Welcome to VEYO

Welcome!

Thank you for visiting the new website of the Office for Vocations, Evangelization and Youth of the Catholic Diocese of Peterborough in Ontario, Canada. We hope that this website will give you some general and interesting information on the three areas entrusted to this Office and we invite you to check out the initiatives, programs and activities planned for the parish communities throughout our Diocese.

The Diocese of Peterborough, established in 1882 with territory taken from the western part of the Archdiocese of Kingston, has presently 40 parishes in an area stretching from Lake Ontario in the south between Courtice and Brighton to the districts of Muskoka and Parry Sound in the north with Brit and Powassan being the northern most parishes. There is a catholic population of about 70,000 served by over 60 active priests in the mostly rural communities of the Diocese.

The mission of this Office is to encourage vocations to the priesthood and to the religious life; to help people grow in the faith and understand its teachings; and to reach out to our youth and young adults, and let them know how important they are to the life of the Church.

Because we want you to re-visit us often, we tried to make the Office easy to remember. So we dropped a few letters and called it 'veyo' (www.veyopeterboro.org). Thank you for your time, enjoy your visit and come back soon.

Coat of Arms for the Diocese of Peterborough showing the keys of St. Peter
and two Canadian maple leafs, adorned above the crest with the Bishop's Mitre.

The Motto of the Diocese, seen here in its Latin rendition, is taken from
St. John's Gospel chapter 6, verse 68: "You have the words of eternal life."

Prayer for the Diocese of Peterborough

Most Gracious God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
We humbly pray for our Diocese of Peterborough.  

Bless with your love our Bishop Nicholas, our priests and deacons, all our religious
and all who minister in the parishes of our Diocese.
May everything they say and do be a sign of your holy presence among us.

Bless all the members of the Church in our Diocese
with deep faith, living hope and heartfelt love for you and for one another. 
May everything they say and do be a sign of your holy presence among us.

Bless all our families, our children and young people
and look with mercy on those who are sick or suffering,
searching or struggling in any way.
May everything they say and do be a sign of your holy presence among us.

Bless each and every one of us individually, Dear Lord,
with the grace to work for your glory and not ours, to walk your ways and not ours.
May everything we say and do be a sign of your holy presence among us.

Grant that your Word may be sincerely preached and truly heard,
your Sacraments faithfully administered and wholeheartedly received,
your mission joyfully embraced and selflessly carried out, 
in order to bring your love to all among whom we live.

Finally, we ask you, O Merciful Father,
to fill our Diocese with all truth, with all truth in charity.
Where it is weak and broken, restore it; where anything is amiss, reform it;
where it is in error, direct it; where it is right, strengthen and confirm it;
where it is in want, provide for it; where it is good and beautiful, cherish it.

We ask you this and all things through Jesus Christ, your Son and Our Lord
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever.
Amen.