that I needed a little break from the renovations and move and I went to see the newly released version of Dr. Seuss’ “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.” Continue reading →