Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The month of February is dedicated to the Most Holy Family
Dear Friends in Christ,
One of the Commandments of the Church is: Respect the marriage laws of the Church. Because marriage is a sacrament, and not just a civil contract, the Church protects the true nature of this mystery with a discipline which is meant to allow it to thrive as a state of life for those called to it. I am continually surprised at how many people seem to be surprised when they learn of this discipline later, often after they have attempted marriage in a way which impairs their communion with the Church.
A Catholic marries a Catholic in the Catholic Church. That’s the easiest way to put it. Now, because marriage is also a natural contract as well as a sacramental covenant, the power of the keys given to the Apostles and their successors allows them to dispense from certain aspects of that discipline for a grave reason. A Catholic may be allowed to marry a non-Catholic if the Catholic party promises before God to raise the children as Catholics. This is crucial to head off the scourge of religious indifferentism which can ruin children’s faith. A Catholic may be allowed to marry without the canonical form, that is the proper ceremony, and even in a non-sacred space, if there is a serious pastoral reason for it. Ordinarily, bishops are very reticent to give this permission, because often it is used to make a wedding into an event which hardly resembles the reality of Christian marriage
Divorce is to be avoided whenever possible as a grave evil, but no Catholic can never remarry anyone anywhere. Just because the State has granted some form of civil separation, that does not mean we are free before God to enter into another union. An annulment is a declaration of nullity by an ecclesiastical tribunal that, on the day you said, “I do,” there was some kind of pre-existing condition that invalidated that contract. That means that you are free to marry in Church. Catholics who marry outside of the Church can obtain a lack of form annulment because of the very fact they attempted marriage outside of God’s plan for it in the Church. Other annulments are more complicated, because the Church presumes the validity of a marriage.
Two baptized Christians, whether they are in full communion with the Catholic Church, contract a sacramental marriage which is indissoluble. Even though Protestants deny that marriage is a sacrament, Catholics believe that baptized Christians contract a marriage which is still sacramental regardless of whether the person is in full communion or not. Protestants are not bound to canonical form, which is why their marriage is considered valid even if they do not get married in a Catholic church. The Church binds her Catholic children to be married in a Catholic church (unless a dispensation is obtained) for validity.
A Catholic who is married outside of the Church can get married in the Church if there is no obstacle to both parties marrying in the Church. Catholics can have their marriage convalidated, as the term goes, if both parties are free to marry. In doing so, they exchange their vows before their pastor or his delegate, and their civil union then becomes a sacramental, indissoluble marriage. A Catholic who attempts marriage outside of the Church places himself out of full communion with the Church, and may not receive any of the sacraments, including confession, until the marriage is regularized or in danger of death. Sometimes Catholics in irregular marriage situations promise to live as brother and sister before the Bishop and are then allowed to return to the sacraments if that will not cause scandal.
A Catholic who wants to get married and is free to marry must be a registered, active and contributing member of his parish. At Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, we require six months of activity that can be tracked by use of the envelope system before the six month process of marriage preparation can even begin. Encouraging Catholics, who are not practicing their faith, to contract a sacramental marriage in Church is putting the cart before the horse, so to speak, and almost guarantees a marriage contracted in sacrilege and mortal sin, indifferentist raising of children, and breakdown of the integrity of discipleship in the life of the Church.
Are you in an irregular marriage situation? Well, fixing that situation, reconciling with the Church, and returning to the sacraments, might actually be easier than you think. I constantly come across couples who did not regularize their marriage when they could have done so, because they listened to people who were well-meaning but entirely ignorant of how the regularization process actually works. How many times have people avoided the annulment process because somebody told them that it would take them twenty years and cost twenty thousand dollars, or some other absurd version of that urban legend! If you haven’t sat down with your parish priest and actually filled out the preliminary questionnaire and sent it to the competent tribunal, chances are you might be missing out on some very pertinent information that could change your life. Please make an appointment with me, Fr . Price or with our parish secretary Pauline to talk through this process today. I want to regularize as many marriages as I can!
More in my homily this Sunday, based on our Blessed Lord's challenging words about divorce and remarriage in the Gospel.
Fr. Justin
Pancake & Sausage Luncheon
This Sunday, Feb 15 @ 12pm
SHJ Hall, Mamora
We hope you'll join us downstairs in the Hall after this Sunday's 11am Mass for a pancake & sausage luncheon sponsored by our Knights of Columbus #7301.
This is in lieu of our usual Fat Tuesday fare to kick off the start of the great Lenten season. Lunch includes real maple syrup, pancakes, sausages, hash browns, toast, scrambled eggs, jams & coffee and tea and beverages.
Invite your friends and family and neighbours. Goodwill offering only.
Sacred Heart of Jesus
Weekly Schedule
Sat, Feb 14 @ 10:30am
Baptism of Aria Reid
"The Holy Family" (Bai Huiqun, 1948)
6th Sunday in OT
Sat, Feb 14 @ 5pm
Peter Murphy †
[req. The O'Connor Family]
6th Sunday in OT
Sun, Feb 15 @ 11am*
Pro Populo
* Jr. Liturgy
Lectors
5pm: Maureen O'Connor
11am: Susan McCauley
Sun, Feb 15 @ 12pm
Parish Pancake Lunch
SHJ Hall
Mass for the Dead - For Priests
Mon, Feb 16 @ 9am*
Deceased Bishops & Priests of the Archdiocese †
[req. Fr. Brian Price]
*no Holy Hour today
Tue, Feb 17 @ 2pm
Liturgy of the Word
Caressant Care Marmora
Sacred Heart of Mary
Weekly Schedule
Our Lady of Kibeho, pray for us!
6th Sunday in OT
Sun, Feb 15 @ 9am*
Klaus Wand †
[req. Nicola Wand]
*Jr. Liturgy
Lector: Karen Nickle
Greeters: Cathie & Paul Francis
Jr. Liturgy Leader: Cheryl Freeman
Ash Wednesday is a good day to go to Mass, but remember that it is not a holy day of obligation. It’s not obligatory either to attend the imposition of ashes, but it is a very good custom.
All persons who confess Christ as Lord and seek to live according to His Gospel are welcome to receive the blessing with ashes. Because this is a sacramental and not one of the seven sacraments, it is not necessary to be a Catholic or in full communion with the Church to receive the imposition of ashes, and everyone who desires to worship the living God in Spirit and in truth is invited to receive this blessing to begin the paradoxically joyful season of Lent.
All persons who confess Christ as Lord and seek to live according to His Gospel are welcome to receive the blessing with ashes. Because this is a sacramental and not one of the seven sacraments, it is not necessary to be a Catholic or in full communion with the Church to receive the imposition of ashes, and everyone who desires to worship the living God in Spirit and in truth is invited to receive this blessing to begin the paradoxically joyful season of Lent.
What is obligatory tomorrow, and what we should practice in a spirit of penance is the law of fasting and abstinence. Ordinarily, this means that those above 14 should refrain from eating meat. Those between the ages of 18 and 60 should fast, eating only one full meal during the day. Needless to say, we should not see this as a mere external imposition, but we should practice it in a spirit of penance and sacrifice, for the love of God.
Day of
Fasting & Abstinence
Saturdays of Lent
4:30pm SHJ
Sundays of Lent
8:30am (SHM)
10:30am (SHJ)
beginning February 21
Lenten Regulations 2026
Each year the holy season of Lent provides us a special time of grace and spiritual renewal so that we may become better instruments in sharing the Gospel.
This year, Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, falls on February 18. The present laws of the Church regarding fast and abstinence during the Season of Lent are as follows:
1. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are days of fast. On days of fast, one full meal is allowed. Two lesser meals, sufficient to maintain strength, may be taken according to each one’s needs, but together they should not equal another full meal. Eating between meals is not permitted. Catholics who have completed their 18th year are bound by this law until the beginning of their 60th year.
2. Ash Wednesday and all Fridays of Lent are also days of abstinence. On days of abstinence, meat should not be eaten at any meal. The law of abstinence binds all Catholics who have completed their 14th year.
The Obligation to observe, as a whole or “substantially,” the penitential days specified by the Church is a serious obligation. The Code of Canon Law states:
“On these days (of Penance), the faithful are in a special manner to devote themselves to prayer, to engage in works of piety and charity, to deny themselves, by fulfilling their obligations more faithfully and especially by observing the fast and abstinence...”
May this Holy Lenten Season provide us an opportunity for deepening our faith, hope and love through a life of deeper prayer, penitential practices, and works of charity
Lent begins this week on Ash Wednesday and each one of us is called by the Lord Jesus to a deeper conversion as we prepare to celebrate the Passover of the Lord at Easter. During the coming 40 Days, let us strive to live in fidelity to the promises of our Baptism which we will renew at the Easter Vigil and at all the Masses on Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection. Lent is a time to learn to love our souls more than our bodies. Thus, every Christian should make a special effort to practice mortification and strive for holiness during these forty days. We all can think of something we will give up this Lent as a sacrifice for our Lord. But there are other things that you can do as well to make Lent, and then Easter, more fruitful.
Here are some of the practical ways that could be done this Lent:
+ Walk the Way of the Cross at least once a week on Saturdays @ 4:30pm (SHJ), or Sundays @ 8:30am (SHM) & 10:30am (SHJ) respectively. Borrow a guide to the stations at the back of the church
+ Go to Confession. There is no better preparation for Easter than making a good Confession. Or consider making a General Confession during Lent – not out of scruples over past confessions, but as a means of spiritual growth. You will feel like a new person, ready to win the world for the Lord.
+ Make a generous donation – one that hurts – to our Parishes or to the Restoration Fund or to a pro-life pregnancy center (Anchors of Hope in Madoc or Project Rachel in Queensborough) or another worthy cause like Foundations Youth Center in Madoc.
+ Try and attend Mass on the weekdays of Lent, either arriving early or staying late to pray for your special intention before the Blessed Sacrament, who will listen as you speak to Him heart to heart.
+ Make a special effort to ask your spouse about how you can better help him/her, and do the same with your children.
+ Push back from every meal before you’ve had enough. Through your body’s hunger for food be mindful of your soul’s hunger for the Lord, a hunger that is satisfied only when we give ourselves without reservation in the obedience of faith to the Gospel. And on Ash Wednesday and each Friday of Lent abstain from meat and fast as your health and age allow.
+ Pray the Rosary daily on your way to or from work, offering particularly the Sorrowful Mysteries for the end of the wars in Ukraine or the capital crime of abortion and euthanasia in our country.
+ Sacrifice one meal a day for freedom of conscience and religious liberty in our country, and also for Christians suffering persecution in Nigeria and the Middle East. Commit to not eating meat on Fridays during Lent!
+ Give up television and/or all movies (Netflix, Prime, YouTube, etc.) for Lent. Or snacking between meals. Or enable the grayscale feature on your smartphone.
+ Reconcile with relatives or estranged or former friends, or at least make the attempt.
+ Talk to one or two friends about becoming Catholic and to one or two lukewarm or lapsed Catholics about going to Confession or returning to the Church. Ask them to join you at Mass one Sunday of Lent. A gentle invitation is often the only thing needed to bring a soul back to the Lord Jesus. Back up your initiative with prayer.
+ Pray the Liturgy of the Hours in whole or in part by using the app called iBreviary or the monthly publication called Magnificat.
But whatever you do, do it for the Lord and not for some lesser, natural motives which would diminish or even nullify their merit.
Sacred Heart of Jesus
Weekly Schedule
"Vanitas Still Life" (Herman Henstenburgh, ~ 1700)
Ash Wednesday
Wed, Feb 18 @ 11:45am
School Ash Wed Liturgy
SHJ School
Ash Wednesday
Wed, Feb 18 @ 7pm
Ann Hilts †
[req. Collen MacAlister]
Thur, Feb 19 @ 9am
Tony Ouellette †
[req. Judy Napadek]
Thur, Feb 19 @ 6:30pm
First Holy Communion Parent-Child(ren) Meeting
SHJ Hall
Fri, Feb 20 @ 9am
Jim & Marita Stuckless
[req. Richard & Jennifer Ingham]
Fri, Feb 20 @ 9:30-10:30am
** Holy Hour! **
Sacred Heart of Mary
Weekly Schedule
"Vanitas" (Adriaen van Utrecht, 1642)
Ash Wednesday
Wed, Feb 18 @ 9am
The Protection of Vulnerable Members of Society
[req. SHM CWL]
Wed, Feb 18 @ 5pm
Combined SHM & SHJ Choir Practice
Fri, Feb 20 @ 6:15-7:30am
That Man Is You
#19 - To the Roots
O'Neill Parish Hall
7-Day Votive Candle Offerings
SHJ CHURCH
OUR BLESSED MOTHER
Mary Woolley
[req. Rose Empey]
SACRED HEART OF JESUS
[available]
ST. JOSEPH
[available]
ST. ANNE & OUR LADY
William & Anna Meehan
[req. Rose Empey]
SHM CHURCH
SACRED HEART OF JESUS
For Those Suffering Oppression
[req. Cathy Massey]
OUR BLESSED MOTHER
For the Holy Souls in Purgatory †
[req. Cathy Massey]
You can put your $10 7-Day Votive Offering in the filled-in pink envelope.
Any questions? Contact Pauline at the parish office @ 613.472.2220 or sacredheart.mm@archkingston.ca
MANDATORY
First Holy Communion & First Reconciliation
Parent & Candidate Meeting
Thursday, February 19
6:30pm SHJ Hall
The meeting will consist of introducing our parish catechists, an outline of the program that will be used, expectations, as well as encouraging you to be supportive of your child. Fr. Justin will also outline the component of parish participation.
Our program emphasizes the children's personal journey of faith and relationship with God, and consists of 8 sessions, each focusing on key aspects of the faith. It incorporates Scripture, Catechism teachings, prayer and family activities. The Kerygma, the core Gospel message, is central to the program and parents are encouraged to participate actively in their child's faith journey.
Printed registration forms are available in the narthex of the churches and will also be at Thursday's meeting and attached below.
We look forward to meeting with you and your children as we begin preparation for this wonderful and special time in your child’s life. Please feel free to contact the Parish Office (613.472.2220 or sacredheartmm@archkingston.ca ) if you have any questions.
This meeting is mandatory for those Catholics who would like to receive these sacraments of initiation.
Registration Forms are now due by Thur, Feb 26th
They can be emailed to our parish secretary Pauline at sacredheartmm@archkingston.ca or dropped off at the parish office.
Confession Schedule this Week
We are all going to die one day.
Remember to weigh your state in life and the responsibilities that come with it.
Consider your sins of omission, as well as of commission.
Confess all your mortal sins in both kind (what sin) and number (how many times, frequency).
If there is something in your life that it is out of order, take steps now to put things to right.
Once we die, that’s it.
Don’t delay.
Lent is around the corner.
If you are in an irregular situation, for the love of God see your parish priest NOW.
If you have some habitual sin that is keeping you from the grace of God, GO TO CONFESSION.
Sat: 4-4:45pm
Sun: 8-8:45am
Mon: 9-9:45am
Ash Wed: 7:45am-8:45am & 5:45-6:45pm
Thur: 8-8:45pm
Fri: 8-8:45 & 9:45-10:15am
* No confessions at SHJ before the 11am Mass until Fr. Price returns on March 8, as I won't have time after returning from the 9am Madoc Mass.
Anointing of the Sick
"The Raising of Jairus' Daughter" (Ilya Repin, 1871)
Those Catholics confronted with serious illness, chronic illness, or surgery are invited to request the Sacrament of Anointing by calling Fr. Justin for an appointment. We also now have a wonderful Pastoral Care team made up of generous parishioners who can bring Holy Communion to the sick and those confined to their own homes. Again, if you are someone or know of someone who would like to receive Sacraments at their home, please contact the office @ 613.472.2220 for more information.
If you need a convenient way to make regular offerings or if you plan to make an additional gift before the end of the year, we encourage you to check out our electronic giving options. As the pace of life speeds up, especially around the holidays, you may find electronic giving a most welcome way to make contributions.
shjpayments@gmail.com (SHJ)
shmpayments@gmail.com (SHM)
Of course we gratefully accept donations by cash or cheque mailed or dropped off into our secure mailboxes, or in the plate during the offertory collection.
Requesting Mass Intentions
The Greatest of Gifts ~ The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass: When one receives a Mass Card for their intentions, for their anniversary, their birthday, graduation, or a special occasion, it is a source of comfort to know that one is being remembered at the holy altar. When the family of a deceased friend or relative receives a condolence card announcing that a Mass will be offered for the soul of their departed, it certainly provides more comfort than flowers. Requesting a Mass Intention is easy! Just contact our secretary Pauline Davis (613.472.2220 or SacredHeart.MM@archkingston.ca) or better yet, use the mass intention envelopes found in the vestibule, fill it out and put in the $20 offering and place it in the collection basket at Mass. We will do our best to have the Mass offered on the date requested.
By using the white Flower Sponsor envelopes (located in the narthex), a one time donation of $40 will provide flowers for the sanctuary and shrines, and you'll also get a Mass intention included in that. So a great deal if you think about it! The churches are beautifully decorated in large part to your flower donations. And when you see in the Flocknotes Masses being offered "For the X Family Intentions" - usually those are from the Family flower sponsor. Thanks to Shirley Gauvreau, Brenda Poirier, Iris Doyle & Joanne Forestell for always doing such a splendid arrangement of the flowers! Thank you for your support!
Don't forget that great online faith resources are available to every member of our parish including books, movies, podcasts and more at Formed.org.To gain access to all of FORMED’s content, follow these simple steps:
Go to https://signup.formed.org/
Enter our parish’s postal code (K0K 2M0)
Enter your name and your email address.
Links, Recommendations
& Random Thoughts
- A wise bishop once said, “Sin is the shipwreck of the soul. If the sin is serious, it is a fatal shipwreck. Confession is the only plank to which we can safely cling, if we want to be brought back to the harbour of God’s grace. If, on the other hand, we receive the Sacrament of Penance with the proper dispositions, not only will it give us grace but confidence and peace of mind as well. This sacrament has very appropriately been called ‘the masterpiece of God’s mercy.’ We should be very grateful to God for this great gift.”
- Did you know that In Catholic countries, it is traditional before we enter the solemn fast of Lent, to have some wild and crazy fun from Epiphany until Ash Wednesday? This time of partying is called Carnevale, which means “farewell to meat” for the 40 days of Lent. It ends on Fat Tuesday, Mardi Gras, also known as Shrove Tuesday because those whose merriment had been excessive went to the shriving pew, an old English term for confession. So don't forget that this Tuesday is a perfect time to pig out with pancake and sausage (and bacon) before beginning your Lenten observance on Wednesday. Oh, and go to confession!
- FYI, because Lent is a preparation for the renewal of our Baptismal promises at Easter, we will replace the Nicene Creed at Sunday Mass through Pentecost with the Apostles Creed which was the ancient Baptismal Profession of Faith in the Diocese of Rome. The use of this Creed should remind us that we have been purchased at a great price by the precious Blood of Jesus Christ, into whose death we are plunged by our Baptism.
- Income Tax Receipts: Your income tax receipts for 2025 donations are available in the vestibule of the churches. Thank you for your donations - your generosity is truly appreciated. Making them available for pick-up ahead of the Apr 30 deadline saves the parish the cost of mailing them, so we are grateful to those parishioners who can pick them up when they come to Mass. They will be in alphabetical order. We will mail out those that have not been picked up a few weeks before the deadline. Also note that there are still a number of 2026 offertory envelopes at the back of the church too - please pick yours up.
- Life changing paragraph from C.S. Lewis: "Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is a capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of."
A few pics from Jr. Liturgy - we're so grateful to our leaders for teaching the children about the Gospel
Due to the winter storm last weekend we had to reschedule the Friarside Chat to Sat, Feb 28 from 11am-1pm at O'Neill Parish Hall in Madoc. This is a chance to deepen your Christian faith by learning about the several different “spiritualities” within the Catholic Church. Which one do you identify with most? Fun, fellowship and a light lunch provided, free of charge. A presentation by Brother Alan OFM cap and Brother Stephen OFM cap. Sponsored by the Queen of PEACE Fraternity.
Anchor of Hope in Madoc is asking us to save the date for their CHILOUP spring fundraiser. Board member and SHM parishioner Charlotte Laheyhas agreed to be a table host, so if you'd like to attend this worthwhile event, speak to Charlotte or Fr. Justin. This is a free event.
Our Knights of Columbus #7301 and SHM CWL are sponsoring tables as 'Campus Patrons' for the upcoming Catholic Christian Outreach St. John Fisher Dinner Gala taking place on March 19th, which is a worthwhile and important fundraiser for campus ministry. If you're interested in attending - a very edifying evening with testimonies, etc. - speak to Fr. Justin.
Have you suffered the loss of a child from abortion, or the abortion pill? If grief, sadness, or shame has kept you alone in this, know that you are not alone, and that there is healing for you.
Project Rachel at the Refuge will hold a retreat for post-abortive women from April 24-26, 2026. Here you will find a beautiful, natural setting, companionship, and a welcome free of judgment or condemnation – healing is possible.
We treat all calls and inquiries with the utmost confidentiality. Call 613.473.2679 in confidence, and see stmarysrefuge.org/rachel.
We would appreciate prayers from your parish, as well as volunteers willing to apply to cook for retreat weekends. (Fr. Justin will be the chaplain on this retreat)
Once again, our friends from Our Lady of Mercy parish in Bancroft will be hiring a bus for the annual March for Life in Ottawa this year on Thur, May 14th. Let's try and fill the bus this year! So save the date and reserve a spot by calling Kathy Tripp @ 613.332.9383
Saint Valentine: Who was he? Although hard to verify, legend states that Valentine, along with St. Marius, aided Christian martyrs during the Claudian persecution. Claudius issued a decree forbidding marriage, to increase army troops (believing single men better soldiers than married men). Valentine defied this decree and urged young lovers to come to him in secret to be married. Eventually he was discovered, arrested, and condemned to death. While in prison, Valentine befriended the jailer and his blind daughter. The daughter often him brought food and messages. Valentine was able to convert both father and daughter to Christianity. Legend says he also miraculously restored the daughter’s sight. The night before his execution, he wrote a farewell message to the girl and signed it affectionately "From Your Valentine," a phrase that lives on today. He was executed on February 14, 273. The Martyrology says, “At Rome, on the Flaminian Way, the heavenly birthday of the blessed martyr Valentine, a priest. After performing many miraculous cures and giving much wise counsel he was beaten and beheaded under Claudius Caesar.” A valentine has become a universal symbol of friendship and affection shared on the anniversary of his death: St. Valentine's Day. ~ I had at the joy of offering Mass at the chapel of St. Valentine at St. Mary's Basilica in Krakow.
The actual skull of St. Valentine on display at the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, Rome.
KEEP DATING YOUR WIFE
25 ways to show your wife you love her
1) Listen to her and care about what she has to say
2) Show her physical, non-sexual affection
3) Surprise her with flowers
4) Take her out to dinner (without the kids!)
5) Buy her a book she’s been wanting
6) Write her a love note
7) Wash the dishes
8) Check something off your honey-do list
9) If you have babies, change a diaper
10) Let her go out with her girlfriends sans kids
11) Open the door for her
12) Pray with her and for her
13) Apologize to her when you sin
14) Forgive her when she sins…never hold a grudge
15) Ask her advice
16) Pay attention to her pet peeves and avoid them
17) Take her shopping
18) Fast for her
19) Understand and comfort her fears even if you don’t share them (just listen!)
20) Talk to her about life
21) Compliment her specifically
22) Kiss her in public and in front of the kids
23) Hold her hand
24) Give up something you want to do to do something she wants to do
25) Don’t criticize or complain… praise
KEEP DATING YOUR HUSBAND
25 ways to show your husband you love him
1) Pray for him daily
2) Empower him to lead
3) Never, ever complain about him to your friends or family
4) Say I’m sorry when you’re wrong
5) Forgive him when he’s wrong
6) Bake him something
7) Let him go out with his friends
8) Watch a “man” movie with him
9) Express what you love about him
10) Compliment more than criticize
11) Don’t play emotional games, just be honest
12) Appreciate his interests, don’t mock them
13) Initiate in the bedroom occasionally
14) Let him have time to himself
15) Do your best to be attractive for him
16) Make him breakfast (bacon!)
17) Tell him you’re proud of him
18) Backup his authority with the kids
19 When he doubts himself, tell him “you can do it”
20) Surprise him with something he likes
21) Kiss him like you mean it
22) Write him a love note
23) Cultivate interior beauty (pursue holiness)
24) Laugh and joke together
25) Be appreciative and thank him when he helps
by Sam Guzman
UPDATE: Please note that only double rooms are available now. Single rooms requests will be placed on a waiting list. Also, of the 40 spots available, 20 have already been reserved. Demand is high, and availability is limited. Secure your place early so you don’t miss this life-changing journey.
For those potential pilgrims who would like to join the pilgrimage to the Holy Land but are a bit hesitant, a piece in the Catholic Register about how it's fine....
PILGRIMAGE
TO THE HOLY LAND
with Fr. Justin & Fr. Price
Have you ever longed to visit the Holy Land during your lifetime, to follow in the footsteps of Our Blessed Lord, to pray, kneel and kiss the soil where his sacred feet trod? Would you like the Sacred Scriptures to be opened up in new and exciting ways? Do you want to experience His Mercy? Do you want your family to be converted? Do you expect a healing for you or someone you love? Do you desire to make atonement for your past sins? Or simply to give thanks to God for all the blessings He's given you?
Then let us go up to Jerusalem!
Fr. Justin & Fr. Price are thrilled to invite you to the pilgrimage that transforms lives more than any other: Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus in the Holy Land, October 5–15, 2026, with Fr. Justin and Fr. Price. This is no ordinary trip. It is a living encounter with the very places where the Word became flesh. Bring the Bible and the earliest days of the Catholic faith to life. Daily Mass. Meet other great people. Catholics and protestants welcome! Spots filling fast!
We have carefully designed this itinerary with one goal above all: deepening your personal relationship with the Savior. That’s why we have built in generous time at each holy site – plenty of time for silent prayer, reflection, and lingering before and after Mass. No rushing from one place to the next. We want you to be able to sit, pray, and let the Lord speak to you in the very places where he once walked. You have no idea how many sites I cut because I wanted a slower, more relaxed and meditative pace. And beware: the terrain of the Holy Land is not easy, and if you thought the walking in Rome was a bit of a challenge, well...
Many of you have told me how much you missed the Holy Land during the pandemic years, and how the war has made returning seem uncertain. Now is the perfect time: the region is open, safe for pilgrims, and the spiritual hunger is stronger than ever. Come and see for yourself – walk where our Blessed Lord walked, touch the stones he touched, and let the Holy Spirit renew you in ways that words cannot describe. Many of you know that the Holy Land is my favourite place in the world, and I've been longing to get back there after the last 4 planned trips have been cancelled.
The detailed day-by-day itinerary and registration form are attached. Please review them, share it with your friends and family, pray about it over Christmas, and let me or Edgar know as soon as possible if you’d like to join us. It will be an unforgettable grace-filled experience.
Because of the physical rigours of making a trip of this kind, all pilgrims must be in general good health and able to walk up stairs and across rough ground without assistance. This trip is not a vacation, and we are not looking for rest or recreation. A pilgrimage is a journey of faith that entails penance, conversion, reconciliation, and restoration, and each part of the journey must therefore be marked by a spirit of renunciation of self in order to be conformed more completely to the Lord Jesus.
"Lent is a fitting time for self-denial; we would do well to ask ourselves what we can give up in order to help and enrich others by our own poverty. Let us not forget that real poverty hurts: no self-denial is a real without this dimension of penance. I distrust charity that costs nothing and does not hurt."
