Passion Sunday
This Week
PENITENTIAL SERVICE
Tuesday, March 26 – St. Stephen’s @10:30am
Tuesday, March 26 – Christ the Redeemer @7pm
PLEASE NOTE: There are NO 9 am Masses or confessions on
Thursday, March 28th
Friday, March 29th
Saturday, March 30th
HOLY SATURDAY, MARCH 30TH “SWIECONKA “– The traditional Polish blessing of Easter Food will take place:
11 am here at St. Edmund’s Parish in front of Grotto
1 pm at St. Stephen's Parish hall All are welcome.
Please check the “Important Holy Week Updates” on the next page
PILGRIM VIRGIN STATUE OF FATIMA – PARISH VISITATION
We, at St. Edmund’s, are honoured to be included in the few Parishes in the Archdiocese of Vancouver chosen to host this Visitation sponsored by the World Apostolate of Fatima, USA. It will arrive at 8:30 am on WEDNESDAY, APRIL 3RD. All of you are invited to join us to pray for peace in the world.
CWL POP-UP BAKE SALE – advance notice to Bakers, the CWL will be having a Pop-up Bake Sale on Easter Sunday. As usual, please drop it off before Mass.
Important Updates
Holy Week Updates
Confessions are available after the 9 am Mass and Sat. at 3.30 pm to 4.15 pm at St. Edmund’s. Additionally, Penitential Services are:
Friday, March 21 – Holy Trinity @7:30pm
Tuesday, March 26 – Christ the Redeemer @7pm
Tuesday, March 26 – St. Stephen’s @10:30am
The Blessing and the Procession with the Palms will take place 15 minutes before each Weekend Mass in front of our School. Please arrive early so that you can participate in the solemn entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.
Holy Thursday
Last Supper at 7 pm followed by Adoration at Repose Altar till 11 pm.
School Stations of the Cross at 11 am in the Church
Good Friday
Outdoor Stations of the Cross at 10 am.
Lord’s Passion at 3 pm.
Easter Vigil – 9 pm
Easter Sunday - 8am, 9.30am, 11am Mass
Easter Flower Donations: There are envelopes at the Church entrance. Your donation will help beautify the Church for Easter and they can also be offered in remembrance of a deceased loved one or other Intentions.
The 11 am Liturgy on Easter Sunday is a Children’s Mass. Easter Treats will be given to the children after the Mass. If you could sponsor the Treats, please contact the Parish Office. It will be highly appreciated.
Other Updates
FILIPINO MASS – is the second Sunday of the month at 6 pm
CHRISTIAN MEDITATION GROUP will meet in person on the third Thursday of the month at 7 pm
PLEASE PICK UP YOUR 2024 ENVELOPES – from the Parish Office. If you still have envelopes from other years, kindly do not use them. Instead, use a plain envelope noting your name and the amount until you pick up your 2024 set.
2ND COLLECTION ENVELOPES FOR ONLINE & PRE-AUTHORIZED GIVING USERS ARE AVAILABLE. If you would like a set, please pick it up from the parish office.
CWL MEMBERSHIP FEES FOR 2024 are due before the end of APRIL. Kindly bring your cheque or EXACT cash of $40.50 to the office during office hours, or drop an envelope into the communion basket, tagged CWL Membership. If you need to do e-transfer, contact Donna at dkmajeau@shaw.ca.
BISHOP LOBSINGER MEMORIAL BURSARY – go to the Knights of Columbus notices for important information.
Reflections
PRAYERFULLY REMEMBER THE EVENTS OF JESUS’ PASSION AND DEATH
This Sunday, called Palm or Passion Sunday, is the first day of Holy Week. Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday are called the Triduum—three days that are the highlight of the Church year. There are two Gospels proclaimed at today’s Mass. The first Gospel, proclaimed before the procession with palms, tells of Jesus’ triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. Riding on a borrowed colt, Jesus was hailed by the crowds as they blessed God and shouted “Hosanna!” This event is reported in each of the four Gospels.
At the Liturgy of the Word on Palm Sunday, the events of Jesus’ passion are proclaimed in their entirety. In Lectionary Cycle B, we read the passion of Jesus as found in the Gospel of Mark. We will hear these events proclaimed again when we celebrate the Triduum later in the week. On Good Friday, we will read the passion of Jesus from the Gospel of John.
In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus’ passion and death are presented as the consequence of the tension between the Jewish authorities and Jesus that had been building throughout his public ministry. This tension reached its breaking point when Jesus drove the merchants and moneychangers from the Temple. After this event, the chief priests and scribes began seeking a way to put Jesus to death, and yet, this is only the surface explanation for his death.
When Jesus was arrested and brought before the Sanhedrin—the council of Jewish priests, scribes, and elders—he was charged with blasphemy, citing his threat to the Temple. When he was brought before Pilate, however, the religious authorities presented his crime as a political one, charging that Jesus claimed to be king of the Jews. In continuity with a theme of Mark’s Gospel, the messianic claim of Jesus is widely misunderstood.
In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus’ disciples are rarely models of faith and do little to invoke confidence in their capacity to continue his ministry after his death. They fare no better in Mark’s narrative of Jesus’ passion and death. At the Last Supper, the disciples insisted that none among them would betray Jesus. When Jesus predicted that their faith would be shaken in the events ahead, Peter and the other disciples protested vehemently. Yet in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus returned three times to find them sleeping. Jesus prayed in agony over his impending fate while his disciples slumbered through the night. Just as Jesus predicted, Peter denied Jesus, and the disciples were absent during Jesus’ passion and death. Only the women who had been followers of Jesus in Galilee are said to have been present at the Crucifixion, but they remained at a distance.
Throughout this Gospel, Mark challenges the reader to consider the claim with which the Gospel begins: Jesus is the Son of God. When we read Mark’s account of the passion, we begin to comprehend the deeper theological statement being made about Jesus’ death. In Mark’s telling of the passion narrative, Jesus understood his death to have been preordained, and he accepted this death in obedience to God’s will. Jewish Scripture is quoted only once, but there are several references to the fulfillment of the Scriptures. Jesus understood his anointing in Bethany as an anticipation of his burial, and he announced that this story would be told together with the Gospel throughout the world. Jesus predicted his betrayal by Judas as well as Peter’s denial. At his arrest, Jesus acknowledged that the preordained time had arrived. Jesus was both confident and silent before his accusers. After he was sentenced to death, Jesus did not speak again until his final cry from the cross. The bystanders misunderstood and believed that he was calling for Elijah. The Roman centurion, however, affirmed what Mark has presented throughout this Gospel: Jesus is the Son of God. Nowhere was this revealed more fully than in his death on the cross.
During Holy Week, we prayerfully remember the events of Jesus’ passion and death. As we meditate on the cross, we ask again and anew what it means to make the statement of faith that Jesus, in his obedient suffering and dying, revealed himself to us as God’s Son.
~ Loyola Press
Mass Intentions
Sunday, March 24
· Healing Mass for Yanic Pean by Chantel Pean
· Repose Serafino Vignone by son Angelo & family
· Spec. Intention Rev. Cannio Cardozo by Legion of Mary
· Repose Elisa Maglieri by Domenico & Maria Maglieri
· Spec. Intention Rev. Steny Mascarenhas & Rev. Cannio Cardozo by Rosa Zivarts
· Spec. Intention Rev. Cannio Cardozo by Lynn McLeod
Monday, March 25
· Repose Nicolau Sebastiao Cardozo by Law family
· Repose Kristy Spring by Vignone family
· Repose All Souls in Purgatory by Patricia Duran
Tuesday, March 26
· Spec. Intention St. Edmund Parishioners
· Repose Nicolau Sebastiao Cardozo by Peter & Fernande Husar
· Spec. Intention Franz Dopfer by Hildegard Fercho
· Repose Milagros B. Mangiliman by Antonio Gaskell
Wednesday, March 27
· Spec. Intention Estelle Harriott by Barbara Stuart
· Repose Giuseppe (Joe) Rucci by family
· Spec. Intention Sr. Catherine by Elizabeth Livingston
· Repose Nicolau Sebastiao Cardozo by Rosa & August Zivarts
Thursday, March 28
· Holy Thursday
Friday, March 29
· Good Friday
Saturday, March 30
· Easter Vigil
Parish Events
CWL
2nd Thursday of each month @ 7 PM
CWL MEMBERSHIP FEES FOR 2024 are due before the end of APRIL. Kindly bring your cheque or EXACT cash of $40.50 to the office during office hours, or drop an envelope into the communion basket, tagged CWL Membership. If you need to do e-transfer, contact Donna @ dkmajeau@shaw.ca
Knights of Columbus
The Knights of Columbus general meetings are in person on the 1st Tuesday each month @7pm/executive meetings are also in person on the last Tuesday of the month @7pm
SPECIAL OFFER - Knights of Columbus - Free 1 Year On-Line Membership. You can enjoy the benefits of being a Knights of Columbus member including Accidental Death Benefit and the famous Columbia Magazine.
Promo Code: BLESSEDMCGIVNEY
After joining, please check your Inbox for confirmation.
St. Eds Christian Meditation Group
Thu 15th Feb @ 7 PM
The St Edmund's Parish unit of the 'World Community for Christian Meditation' (WCCM) will resume its in-person meditation meeting, on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 7.00 pm in St Edmund's Church.
The first (resumed) in-person meeting will be held Thursday, 15 February at 7.00 pm.
WCCM had suspended in-person meetings owing to COVID-19 restrictions but continues to hold a weekly virtual meeting on Mondays (via ZOOM), also at 7.00 pm.
You are sincerely invited to attend the WCCM meeting(s). All are welcome.
To learn more about WCCM, kindly contact: Luis Zunino - email lzunino@gzarchitects.com
School Events
St. Edmunds Elementary School
School Stations of the Cross - All Welcome
Thursday, March 28th at 11 AM
St. Edmund’s School Walkathon
St. Edmund’s School Walkathon is our largest student-led fundraising event. Your donation to our campaign has an impact on our educational programs and activities. Thank you so much for your generosity in making pledges and supporting our students.
As our students walk through our community neighbourhood between April 8-11, they will be raising money for additional learning support materials for our Phys. Ed and Fine Arts Departments as well as 2 class sets of Chromebooks.
How to Help
Please donate to St. Edmund's Elementary Walkathon 2024 by:
1. Clicking on the "GIVE TO THE CAMPAIGN"
2. Enter the amount of your donation
3. Leave a comment in the COMMENT BOX
· Put the First Name and Last initial and grade of the student you are pledging toward.
· This way each student will know when someone has contributed for them. ie. "John D, grade 4, best of luck".
· You can also leave a comment after their name too!
4. You can also find our link at the bottom of the main page of our school website and a QR code on the attached poster.
5. In addition to the online option for collecting donations, your children will be coming home with paper pledge forms. If you collect cash or cheque donations and require a tax receipt, please be sure to complete the form with the donor's full name and address
Please tell your friends about our wonderful school!
St. Thomas Aquinas Secondary School
Pilgrimage to the Medjugorje Youth Festival & Italy - The STA Alumni Association, in conjunction with STA Campus Ministry, is hosting a Pilgrimage to the Medjugorje Youth Festival and Italy from July 22nd - August 8th, 2024. All STA alumni & their families (18+) are invited to join.
Find more information at: https://www.aquinas.org/alumni
Religious Education
PREP
PREP classes will be held every Wednesday from 6:00 - 7:00 pm at St Edmund’s School
Children's Choir Training
Every Saturday at 10 am
Altar Server Training
Every Saturday 11-11:30 am
Archdiocese Notices & Events
Thank you for giving from the heart to Share Lent 2024!
Development and Peace — Caritas Canada thanks you for supporting the Reaping our Rights campaign with your Share Lent donation. Thanks to your generosity, our parish collected [$ amount]. This sum will help support our sisters and brothers in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.
If you have not yet had a chance to give, you can still place your Share Lent envelope in the offertory or donate online at devp.org/give.
Thank you for continuing to pray for all those who are working to build a world of peace and justice.
Special Gifts
Remember a loved one with a special gift
Altar Candles & Sanctuary Lamp
Bread & Wine
Financial Updates
Remember St. Edmund's in your Will
Prayer Requests and Advertisements
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