As part of Catholic Education Week, the Centre-Est Francophone Catholic School Board arranged for six hundred students, teachers, administrators to visit Notre Dame Cathedral this morning. Several hundred arrived just before 9am and an equal number came at 10am.
The early arrivals took part in an exercise of following a foldout of the Cathedral and some of its striking works of art, seeking out what was peculiar about each (one of the windows with Bishop Guigues' coat of arms is short three stars on the left side; the prophet decorating the pulpit is missing a finger on his hand). The folder contains a great number of interactive features that express the worth of "Discovering Your Cathedral".
Betweeen 10 and 11 we had a session that was partly prayerful (I lead the assembly in prayer and spoke of the role of the shepherd--the bishop--in the church), partly informative (the history of the struggle by Catholic parents to have their children educated in the French language), partly testimony (a video of youngsters speaking of how their faith and learning come together in Catholic schools) and several songs expressing the spirituality of Catholic schools by a high school choir from Franco-Ouest secondary school.
Those students who had not been able to do the "spiritual treasure quest" before the assembly were able to do so afterwards. Everyone was on their way by noon. It was a happy and energizing morning.
******
PASTORAL LETTER ON CATHOLIC EDUCATION
This is Part 3
Excellence of Catholic Education
Catholic teachers are dedicated to providing the best possible instruction in all subject areas. Catholic schools are their own unique manifestations of Christian community, whose primary purpose is to educate children in faith and in all other subject areas.
Since each and every child is created and loved by God, each with a unique giftedness and purpose, Catholic teachers are deeply committed to providing the best quality education.
The full human potential of each and every child can only be fully realized through an education that incorporates the spiritual into all aspects of school life.
******
This evening I took the Ottawa River Parkway to the Island Park exit and headed for Westboro where Bishop Carl Reed (Ontario suffragan bishop of the Anglican Catholic Church of Canada, with whom I have become acquainted through the Pro-Life cause) was holding the vernissage of his exhibition of photographs taken in his garden, on his pastoral journeys, recent vacations and overseas travel.
The exhibition at the Ottawa Bagel Shop (1321 Wellington Street) will run for a few more weeks. Sales will assist with the costs of his cathedral and be used in his charitable works. I purchased a few cards to send to folks for special occasions: my only concern--will the label on the back, "Photographs by the Bishop" give recipients the wrong impression?
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Journee pastorale; Jour du Seigneur; Catholic Education Week
Today was lived almost entirely in French with the Francophone Sector's Pastoral Day, some interviews with French-speaking priests and Confirmations this evening of some 25 members of Paroisse Saint-Claude in Blackburn Hamlet.
The Pastoral Day began with a presentation on the positive fruits of the introduction of Stewardship (intendance chretienne) in Paroisse Saint-Remi in Ottawa's West End; information by Manon Chevalier, the francophone youth office director on her ministry in Catholic secondary schools and the upcoming Montee Jeunesse/Youth Summit in Quebec City, May 15-18.
Following lunch, three members of the Neo-catechumenal Way (Fr. Isidoro, Donatella and Martino) spoke on the way this instrument of renewal had touched their lives and Catholics in the nearby Archdiocese of Gatineau. Finally, there were brief reports on missionary outreach and the Charismatic Renewal.
Finally, Episcopal Vicar Abbe Daniel Berniquez spoke about some options being considered by Radio-Canada's Jour du Seigneur, a weekly broadcast of Sunday Mass from francophone parishes across Canada. Recent budget cuts initially threatened the program with cancellation, but viewers' negative responses to this proposal has led to consideration of alternatives: such as having most of the broadcasts coming from the Ottawa region, perhaps by having a series of Masses from several parishes (for example with all Lenten or Advent Masses coming from a particular parish. While parishes have been known to pull out all the stops for a single broadcast, the implications of a particular parish being on view for an extended time remain to be explored.
PASTORAL LETTER ON CATHOLIC EDUCATION
This is Part 2
Gospel Values Part of School Life
Catholic education goes far beyond instruction since gospel values are embedded in every aspect of life and culture in a Catholic school. Many people say that they sense something different when they enter a Catholic school. The Gospel of life and love is an everyday reality. We see it in the way that staff and students treat each other with genuine respect. When things do not go well, there are opportunities for forgiveness, healing and redemption.
Catholic education is a profound expression of hope and love. Hope inspires a commitment to the growth of all students whatever their unique needs. Love is lived in respect, compassion and kindness. Love is most vividly expressed when we see our Catholic schools honouring the presence of special needs children, welcoming the children who are new to our country, respecting every person, no matter their faith tradition.
Catholic schools provide a rich and meaningful experience of Christian community, an education of the heart and soul.
Faith in Action
If you were to visit a Catholic school, you would see that:
• Prayer is an integral part of every school day.
• Grade 2 students are provided with instruction that will prepare them for the sacraments of Reconciliation, Eucharist and Confirmation.
• Special needs children are welcomed, involved and befriended.
• High school students undertake a variety of social justice projects that lead them to a special appreciation of the poor and marginalized in society.
• Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation are celebrated in meaningful ways.
• Visits from parish priests give students a personal connection to their parishes.
• Teachers gather to engage in prayer and discussion that build their adult faith.
• High school chaplaincy leaders provide ongoing support for a wide variety of faith initiatives.
The Pastoral Day began with a presentation on the positive fruits of the introduction of Stewardship (intendance chretienne) in Paroisse Saint-Remi in Ottawa's West End; information by Manon Chevalier, the francophone youth office director on her ministry in Catholic secondary schools and the upcoming Montee Jeunesse/Youth Summit in Quebec City, May 15-18.
Following lunch, three members of the Neo-catechumenal Way (Fr. Isidoro, Donatella and Martino) spoke on the way this instrument of renewal had touched their lives and Catholics in the nearby Archdiocese of Gatineau. Finally, there were brief reports on missionary outreach and the Charismatic Renewal.
Finally, Episcopal Vicar Abbe Daniel Berniquez spoke about some options being considered by Radio-Canada's Jour du Seigneur, a weekly broadcast of Sunday Mass from francophone parishes across Canada. Recent budget cuts initially threatened the program with cancellation, but viewers' negative responses to this proposal has led to consideration of alternatives: such as having most of the broadcasts coming from the Ottawa region, perhaps by having a series of Masses from several parishes (for example with all Lenten or Advent Masses coming from a particular parish. While parishes have been known to pull out all the stops for a single broadcast, the implications of a particular parish being on view for an extended time remain to be explored.
PASTORAL LETTER ON CATHOLIC EDUCATION
This is Part 2
Gospel Values Part of School Life
Catholic education goes far beyond instruction since gospel values are embedded in every aspect of life and culture in a Catholic school. Many people say that they sense something different when they enter a Catholic school. The Gospel of life and love is an everyday reality. We see it in the way that staff and students treat each other with genuine respect. When things do not go well, there are opportunities for forgiveness, healing and redemption.
Catholic education is a profound expression of hope and love. Hope inspires a commitment to the growth of all students whatever their unique needs. Love is lived in respect, compassion and kindness. Love is most vividly expressed when we see our Catholic schools honouring the presence of special needs children, welcoming the children who are new to our country, respecting every person, no matter their faith tradition.
Catholic schools provide a rich and meaningful experience of Christian community, an education of the heart and soul.
Faith in Action
If you were to visit a Catholic school, you would see that:
• Prayer is an integral part of every school day.
• Grade 2 students are provided with instruction that will prepare them for the sacraments of Reconciliation, Eucharist and Confirmation.
• Special needs children are welcomed, involved and befriended.
• High school students undertake a variety of social justice projects that lead them to a special appreciation of the poor and marginalized in society.
• Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation are celebrated in meaningful ways.
• Visits from parish priests give students a personal connection to their parishes.
• Teachers gather to engage in prayer and discussion that build their adult faith.
• High school chaplaincy leaders provide ongoing support for a wide variety of faith initiatives.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Canada's March for Life is a Week Away; Pastoral Letter on Catholic Education
On Thursday, May 14 many thousands will stand up for the cause of life at Canada's March for Life. For 12 consecutive years, people have assembled in Ottawa to pray, discuss and demonstrate in the cause of life and the family. This year has a special significance as it will occur on the 40th anniversary of the Omnibus Bill that decriminalized abortion, a judicial step that led inexorably to abortion on demand and the death of millions of lives in the womb; easier divorce, which ultimately weakened family life and led to same-sex marriage. The March coordinated from the beginning by Campaign Life Coalition, this year has the title Exodus 2009, expressing the hope of all participants for a "Future without Abortion".
At the request of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, I have been asked to encourage greater participation in the Ottawa March (there are similar gatherings planned in most provincial capitals on May 7 or May 14) and already we have positive signs in the presence of a good number of bishops, enthusiasm from the Knights of Columbus whose Supreme Knight Carl Anderson will be present and word that students from schools across Ontario will once again be present.
The Catholic Office for Life and the Family (COLF), a collaborative effort of the CCCB and the KofC, strongly affirmed by the Catholic Women's League of Canada issued a clarion call yesterday for Catholic participation in the March.
Abortion has failed in reasoned debate, and the arguments used to defend it have been disproved by scientific evidence. Unlimited abortion has not gathered the support of a majority of Canadians, but it hangs on because of public indifference and silence, as well as a widespread lack of information about the full extent of Canada's juridical void on abortion, due in no small part to a silence on this topic by most media.
This is why now more than ever, we need to reopen the public debate in Parliament, in the media, and in our communities. There has never been a better time to question whether Canadian society has gone too far: in numerous surveys, citizens tell us that it has. The possibility for change is very real, and it will come about if we accept our social responsibility and speak up for the unborn. Every voice is needed, not later but now.
Speaking up means not only engaging in verbal and written debate and contacting Members of Parliament, but becoming a visible and united front. This is why the Catholic Organization for Life and Family would like to strongly encourage all Canadians who believe in ending the juridical void in Canada over abortion to join in the National March for Life in Ottawa on May 14, 2009. Gathering in ever greater numbers on Parliament Hill would clearly show our MPs and national media that we are serious about protecting unborn human life. For those who cannot join us in Ottawa, we invite you to participate in one of the numerous Marches for Life that are being held in other cities across the country.
If you are in or near Ottawa, next Thurday, please feel free to join in the prayers in the morning at various Ottawa churches (10 bishops will concelebrate at Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica at 10am; there will also be a Mass at St. Patrick's Basilica at the same time, because last year there was a large overflow at the cathedral). Activities begin shortly after noon below the Peace Tower and the March processes from Parliament Hill through the streets of downtown Ottawa and back to the Hill.
Come, stand up for life!
****
Considering this is Catholic Education Week, I will present in the next several days an excerpt from my PASTORAL LETTER ON CATHOLIC EDUCATION
This is Part 1
This letter is a statement of my deep personal appreciation for the contribution that Catholic education makes to the lives of so many of our young people. For over 150 years, there has been a great tradition of quality Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Ottawa. It is my firm hope and conviction that we enjoy and celebrate another 150 years.
Importance of Religious Education and Family Life Education
Catholic education provides a special way of bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ into the lives of more than 65,000 students currently in our French and English Catholic schools. There are so many unique opportunities for our young people to grow in their humanity. I will outline only a few.
From the day that the child enters kindergarten until graduation in grade 12, every student is provided with instruction in faith as a required part of a Catholic education.
Faith seeks understanding.
Every day, our students are challenged to explore, question and appreciate the richness of our Catholic faith tradition expressed through the religious education programmes of the Canadian Bishops. Educational guidance in human life, love and sexuality is provided through the Fully Alive programme of the Ontario Bishops.
Faith is a response to a loving God given in freedom, from the deepest parts of our humanity. An education in faith provides young people with a religious and spiritual framework that will be available to them for the rest of their lives.
At the request of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, I have been asked to encourage greater participation in the Ottawa March (there are similar gatherings planned in most provincial capitals on May 7 or May 14) and already we have positive signs in the presence of a good number of bishops, enthusiasm from the Knights of Columbus whose Supreme Knight Carl Anderson will be present and word that students from schools across Ontario will once again be present.
The Catholic Office for Life and the Family (COLF), a collaborative effort of the CCCB and the KofC, strongly affirmed by the Catholic Women's League of Canada issued a clarion call yesterday for Catholic participation in the March.
Abortion has failed in reasoned debate, and the arguments used to defend it have been disproved by scientific evidence. Unlimited abortion has not gathered the support of a majority of Canadians, but it hangs on because of public indifference and silence, as well as a widespread lack of information about the full extent of Canada's juridical void on abortion, due in no small part to a silence on this topic by most media.
This is why now more than ever, we need to reopen the public debate in Parliament, in the media, and in our communities. There has never been a better time to question whether Canadian society has gone too far: in numerous surveys, citizens tell us that it has. The possibility for change is very real, and it will come about if we accept our social responsibility and speak up for the unborn. Every voice is needed, not later but now.
Speaking up means not only engaging in verbal and written debate and contacting Members of Parliament, but becoming a visible and united front. This is why the Catholic Organization for Life and Family would like to strongly encourage all Canadians who believe in ending the juridical void in Canada over abortion to join in the National March for Life in Ottawa on May 14, 2009. Gathering in ever greater numbers on Parliament Hill would clearly show our MPs and national media that we are serious about protecting unborn human life. For those who cannot join us in Ottawa, we invite you to participate in one of the numerous Marches for Life that are being held in other cities across the country.
If you are in or near Ottawa, next Thurday, please feel free to join in the prayers in the morning at various Ottawa churches (10 bishops will concelebrate at Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica at 10am; there will also be a Mass at St. Patrick's Basilica at the same time, because last year there was a large overflow at the cathedral). Activities begin shortly after noon below the Peace Tower and the March processes from Parliament Hill through the streets of downtown Ottawa and back to the Hill.
Come, stand up for life!
****
Considering this is Catholic Education Week, I will present in the next several days an excerpt from my PASTORAL LETTER ON CATHOLIC EDUCATION
This is Part 1
This letter is a statement of my deep personal appreciation for the contribution that Catholic education makes to the lives of so many of our young people. For over 150 years, there has been a great tradition of quality Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Ottawa. It is my firm hope and conviction that we enjoy and celebrate another 150 years.
Importance of Religious Education and Family Life Education
Catholic education provides a special way of bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ into the lives of more than 65,000 students currently in our French and English Catholic schools. There are so many unique opportunities for our young people to grow in their humanity. I will outline only a few.
From the day that the child enters kindergarten until graduation in grade 12, every student is provided with instruction in faith as a required part of a Catholic education.
Faith seeks understanding.
Every day, our students are challenged to explore, question and appreciate the richness of our Catholic faith tradition expressed through the religious education programmes of the Canadian Bishops. Educational guidance in human life, love and sexuality is provided through the Fully Alive programme of the Ontario Bishops.
Faith is a response to a loving God given in freedom, from the deepest parts of our humanity. An education in faith provides young people with a religious and spiritual framework that will be available to them for the rest of their lives.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Brian R.H. ("Buzz") Massie, S.J.; Catholic Education Week
Returning from a morning hike on two of the National Capital Commission's pathways (Voyageurs on the Gatineau side of the river and the Ottawa River route), I checked my email messages and learned that my ordination classmate (June 10, 1972) had died of pneumonia in Victoria General Hospital, Winnipeg yesterday morning.
Fr. Brian Massie (Buzz to his friends) and I were students at Loyola High School, Montreal, where he (a Torontonian) was a boarder and I a day-hop student in the late 1950s. He entered the Jesuits in 1960 and I a year later, but as sometimes happens in Jesuit training, we ended up in the same priestly ordination class.
We had seen one another for supper at the Jesuit Community of St. Ignatius Parish in Winnipeg in February when I gave a series of talks to the Catholic school teachers on the Year of St. Paul; he was in frail health then and his breathing was laboured.
What a lovely, compassionate priest he was, one who touched so many at Brebeuf High School, Willowdale, ON; at Camp Ekon (Muskoka), which he founded for leadershp training and a Catholic experience of camping (Ekon--the one who carries the heavy burden--was the Native Peoples' nickname for St. Jean de Brebeuf), one of the eight North American Jesuit Martyrs; at St. Andrew Parish, Thunder Bay, ON, St. Peter Claver Parish, Kingston, Jamaica where he became an advocate for prisoners on death row; at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Toronto and St. Ignatius, Winnipeg where he ministered to people of every age and status!
Breath on me breath of God
So I shall never die.
But live with you the perfect life
In your eternity.
His funeral will be in Winnipeg on Friday, with a memorial Mass at Toronto's Our Lady of Lourdes Parish on the evening of May 26. R.I.P.
***
Catholic Education Week is usually in late April, early May (this year May 3-9). This year's theme from the Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association is "Good News for All" based on the text from Romans 10:15: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news".
I will develop this theme of Catholic education in other blog entries during this week. For today, I wish to note that we had representatives of the Ottawa Catholic School Board (administrators, trustees, staff, teachers and some students) for the Annual Mass at the Cathedral, after which Mr. Jamie McCracken presented awards to those who had made an outstanding contribution to Catholic education in the schools of the Ottawa Board.
Fr. Brian Massie (Buzz to his friends) and I were students at Loyola High School, Montreal, where he (a Torontonian) was a boarder and I a day-hop student in the late 1950s. He entered the Jesuits in 1960 and I a year later, but as sometimes happens in Jesuit training, we ended up in the same priestly ordination class.
We had seen one another for supper at the Jesuit Community of St. Ignatius Parish in Winnipeg in February when I gave a series of talks to the Catholic school teachers on the Year of St. Paul; he was in frail health then and his breathing was laboured.
What a lovely, compassionate priest he was, one who touched so many at Brebeuf High School, Willowdale, ON; at Camp Ekon (Muskoka), which he founded for leadershp training and a Catholic experience of camping (Ekon--the one who carries the heavy burden--was the Native Peoples' nickname for St. Jean de Brebeuf), one of the eight North American Jesuit Martyrs; at St. Andrew Parish, Thunder Bay, ON, St. Peter Claver Parish, Kingston, Jamaica where he became an advocate for prisoners on death row; at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Toronto and St. Ignatius, Winnipeg where he ministered to people of every age and status!
Breath on me breath of God
So I shall never die.
But live with you the perfect life
In your eternity.
His funeral will be in Winnipeg on Friday, with a memorial Mass at Toronto's Our Lady of Lourdes Parish on the evening of May 26. R.I.P.
***
Catholic Education Week is usually in late April, early May (this year May 3-9). This year's theme from the Ontario Catholic School Trustees' Association is "Good News for All" based on the text from Romans 10:15: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news".
I will develop this theme of Catholic education in other blog entries during this week. For today, I wish to note that we had representatives of the Ottawa Catholic School Board (administrators, trustees, staff, teachers and some students) for the Annual Mass at the Cathedral, after which Mr. Jamie McCracken presented awards to those who had made an outstanding contribution to Catholic education in the schools of the Ottawa Board.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Easter IV--Good Shepherd Sunday: Visit to Paroisse St. Thomas, Lafaive; Randomness of Names in a Group; Wedding Anniversaries Mass; Gala des Diacres
Today was a full day with a drive an hour east of Ottawa to a small town on the Ottawa River across from the resort at Montebello, QC. Paroisse St. Thomas in Lafaive was founded in 1879, so it is 130 years old this year. The original church burned in 1922 and was rebuilt in 1924.
The parish history notes that its most famous son was Mgr Joseph Charbonneau(1892-1959), first bishop of the Diocese of Hearst (1939-40), Fourth Archbishop of Montreal (1940-50).
There are many relatives of Archbishop Charbonneau in the region and they persuaded the town council of Alfred-Plantagenet to name the community centre in honour of their relative and their village's famous native son. Following the confirmation of some thirty sixth-graders, I took part in the brunch and unveiling of the lettering on the building which designates it as the Centre Communitaire Mgr Joseph Charbonneau Community Centre.
A curiosity I've noticed, not unlike the fact that in a group of thirty or so one will find a couple of people with the same birthday (e.g. of twenty-five priests in the Yarmouth Diocese three had the same birthday; in our Diocesan Centre three of us share the same birthday): so in a group of confirmation candidates names repeat. Today, out of thirty there were two James, two Alexys and two Kevins--and this in a francophone community! Yesterday in a group of eighty we had two Lauras, two Nicolases, and three Sebastiens!
This afternoon 120 couples celebrating significant anniversaries came together for Mass at the Cathedral, most English-speaking but several from Italian, Portuguese, German and other ethnic communities. A Montreal priest Fr. Thomas Dowd (who is a blogger) came in honour of his parents' 40th and his sibling's 15th (recently English Pastoral Services has added 10, 15 and 20 years to the more notable 25, 40, 50, 60 and more).
We had one couple married 65 years, several marking 60+ and large numbers feting 50 and 40 years: among them five of our Permanent Deacons. It was a beautiful liturgy that brought much joy to the spouses giving thanksgiving to God for the blessings and accomplishments of their marriages as well as a good bit of pride to family members who came for the occasion.
Finally, this evening, I attended the French-speaking diaconal family's Gala catered roast beef dinner at Paroisse St-Joseph in Orleans. They had met with the Episcopal Vicar for the afternoon, and I arrived for evening prayer and the delightful meal and exchange afterwards.
Needless to say, after the last 48-hours, I'm looking forward to my Day Off tomorrow....
The parish history notes that its most famous son was Mgr Joseph Charbonneau(1892-1959), first bishop of the Diocese of Hearst (1939-40), Fourth Archbishop of Montreal (1940-50).
There are many relatives of Archbishop Charbonneau in the region and they persuaded the town council of Alfred-Plantagenet to name the community centre in honour of their relative and their village's famous native son. Following the confirmation of some thirty sixth-graders, I took part in the brunch and unveiling of the lettering on the building which designates it as the Centre Communitaire Mgr Joseph Charbonneau Community Centre.
A curiosity I've noticed, not unlike the fact that in a group of thirty or so one will find a couple of people with the same birthday (e.g. of twenty-five priests in the Yarmouth Diocese three had the same birthday; in our Diocesan Centre three of us share the same birthday): so in a group of confirmation candidates names repeat. Today, out of thirty there were two James, two Alexys and two Kevins--and this in a francophone community! Yesterday in a group of eighty we had two Lauras, two Nicolases, and three Sebastiens!
This afternoon 120 couples celebrating significant anniversaries came together for Mass at the Cathedral, most English-speaking but several from Italian, Portuguese, German and other ethnic communities. A Montreal priest Fr. Thomas Dowd (who is a blogger) came in honour of his parents' 40th and his sibling's 15th (recently English Pastoral Services has added 10, 15 and 20 years to the more notable 25, 40, 50, 60 and more).
We had one couple married 65 years, several marking 60+ and large numbers feting 50 and 40 years: among them five of our Permanent Deacons. It was a beautiful liturgy that brought much joy to the spouses giving thanksgiving to God for the blessings and accomplishments of their marriages as well as a good bit of pride to family members who came for the occasion.
Finally, this evening, I attended the French-speaking diaconal family's Gala catered roast beef dinner at Paroisse St-Joseph in Orleans. They had met with the Episcopal Vicar for the afternoon, and I arrived for evening prayer and the delightful meal and exchange afterwards.
Needless to say, after the last 48-hours, I'm looking forward to my Day Off tomorrow....
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Homily for the Presbyteral Ordination of Jonathan Scott Blake [Acts 9:31-42; (Psalm 116); Colossians 3:14-15, 17, 23-24; John 6:53, 60-69]
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:
Recently, Pope Benedict announced that the Church will celebrate a special "Year of the Priest" beginning June 19, which is the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Some years ago, Pope John Paul II initiated a Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests that is celebrated on or near the Feast of the Sacred Heart. Both Popes saw a strong connection between Priesthood and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Priests are encouraged to drink deeply from the well-springs of salvation that pour from the Heart of Christ Jesus-from Baptism and the Eucharist-and to share these riches with the people entrusted to their ministerial care.
The Holy Father also said that during this Year of the Priest, he intends to proclaim St. John Marie Vianney the patron of all priests. In this way he will stress the ideal model that the Cure of Ars offers to all priests-not just the diocesan clergy or parish priests-and the spiritual bounty to which priests have access, in adoring the Lord Jesus in Blessed Sacrament and by reconciling penitents in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, as this saintly priest did.
We are anticipating this special year devoted to the priesthood with the ordination today of a member of our Church of Ottawa, Jonathan Scott Blake.
Our prayer is that his example of self-sacrificing love in taking on this ministry may inspire other men in our Archdiocese to offer themselves for service to God's people in the priesthood.
The example of Saint Athanasius, whom the church commemorates today as a teacher of the church for his zeal in holding to the Church's belief in the divinity of Jesus against Arius who held he was a mere man, and the scriptural readings offer us rich material for our reflection and prayer as hands are laid on our ordinand by the attending priests and me.
The readings from the Acts of the Apostles in this Easter Season show how the ministry that Jesus started as he went around Galilee and the nearby regions doing good, preaching and healing, finds its extension in the ministry of the apostles.
Jesus' healing of a paralytic whose sins he pronounced forgiven and the raising up of Jairus' daughter with the words, "Talitha qum [which means "little girl, arise"] are echoed in Peter's healing of the paralyzed Aeneas bedridden for eight years and the restoration to life of Dorcas, with the words "Tabitha [her other name], get up!"
Peter's acts of healing caused many to believe in the Lord. The accounts of the early church's flourishing in Acts fills us with joy and with the challenge to carry out in our day the proclamation of the Good News, embodying the Lord's power to heal and renew. Our brother Jonathan, like his brother priests, will carry on Jesus' and the apostles' healing ministry particularly through the anointing of the sick and the sacrament of reconciliation.
The task of evangelizing our world belongs to the whole people of God--the one body of Christ spoken of by St. Paul in the second reading from Colossians--guided and encouraged by those called to the ministerial priesthood. With his infectious enthusiasm for youth, Jonathan should be right at home in working with the Centre 101, CCO, NET-Canada, Famille Marie-Jeunesse, and ready to be a partner and leader in Montée Jeunesse /Youth Summit of 2010.
From his personal vocational journey, Jonathan realizes that the power of his ministry to touch people's lives derives from the proclamation of Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.
This truth held true in Sept-Îles, where Jonathan was born; in Moncton where he grew up; as well as in Halifax, Pittsburgh and Ottawa, where he studied and worked in information technology and computer programming. It is a truth that has deepened latterly in Toronto, where he studied philosophy and theology, struggled to integrate these into his life and prayer, and was helped by the seminary staff and student body to dare to say "Yes" to the call to be a priest, to live as an alter Christus, another Christ.
Archbishop Gervais and Father Kabangu, members of a prayer group at this cathedral parish, along with parishioners of St. Joseph Parish in Orleans during his internship and many others in the Archdiocese-priests, religious and lay, including many of the youth-all had an important role to play in affirming Jonathan's gifts of generous service. I thank them all and you who are here today for helping shape this priest of Jesus Christ.
A while ago, I heard the family of a young soldier killed in Afghanistan say that their son and brother had been zealous to play his part in creating a better world over there and even to lay down his life in this cause. This is not something easy to say when many Canadians consider the mission futile or do not see it as in any way preventing evil and creating good. But he did. And his family knew it, and proudly said it on his behalf.
We need many young men like that person to lay down their lives in a noble cause, in service to God's people here in the Archdiocese of Ottawa. That is why I am asking all our people from now on to pray fervently for men to step up as Jonathan has and rejoice in a vocation to give their lives in service.
I ask you not only to pray but also to encourage those who feel the nudge of the Holy Spirit's call to priesthood yet feel the pull of other attractions. Let us pray for many more holy and self-sacrificing priests for the church of tomorrow.
The theme of the specially designated Year of the Priest is: The Faithfulness of Christ; the Faithfulness of the Priest.
Jonathan, my brother you may count on Jesus' promise to be faithful to you as he was to his disciples.
In today's gospel, Jesus told the crowds who came to him in the synagogue of Capernaum the hard truth that "unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you". Many balked at these words and walked away.
Jesus went on to say that "the words I have spoken to you are spirit and life". Accepting his teaching and abiding by it, participating in the Eucharist the great act of the church's thanksgiving to God, herein lies the path for the Christian disciple to be spirit-filled and full of life. This is what we all want the most, isn't it?
Faced with the defection of so many, Jesus asked his disciples whether they too would leave him. We have Peter's answer on behalf of the others that there was nowhere to go and no one to whom they could go because they had discovered, "You have the words of everlasting life".
A renowned spiritual writer has paraphrased Peter's impulsive answer this way, "Master, we don't understand what you say either, but if we go away from you, where will we go? You alone have the words that explain life. It's impossible to find anyone like you. If I can't believe in you, I can't believe my own eyes, I can't believe in anything anymore… Only you, only you explain everything, make us see the connections of everything, and you make life great, intense, useful and you give us a glimpse of eternity" (Luigi Giussani, Is It Possible to Live This Way? Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2008, p.38)
Christ, the faithful one, drew out of his disciples their confession of faith in him. And the apostles-though they wavered during the Passion-let him restore them to joy and peace after his resurrection. And from then on, they were faithful to him, as we priests now are called to be faithful to Christ.
And so we hope and pray that the relationship Christ has begun with and in Jonathan will hold true in every place where his future ministry will lead him, here at Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica for the months of June and July and in his first nomination which will begin August 1st.
On this First Saturday of the Marian Month of May, we pray, Jonathan, that Mary-Mother of Priests-may watch over you with her maternal gaze and shelter you in her mantle:
"May it please Our Lady to intercede for us sinners with her Son and Lord to obtain for us the grace that, in conjunction with our own efforts, we may change from weak and sad individuals to strong and happy ones for the glory of God" (from a letter of Ignatius Loyola, 1525).
Recently, Pope Benedict announced that the Church will celebrate a special "Year of the Priest" beginning June 19, which is the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Some years ago, Pope John Paul II initiated a Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests that is celebrated on or near the Feast of the Sacred Heart. Both Popes saw a strong connection between Priesthood and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Priests are encouraged to drink deeply from the well-springs of salvation that pour from the Heart of Christ Jesus-from Baptism and the Eucharist-and to share these riches with the people entrusted to their ministerial care.
The Holy Father also said that during this Year of the Priest, he intends to proclaim St. John Marie Vianney the patron of all priests. In this way he will stress the ideal model that the Cure of Ars offers to all priests-not just the diocesan clergy or parish priests-and the spiritual bounty to which priests have access, in adoring the Lord Jesus in Blessed Sacrament and by reconciling penitents in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, as this saintly priest did.
We are anticipating this special year devoted to the priesthood with the ordination today of a member of our Church of Ottawa, Jonathan Scott Blake.
Our prayer is that his example of self-sacrificing love in taking on this ministry may inspire other men in our Archdiocese to offer themselves for service to God's people in the priesthood.
The example of Saint Athanasius, whom the church commemorates today as a teacher of the church for his zeal in holding to the Church's belief in the divinity of Jesus against Arius who held he was a mere man, and the scriptural readings offer us rich material for our reflection and prayer as hands are laid on our ordinand by the attending priests and me.
The readings from the Acts of the Apostles in this Easter Season show how the ministry that Jesus started as he went around Galilee and the nearby regions doing good, preaching and healing, finds its extension in the ministry of the apostles.
Jesus' healing of a paralytic whose sins he pronounced forgiven and the raising up of Jairus' daughter with the words, "Talitha qum [which means "little girl, arise"] are echoed in Peter's healing of the paralyzed Aeneas bedridden for eight years and the restoration to life of Dorcas, with the words "Tabitha [her other name], get up!"
Peter's acts of healing caused many to believe in the Lord. The accounts of the early church's flourishing in Acts fills us with joy and with the challenge to carry out in our day the proclamation of the Good News, embodying the Lord's power to heal and renew. Our brother Jonathan, like his brother priests, will carry on Jesus' and the apostles' healing ministry particularly through the anointing of the sick and the sacrament of reconciliation.
The task of evangelizing our world belongs to the whole people of God--the one body of Christ spoken of by St. Paul in the second reading from Colossians--guided and encouraged by those called to the ministerial priesthood. With his infectious enthusiasm for youth, Jonathan should be right at home in working with the Centre 101, CCO, NET-Canada, Famille Marie-Jeunesse, and ready to be a partner and leader in Montée Jeunesse /Youth Summit of 2010.
From his personal vocational journey, Jonathan realizes that the power of his ministry to touch people's lives derives from the proclamation of Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.
This truth held true in Sept-Îles, where Jonathan was born; in Moncton where he grew up; as well as in Halifax, Pittsburgh and Ottawa, where he studied and worked in information technology and computer programming. It is a truth that has deepened latterly in Toronto, where he studied philosophy and theology, struggled to integrate these into his life and prayer, and was helped by the seminary staff and student body to dare to say "Yes" to the call to be a priest, to live as an alter Christus, another Christ.
Archbishop Gervais and Father Kabangu, members of a prayer group at this cathedral parish, along with parishioners of St. Joseph Parish in Orleans during his internship and many others in the Archdiocese-priests, religious and lay, including many of the youth-all had an important role to play in affirming Jonathan's gifts of generous service. I thank them all and you who are here today for helping shape this priest of Jesus Christ.
A while ago, I heard the family of a young soldier killed in Afghanistan say that their son and brother had been zealous to play his part in creating a better world over there and even to lay down his life in this cause. This is not something easy to say when many Canadians consider the mission futile or do not see it as in any way preventing evil and creating good. But he did. And his family knew it, and proudly said it on his behalf.
We need many young men like that person to lay down their lives in a noble cause, in service to God's people here in the Archdiocese of Ottawa. That is why I am asking all our people from now on to pray fervently for men to step up as Jonathan has and rejoice in a vocation to give their lives in service.
I ask you not only to pray but also to encourage those who feel the nudge of the Holy Spirit's call to priesthood yet feel the pull of other attractions. Let us pray for many more holy and self-sacrificing priests for the church of tomorrow.
The theme of the specially designated Year of the Priest is: The Faithfulness of Christ; the Faithfulness of the Priest.
Jonathan, my brother you may count on Jesus' promise to be faithful to you as he was to his disciples.
In today's gospel, Jesus told the crowds who came to him in the synagogue of Capernaum the hard truth that "unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you". Many balked at these words and walked away.
Jesus went on to say that "the words I have spoken to you are spirit and life". Accepting his teaching and abiding by it, participating in the Eucharist the great act of the church's thanksgiving to God, herein lies the path for the Christian disciple to be spirit-filled and full of life. This is what we all want the most, isn't it?
Faced with the defection of so many, Jesus asked his disciples whether they too would leave him. We have Peter's answer on behalf of the others that there was nowhere to go and no one to whom they could go because they had discovered, "You have the words of everlasting life".
A renowned spiritual writer has paraphrased Peter's impulsive answer this way, "Master, we don't understand what you say either, but if we go away from you, where will we go? You alone have the words that explain life. It's impossible to find anyone like you. If I can't believe in you, I can't believe my own eyes, I can't believe in anything anymore… Only you, only you explain everything, make us see the connections of everything, and you make life great, intense, useful and you give us a glimpse of eternity" (Luigi Giussani, Is It Possible to Live This Way? Montreal: McGill-Queens University Press, 2008, p.38)
Christ, the faithful one, drew out of his disciples their confession of faith in him. And the apostles-though they wavered during the Passion-let him restore them to joy and peace after his resurrection. And from then on, they were faithful to him, as we priests now are called to be faithful to Christ.
And so we hope and pray that the relationship Christ has begun with and in Jonathan will hold true in every place where his future ministry will lead him, here at Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica for the months of June and July and in his first nomination which will begin August 1st.
On this First Saturday of the Marian Month of May, we pray, Jonathan, that Mary-Mother of Priests-may watch over you with her maternal gaze and shelter you in her mantle:
"May it please Our Lady to intercede for us sinners with her Son and Lord to obtain for us the grace that, in conjunction with our own efforts, we may change from weak and sad individuals to strong and happy ones for the glory of God" (from a letter of Ignatius Loyola, 1525).
Friday, May 1, 2009
May 1--St. Joseph the Worker; Paul's Conversion; Mgr Roger Quesnel
The Eucharist this morning was very rich: the commemoration of St. Joseph the Worker, along with the story of the first account of St. Paul's conversion in Acts 9 and Jesus' powerful invitation to go beyond his words in drawing near to him for life by eating his flesh and drinking his blood in the Holy Eucharist.
When Paul asks the voice from heaven, "Who are you, Lord?"--in reply to "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"--the answer was not convoluted, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting" (in the members of the church being sought out for condemnation, imprisonment and possible death). Not the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Son of David, the Messiah or any other such title, but only Jesus [of Nazareth]. The rest would come later in Paul's contemplation, reflection and exposition of his theology. Right now only: the Church = Jesus, an incipient treatise on the Church as the Body of Christ.
This afternoon, I visited Mgr Roger Quesnel at the Deschatelets Residence (named in honour of Pere Leo Deschatelets, omi [Montreal, 9 March 1899-Ottawa, 11 January 1974], superior general of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate for a quarter century [1947 to 1972]).
Though Abbe Quesnel is a priest of Ottawa he was a long-time member of the Theology Faculty at St. Paul's University, so he lived in the nearby Oblate residence and continued on there in his retirement. Now, aged 83, he suffers from sudden falls and is no longer sufficiently autonomous to be able to stay in his quarters. The Oblates have invited him to join their retired men in the Oblate Infirmary in Richelieu, south of Montreal. He will go there on Tuesday and is now engaged in disposing of his affairs and bidding his farewells.
I first met him when I made inquiries about the status of the Diocesan Process to explore the saintly virutes of Governor-General Georges Vanier and his wife Madame Pauline Vanier, parents of l'Arche founder and spiritual author Jean Vanier. Mgr Quesnel had written up the report and presented three bound volumes to me. I have also learned of his role in preparing the formation program for the restoration of the Permanent Diaconate. He assured me that appropriate files were being transferred to the Diocesan Archives and that he would pass on other helpful or suitable items.
Teasingly, he mentioned that when, with nine other priests, he was named a Prelate of Honour by John Paul II in 1997 as part of the Archdiocese's sesquicentennial, he had purchased the appropriate cassock with coloured piping. He allowed as how he had only worn it once, that it was in mint condition for an appropriately-sized candidate and that he would leave it in my care. I said I would try not to be influenced by his build and the thought of saving money when the time comes to consider a new batch of monsignori!
When Paul asks the voice from heaven, "Who are you, Lord?"--in reply to "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"--the answer was not convoluted, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting" (in the members of the church being sought out for condemnation, imprisonment and possible death). Not the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Son of David, the Messiah or any other such title, but only Jesus [of Nazareth]. The rest would come later in Paul's contemplation, reflection and exposition of his theology. Right now only: the Church = Jesus, an incipient treatise on the Church as the Body of Christ.
This afternoon, I visited Mgr Roger Quesnel at the Deschatelets Residence (named in honour of Pere Leo Deschatelets, omi [Montreal, 9 March 1899-Ottawa, 11 January 1974], superior general of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate for a quarter century [1947 to 1972]).
Though Abbe Quesnel is a priest of Ottawa he was a long-time member of the Theology Faculty at St. Paul's University, so he lived in the nearby Oblate residence and continued on there in his retirement. Now, aged 83, he suffers from sudden falls and is no longer sufficiently autonomous to be able to stay in his quarters. The Oblates have invited him to join their retired men in the Oblate Infirmary in Richelieu, south of Montreal. He will go there on Tuesday and is now engaged in disposing of his affairs and bidding his farewells.
I first met him when I made inquiries about the status of the Diocesan Process to explore the saintly virutes of Governor-General Georges Vanier and his wife Madame Pauline Vanier, parents of l'Arche founder and spiritual author Jean Vanier. Mgr Quesnel had written up the report and presented three bound volumes to me. I have also learned of his role in preparing the formation program for the restoration of the Permanent Diaconate. He assured me that appropriate files were being transferred to the Diocesan Archives and that he would pass on other helpful or suitable items.
Teasingly, he mentioned that when, with nine other priests, he was named a Prelate of Honour by John Paul II in 1997 as part of the Archdiocese's sesquicentennial, he had purchased the appropriate cassock with coloured piping. He allowed as how he had only worn it once, that it was in mint condition for an appropriately-sized candidate and that he would leave it in my care. I said I would try not to be influenced by his build and the thought of saving money when the time comes to consider a new batch of monsignori!
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