CIRCULAR TO PARISHIONERS WEEK 66 - SEP. 03, 2005
WELCOME FR. JOEL PABILONA
Welcome, Fr. Joel! Fr. Joel comes to us having served as associate in St. Mary’s Parish Brampton,
and at Merciful Redeemer Parish in Mississauga. We wish him well as he shepherds the people of
St. Martin of Tours until he journeys home to the Philippines in January 2006.
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ROLE OF THE LAITY
While pastors, associate pastors and deacons come and go in parishes, the parishioners provide a
continual role with responsibilities. This role of the laity should not be dependent on what type of priest
is in charge. In an ideal world, the laity should be playing an active part in the care, upkeep and
continuance of a parish. Whereas priests and hierarchy are changeable and movable, parishioners
are the constant factor – they are the parish.
“Christians are beginning to wake up to the enormous opportunity to spread the good news
through the church. But they need to unshackle themselves from their preset ways of thinking,
and be stirred
by the freedom of the Holy Spirit. The Church is like a sleeping giant at the beginning of an
unprecedented arousal. There is movement afoot to broaden the reach of the church, but
certain principles must be followed to provide a foundation to properly support the expansion.
All over the world, there are movements of the Holy Spirit. One of the greatest movements is
among the laity,
as they come into their rightful place of ministry. The five purposes of the early church apply to
our lives just as much today, and they can renew parishes. These five purposes are defined as
mission, worship, fellowship, discipleship and service – ways to arouse parishioners, who are
the heart of the church. The church is not an organization, but a living organism.” (Fr.
Denis Phaneuf, Saskatoon).
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OBEDIENCE AND CONSCIENCE
Obedience can be a virtue. Christ redeemed humankind by obedience to His Father. But, blind
obedience to authority can be catastrophic. Note the abuse victims of priests, bishops and other
people in authority. Today, children are taught that saying “No!” is okay when they feel that something
is wrong. This is called “development of conscience”, or “moral sense”. Our present Pope advocates
this truth among the Faithful in his statement: “Conscience is the supreme and ultimate tribunal,
even beyond the official Church, and IT MUST BE OBEYED”.
In the Laity’s role in the Church, we must obey our conscience but we also have an obligation to act
from an informed conscience. In itself, blind obedience is not a virtue. We have to question mistakes
where they happen, and we have an obligation to protect people from the harmful effects of mistakes
and to seek redress for them.
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STRICKEN BY HURRICANE KATRINA
We pray for those shattered by Hurricane Katrina, especially those who have no one to care for them -
all of them brothers and sisters of ours in the Body of Christ. Those wishing to make a financial
donation may donate online www.redcross.ca or call 1-800-418-1111.
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Email: bishop.boissonneau@rogers.com Fax: 416 207-4984.
ambrozic@archtoronto.org Fax: 416 934-3452 .
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