Fr. Victor Li
Pastoral Message
posted
for Sunday, September 26,
2021
The Peace of Christ be with
you all!
Once again, thank you
everyone for the wonderful
Farewell Gathering last
Sunday afternoon.
There were over 80 people
attended the outdoor event,
with perfect weather!
Our thanks especially to the
organizers of this
gathering, and all those who
contributed to our gifts!
Julia and I are truly
blessed!
This is my last Sunday with
you at St. Cyprian's - as
you pray for me, I will
pledge my prayers for you.
What do we pray for?
Change? Yes, we pray
for positive change, as in
blessings!
I invite you to take a
listen or read further the
first part of my homily,
"Praying for Blessings".
The second part, "my last
words" will be delivered
live on Sunday morning.
Perhaps I will post them on
the website or email them to
you after Sunday morning.
Therefore, I invite you to
tune in on Sunday to worship
together via Zoom at 10:00
am this Sunday (Live).
Please refer to the
instruction on the second
page of the Order of
Service. Do join the meeting
earlier to visit with one
another - the Zoom meeting
will be open at 9:40 am when
Laura will lead us in a
fellowship conversation.
If you cannot join us on
Sunday morning live, please
follow the Home Worship
materials at your
convenience. Do click
on the links for the hymns
to listen & sing along!
Once again, thank you again
for your continual financial
support!
I thank God for all of
you! For the
Tri-Church
partnership!
I am grateful for all those
who have walked with me,
worked with me, prayed with
me and for me and Julia!
God's Blessings and Peace be
with you all!
Fr. Victor
PS: I invite you to read
Bishop Andrew's message
below.
Cyprian got honourable
mention by him!
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the Right Rev
Andrew Asbil
The Bishop's Message
posted
on Friday, September 24,
2021
Dear Friends in Christ,
“The Good of Patience.” This
is the title of the second
chapter of Alan Kreider’s
book, The Patient Ferment of
the Early Church. I commend
both the book and the value
of living out the good of
patience. Throughout,
Kreider shows how this one
virtue is continually being
woven into the very fabric
of who we are as Christians.
continue
reading here →
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Vaccination
Policy
As announced in a
pastoral letter from Bishop
Andrew Asbil, the Diocese is
introducing a policy that
requires clergy, diocesan
employees and volunteers,
and parish employees and
volunteers to show proof of
vaccination against
COVID-19. The full policy is
now available on the
diocesan website, along with
a tracking sheet for
churchwardens to use as they
verify proof of vaccination
among parish staff and
volunteers.
(Download
the full policy at this
link.)
It’s important we implement
this policy quickly so that
we can offer our best
protection to the diocesan
community. Effective
September 30, 2021, any
employee, member of the
clergy or volunteer who
attends at a workplace must
show proof of being
vaccinated with two doses of
a vaccine or combination of
vaccines approved by Health
Canada, with the second dose
having been administered at
least two weeks prior to the
in-person attendance.
Parishes are also expected
to post this policy in a
public place so that all
members of the parish
community are aware of it.
Churchwardens are to ensure
that other organizations
functioning on parish
property are also aware of
it.
The policy applies to every
bishop, priest, deacon, and
lay person under the
jurisdiction of the Diocesan
Bishop of the Diocese of
Toronto engaged as an office
holder, employee, service
provider or volunteer.
Please read the policy for
full details about its scope
and implementation
procedures.
The Bishop’s Office
______________________________________________
______________________________________________
Margaret Black
Tri-Church Parish Nurse
Your
latest Parish Nursing
Health Tip
posted for the Week
of August 22, 2021
An Important
Life Lesson
At the end of our
worship service on Sunday,
August 15, Rev. Victor Li
asked if there were any
announcements for Iona. I
responded with an update
about Iona’s Search
Committee. Then I went on to
say that my prayers are with
both Iona’s and St.
Cyprian’s Search Committees,
as we seek to “replace two
irreplaceable men”. Victor
thanked me but continued,
“Everyone can be replaced.
No one is indispensable”. My
answer to that is “Yes and
no”.
Several years ago a very
wise person said to me that
when a beloved pet dies, we
grieve the loss of one of
our family members, but
after a period of time, many
people get another pet to
keep them company, cheer
them up, just be with them.
Does that mean that you stop
loving the previous pet? No!
It just means that we make
space in our hearts for the
new pet, but the new one
doesn’t take the place of
the previous one. And so our
hearts grow larger to make
room for more love.
The lesson I take from this
is that when someone leaves
a position, we can find a
new individual to fill that
position, but that person
doesn’t replace the previous
person in our hearts. We
just grow bigger hearts to
make space for the new
person. For us, Victor and
Robert will always remain as
beloved spiritual mentors
and good friends.
This is good news for our
Search Committees and
congregations. We need
to think about God’s mission
for us in this community and
the wider world, as we pray
for others each day. Both
congregations will grieve
the loss of these two men,
but we need to listen to
God, as he seeks to lead us
into the next chapter of our
lives in His Kingdom. We
must not be tempted to give
up and think that there is
no point in going forward.
We need to believe that God
will eventually bring the
right person to lead each of
our congregations so that we
can continue and hopefully
grow our ministry. The world
around us is full of pain,
grief, loss, anger,
hopelessness, poverty,
violence and injustice. God
calls us to fight the things
that are destroying our
society and help to bring
others to Him and gradually
help to build His Kingdom
here on earth. Even if it’s
one person at a time, one
day at a time, everything
helps.
Together we have a strong,
loving community at
Tri-Church, which can enrich
the lives of so many others.
We can give them hope, a
sense of belonging, support,
comfort, and love. For
those who are alone and
afraid, these are
life-changing gifts. This is
God’s will for us and a
lasting testament to
Robert’s and Victor’s
ministry with us.
Blessings,
Margaret Black
Tri-Church Parish Nurse
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