A heartfelt thank you to our Knights of Columbus for hosting the wonderful pancake breakfast last Sunday!

Thank you to everyone who flipped the pancakes, cooked the sausages, served the coffee, washed the dishes, set up and cleaned up—and, of course, made sure nobody left hungry! 🥞☕😄

These breakfasts are about much more than pancakes. They give us a chance to slow down, visit with one another, welcome people into our parish community, and enjoy some good fellowship around the table.

We are very grateful for the time, energy, and generosity of the Knights. Your service to our parish is a wonderful example of faith put into action.

Thank you, Knights, for feeding both our stomachs and our parish family!

God bless you and all that you do for St. Francis de Sales Parish!

🙏 Calling All Altar Servers — and Future Altar Servers!

Attention, Altar Servers and anyone thinking about becoming one!

We are having an Altar Servers Meeting on Saturday, October 10, at 9:30 AM, and I would love to see you there!

If you are already serving at Mass—thank you! Your ministry is an important part of our parish. You help the priest, but even more importantly, you help the whole parish pray. When you serve at the altar, you are not just carrying candles, ringing bells, or trying to remember which way to walk—you are helping the entire community worship God.

Who can become an Altar Server?

If you would like to become an altar server, you should have already received your First Holy Communion and First Confession.

If you meet these requirements and have been thinking, “Maybe I could do that…”—this meeting is especially for you!

You don't need to know everything. You don't need to be perfect. And you certainly don't need to be an expert at ringing the bells! We will teach you.

Being an altar server is a wonderful opportunity to grow in faith, become more comfortable at Mass, make new friends, and learn more about what happens at the altar.

So, whether you are an experienced server or someone who is ready to begin this beautiful ministry, come and join us on October 10 at 9:30 AM!

Bring your questions, your enthusiasm, and maybe even a little patience with Father Mariusz!

We need you. The parish needs you. And most importantly, Jesus needs young people who are willing to serve Him.

I hope to see many of you there!

See you at the altar! 🙏

Saints for the Week: Big Hearts, Big Faith, and Little Ways

The Church gives us a beautiful group of saints to celebrate this week. And what I love about the Church calendar is that the saints are not all the same. Some were scholars, some missionaries, some contemplatives, and some simply tried to love God faithfully in the ordinary things of everyday life.

This week we meet St. Jerome, St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, and the Holy Guardian Angels.

📖 September 30 — St. Jerome

St. Jerome was a priest, biblical scholar, and one of the great lovers of Sacred Scripture. He is best known for translating the Bible into Latin, producing what became known as the Vulgate.

Jerome had a reputation for being brilliant—and also for having a rather strong personality! He could be passionate, outspoken, and occasionally not the easiest person to disagree with. In other words, he was a saint who was very human!

But underneath all of that was a deep love for God's Word.

St. Jerome reminds us that the Bible is not simply an old book sitting on a shelf collecting dust. It is God's Word speaking to us today.

Maybe St. Jerome's feast is a good opportunity to open the Bible again. And if your Bible has a little dust on it, don't worry—St. Jerome would probably understand!

🌹 October 1 — St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus

The very next day we celebrate St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, the Little Flower.

Thérèse lived only 24 years, entered the Carmelite convent when she was very young, and never travelled around the world preaching to thousands of people. Yet she became one of the most beloved saints in the Church and was declared a Doctor of the Church.

Her great discovery was what she called her “little way.”

Thérèse understood that holiness does not necessarily mean doing spectacular things. It means doing ordinary things with extraordinary love.

A smile. A kind word. Patience with someone who is difficult. Doing a small task without complaining. Praying for someone who may never know that you prayed for them.

Sometimes we think we need to do something great for God. Thérèse reminds us: Love God greatly in the little things.

Perhaps holiness is closer than we think. It may be hiding in the kitchen, at work, in the classroom, in the parish hall—or even in the parking lot!

👼 October 2 — The Holy Guardian Angels

And then, on Friday, we celebrate the Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels.

The Church teaches that each of us has a guardian angel, given by God to accompany and assist us on our journey.

Think about that for a moment: God has not left us alone.

Our guardian angel is not there to do our homework, find our lost keys, or make sure we don't get a speeding ticket! But our guardian angel accompanies us, protects us according to God's providence, and helps lead us toward what is good.

Jesus reminds us that the angels of little ones continually behold the face of the Father in heaven.

Perhaps this Friday we should take a moment to thank God for the guardian angel He has given us—and remember that our lives are surrounded by God's care in ways we don't always see.

Three Saints, Three Lessons

This week gives us three beautiful reminders:

St. Jerome: Know God's Word.
St. Thérèse: Love God in the little things.
The Guardian Angels: Remember that you are never alone.

That sounds like a pretty good spiritual plan for one week!

So let us ask these saints and our guardian angels to pray for us, protect us, and help us become a little more like Jesus—one Bible page, one small act of love, and one faithful step at a time.

St. Jerome, pray for us.
St. Thérèse, pray for us.
Holy Guardian Angels, pray for us!

👼 The Archangels: God’s Messengers with a Mission

This Tuesday, September 29, we celebrate the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, Archangels.

Three angels. Three very different missions. And three names that remind us that heaven is not sitting around doing nothing!

The word “angel” comes from the Greek angelos, meaning messenger. Angels are spiritual beings created by God to serve Him and to assist us according to His will. They are not cute little babies with wings floating around on clouds—although that is often how Christmas cards like to portray them! Angels are powerful servants of God, completely devoted to His glory.

And among the angels, the Church gives special attention to these three archangels.

St. Michael is the great defender. His name means “Who is like God?” Michael is traditionally known as the protector of the Church and the one who stands against evil. His message is simple and powerful: God comes first. When temptation comes knocking, St. Michael reminds us that we don't have to open the door!

St. Gabriel is the messenger. His name means “God is my strength.” Gabriel is the angel who brought Mary the extraordinary news that she had been chosen to become the Mother of the Saviour. He also appeared to Zechariah and announced the birth of John the Baptist. Gabriel reminds us that God often comes into our lives with an invitation—and sometimes that invitation sounds rather frightening at first: “Do not be afraid.”

St. Raphael is the companion and healer. His name means “God heals.” We meet him especially in the Book of Tobit, where he accompanies young Tobiah on his journey and brings healing to his family. Raphael reminds us that God does not abandon us on the road. Sometimes He sends help in ways we recognize immediately, and sometimes only later do we realize that someone was an angel of God for us.

These three archangels give us a beautiful picture of the Christian life:

Michael teaches us to stand firm.
Gabriel teaches us to listen.
Raphael teaches us to walk with God and care for others.

Perhaps this week we could ask ourselves: Where do I need St. Michael’s courage? Where do I need Gabriel’s openness to God’s message? Where do I need Raphael’s healing and guidance?

And there is one more important reminder. We don't worship angels. We worship God, the Creator of angels and of us. The angels simply point us toward Him.

So on Tuesday, September 29, let us thank God for St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and St. Raphael—and ask these heavenly messengers to pray for our parish, our families, our children, our sick, and all those who need God’s protection and guidance.

And if you happen to hear a little whisper this week encouraging you to pray, forgive someone, go to Mass, or finally open that Bible you have been promising to read for the last ten years… perhaps don't ignore it!

Saint Michael, pray for us.
Saint Gabriel, pray for us.
Saint Raphael, pray for us.

And may all the angels and saints lead us closer to Jesus!

St. Matthew: God Had a Different Job Description

September 21 — Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

Matthew knew money. He was a tax collector, so numbers, taxes, accounts, and money were his daily business. In fact, among the Apostles, he was probably the one with the most financial experience.

So I can imagine Matthew thinking when Jesus called him:

“Finally! A job I am qualified for. Someone has to look after the money. Surely Jesus will make me the treasurer!”

But Jesus had other plans.

The money bag was given to Judas.

I wonder if Matthew ever looked at Judas and thought, “Seriously? Judas? Why him and not me? I actually know what I’m doing!”

Of course, the Gospel doesn't tell us that Matthew ever thought this. But I can certainly imagine it!

And perhaps there is a lesson here for us priests, parishioners—and especially anyone who has ever wondered why somebody else got the job, the responsibility, or the opportunity we thought should be ours.

God's plan is often different from our job description.

Jesus didn't call Matthew simply because he was good with money. Jesus had something much bigger in mind.

Matthew would become an Apostle and the author of one of the four Gospels. The man who once kept track of money would now help people discover something far more valuable: the riches of God's mercy and the treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Imagine if Jesus had said, “Matthew, you are really good with numbers. You can be our treasurer.” Maybe Matthew would have been very happy. But we might never have had the Gospel according to Matthew!

Sometimes we look at our lives and wonder, “Lord, why didn't You let me do this? Why did You give that opportunity to someone else?”

Matthew reminds us that God may have something much better in mind.

Jesus sees possibilities in us that we don't always see in ourselves.

Matthew simply heard two words: “Follow me.” He got up, left his tax booth, and followed Jesus. He didn't have the whole plan. He didn't know he would become an Apostle. He certainly didn't know that Christians would still be reading his Gospel two thousand years later.

He just trusted Jesus.

And maybe that's the challenge for us today. We don't need to understand everything God is doing. We don't need to have the whole five-year plan—or even the five-day plan!

Sometimes we simply need to hear Jesus say, “Follow me,” and have enough faith to get up and go.

St. Matthew, pray for us, that we may trust God's plan—even when He gives the job we wanted to somebody else!

Fr.Marius Sztuk, SDS

What an impressive feat for the youths to take a list of approximately 30 group names and whittle it down to one for the group: Holy Fire. Members will have the opportunity to design a logo for the group. One will be chosen to be our logo, while the runners up will become badges that members will collect throughout the year. Details to come.

GET INVOLVED!

With now over 60 members in the Holy Fire Youth Group, we will need more volunteers to ensure that the program runs smoothly and safely. If you would like to volunteer for the Youth Group, please contact the office at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.Please Note that Youth Ministry volunteers will need to complete a vulnerable sector police check.