Slovenska župnija sv. Gregorija Velikega | St. Gregory the Great Slovenian Church 08/50 Številka - Number / Leto - Year 23. 02. 2014 7. NEDELJA MED LETOM 7th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Fr. Drago Gačnik sdb ŽUPNIK - PASTOR Naslov - Address 125 Centennial Pkwy N Hamilton, ON L8E 1H8 Telefon - Telephone 905-561-5971 Fax 905-561-5109 E-mail gregory_sdb@cogeco.ca Web page www.carantha.com Hall rentals 905-518-6159 Bodite sveti, kakor ... Danes v prvem berilu slišimo nenavadno božjo zahtevo za izvoljeno ljudstvo: »Bodite sveti, kajti jaz, Gospod, vaš Bog, sem svet!» Želi, da bi mu postajali^ vedno bolj podobni, čeprav bo ta podobnost vedno neskončno daleč od samega vzora - Boga. A svetost Boga se dai najbolje izreči prav z besedo »ljubezen«: Bog je ljubezen. Zato tudi od nas zahteva, da smo bitja ljubezni: »Ne sovraži brata v svojem srcu ..., ne bodi maščevalen in zamerijiv ..., ampak ljubi svojega bližnjega ..., kakor sam sebe!« Preseneča spoznanje, da ta vzor ljubezni do bližnjega, ki naj bi bila enaka ljubezni do sebe, najdemo že v stari zavezi. Vendar ne smemo spregledati, da je bila v tem obdobju ta zapoved zožena v krog izvoljenega ljudstva, kjer je bil »brat« ali »bližnji« vedno Izraelec. Ljubezen do bližnjega, ki naj bi se merila po ljubezni do sebe, nam skuša osvetliti sv. Pavel v drugem berilu, ko nas opozarja: »Ali ne veste, da ste božji tempelj in da božji duh prebiva v vas?« Ustvarjeni smo po božji podobi, Bog v nas prebiva in smo zato nekakšen »božji tempeij«. A le-ta je, pravi apostol, »svet«, in dodaja, »taki ste vi«. To je podobna misel tisti iz stare zaveze. Človek je sveto ali posvečeno bitje, zato mora tudi njegovo ravnanje biti sveto, posvečeno. Zato naj Kristusov človek, kristjan, išče božjo ali Kristusovo modrost in se ne da zapeljati navidezni modrosti, ki je v resnici nespamet. Zato duhovito pravi: »Če misli kdo med vami, da je moder na tem svetu, naj postane nespameten, da bo moder.« Naj torej misli drugače, kot to delajo ljudje, ki jim ni mar božja modrost. Zato je kar trda Pavlova beseda: »Če kdo pokončava tempelj, njega bo Bog končal.« Kakšna močna, a zdrava samozavest veje iz teh besed! Da, ves božji svet je naš, vsi smo drug za drugega, da si pomagamo na poti k cilju - Bogu, po Kristusu. LETNI ŽUPNIJSKI OBČNI ZBOR V nedeljo, 16. februarja 2014 smo se ob treh popoldne zbrali v lepem številu v naši dvorani za letni občni zbor. Po molitvi, pozdravu predsednika in sprejetju dnevnega reda so predstavniki društev prebrali svoja poročila. Zapisnika letos nismo brali, ker je bil objavljen v prejšnji številki oznanil in si jih je vsak lahko sam prebral doma. Poleg rednega delovanja v prejšnjem letu - gospodarsko in finančno poročilo - je bilo predstavljena pomembnost prostovoljcev, posebej še v tem letu, ker bo veliko raznih prireditev - Slovenski dan obhajamo v naši župniji. An event and facility presented for members and supporters of St. Gregory and the Hamilton Diocese 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time Response: The Lord is merciful and gracious. First Reading Leviticus 19:1-2. 17-18 Being holy means not hating our brothers and sisters and not taking vengeance. Second Reading 1 Corinthians 3:16-23 Paul tells us that we bear the presence of God within us for we are God's temple. Gospel Matthew 5:38-48 Jesus commands us not to reciprocate violence and teaches us to love our enemies. "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." Illustration A book about the ethics of the ancient world bears the title Helping Friends and Harming Enemies. This title expresses what was regarded as the common view in those days. Not much has changed in today's ruthless, competitive world. So we may wonder how Jesus' command to turn the other cheek and love our enemies can be taken seriously; it goes so much against common sense. An enemy is someone for whom you bear hatred in your heart, so how can you love them? How could you love someone who, for instance, had killed a member of your family? It sounds a ridiculous idea. Yet this is what someone whose father was killed in the 1984 IRA bombing of a hotel in Brighton, England, actually did. The bomber, Patrick Magee, was caught and sentenced to life imprisonment, but under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement, as part of the Northern Ireland peace 64 | VESTNIK 2014 process of the 1990s, he was released early. Jo Berry, the daughter of a politician who had been killed in the bombing, was very angry at this; but she soon realised that she would be destroyed by her hatred and so attempted to meet the bomber. It was enormously difficult and painful for both to meet but they did. Many disapproved of such a meeting. But the former enemies did get to understand each other and now they work together in reconciliation workshops. They both learnt the danger of demonising the enemy for, as Jo Berry insists, "The enemy is always a real person." Gospel Teaching Jesus was aware of the way the Jews demon-ised their enemies, such as the Samaritans. He knew that in the Jewish scriptures there were passages that talked of hatred of enemies but he also knew there was another tradition which forbade such hatred. Our first reading, from Leviticus, insists that we are not to seek vengeance and bear grudges in our heart. When Jesus teaches the values of the kingdom of God in the Sermon on the Mount, he builds on that tradition. In the startling language of turning the other cheek and going the extra mile, he shakes us out of the complacency of our set ideas. He is trying to make us think in a new way and allow God's kingdom to break into our lives. So he tells us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. But why should we do something that seems so contrary to the way of the world? Because that is what God does. The God of creation shows grace to all God's creatures, whether they are sinners or saints; God causes the rain to fall on honest and dishonest people alike. Jesus wants us to be holy as God is holy. And so we are to love our enemy; but this is not so much about feelings as about giving effective help, just as the Good Samaritan did. This is how Jesus put his words into action, by reaching out to sinners and those who were despised, to both rich and poor, and in the end forgiving those who were killing him. Loving enemies is not easy and it ended with him nailed to the cross. But Jesus' resurrection shows us that such values defeat death and lead to eternal life. Application At the heart of our faith is the teaching of the Sermon on the Mount; and yet we may be tempted to ignore it because it seems so radical and difficult. But our vocation is to imitate Jesus and his teaching, just as Stephen did when he forgave his enemies as he died as the first martyr. In a world that is so full of hatred and vengeance, both at the individual and national level, can we follow the teaching of the Gospel? Or do we go on bearing those grudges that we rather enjoy nursing and hating the enemies that give us our identity? Does the Church give a different example, or is it like any other group that loves its friends and reciprocates hospitality to its own set? Jesus tells us to be perfect just as our heavenly Father is perfect. What does this mean for us today? We cannot be morally perfect in this world, but we can respond to Jesus with an undivided heart and a faithful devotion. When we try to turn the other cheek and love our enemies we bear witness to the graciousness of a heavenly Father who wants us to embody the amazing love of his Son in our lives. volunteers - prostovoljci This is St. Gregory's 50th year and we will be having various special events throughout the year to celebrate this important milestone. There is a lot of behind the scenes work that goes on in our church, in our celebrations and functions and our various organizations. We have a community that we can be very proud of. First and foremost, I'd like to thank Father Drago. Your leadership, commitment, your dedication and passion has made our church community what it is today and we are so grateful to you. Also, we have many, many dedicated people who have taken time to help in various functions of the church, with different celebrations and events and outings. Without you, we would not be able to be as vibrant as we are. Today and from time to time, we will be asking for some help on specific things. When a lot of people are involved in helping, it's a lot more fun and it doesn't take as much time. Today, I am inviting you to help for 1-1/2 to 2 hours a month in the cleaning of the church. Groups of four would be scheduled on a specific day. For example: One person to take care of the altar, one person the benches, one person the back areas and one person to vacuum. No experience is necessary. Individuals, men or women or families - are welcome. Students can accumulate required volunteer hours. We can work with your schedule. Please take this opportunity to give Father Drago and our community a helping hand. There is a volunteer sheet at the back. Your time would be valued and appreciated. - Sonya P. Obvestila - Announcements ZBOR - PEVSKE VAJE Pevske vaje za mešani pevski zbor so v četrtek po večerni maši. Naslednjič zbor poje na prvo postno nedeljo, v nedeljo 9. marca. DOGODKI V BLIŽNJI PRIHODNOSTI ♦ Nedelja, 23. februar: Društvo sv. Jožefa - Občni zbor po slovenski maši. ♦ Nedelja, 23. februar: CWL - Bazaar ♦ Sobota, 1. marec: 6:00 p.m. - Pustovanje; društvo Sava - Spring Banquet. ♦ Sreda, 5. marec: Pepelnica - med sveto mašo bo obred pepelenja. ♦ Nedelja, 9. marec: Triglav - Koline. ♦ Sobota, 15. marec: Bled - Womens Day Banquet. ♦ Sobota, 22. marec: Lipa park - Ambassador's Installation Banquet. ♦ Nedelja, 23. marec: Banket društva sv. Jožefa. ♦ Nedelja, 6. april: Spomladanski banket župnije sv. Gregorija Velikega. DRUŠTVO SV. JOŽEFA - BANKET_ Our annual St. Joseph's Banquet will be held Sunday, February 23 at 12 Noon. We invite you to join us to celebrate St. Joseph's Day. There will be a draw for door prizes. Tickets are now on sale - Adults - $25., Students - $20 and Children 512 at $7. Make your reservations for tickets by contacting Frank Erzar at 905-643-0285. POKOJNI_ V V Sloveniji, v Ižakovcih je v četrtek, 20. februarja 2014, po daljši bolezni v 76. letu starosti 66 | VESTNIK 2014 umrla OLGA BALAŽIC. Pokojna Olga je sestra naših faranov Janeza, Jožefa in Štefana Lovrenčec.; poleg treh bratov je sta še dve sestri, Tilka je na domu, Marija pa v Nemčiji. Pogreb je bil v domači župniji v petek 21. februarja, v naši cerkvi pa samo ta isti dan opravili sveto mašo za pokoj njene duše. Iskreno sožalje vsem žalujočim. Pokojna Olga pa naj počiva v božjem miru. V Kitchenerju je nenadoma umrla IVANKA KODRIČ, in to 16. februarja 2014 v 89. letu starosti. Pogreb pokojne Ivanke je bil v petek 21. Februarja v cerkvi St. Anthondy Daniel v Kitchenerju. Naj počiva v miru. INCOMETAX POTRDILA_ Zadaj v cerkvi vzemite potrdila za Incometax za leto 2013. Vzemite in poglejte, če je vse vredu? Če se je pripetila kakšna napaka, prosim, da me opozorite, prav tako, če bi želeli popraviti naslov -če ste morda v kratkem spremenili svoje bivališče. PARENTING TIP OF THE MONTH_ The month of February, when love is all around us, is a perfect time to talk to our children about love, its power in every life and our need to treat it with care. A child is never too young to begin to learn that love means being selfless, compassionate, caring and life-giving; we have to be respectful of its power and influence over our hearts and minds. A child learns to love first through the example of their parents. We have to teach them that true love is more than what they see at the movies. Love takes work and commitment, but the payoff is well worth it! From: Teresa Hartnett •jt svete maše - mass times: Ponedeljek/Monday - Petek/Friday: 7:00 p.m. Sobota/Saturday: 8:00 a.m. - slovenska / in lìi Slovenian 5:30 p.m. - slovenska / in Slovenian - Nedelja/Sunday: 9:30 a.m. - slovenska / in Slovenian - 11:00 a.m. -angleška / in English krsti / baptisms: Po dogovoru, prijava 1 mesec prej. - For an app't, call one month before. poroke / marriage: Prijava eno leto prej. / For an app't, call one year before the wedding date. spoved / confessions: Vsak prvi petek ob 6:00 p.m. / First Friday of the month 6-7:00 p.m. (or by appointment) bolniki -don bosco Sporočite, če je kdo bolan ali v bolnišnici, da ga obiščemo. You are welcome to call for a personal conversation (person counselling) with your priest - please call during business hours for an appointment. Tel: 905-561-5971. OD 23. 02. 2014 DO 02. 03. 2014 svete mase - masses 7. Nedelja med letom 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time 23.Februar Polikarp, škof-mučenec Za žive in rajne župljane f Florian Miklavčič ff Verona in Štefan Prša CWL- BAZAAR 9:30 a.m. Družina Čule 11:00 a.m. Joe in Kathy Prša 12:30 p.m. V zgornji dvorani Ponedeljek - Monday Za duhovne poklice Slomškovo oltarno društvo Ffrriiar f Matija Vlašič 7:00 p.m. Zena in otroci ff Pokojni iz družine Zorčič Jožica Vegelj Matija, apostol f Marija Zupančič Pavla Kunej Torek - Tuesday 25.Februar Za zdravje 8:00 a.m. Jeleč Amir Valburga, opatinja Sreda - Wednesday ff Martin in Matija Zelko, obl. Marija in Toni Franc 26. Februar f Baligač Marija 7:00 p.m. Veronika Čurič Aleksander, škof f Martin Hozjan (Montreal) Družina Kolenko Četrtek Thursday f Frank Gimpelj 7:00 p.m. Družina Krminac f Janez Hočevar Mary in Branko FEBRUAR Bogu n Materi Božji v zahvalo Majda Gabriel Zal.M.Božje Petek Friday 28.Februar Roman, opat f Vinko Kovič f Vinko Marinko f Alex Koetel 7:00 p.m. Sojanka Zečevič Društvo sv. Jožefa Lojze in Peter Grebenc Sobota Saturday 01. Marec Po namenu 8:00 a.m. n.n. p U f Stane Napast 5:30 p.m. Frančiška Napast S T ff Sestre in bratje Marija Košir O V f Matilda Berkovič Sin Zlatko Berkovič A Albin, škof f Lisič Štefan Pavla in Frank Pelcar m 8. Nedelja med letom 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time 02. Marec Neža Praška, devica Za žive in rajne župljane ff Pokojni iz družine Gonza f Vinko Marinko ff Pokojni iz društva Triglav 9:30 a.m. Štefan in Vera Gonza 11:00 a.m. Družina Skok 4:00 p.m. V cerkvi St. John the Divine