12 April 2020 – The Resurrection of the Lord

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Easter blessings to you all. I hope and pray that you are all well, spiritually, physically, mentally and emotionally. We have come through the “desert” time of Lent and have walked with our Lord through the agony, fear, anxiety, betrayal and suffering of His Passion, Crucifixion and Death on the Cross; the three days of darkness, cold and loneliness of His entombment;  and, now, His emergence from the tomb to His glorious Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Our “desert” experience during this Lent has been enhanced due to the fear, anxiety, darkness and suffering which the whole world is enduring in these “unprecedented times”. Holy Week this year has been a very strange and painful experience for many of us. With all churches being closed for public worship for several weeks now, parishioners are unable to be physically present in our church and have had to rely on services provided on television or social media to attend Mass.

With the coming of Easter and the joy of our Lord’s Resurrection, we see an end to the darkness of the Passion of the Lord and rejoice in His glorious light. However, this year, our joy in the Resurrection is tempered, because our parishioners continue to be disconnected from our church and our parish family. They cannot visit their families and friends; they are isolated in their homes and confined to their personal spaces. They are restricted, temporarily, from receiving the Sacraments, especially the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Eucharist, out of concern for the protection and wellbeing of others.

Therefore, the blessings of Eastertide, which are hope, peace, love and joy in the Risen Lord, are countered by the suffering, sickness and, often, death of our brothers and sisters from the coronavirus, which is going on around us. Let us pray fervently for an early end to this pandemic which is afflicting the whole world, so that we may, once again, rejoice fully and anew in the hope, peace, joy and spirit of the Easter season and may all return to the churches and the Sacraments.

In the meantime, until this happens, please be assured that I, together with my fellow priests, Fr. Dominic and Fr. Daniel, celebrate Mass every day for all your personal intentions. You are always in our thoughts and we pray daily for the spiritual, physical and mental health of all our parishioners.

Please pray for us as well. We are all here for you in case of need and you may continue to contact us by telephone at 416-769-8163 or by E-mail at stceciliatoronto@gmail.com.

Once again, I wish all of you a holy, blessed and joyful Easter with trust in the Risen Lord.

Yours in Christ,
Fr.  Joseph Tran
Pastor