+JMJ+

My fellow parishioners,

A few months ago, after having unlocked the church for a baptism on a Saturday afternoon, someone entered in, went to a pew and started praying.  I assumed it was someone coming for the baptism that afternoon; I didn’t realize it was an unbaptized man, who, intrigued by the church, tried the door, entered, and, inspired by a lofty sacred space, began to pray.  Keep in mind the church is usually locked at that time.  After praying for a long while he approached me with questions, and I soon realized he wasn’t there for the baptism; but that he was in search of truth.   I invited him to return for Mass the next day, which he did, and fortunately a seasoned parishioner noticed he needed help on how to follow Mass and promptly sat next to him to provide assistance.  Long story short, this young man is now taking Fr. Debow’s convert catechism class, making friends, and preparing for baptism this Easter!  God provided for this wandering soul, and the charity of a parishioner drew him more into our parish community.  Deo Gratias! 

This is one of many beautiful stories unfolding at our parish. We are blessed beyond measure that so many are seeking the truth and beauty of the faith and are drawn to St. Clements itself as they turn their hearts towards the Incarnate Lord.

Thomas à Kempis once said, “the loftier the building, the deeper the foundation must be.”  This is applies of course to our spiritual life, that it must be deeply rooted and strong if it is going to last; but it also applies to all that supports it, such as the sacred liturgy and the church building itself.

As a parish community, we highly value, truth, beauty and goodness. Since 2012, we have invested considerable time, money, and talent to restore the interior beauty of our church.

Now the time has come to protect this restored beauty from the ravages of wind, rain, and snow.

As many old buildings require restoration and protection, it will come as no surprise that we are needing to significantly update our roof. We are currently installing a new metal roof because the shingles had been constantly twisting off in windstorms, creating the danger of expensive water damage to our interior enhancements.

Thank you for your generous support of this important project. To date, we have received $237,055. The projected cost to install the metal roof is $375,000; however, our engineer has advised us that we need to install additional reinforcements to the roof structure (the purlins) which will cost a further $52,500.  This work is necessary to secure the building envelope and cannot be deferred. 

As many of you wish to give before the end of the fiscal year, we hope you will consider making a charitable donation toward this important project for the protection of our church interior.

This is not just about a building, as our parish community is much more than that. This is about ensuring our community can continue to grow, thrive and honour our Lord in a protected and beautiful space.

This is about people like that young man, who was inspired to pray in a lofty sacred place – who recognized a house of God.

Please mark your contribution as “New Roof”, either here or via cheque or Cash on Sunday in the regular collection.  E-transfers can be sent by following the instructions found here .  Funds raised for this project will not be subject to the diocesan tax (13%).

I thank you for all that you give to our parish. Our community is blessed to have so many who are highly invested in many ways.

I wish you and your family a Blessed and Merry Christmas.

In Christo,

Fr. Erik Deprey, FSSP
St. Clement Parish

“Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the wilderness the paths of our God … and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh together shall see, that the mouth of the Lord hath spoken.” (Isaiah 40: 3-5)

Tue Dec 24: Christmas Caroling at 11:15 p.m. 

Weds Dec 25:
              Midnight Mass – 12:00 a.m. (High Mass)

              Mass at Dawn –   8:00 a.m. (Low Mass)

              Mass of the Day – 10:30 a.m. (High Mass)

                ( *important: no Mass at 5:30 p.m. )

Boxing Day (Dec 26):  7 am and 9am

Dec 31:  Exposition on New Year’s Eve :
                11:00 pm Exposition ending with Benediction at Midnight.

Jan 1:     8:00 a.m. Low Mass   

              10:30 a.m. High Mass

                1:00 pm Low Mass

( *important: no Mass at 5:30 p.m. )

Providing for the financial needs of our parish
Our parish continues to incur expenses for such items as electricity, heating, repairs, insurance, etc. Although our financial statements show a very solid financial position for our parish, we can very quickly deplete our resources without access to our regular collections.  If you are in a position to do so, we invite you to support our parish financially and on a regular basis.

The following options are available for donating to our parish:

1) By obtaining a parish collection envelope box through our parish office, which can be dropped off during Mass or sent in the mail.  The parish will produce a tax receipt for any donations made using it:

Form to get Sunday Collection Box of envelopes

2) Through a monthly direct transfer from your bank account to the parish bank account (Pre-Authorized Giving). The form used to initiate PAD is attached below.  If you would like to use this process for your donations please complete the form and mail (or drop it off) to the parish office. If you do not wish to continue this method of giving, it can be terminated upon written notice to the parish.  The parish will produce a tax receipt for any donations made using PAD:

PAD–Authorization Form–rev

3) Using your credit card by going to the St. Clement Parish Web Page stclement-ottawa.org and clicking “Donate to the Parish” link and filling out the required form at the link below.  Regular donations using this credit card method can be cancelled at any time at canadahelps.org.  Canada Helps itself will send you the tax receipt :

Credit Card donations to St. Clement Parish

4) E-Transfers: The parish can now accept Interac e-transfer payments by email at finances@saintclement.ca.  The answer to the question that you provide when you create the transfer with your bank must be “Clement“.  You must specify the reason of the payment in the comment area when you create the transfer.  Please be sure to provide your full name and address.  The parish will then be able to provide a tax receipt.

5) Donations of Securities and Mutual Funds may also be donated using the link below:  Canada Helps will send you the tax receipt:

Securities & Mutual Funds – Canada Helps

Thank you to those already using one of these options for your donations.  You can be assured that the confidential personal information you provide, particularly for online giving, will be kept in a secure place in our parish office.

If you have any questions or require further information please contact our parish secretary, at 613-565-9656 or email office.st.clement@rogers.com

In Christo,

Fr. Erik Deprey, FSSP
Pastor

The latest bulletins can be found below :

2024-12-22 Dominica Quarta Adventus

2024-12-15 Dominica Tertia Adventus

PRAY THE ROSARY WITH Fr. Deprey, Fr. Breton, and Fr. Debow  (in English or Latin!) : 

Our Latin Rosary Prayers can be downloaded here for printing:
Latin Rosary Prayers

ENGLISH:

LATIN:

Today’s Readings:

http://divinumofficium.com/cgi-bin/missa/missa.pl

Livestreams (Sundays and Major Feasts) :

https://www.youtube.com/@st.clementsparishparoisses8409/streams

The Confraternity of St. Peter is a sodality of members who wish to unite themselves to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter and aid in the work of our fraternity, primarily by their prayers.

The Confraternity of St. Peter is spread throughout the world, and is divided into three regions: The English-Speaking Region, the French-Speaking Region and the German-Speaking Region. For more information on these regions and the Confraternity in general, please visit the international website at :

https://www.fssp.org/en/help-us/confraternity-of-saint-peter.

Members pray a decade of the Rosary and the Confraternity Prayer each day for the intentions of the Confraternity.

Enroll in the Confraternity online.

Or print and mail this enrollment form:

Confraternity Enrollment Form and Prayers.

Subscribe to our Flocknote email for periodic updates and information on the parish schedule, news and events using the link below:

https://stclementparish.flocknote.com/

Our 10th annual golf event fundraiser on August 13th was a huge success!
We had 167 people at the dinner with 98 golfers and raised $32,357 after expenses. Deo gratias!

Thank you for all your support – to all the volunteers, to those who contacted sponsors, to all the sponsors, to those who provided auction items, to those who made financial donations, and to all who were able to join us for the day.

We would like to especially thank the many businesses and professionals who were sponsors for the tournament and all the donors who contributed to this year’s silent auction. These are identified in the programme below :

PDF format:  Template Golf Pamphlet 05-08

Powerpoint format:  Golf Pamphlet 05-08

May God reward you for your generosity and support of the parish !

You will find more general information on the project itself here:

https://www.saintclement.ca/about

The Real Estate Committee of the Archdiocese of Ottawa-Cornwall met and passed a motion allowing our parish to continue to the Design Development phase of our Parish Hall project with the Architect. The approval of the Design Development phase is an important step forward in the architectural design process.  We would like to thank the Archdiocese for their continued support and encouragement. 

Providentially their approval comes as we begin our Pledge Drive for 2024.  Your pledges are essential to the process of securing a good mortgage with the Archdiocese, something we hope to work out as soon as possible.  So if you have not yet made your pledges, we encourage you to do so now. Our electronic form can be submitted using the following link:

https://www.saintclement.ca/pledge.

Alternatively, you may print off the form using the PDF link below and submit it with the Sunday Collection:

Parish Hall Pledge Form EN FR (PDF)

Or to make a donation now, use the link below:

https://www.saintclement.ca/donate

We have received $415,000 in pledges and donations so far. Additionally, our recent parish dinner raised a further $15,137.  114 parishioners have submitted pledge forms and a further 103 parishioners have already donated to the campaign. 

This is 46% of our goal which is a good start. We need to build on this momentum. 

We appreciate the support from those who have contributed to the campaign so far. Initially, our pledge drive was seeking pledges for 2023, 2024 and 2025; however, since the pledge drive started late in 2023, we are extending the deadline for submitting your pledge form to Sunday, April 28, 2024. Additionally, we are adding 2026 to the pledge period. 

If you have any questions or require additional information regarding either the parish hall project and/or the capital campaign, contact John Fennelly @ 613-867-0144 or send an email to info@saintclement.ca.

FORMED is a Catholic resource with thousands of Catholic movies, programs, audio, and books.  Through your donations we have been blessed to have been able to offer a one-year subscription accessible to all parishioners free of charge.

https://watch.formed.org/browse

There are 3 ways to access our parish subscription:

1)  Click on this link using your computer and follow the prompts.  Choose St. Clement Parish and indicate your email address.  The rest is self-explanatory:  https://signup.formed.org/

2) Download the app to your smart TV (search “Formed, Catholic”.  Formed is usable on Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, and Chromecast. (note:  you will need to first register at  formed.org/signup before logging into the app).

3)  Download the Formed app to your mobile device (iOS or Android) via App Store or Google Play Store.

We are grateful for the donations which made this one-year subscription possible !  If everyone contributed just $10 toward this service, we can continue offering it on a yearly basis. 

Your donation can simply be placed in the Sunday collection, earmarked “Formed”. Or you could do the same using our Canada Helps platform under the “Weekly Offering” link, just adding a comment that it would be for Formed:

https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/st-clements-parishla-paroisse-st-clement/

Thank-you and God Bless!

In Christo,
Fr. Erik Deprey, FSSP

For the most recent information on our Bookstore and Gift Shop, please refer to the link below:

https://stclement-ottawa.org/en/bookstore/

St. Clements has several hand missals for the Traditional Mass available in our bookstore, in English-Latin and in French-Latin.  These may be purchased in our bookstore on Sundays before & after Masses.   We also have smaller missals for children and several used missals at reduced prices .

In English:

The Roman Catholic Daily Missal (Angelus Press)

Features include: 1,980 pages, all liturgical texts in Latin and English, all readings both in Latin & English (Douay-Rheims), music of the Ordinary in Gregorian notation, gilt edges, five liturgically-coloured ribbons, sewn binding, rounded back with durable, and leather-like gold embossed flexible cover.

In French:

Missel Quotidien Complet (Éditions Ste-Madeleine)

Entièrement recomposé et conforme au code des rubriques du bienheureux Jean XXIII, ce missel latin-français comprend, avec l’Imprimatur de l’archevêque d’Avignon, Mgr Jean-Pierre Cattenoz, l’année liturgique au complet.

https://www.fssp.org/en/official-communique-of-the-priestly-fraternity-of-st-peter/

Grateful to the Holy Father, the members of the Fraternity of St. Peter are in thanksgiving for this confirmation of their mission. They invite all the faithful who feel close to them as a spiritual family to attend or join them in prayer, and to pray especially for Pope Francis.

Restoration of the sanctuary windows is completed ! The exterior glass and wooden frames also needed repair. We discovered that they had been installed backwards at some point in their history, perhaps when the exterior windows were replaced at some point.

The photo above shows the previous arrangement (in black and white);  the colour photos show how they are now arranged.  The PDF file here can show you in more detail on your computer:  Sanctuary Windows

This means we have restored them to their proper orientation, having the faces of the saints facing Our Lord, and Our Lord blessing us with his right hand, as is proper:

  Before:         

Restored:        

We thank you for your donations which helped pay for this restoration work.  May God reward you for your generosity !

St. Clement Parish acquired, through the donation of a generous donor, a statue of St. Philomena.   The journey was quite eventful so we would like to share the story with you.  A video of the restoration of the statue can be found below. Fr. Breton had obtained the statue at the Shrine of St. Philomena in Mugnano, Italy (featured above).  The statue looked like this in the shop:

Much to our dismay, while in the hands of the Italian postal service, she ended up arriving like this :

The Italian postal service did not respond to our request for assistance and/or reimbursement.

Unsure of what to do next in what seemed to be an impossible circumstance, we contacted Pauline Furmanczyk-Winogron at Brushworks Ottawa (https://www.statuerestorers.com/), who began a restoration process — we were totally amazed:

We were pleased with the result :

A video of the whole restoration process can be found below:

St. Philomena is the patron saint of children, youth, babies, infants, priests, sterility, virgins, and apparently, lost causes.   Let us include her in our prayers — she will certainly pull together the pieces of the puzzle when things seem in disarray !

In Christo,
Fr. Erik Deprey, FSSP
Pastor

Below you will find a video describing the work which took place for the restoration of our adoring angels.  Many thanks to Steve and Pauline Winogron for making this possible !

Fr. Deprey has asks that all families consider praying the 15 decades of the rosary every day as a means to obtain a positive resolution to our current coronavirus crisis.

To many of you this may seem daunting ?  If your days are quite busy, consider praying a morning rosary for your morning prayers, then a 2nd rosary spread throughout the day (i.e. pausing from your activities to pray a decade each hour), closing with a family rosary in the evening.  This can be done.

I would also encourage you all to wear the Miraculous Medal of St. Catherine Labouré which was first produced by the Daughters of Charity.  During the cholera outbreak in Paris in 1832, which claimed 20,000 lives, the first medals were being produced.  The sisters started to distribute the first 2,000 of them, especially to infected people who filled the hospitals.  The healings increased, including a lessening of emotional distress. So great was the effect that the people began to call it the “miraculous medal”.  We need all the help we can get !

Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee !  Amen.