Mexico

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jan. 17 (Year B) 1 Samuel 3:3b-10, 19; Psalm 40; 1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20; John 1:35-42

We hear many voices calling us each day — some of them important and true, but most consist of noise, disinformation and outright dishonesty. But a communication from God has some distinct characteristics that make us stop and listen.

A few weeks ago, I was on an intimate online call with one of our political leaders. Well, when I say it was an intimate call, it was intimate in the way a private audience with the Pope is intimate, namely there were as many people on the call as the bandwidth could support.

A new, eco-friendly Mass wine is awaiting approval from the Archdiocese of Montreal to bring a locally-made wine back to the altars of Quebec churches.

Pope Francis spoke for the common good on Christmas Day when he called for the world’s nations to ensure that those who are poor receive their fair share of the vaccine for the coronavirus.

In a year marked by event cancellations, pandemic restrictions hindered competition plans for many high school athletes looking to obtain their diploma while also pursuing athletic ambitions in 2020. 

Canadian churches faced new restrictions as public health officials tried to contain a post-holiday surge of COVID-19.

The journey home has gotten a little easier for some of Toronto’s 8,500 homeless people in shelters and out on the street any given night.

For 65 years, Sr. Sue Mosteller has been a Sister of St. Joseph, but her relationship with St. Joseph himself reaches back even further. As a 17-year-old boarding student at the congregation’s Toronto girls’ school (up from the United States, and an Anglican to boot), Mosteller and her sister were called into the office and given a piece of devastating news — far away in Ohio, their father had died.

As 2020 closed, it was regrettable that the public observations of the 850th anniversary of the martyrdom (Dec. 29, 1170) of St. Thomas Becket did not take place due to pandemic restrictions.

For anyone who has ever thought they might have been happier as a monk or a nun, living the contemplative life, this year’s Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is your chance to try it out.