St. Dominic Parish, Oakville

06/20/2026

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Reflection – June 21, 2026

On this Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time, the Scriptures invite us to reflect on courage, trust, and the quiet strength that comes from knowing we are held in the hands of a loving God. These readings speak to the fears we carry, the challenges we face, and the deep assurance that God walks with us. On this Father’s Day weekend, they also shine a light on the quiet sacrifices of fathers and all who guide, protect, and nurture others with love.

In the first reading, we meet the prophet Jeremiah at a moment of deep vulnerability. He has been faithful to God’s mission, yet he finds himself surrounded by opposition, mocked by those who should have supported him. His honesty is striking—he does not hide his pain or frustration.

And yet, during this struggle, Jeremiah proclaims a powerful truth: “The Lord is with me like a mighty warrior.” He teaches us that faith does not mean the absence of hardship. Rather, faith gives us the strength to stand firm when life becomes heavy. God may not remove every storm, but He never abandons us in the storm.

In the Gospel, Jesus speaks directly to the human heart. Three times He says, “Do not be afraid.” He knows that fear can paralyze us—fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of being misunderstood, fear of not being enough. Jesus reminds His disciples that their lives are precious to the Father. “You are worth more than many sparrows.” These words are simple, but they carry a profound message: God sees you. God knows you. God values you.

This reassurance is not meant to make us passive. Instead, it gives us the courage to live our faith with authenticity. Jesus calls us to speak truth, to stand for what is right, and to trust that God’s love is stronger than any fear that tries to hold us back. When we root our identity in God, we discover a freedom that no human opinion can take away.

Today, as we celebrate Father’s Day, we pause to honor the men who reflect something of God’s protective and guiding love. Fathers, grandfathers, godfathers, stepfathers, spiritual fathers, and mentors—all play a vital role in shaping lives. Many carry burdens quietly, much like Jeremiah. Many face fears they never express, much like the disciples. Yet through their presence, their sacrifices, and their love, they reveal the strength and tenderness of God the Father.

We pray for all fathers today: May God bless them with wisdom, patience, and courage. May He strengthen them when they feel tired, comfort them when they feel discouraged, and reward them for the love they give so generously. And for those whose fathers have passed on, may today be a moment of gratitude, healing, and gentle remembrance.

As we move into the week ahead, let us carry the heart of today’s message: Do not be afraid. God is with you. God sees your struggles. God knows your heart. May this truth give us the courage to live our faith with sincerity, to speak with integrity, and to trust that the Lord—who knows every hair on our head—will never abandon us. Amen.

–Fr. Kevin Fernandes O.C.D.

06/19/2026

06/19/2026

De Mazenod Door Outreach is hosting the Hope for Hunger Gala, an evening dedicated to supporting those experiencing poverty, food insecurity, and hardship in Hamilton.

📅 September 17, 2026
🕕 6:00 p.m.
📍 Liuna Station – Grand Ballroom, Hamilton
🎟️ Tickets: $200

Every ticket purchased helps support De Mazenod Door Outreach's mission of providing daily nourishment, dignity, and hope to those who turn to its services.

Corporate sponsorship opportunities are also available for organizations looking to make a meaningful difference in the community.

For tickets and sponsorship information, visit: onecau.se/demazenod.

06/13/2026

11th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Homily – June 14, 2026

During the time of Jesus, there were a lot of people who were sick, oppressed and uneducated. Jesus cured every disease, fought against oppression and worked hard as an itinerant teacher. People followed Him everywhere and when He saw them, He was moved with pity for they were troubled and abandoned.

As a being in human form, Jesus couldn’t do all the hard work. That is why He chose twelve apostles, empowered them and sent them as laborers for the harvest. Yet the harvest is great. More laborers are needed.

Fast forward to the modern age: Although observers say great progress has been achieved everywhere, millions of people are still wanting for adequate health care – oppression is still experienced – and throngs of them are yet to be educated and evangelized. Who will be sent to cure them? Who will fight for them? Who will educate them and teach them about the Kingdom of God? Today, Jesus is bidding us to pray for more of them.

In our own time, to follow Jesus basically means to imitate Him in His words and deeds. If we are not moved with pity upon those multitudes who continue to suffer hunger and all kinds of diseases, then what really moves us? Yes, Jesus is asking for prayers that God may send more laborers but then, whom will He send?

As followers of Jesus, we are called to be sent. We are called to be compassionate, that is to have the strong urge to respond to the needs of others with love and selflessness. We are called to make ourselves available to be the instruments of God’s healing power and to be His mouthpiece to deliver the message of His kingdom everywhere and share God’s love.

When I see a heart, the first thing I think of is love.

We think and talk a lot about love, don’t we? We often say things such as, “I love ice cream” or “I love to play baseball.” We also say to our parents or special friends, “I love you.”

A group of professionals asked some children from age four to eight, “What does love mean?” Here are some of the answers the children gave:

“Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other.”

“Love is when you go out to eat and give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs.”

“Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, and then he wears it every day.”

“Love is when mommy gives daddy the best piece of chicken.”

“Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.”

“Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK.”

If you were asked what love is, what would your answer be? I think if we really want to know what love is, the best place to find the answer is in the Bible. God not only told us what love is, he showed us. The Bible says, “God showed how much he loved us by sending Jesus to die for us, even though we were sinful.” Wow! That’s real love! God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us even though we did not deserve it.

In this world that God has made, that is what Fathers and Mothers are supposed to be about – the domestic church! They are supposed to be ones who turn to God and, by keeping the word of God in their hearts and in their actions, provide what their children, and what our world, needs.

And many of us have had such godly parents – we have had such parents, Godly people who not only teach the way of the Lord to their children, but who live it out as well – with joy and with wisdom – with humility and with strength and so raise up after them a generation whose delight is in the Lord, and whose ways are God’s ways. Praise God for them!

But many others in our world have not had such fathers or mothers – and we need them; our world needs them if we are to be whole. We who are gathered here today in Christ’s name are called to help answer that need. “The harvest is plentiful” says Jesus as he looks upon the lost ones all around him, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field”

And then he sends out his followers – and gives them the power they need to do the work that needs doing – the power and authority that they need to help bring salvation.

Each of us here today is called by God to be a healer – first within our own family – among our sons and daughters – our wives and husbands – our cousins and nephews and nieces – and, of course, among our brothers and sisters – our fellow believers

You know that list of answers that children gave to the question, “What is love?”

Well, here is one more:

“God could have said magic words to make the nails fall off the cross, but He didn’t. That’s love.” I think that really says it all.

Dear Father, we thank you for loving us even when we did not deserve it. Help us to love others in the same way. Amen.

–Dcn. Terry Murphy

06/12/2026

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, a powerful sign of Christ’s boundless love, mercy, and compassion for all humanity.

In his pastoral letter, Resting in the Heart of Jesus, Bishop Dabrowski writes:

"Therefore, as your bishop, I invite every member of our diocesan family in our homes, parishes, schools, and Catholic institutions to renew devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In a world marked by division, suffering, and uncertainty, let us turn to the Heart of Jesus with confidence."

Read Bishop Dabrowski's pastoral letter, Resting in the Heart of Jesus:
hamiltondiocese.com/sacredheart

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us.

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.

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.