The 3rd Sunday of Lent
Follow this beautiful Lenten Retreat with Catholics around the world.
This Week in the Church
FRIDAY, MARCH 17TH - 9am & 7pm Masses – 6:30pm Stations of the Cross
FILIPINO MASS – Sunday, March 12th is @6pm
Important Updates
2nd Sunday of each Month – there will be a Filipino Mass at 6pm
2022 TAX RECEIPTS are available at the parish office.
Reflections
God’s Mercy Is Without Limit
On this Sunday and the next two Sundays, we break from reading the Gospel of Matthew to read from John’s Gospel. The Gospel of John is the only Gospel not assigned to a particular liturgical year. Instead, readings from John’s Gospel are interspersed throughout our three-year liturgical cycle.
In today’s Gospel, the dialogue between Jesus and a woman from Samaria is among the most lengthy and most theological found in Scripture. The most startling aspect of the conversation is that it happens at all. Jesus, an observant Jew of that time, was expected to avoid conversation with women in public. The animosity between the Jews and the Samaritans should have prevented the conversation as well. The woman herself alludes to the break from tradition: “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” Yet Jesus not only converses with the woman, he also asks to share her drinking vessel, an action that makes him unclean according to Jewish law.
The initial conversation between Jesus and the woman is better understood if we consider the importance of water, especially in the climate of Israel. At first, the woman understands Jesus’ promise of “living water” in a literal sense: “Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” With no running water, the daily trip to the well by the women of the community was of paramount importance. The women of the town would have traveled to the well in the early morning, but this woman came to the well at noon, the hottest time of the day. The timing of her visit is a clear sign that she is an outcast within the Samaritan community. We learn in her conversation with Jesus that she is an outcast because of her “many husbands.”
Behind the conversation lies the animosity and rivalry between the Jews and the Samaritans. Samaritans shared Jewish ancestry, but Samaritans had intermarried with foreigners when they lived under the rule of the Assyrians. Samaritan religion included worship of Yahweh, but was also influenced by the worship of other gods. When the Jews refused Samaritan help in the building of the Temple at Jerusalem, the Samaritans eventually built a temple for themselves at Mt. Gerizim (the same mountain mentioned by the woman at the well). Like the Jews, the Samaritans believed that a Messiah would come.
The high point of the conversation is when Jesus reveals himself to her as the Messiah. His answer to the Samaritan woman’s questions about worship is meant to predict a time when worshiping in truth and spirit will become the way to worship.
After the conversation, the Samaritan woman becomes a disciple. Even though she is an outcast and not a Jew, she returns to her town to lead others to Jesus and to wonder whether she has found the Messiah. The Samaritan townspeople return with her to meet Jesus for themselves, and many are said to come to believe in him.
The significance of the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman has many levels. The first is personal: The woman is herself converted to belief in Jesus as Messiah because he knows her sin but speaks with her just the same. The second is social: Having come to know Jesus as the Messiah, the Samaritan woman becomes an evangelist to her own people.
The third level of the story is educational: Jesus uses his encounter with the Samaritan woman to teach his disciples that God’s mercy is without limit. The disciples return from their shopping quite confused to find Jesus talking with a Samaritan, and a woman at that! But the conversion of the Samaritan townspeople is a foretaste of the kind of open community that will be created among those who believe that Jesus is the Messiah.
~ Loyola Press
Mass Intentions
Sunday, March 12
· Repose Vivian Concepcion by Vilma Pilar
· Repose Joseph Bulaun by Vilma Pilar
· Spec. Intention Sr. Catherine by Zofia Bronowska
· Repose Maria Nhan Pham by daughter Rosa Zivarts
· Repose Souls of all family members by Cusanelli family
Monday, March 13
· Spec. Intention St. Edmund’s Parishioners
Tuesday, March 14
· Repose Lolita Acosta
Wednesday, March 15
· Repose Rev. John Barry by Louzado family
Thursday, March 16
· Spec Intention All Priests around the World by Rosa Zivarts
· Repose Giuseppina Rota by Maria Morisseau
Friday, March 17
· Spec. Intention Hildegard Fercho by Hildegard Fercho
· Repose All Souls in Purgatory by Rosa Zivarts
Saturday, March 18
· Spec. Intentions Jasmin Pinto by Legion of Mary members
· Repose John Cusanelli by Giovanna Cusanelli
If you need a Mass Intention, please contact the Parish Office
Events
Parish
Parish Groups
ST. Edmund's Christian Meditation Group
Date: All Mondays at 7:00 PM
Participation in person:
please contact Luis Zunino - lzunino@gzarchitects.com or at 604-987-8304
Option to participate via ZOOM:
For an introductory conversation, please contact Luis Zunino - lzunino@gzarchitects.com or at 604-987-8304 – Afterwards, A ZOOM link will be provided
Catholic Women’s League meetings are now in person on the 2nd Thursday of each month @ 7pm
SPECIAL NOTE: Starting April meetings will be in person
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
Please note - the Knights’ Pancake Breakfast will not take place in March or April.
All Spring Term lessons are now available to book at https://cjtenniscoaching.ca/booking-page-groups .
Registration for Summer camps and lessons will be available in April.
School
KINDERGARTEN APPLICATIONS for the 2023/2024 school year are now being accepted at St. Edmund’s School. Please submit a copy of your child’s birth and baptism certificates with your application form. If you are non-Catholic, please submit a birth certificate. Application forms may be printed from our website www.stedmunds.ca and e-mailed to the school office at office@stedmunds.ca
Kindergarten to Grade 7 Principal: Ms. Diana Silva
Office Telephone: 604.988-7364
Email: office@stedmunds.ca
Website: www.stedmunds.ca
Instagram: @stedselementary
Our school is a vibrant faith and learning community dedicated to developing the full potential of each child using Christ as our centre. We are blessed with caring and dedicated educators committed to inspiring life-long learners in all areas. We welcome the opportunity to share the many enriching learning experiences with you and your family. Please contact the school office for more information.
Religious Education
PREP
Every Wednesday at 6-7pm
Children's Choir Training
Every Saturday at 10 AM
Altar Servers’ Training
Every Saturday at 11 - 11:30am
Archdiocese Notices & Events
World Wide Marriage Encounter hosts a weekend retreat - April 14-16, 2023 in Kamloops! Come join us to live your best life in love, renew your marriage & rekindle romance. For more information and to register visit: Behold Vancouver website
Registration closes Mar 28/23 - see WWME on Youtube: https://youtu.be/VvQUEZ35Ufg
CWL RETREAT - Please join Fr. James Comey and the Holy Trinity CWL on our annual retreat at Westminster Abbey on March 24-26. Our theme: Lent and Celtic Spirituality. All women are warmly welcomed. Cost: $175. For more details and to secure your place, please contact Nicole @ 778-886-3340 or nickitancredi@gmail.com
Catholic Health Association of BC
Apply for our $500 Bursary!
This year, the board of directors of CHABC is pleased to announce that it will grant a $500 Bursary to a graduating student who is enrolled in a Catholic secondary school, or a member of a BC or Yukon parish and enrolled in a public secondary school, or home-schooled.
Interested students are invited to submit a 500-word essay by April 7, 2023, that demonstrates an awareness and understanding of the significance of Spirituality in Health Care. In your essay, please explain why you believe that care for the spirit is just as significant as care for the body, and why spiritual care is particularly important in tending to the sick and dying, to their families, and to those who care for them. Applicants must demonstrate a clear understanding of spirituality in care as opposed to focusing on religious beliefs and services
Deadline: April 7, 2023
Emailed submissions must be sent prior to midnight on
April 7, 2023 to info@chabc.bc.ca
For essay and submission guidelines, please visit www.chabc.bc.ca/bursary
Catholic Health Association of British Columbia
Project Advance 2022
The Project Advance Webpage is live, please visit projectadvance.ca
You can donate by scanning ↘
Special Gifts
Remember a loved one with a special gift
Financial Updates
Remember St Edmund's in your Will
Prayer Requests and Advertisements
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |  | Our Parish Community is asked to pray for the Special Intention of St. Edmund Parishioners |
Our Parish Community is asked to pray for the Special Intentions of All Carmelite Priests |  |  |
Our Parish Community is asked to pray for the Special Intention of Father Steny & Father Cannio |  | |