St. Dominic Parish, Oakville

06/06/2026

Solemnity of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ – Reflection – June 07, 2026

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, a feast that draws our hearts back to the very centre of our faith—the Eucharist. On Holy Thursday we remember the Last Supper, but the liturgy of that night is wrapped in the shadow of the Passion. Today, however, the Church gives us the space to contemplate the Eucharist with joy, gratitude, and wonder.

This feast has a long and beautiful history. In the 13th century, Pope Urban IV established the celebration of Corpus Christi, and St Thomas Aquinas was asked to compose the prayers and hymns for the feast. His words still echo in the Church today, reminding us of the sacred mystery we receive at every Mass. In 1970, the Church gave the feast its current title—the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ—inviting us to reflect not only on Christ’s presence in the Eucharist but also on the communion it creates among us.

The Gospel for ‘Year A’ comes from the sixth chapter of John, where Jesus speaks of Himself as the Bread of Life. In this passage, Jesus does not soften His language. He speaks with boldness and clarity: “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.” These words are not symbolic or poetic. They are an invitation into a profound intimacy with God. Jesus promises that those who receive Him will live in Him, and He will live in them. This is the heart of the Eucharist: a mutual indwelling, a holy communion, a life shared.

John’s Gospel does not include the Last Supper narrative we hear in the other Gospels. Instead, John gives us this long discourse on the Bread of Life, helping us understand the meaning behind the Eucharist. It is not only a ritual action; it is a relationship. It is not only a remembrance; it is a real encounter with the living Christ. When we receive the Eucharist, we become what we receive. We are called to become Christ’s presence in the world—His compassion, His mercy, His patience, His love.

Meals have always been sacred moments in human life. We gather around tables to celebrate birthdays, weddings, achievements, and reunions. We share food when words are not enough. We comfort one another with meals in times of grief. Something holy happens when people sit together, break bread, and share their lives. The Eucharist takes this human experience and elevates it. It becomes the place where God shares His life with us, and where we learn to share our lives with one another.

Jesus’ words today also carry a tender, almost maternal image: “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.” It is the image of a life held within another life, like a child resting in the womb of its mother. This is how close God desires to be to us. This is how deeply Christ longs to dwell within us.

And this communion is not only for today. Jesus promises, “The one who eats this bread will live forever.” The Eucharist is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet, a pledge of the glory that awaits us, a reminder that our lives are moving toward God’s eternal embrace.

As we celebrate this feast, we can pray with the words of St Thomas Aquinas: “O Sacred Banquet, in which Christ is received, the memory of His Passion is renewed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us.”

May this Eucharist strengthen us. May it transform us. And may it send us forth to make Christ’s love present in our world. Amen.

–Fr. Kevin Fernandes, O.C.D.

06/05/2026

05/31/2026

Congratulations to all of the grade 2 students, who received First Holy Communion recently at our parish!!!

May the Lord, who came to give Himself as our spiritual food, and the medicine of immortality, teach us to love more and more every day. Know that He dwells in you. He said that He will be with us always.

Look at what St. Justin Martyr wrote almost 1900 years ago:

"For not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Saviour, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh."

(First Apology, chapter 66)

05/30/2026

Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity – Reflection – May 31, 2026

Brothers and sisters, over the past few weeks the Church has led us on a beautiful journey. We celebrated the Ascension, where Jesus returns to the Father, and Pentecost, where the Spirit fills the Church with life. Today, on Trinity Sunday, we pause to look at the bigger picture: the one God who has been revealing His love in three distinct ways — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The readings today remind us that God is not three separate beings competing for our attention. There is a seamless continuity in how God loves. Sometimes people imagine the Old Testament God as stern or distant, but today’s gospel corrects that misunderstanding. “God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son.” That is not the voice of a harsh judge. That is the voice of a Father whose love is so deep that He will stop at nothing to draw His children back.

From the very beginning, God loved the world into being. When humanity wandered, God formed a covenant and kept calling His people home. When that wasn’t enough, God came even closer — in Jesus, walking our roads, touching our wounds, eating at our tables. And when Jesus could no longer remain physically present, the Spirit came to continue the same mission: to draw us into the heart of God.

So today is not about solving a theological puzzle. It is about marvelling at the single‑mindedness of God, who has only one desire: that we know the breadth and depth of His love. Father, Son, and Spirit are not three different agendas. They are one divine movement of love reaching toward us in different ways across time.

Historically, the Church took centuries to find the right words. The early Christians experienced God as Father, encountered Jesus as Lord, and felt the power of the Spirit — but they needed language to express this mystery. By the 4th century, at the Council of Nicaea, the Church crafted the Creed we still profess today. Every line was chosen carefully to say what we believe — and what we do not believe — about the nature of God. It is our family’s ancient way of saying: this is the God who has loved us from the beginning.

And every time we make the Sign of the Cross, we proclaim that faith. A simple gesture — forehead, chest, shoulders — yet it carries the whole mystery of the Trinity. It is our daily reminder that we live our lives “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

So today, let us not get lost in explanations. Let us simply rest in the truth that God is love — love creating us, love saving us, love living within us. And may that love shape how we speak, how we forgive, how we live with one another.

—Fr. Kevin Fernandes, OCD

A Prayer for Trinity Sunday: Most Holy Trinity — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — draw us deeper into Your divine life. Teach us to love as You love, to give as You give, and to live in unity as You live in unity. Amen.

05/29/2026

Pope Leo XIV has released his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, reflecting on the role of artificial intelligence in today’s world and the importance of safeguarding human dignity in an age of rapid technological change.

Marking the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum, the Holy Father describes AI as an “epochal turning point,” calling on society to ensure that technology remains at the service of the human person, the common good, solidarity, and peace.

Read the encyclical here: bit.ly/PopeLeoXIVMagnificaHumanitas

05/29/2026

Join us at the Basilica of Our Lady Immaculate in Guelph for the first Marian Day of the season, presided over by Bishop Ustrzycki.

Beginning at 9 a.m., the day includes a Holy Hour, Morning Prayer, Confessions, Benediction, Holy Mass, and an Outdoor Rosary Procession (weather permitting).

All are welcome as we gather in prayer at the Diocesan Marian Shrine. Marian Days continue on the first Saturdays from June through October.

For more information, visit: https://hamiltondiocese.com/events/2026/05/marian-days-2026/

05/29/2026

We regret to inform you that Reverend Zygmunt Baranowski died on Tuesday, May 19, 2026. Please pray that Rev. Zygmunt may receive the reward of a good and faithful servant and that his family and friends will be consoled in their faith in Christ.

https://hamiltondiocese.com/news/2026/05/in-memoriam-zygmunt-baranowski/

05/29/2026

Congratulations to all of the grade 7 students, who received the Sacrament of Confirmation recently at our parish!!!

May God bless you always and fill you with His Spirit! Know that the God of Love dwells inside you, and may you grow every day in appreciation and thanksgiving for all that He does for us!

05/23/2026

Pentecost Sunday – Reflection – May 24, 2026

Guided by the Spirit

Today we celebrate Pentecost — the day the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples like a rushing wind and tongues of fire. It is often called the birthday of the Church, but it is also the celebration of God’s Spirit alive and active in us today.

In the Acts of the Apostles, we hear how the disciples were gathered in one place, still uncertain about their future. Then, suddenly, the Spirit filled the room, and they began to speak in different languages. People from every nation could understand them. This was no accident — it was God’s way of showing that the Gospel is for everyone, without exception.

Pentecost is not just a story from the past. It is a living reality. The same Spirit that transformed fearful disciples into bold witnesses is the Spirit that moves in our lives now.

The Spirit comes to:

Renew our hearts when we feel weary.
Unite us when the world feels divided.
Send us out when we are tempted to stay comfortable.
The fire of Pentecost is not meant to be admired from a distance — it is meant to burn within us. It calls us to speak words of hope, to act with compassion, and to stand for justice. It invites us to see diversity not as a challenge, but as a gift — a reflection of God’s own creativity.

So today, let us open ourselves to the Spirit’s movement. Let us pray for the courage to be guided not by fear or self-interest, but by love. Let us be willing to step out of our safe spaces and into the world, carrying the Good News in both our words and our actions.

May the Spirit that came at Pentecost breathe new life into our faith, our families, and our communities. And may we, like those first disciples, be set on fire — not to destroy, but to illuminate the world with the light of Christ.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love.

—Fr. Kevin Fernandes, OCD

05/16/2026

The Ascension of the Lord – Reflection – May 17, 2026

Back on April 5th, we celebrated Easter Sunday and the beginning of the Easter season. Easter concludes next weekend with the celebration of Pentecost. The Ascension takes place 40 days after Easter, which would have been last Thursday, but in most Dioceses in Canada, the Ascension of the Lord is moved to a Sunday, since most of the faithful do not come to Mass on a weekday, compared to Sunday.

As we celebrate Easter Sunday and Pentecost Sunday and then, in the coming weeks, the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary; the Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church; the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity; and the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. Perhaps the Ascension of the Lord and the significance of the Ascension, does not receive the voice in the Church that it deserves.

I think of the Ascension, most of all in its context in the Easter season, as a part of the Paschal mystery, which includes Jesus’ suffering and death, his resurrection, his ascension, and his sending forth of the Holy Spirit to us, his disciples.

These parts of the Paschal Mystery, as a whole, comprise one reality. In the resurrection, we understand that Jesus still lives as our Savior and our Redeemer. In the Ascension, we better understand Christ’s relationship with the Father: that the living Christ has entered into glory, a glory that he shares with the Father.

With great joy, we celebrate the solemnity of the Ascension of our Lord this weekend. Blessings to all of you.

–Fr. Kevin Fernandes O.C.D.