27 July 2014: Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

You have asked for wisdom

Feast Day 25 July: James, son of Zebedee (died 44 AD) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, and traditionally considered the first apostle to be martyred. He was a son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of John the Apostle. He is also called James the Greater or James the Great to distinguish him from James, son of Alphaeus. James the Greater is the patron saint of Spain.

Source: www.catholic.org/saints

Please join us to celebrate the Feast of St James at our 10:30am Mass on Sunday 27 July at St James' Church (162 Kent Street, North Richmond).

A sharing of light lunch will follow in the multipurpose hall.

Reminder: Celebration of the Feast of St Ignatius

Sunday 03 August 2014, 9:30am

Please feel welcome to bring a plate to share!

You are cordially invited to the celebration of the Eucharist on the Feast of St Ignatius and the 200th anniversary of the Re-establishment of the Society of Jesus. On this occasion, we are going to bless and give thanks to God for the restoration of the slate roof at St Ignatius’ Church.

Morning tea will be served in the Hall after 9:30am Mass.

Note: There will be no 10:30am Mass at St James' nor 5:30pm Mass at St Ignatius' on 03 August.

You can view this and other events on our parish Calendar.

In the spirit of sharing...

Our Richmond Hill Churches Food Centre is urgently in need of pasta, canned food and recycled bags.  Please be generous and drop off items at our Parish Office. Much appreciated!

20 July 2014: Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Let them grow together until the harvest

While we must speak out for the truth, we may well be tempted to emphasise our faithfulness by our impatience and intolerance towards those who do not journey with us. The parable of Jesus warns us that this is not God’s way. The reading from the book of Wisdom shows us that, as the Old Testament was drawing to a close, devout thinkers in old Israel were recognising that the virtuous person must be kindly to others, learning from the mysterious patience of God.

Only the Lord of the harvest – whose grace is at work in a hidden way in every human heart – can sort out the good from the bad when all is gathered in at the end. We who are blessed with the gift of faith must prepare for the final harvest by becoming an exemplary crop ourselves. There is a lesson here, also, for those who belong to the new movements emerging in the today’s Church. They must avoid a sectarian spirit that would see their way as the only way. There is room in God’s Church for many spiritualities and traditions. True 'catholicity' shows an openness to this.

From a homily by John Thornhill sm

Two Feast days in a row

A warm welcome to Fr Nguyen Viet Huy sj who had a safe journey back from the Holy Land! We sincerely look forward to celebrating these forthcoming Feast Days together!:

• Sunday 27 July 2014: Feast of St James
• Sunday 03 August 2014: Feast of St Ignatius, including the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the re-establishment of the Society of Jesus, and the blessing of the church's restored slate roof

See our Calendar for further details.