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On Sunday, November 18, Roman Catholics will celebrate the second annual World Day of the Poor. This new world day of prayer was announced by Pope Francis in a letter dated June 13, 2017 and is to be observed annually on the 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. The theme this year is “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him” (Ps 34:6). In his message for World Day of the Poor, Pope Francis challenges us to use this occasion to make an examination of conscience and consider whether we truly do hear the cry of the poor. The celebration of this day is an excellent opportunity for us to support our local St. Vincent de Paul and/or local Food Bank.

On Sunday, November 11, we celebrate Remembrance Day, a time to remember those who died in the First and Second World Wars and the Korean War as well as in military operations and peacekeeping missions around the world. This year is the 100^th anniversary of the end of World War I, commonly called the “Great War” or the “war to end all wars”. We observe Remembrance Day on November 11^th because it was on November 11, 1918, at 11:00 a.m. that the peace treaty ending World War I came into effect. As we remember  let us pray for all those – military and civilian – who have suffered the horrors of war.

World Mission Sunday is celebrated on the next-to-last Sunday in October, which this year is October 21. The theme this year is Together with young people, let us bring the Gospel to all. On this day we are called to offer our prayers and generous financial support, through the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, for the worldwide mission of Jesus. Your prayers and donations will help support churches, hospitals, schools and vocations in countries where the Church is beginning, where it is new. We would encourage you to be as generous as possible in the special collection taken up in support of the Church’s missionary work.

Continue to next page to read the letter from Bishop Vincent H. Nguyen, auxiliary Bishop of Toronto and Ponens, Society for the Propagation of the Faith for Canada, English Sector

Click here to read the message of Pope Francis.

On Sunday, October 14, 2018, at Mass celebrated in St. Peter’s Square in Rome, Pope Francis I canonized Blessed Paul VI and Blessed Oscar Romero. The Most Reverend Lionel Gendron, P.S.S., Bishop of Saint-Jean-Longueuil and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued a statement to mark the event.

On October 4, 2018, , the CCCB released its updated and expanded national guidelines for the protection of minors in Canada entitled Protecting Minors from Sexual Abuse: A Call to the Catholic Faithful in Canada for Healing, Reconciliation, and Transformation.

With this document, Canada’s Bishops reaffirm their commitment to continue improving practices in their dioceses/eparchies with an emphasis on long-term prevention and pre-emptive action. The document brings the CCCB’s existing guidelines (From Pain to Hope, 1992; Orientations, 2007) up to date with the latest laws in Canada and the most recent norms of the Holy See.

Click here to read the complete document and/or to view the Introduction to the document by CCCB President, the Most Rev. Lionel Gendron, P.S.S.

Recently our diocese received a grant from the Ex Corde Foundaion of the Diocese of Hamilton to assist the Diocese in funding the 2019 Clergy Retreat.

We are very grateful to the Ex Corde Foundation for their generous financial support of this important activity of spiritual renewal and ongoing educational training for the clergy of our diocese.

On October 1 the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of St. Therese of Lisieux. St. Therese is one of two patron saints  of the Diocese of Corner Brook and Labrador. She was the patron saint of the former Diocese of Labrador and, upon the amalgamation of that Diocese and the former Diocese of St. George's, it was decided that she would become the principle patron saint of the newly created Diocese of Corner Brook and Labrador. This decision was based in large part upon the great devotion to the Little Flower shown by parishioners of both former Dioceses.

Every year, the Bishops of Canada make an appeal for financial assistance to support its work through the Collection for the Needs of the Church in Canada. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) is the national assembly of Catholic Bishops in Canada, including the Eastern Catholic Churches of Canada.

Each diocese participates in financing the regional assemblies and the national Conference by a contribution based on its Catholic population. The annual Collection for the Needs of the Church in Canada invites all the faithful to participate in this financing by helping their diocese meet its financial obligations to the regional assemblies and to the national Conference. Any additional revenues raised help the diocese support its own diocesan pastoral programs and other activities.

 

The Collection for the Needs of the Church in Canada will be taken up in Dioceses across Canada on the weekend of September 29-30, 2018.

World Tourism Day is celebrated annually on September 27, the date when, in 1970, the Statutes of the United Nations World Tourism Organization were adopted. The adoption of these Statutes is considered a milestone in global tourism. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness on the role of tourism within the international community and to demonstrate how it affects social, cultural, political and economic values worldwide.

The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development has released its annual message for this year’s World Tourism Day, which has as its theme Tourism and Digital Transformation.

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) will hold its annual Plenary Assembly at the Nav Canada Centre, Cornwall, Ontario, in the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall  from September 24-28, 2018. The meeting will be chaired by the Most Reverend Lionel Gendron, P.S.S., Bishop of Saint-Jean-Longueuil and President of the CCCB. This year's Plenary Assembly marks the opening of the CCCB's 75th anniversary year, with special anniversary activities taking place during the Plenary as well as throughout the year. Please pray for Bishop Hundt and his brother Bishops as they embark on these important meetings.