Genesis 9: 8 - 15

Peter 3: 18 - 22

Mark 1: 12 - 15

Today's readings remind us why we partake in this 40-day Lenten journey — to prepare our hearts for the resurrection of Christ on Easter.

St. Peter reminds us in our Second Reading of the blessings we receive from Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection — “Christ suffered for sins once… that he might lead you to God.”  And again, “[Baptism] is… an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

To receive the blessings more readily from Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection, we too are called to endure 40 days “in the desert.”  In our Gospel, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert where He was tempted by Satan.  Jesus was called to face trials and to confront evil.  During this time, He committed to intense prayer and fasting.  It was not necessary for Jesus to go into the desert so that He might be purified, but rather, to endure the temptations of man for our sake.  He was fully man, and experienced temptations just like us, yet responded to them perfectly, never falling into sin.

We should strive to fully participate in this Lenten season by mirroring Jesus, the model steward by Whom we are called to imitate.  Through our time in the desert, we will confront evil by weeding out the roots of sin in our lives through fasting.  And we will be sustained and nourished in the desert by prayer.

Let us strive to purify our hearts so that we might be ready to receive the glorious gift of Christ and partake in the riches that pour forth from this Gift.

Tue, Feb 20 @ 9:00 am          Joe Murphy (RIP)

Tue, Feb 20 @ 11:00 am        Giovanni Deluzio (RIP) - Senior Care Centre

Tue, Feb 20 @ 6:30 pm          Ruth Posio (RIP)

Wed, Feb 21 @ 9:00 am         Milagros (RIP)

Wed, Feb 21 @ 6:30 pm         Carmen & Greg (INT)

Thu, Feb 22 @ 9:00 am          Amanda & Irineo Obispo (RIP)

Thu, Feb 22  @ 6:30 pm         Colton Heidt (INT)

Fri, Feb 23 @ 9:00 am            Karby, Lesley & Chan Fung Kwan (INT)

Fri, Feb 23 @ 6:30 pm            Pauline Laverry (RIP)
Sat, Feb 24 @ 9:00 am           Holly Guterson (RIP)

Sat, Feb 24 @ 5:00 pm           Joseph Murphy (RIP)
Sun, Feb 25 @ 9:00 am          Myrna Rolfes (INT)

Sun, Feb 25 @ 11:00 am        St. Albert the Great Community (INT)

Sun, Feb 25 @ 5:00 pm          Norberto Garcia (RIP)

ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFERS – when making donations by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) please put your full name in the memo line, and your address if it is the first time you are sending an EFT donation.  We are receiving donations that only come in from the bank with a first name, and we do not know who it belongs to, or what it is for; donation, sacrament fee payment, etc.  Also, you may have the same first and last name as another parishioner, and the address helps us correctly record the donation.  Your full name and address ensures that we are recording the donation to the correct person for tax receipts at the end of the year.

DONATION ENVELOPES – we are encouraging parishioners to make donations electronically, however we can provide you with a box of donation envelopes and a sheet of labels to put on them, as the envelopes are not numbered.  Please come to the parish office Monday through Friday 9:30 am to 12:30 pm, and we can provide you with the box of envelopes and labels.  If you do not want the labels, when using envelopes, please PRINT your full name and address on the envelope.  If you only put your first name “John”, or your last name “Doe Family”, we do not know who to record the donation to and it gets recorded as loose.

2023 Tax Receipts are being emailed out, please email donations@stalbertthegreat.ca before February 20, 2024 to request your tax receipt by email.  All other tax receipts over $50 will be mailed out before the end of February.  Thank you for your generous donations in support of St. Albert the Great parish.

PLEASE NOTE: If you made a donation to St. Vincent de Paul, please be aware that they issue separate tax receipts for your donations, as they operate separately from the parish.  Tax receipts will be mailed out in February for 2023 donations.

Our parish has a number of pastoral care ministers that are available to bring Holy Communion to parishioners who are unable to attend Mass.  Pastoral care is a ministry of healing and presence to those parishioners who are sick, elderly, dying, home bound and bereaved.   Our ministers are available to make home visits, as well we have ministers that regularly attend the South Campus Hospital.  

If you or a loved one are a parishioner in need of a pastoral care visit at home or at the South Calgary Health Campus please contact the parish office at 403-257-6054. 

We are in need of more volunteers to bake and serve for Sunday Social after the 11:00 AM Mass. 

St. Albert the Great Parish is seeking 2 individuals to develop and manage our social media and other electronic communications.  This volunteer position is an excellent opportunity to gain practical digital communications experience while serving your Parish by connecting with and informing our faithful.  For more information, please click here .

The Knights of Columbus council of St. Albert the Great is proud to present in collaboration with our SATG Clergy, “We are the People of the Eucharist”, a Eucharistic Discernment given by Bishop David Motiuk, who is the Honorary State Chaplain for the Knights of Columbus of Alberta, available to all parishioners!

The KofC Family of the Month for January 2024 Press Release can be found by clicking on  this link .

Hallow, the #1 prayer and meditation app in the world, is partnering with St. Albert the Great parish this Lent!  Let’s join together as a parish community in the audio-guided Lent Pray40 Challenge with Jonathan Roumie, Fr. Mike Schmitz and Mark Wahlberg, and in addition to other surprise audio guides!  We are blessed by this opportunity to further enrich our community through shared prayer.

Join us at a kickoff event filled with faith and fellowship on Sunday February 11^th at 10 am in the St. Albert the Great Parish basement.  By scanning the QR code, you're not only registering for our kick-off event, but also securing Hallow Premium for just $1!  This special offer is extended to all parishioners because our parish is a proud Hallow partner.  Even if you are unable to attend the kick-off event, please scan the QR code to join our community this Lenten season as we delve into the richness of prayer with Hallow’s Pray40 Challenge.

Further information will be provided upon registration.  Any questions?  Reach out to our Hallow parish coordinator, Robe Pettigrew at robe@questsend.ca.  We look forward to praying with you!

We applaud the men and women who have made the New Year's Resolution to invest in their spiritual life in 2024!  There are three men's groups and five women's groups.  Please pray for all our participants.

Will return in February, please stay tuned.

We have been in touch with our sponsored family, they have been cleared medically and are just waiting with anticipation for their travel date to come to Canada.  In the meantime they have sent the following message to us for Lent.

"Dear ones: The word freedom is beautiful, we long for freedom to be able to worship at Mass one day soon.  It is hard for many to imagine such a life that we live, but we are facing our difficulties.  We see Christ by our side in our darkest and loneliest days.  Jesus is the light and freedom in our lives.  We thank you all for praying for us and giving us hope".

As our sponsored family gets closer to transitioning from being refugees to becoming members of our parish, we wanted our ministry name to better reflect this. This is why we have renamed our ministry the New Canadian Family Ministry of Hope.

St. Albert the Great St. Vincent de Paul currently needs  ketchup and soda crackers .

Please drop your donations in the St. Vincent de Paul box in the Narthex.  Thank you for your support!

If you would like to learn more about the Eucharist in the Scripture, join other parishioners to watch the series presented by Dcn. Harlod Burke-Silvers.

A small group of the faithful from St. Albert the Great Parish have taken on the mission to put together some recollections and archives going back to the very beginnings of our parish.  Our history got away from us and we think that while we’re still able, we need to gather up our memories.  We are reaching out to anyone who has been a part of our journey for the past 25 years to help document our past.

We’re not exactly sure of what this is all going to look like, but all stories and memories are important.  Can you help us?

Your participation wouldn’t involve a huge time commitment.  If you do like meetings and such, we’ve decided to gather once a month to add past events to a giant timeline.  But, another way that you might participate is to write down your recollections…events that stick out in your memory or that were really important to your family.  You might want to look through your boxes of photos and contribute those or a scan of those.  There are many ways that your participation might be celebrated.  Whether you walked in the front doors of our church when they first opened 20 years ago, or for the first time a few months ago, you are an important part of our history and we thank you for anything you might do.  If you have something to share, please contact us at  archives@stalbertthegreat.ca  .

Click on the images above to connect to Mary's Meals website.

Click on the above image to view the renewal web page.

The gospel tells of how the Spirit has just driven a newly-baptized Jesus into the wilderness.  Mark does not say anything about what Jesus and Satan say to each other, and there are no promises or rebukes as we find in the gospels' accounts in Matthew and Luke.  Mark concentrates on the fact that Jesus is bringing the kingdom of God – the Good News – and that the gates of hell will never prevail over this mission.

What will you do this Lent to live increasingly in the loving light of Christ while decreasing the areas of your life dark with the power of sin?

On February 2, 2024, the faithful marked the 28th World Day for Consecrated Life. Those in consecrated life began this prayerful day with celebration and Mass at the annual gathering hosted by the Franciscan Friars and joined the faithful at Candlemas in the Cathedral!  View photos from the celebration

Pope Francis has invited the Church to dedicate this year to prayer in preparation for the Jubilee 2025.  We would like to share the "Prayer Enrichment Guidebook" from the McGrath Institute with you.  This guide introduces seven forms of prayer to help deepen our relationship with the Lord and encounter Him in a new way.  Download guide

Back for a second series, Fr. Tim Boyle will speak on The Art of Accompaniment, picking up on the theme from the Synod preparation document "Enlarge the Tent." His next talk is scheduled for Mon, Feb 19 at 10:30 am with theme: “Finding the Real Presence of God outside the church” at St. Martha's Parish in Lethbridge, or watch via livestream here.

Men in the Diocese of Calgary are invited to join “Into the Breach” Men’s Formation Program on “Brotherhood” with Regnum Christi and Clear Water Academy. When: Thu, Feb 22 at 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, at Clear Water Academy, Calgary. See catholicyyc.ca/news for more information.

Indigenous Voices of Faith is a series of interviews conducted by Cardus in the fall of 2022 by Father Deacon Andrew, in which Indigenous people across Canada were asked to share their faith and life experiences.  St. Mary’s is excited to host Father Deacon Andrew, where he will discuss with a panel of Indigenous peoples from Treaty Seven, their faith experiences.  It is an opportunity to hear from Elders and an alumnus of St. Mary’s about how Indigenous culture and Christian faith co-exist. When: Wed, Feb 21 at 7 pm to 9 pm at the McGivney Hall.  Register here
 

Have you ever thought God might be calling you to be a priest? Come to the Priestly Vocations Night with Fr. Derek Remus. Mass at 5 pm, followed by Evening Prayer, supper, presentation on discerning a vocation, and prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. When: Saturdays, Feb. 24 and Mar 16, from 5 pm to 9 pm at St. Luke’s, Calgary.

You've probably heard of St. John Paul II's Theology of the Body, but have you heard of Pope Francis's theology of aging?  Recently, Pope Francis delivered a series of Wednesday audiences on the meaning and value of the alliance between generations.  You're invited to attend a workshop (with lunch included) facilitated by Amanda Achtman (Dying to Meet You Project), Nicole Scheidl (Canadian Physicians for Life), and Monique Achtman (Calgary Pro-life).  When: Sat, Feb 24 at 10 am to 2 pm - St. Bonaventure, Calgary.   Register here
 

St. Luke's Parish invites you to attend their Renewal Parish Lenten Mission with Dr. Peter Baltutis, which ends with penitential service on Thursday.  When: Monday to Thursday, Feb 26-29 at 7 pm.  Peter teaches history & religious studies at St. Mary's University and is a lay member of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans). He also serves as CWL Endowed Chair for Catholic Studies.  More info.

God Squad Canada is hosting its annual Men’s Conference called “The Way to the Father” on March 22-23, 2024 at Ascension Catholic Parish in Calgary with keynote speaker: Jon Leonetti, an author, Catholic Speaker, radio host, but most importantly a husband and a father; as well as Brother Simon of the Seeds of the Word Community in Calgary.  Get tickets here  

Regnum Christi Calgary is inviting young people to a week-long event during Holy Week 2024.  This event is designed to help young people develop a deeper relationship with Christ and will include a range of activities such as Mass, Adoration, Confession, games, food, live Stations of the Cross, and a Marian procession.  The event will be held from Mar 24 - 30 at St. James' Parish in Okotoks.   More info & registration

Great news!  The celebration of Sunday Mass has resumed at three hospitals in the City of Calgary on the First Sunday of Advent.  Patients, family members and friends, and hospital staff are now able to avail themselves of this pastoral outreach in the following facilities:  
 Sundays at 3:30 pm - Foothills Hospital Chapel
 Sundays at 3:00 pm – Peter Lougheed Hospital Chapel
 Sundays at 3:30 pm – Rockyview Hospital Chapel
 

Please visit  catholicyyc.ca/careers  for more information and application details. 

If you haven't already, please subscribe to the  Diocesan publication Faithfully  - to keep you updated with what's happening in our Diocese.  Get a snapshot of faith at work in the lives of everyday people in our Diocese and find opportunities to spread the Good News of Christ beyond the walls of our churches.  Subscribe at catholicyyc.ca/faithfully