Through the ongoing stresses of changing restrictions and challenges in daily life, a new Catholic series on mental health and supports in faith-based community is welcome. Access to this video series is free to parishioners through our parish subscription to Formed.

GNB has announced a return to the 'Orange' level of their recovery phase for all regions of the Diocese by Wednesday January 27th, allowing:
Maximum 50 Mass attendance (excluding those in active roles - priest, lector, cantor.
Maximum 25 for Funerals, Weddings, Baptisms.
No congregational singing (one cantor allowed, with 4m physical distancing).
Contact tracing required.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church and the H.O.P.E. Centre are recognized for ‘Stepping up for New Brunswick,’ providing an early COVID-19 Community Assessment Centre along with the HOPE Wellness Centre.
Fr. McRae was also recognized for his care and compassion toward workers and volunteers.

Our Lord Jesus and His Blessed Mother Mary, Our Lady of Good Counsel, walk continually with us and will see us through these difficult times. Let us keep our eyes securely on them through these dark and difficult times.

During GNB Red level protocols, only outdoor religious services are permitted. During this time, Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish will offer outside Communion Service:
Saturday 4:30PM in the Saint William's Church parking lot.
Sunday 10:30AM in the Saint Joseph's Church parking lot.
Sunday 12:00PM in the Stella Maris Church parking lot.
At these times, please remain safely in your parked vehicles to receive Holy Communion.

The Government of New Brunswick has moved the Fredericton and Saint John regions of the Diocese into the “Red Level” of their recovery plan. Public Masses are to be celebrated outside only. Please see the Diocesan protocols, as well as the latest GNB mandatory order especially article 32(e).
Bishop Riesbeck calls us to reflect the light of Christ in the world. In this challenging time let us be true witnesses and examples of His light. This temporary disruption is an opportunity to go ever deeper in personal and family prayer, and with the graces received, to safely reach out to neighbours suffering physically, emotionally, and spiritually in these difficult days.

Pope Francis invites Catholics around the world to deepen their appreciation, love and faithful witness to God and His Word - especially on the third Sunday in ordinary time (January 24, 2021) which is “dedicated to celebration, to reflection and proclamation of the Word of God; so that believers can understand the inexhaustible wealth which comes from this constant dialogue of God with his people."

Saint Joseph is needed now more than ever to intercede powerfully for our Church, country, and families. On December 8, 2020, Pope Francis decreed a “Year of Saint Joseph”, to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of Saint Joseph as patron of the universal Church.
As your Bishop I invite you to enter this Year of Saint Joseph with fervency, participating in any number of the special prayers and practices available to us. An Addendum with ideas for the parishes and faithful on how to participate more fully in this Year of Saint Joseph is attached to this letter for your consideration.

The Sunday readings speak of the call of the prophets, the call of the first disciples, and the call to physical integrity. Those called together in the grace of marriage offer a much needed witness to each of today’s readings as we face the challenges of our modern world and its current circumstances. In today’s world, married couples witness to God’s forgiveness through their willingness to forgive and sacrifice for each other. They call each other to holiness in a way that is prophetic for the world. They do so in a world that does not often respect their heroic commitment and humility before God.

The Season of Christmas concludes with the celebration of the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord on this Sunday January 10. “Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased’” (Mark 1:9-11). “Looking at the events in the light of the Cross and Resurrection, Christian people realized what happened: Jesus loaded the burden of all humankind’s guilt upon his shoulders; he bore it down into the depths of the Jordan” (Benedict XVI, Jesus of Nazareth, p.18).

“We have seen his star in the East, and have come to adore the Lord” (Matthew 2:2)
In the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, Emmanuel’s light radiates beyond the Holy Family and the shepherds, that ‘tiny remnant of Israel,’ to illumine all the peoples of all the nations. As in Isaiah’s prophecy, “nations shall come to Your light, and kings to the brightness of Your dawn…They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord ” (Isaiah 60:3,6).