Christmas Message From Our Pastor
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
At the Christmas Eve Mass, we sing the Preface of the Nativity of The Lord:
“For on the feast of his awe-filled mystery,
though invisible in his own divine nature,
he has appeared visibly in ours;
and begotten before all ages,
he has begun to exist in time;
so that, raising up in himself all that was cast down,
he might restore unity to all creation
and call straying humanity back to the heavenly Kingdom”
Therefore, Christmas is a time of Joy, Hope, and Love. We are joyful because through the Mystery of Incarnation, God is with us in a very special human way. We are hopeful because through the Mystery of Incarnation, we are raised up in Christ. And in the Mystery of Incarnation we can experience God’s Love and Mercy in our daily life.
This year we again celebrate Christmas in a very unusual atmosphere, amidst uncertainty and fear caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. We are going through a period of darkness in our life. However, as Pope Francis said in his Christmas message of last year's Holy Season, “the Christmas season provides reason for hope amid the difficulties of the Coronavirus pandemic”.
I would like to thank all of you for your great support throughout the year of 2021 even in the time of difficulty, especially with the Restoration Project. I pray that all of us will be out of the darkness of the pandemic soon and that we continue to build up our community as a community of Faith, Hope, and Charity throughout the year of 2022.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year filled with God’s Blessings
Fr. Joseph Tap Tran
Pastor
RECTORY OFFICE CLOSURE
The office closes DECEMBER 24th at Noon and re-opens JANUARY 12th, 2022
New Year Mass Schedule
New Years' Eve Mass
Friday, December 31st
7:00 p.m.
New Years' Day Masses
Saturday, December 1st, 2022
9:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m.
MASS REGISTRATION
Eventbrite Registration for above Masses closed on December 23rd at 4 p.m. A percentage of seats were set aside for walk-ins. Walk-ins will be admitted where space allows.
Livestream of Mass
MASS LIVESTREAMED - Sunday at 9 a.m. on our YouTube channel: St. Cecilia Parish Toronto. To access our Youtube channel from our parish website, click on "Watch the Livestream" then scroll down and click on "Subscribe to St. Cecilia Church Channel ", the Mass does not stream directly on our website.
LIVING WITH CHRIST MISSALS
Sunday, Nov. 28th is the First Sunday of Advent and the beginning of a new liturgical year.
Sunday Missals for 2021-2022 are available for purchase at the back of the church. The price is $5.00
FOR SEPTEMBER 2021
The Toronto Catholic District School Board invites parents to register their children for Junior Kindergarten beginning Wednesday, January 20th, 2021 at 10:00 am EST. Due to current COVID-19 conditions all applications (including the upload of required documents) must be completed online.
The following documents are required for registration:
1. Child's Birth Certificate (Certificate of Citizenship or Landed Immigrant Status)
2. Child's Catholic Baptismal Certificate (or proof of Catholicity)
3. Child's Immunization Record
4. Proof of residency in Toronto
FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF THE PARISH DURING THIS TIME
Weekly envelopes may be used - mailed to the parish or dropped off: 161 Annette Street, Toronto, ON M6P 1P5.
The easiest on-line options:
Archdiocese Donate Now link https://community.archtoronto.org/page.aspx?pid=416 Enables you to give to St. Cecilia parish by credit card. You choose St. Cecilia from a list of parishes and the Archdiocese directs your donation to our parish. The parish receives a monthly report of all donations made via this method. Tax receipts are issued to donors at year end by the Archdiocese (one-time gifts are receipted at time of giving).
Pre-Authorised giving A set donation figure of your choosing is withdrawn from your bank account on the 20th of each month. Please contact the parish office to set this up.
If you have any questions regarding methods of donating, please email or phone the parish office.
Thank you for your many and varied contributions to our parish community!
Dear parishioners,
I hope and pray that you are staying healthy – both physically and spiritually. Please let me know if the parish can help you during these difficult times.
No doubt you are aware that our parish relies on the support of our parishioners to operate – parish salaries, programs and ongoing operating costs (heating, water, electricity, etc.) – are funded through the generosity of our parish community. It will be a challenge for our parish to maintain operations without the weekly offertory collection.
In response to many queries that I have received from parishioners, I offer below some of the ways that you may continue to support our parish if you are in a position to do so. I recognise that many of you, like the parish, are experiencing financial strain at this time and I pray that those stresses are soon eased for you.
For those in a position to continue to give to our parish, the easiest on-line options would be through the Archdiocese Donate Now link. Through this link you can give to the parish by credit card. These donations are handled by the Archdiocese. The donation is directed to the parish of your choice. The parish receives a monthly report of all donations made to the parish via this method and tax receipts are issued to donors at year end by the Archdiocese (one-time gifts are receipted at time of giving).
Pre-Authorised giving is also an option. A set donation figure of your choosing is withdrawn from your bank account on the 20th of each month. We have a number of parishioners who give by this method. Please contact the office if you wish to set this up.
Weekly envelopes may still be used - mailed to the parish or dropped off.
Thank you for your many contributions to our parish community. I miss seeing all of you at the Mass and I pray daily that we will be able to gather together again soon.
Yours in Christ,
Father Joseph
Pastor, St. Cecilia
Scripture Readings for
Sunday, January 2 2022
First Reading: Isaiah 6 : 1 - 6
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 72
Second Reading: Ephesians 3 : 3 - 3a, 5 - 6
Gospel: Matthew 2 : 1 - 12
MASS INTENTIONS OF THE WEEK
Mon. Dec. 27 - Sun. January 2, 2021
Sunday 9:00 a.m.
Joseph Farley (RIP)
Req. by Frances McKee
Sunday 11 a.m.
Intentions of the Parish Community
PLEASE PRAY FOR THE SICK
Hang Sam Lee, Richard Mijares, Drew Fiala, Connie Tari-Kornhauser, Lisa Reardon, Stuart Robson, Rosa Maria Santos, Dory Kashin, Bianca Auriemma, Rosie Po, Frank Ferreira, Antonina Koziara, Julia Collins, Mary Ann Cuschieri, Sebastian Caravalho, Anne Tran Fazzalari, Gabriel Sebastian Romano, Robert Freimuts, Giuseppe R., Mikayla Haswell, Victoria Cooper, Anna Solims, Lorenza Varga, Steven McKinney, Krysten Telfer, Natalie Chabane, Edward Spiteri, Maria Ruccolo, John Conforzi, Ignacio Juarez Ednet, Dominic Coccimiglio, Winifred Ismail, Mimi Ashton, Ann Baby, Susan Murphy, Marta DiGregorio, and Guy Alcamo.
Please notify the office of any changes to the list.
2021 Contributions
Next weekend is the last weekend you will be making a 2021 contribution to our parish. Any contributions received after December 31, 2021 will count towards your 2022 tax receipt. As of January 1, 2022, contributions received will count towards your 2022 tax receipt.
OFFERTORY
Weekly, Dec 12 $ 805.00
Baptism $ 100.00
Thank you for your on-going support!
2022 OFFERTORY ENVELOPES are ready for pick-up at the back of the church.
Please print your full name, address, and phone number on the envelope, when making your first few 2022 donations.
New envelope users/parishioners are asked to fill out a Parish Registration Form (available from an usher) and return it to an usher to obtain offertory envelopes for 2022.
CHANGE OF ADDRESS?
If you moved this year, please inform the office of your new address. Thank you.