News releases

Recently, the Order of Friars Minor Capuchins of the Sacré-Cœur-de-Jésus province held chapter elections. During this chapter, Br. Benny Vincent was elected Provincial Minister. He succeeds Br. Louis Cinq-Mars, OFM Cap, who was completing a second term as Superior of this province. In this continuation, Br. Louis Cinq-Mars presented his resignation as CRC President during the last meeting of the CRC Administrative Council.

On October 7, 1851, four Sisters of St. Joseph came to Toronto from Philadelphia to care for children, left as orphans as a result of an epidemic of typhus.  The leader of the Sisters, Mother Delphine, forged a path in caring for the sick, the orphans, the homeless, the destitute and the uneducated and now, 170 years later, in the midst of a pandemic, the Sisters, associates, staff and volunteers continue to forge new paths and celebrate their anniversary.

In order to enrich the support offered to its members, the Canadian Religious Conference (CRC) recently created a new service named Mission, which incorporates elements of ongoing formation and social justice (Justice Peace and Integrity of Creation – JPIC). To that end, the CRC is happy to appoint Ms. Sabrina Di Matteo to the position of Executive Assistant – Mission, and welcomes a new collaborator on staff in the person of Thuy-Linh Christiane Nguyen.

George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Chantel Moore, Rodney Levi and Regis Korchinski-Paquet: their names have been in our prayers these past weeks, as awareness of racism against the Black community, people of colour and Indigenous peoples spreads across the globe. The CRC has taken the time to reflect on systemic racism in our own country, our history, our institutions and our Church. The following statement has been written with the collaboration of members of the CRC.

In celebration of the 5th anniversary of Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home, the Joint Ecological Ministry (JEM) called on Catholics across Canada to unite and demand the government “take immediate concrete actions to flatten the curve of global warming and move towards a just and sustainable future.”

On Sunday, April 19th, Nova Scotia became the scene of the worst mass shooting of our country’s history, with a toll of 22 victims and their shooter. Religious communities in Canada and all consecrated persons, though currently in confinement, unite in prayer from coast to coast for the victims and their grieving families of Portapique, Wentworth, Debert, Shubenacadie/Milford and Enfield.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which affects the entire world and does not spare Canada, has prompted health and political authorities to impose strict measures across the country. As a result, the Administrative Council of the Canadian Religious Conference decided to postpone the General Assembly scheduled from May 28-31, 2020, to a later date.

For over a week now, we have been collectively living in a time of uncertainty, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Many provinces have requested that all worship services and religious gatherings be suspended. Given the observed exponential contamination, it is crucial to put measures in place to slow and curb the epidemic.

The entire Catholic Christian community was stunned by the news of the conclusion of the independent inquiry, which included testimony implicating its founder, Jean Vanier. The Canadian Religious Conference joins its voice to all those who have recently spoken out to denounce these unacceptable actions and to support the victims.

In keeping with an approach initiated by the Federation of Sisters of Saint Joseph of Canada, the Canadian Religious Conference (CRC) is challenging the Government of Canada concerning two delicate situations: one concerns the Wet’suwet’en Nation and the other is the Frontier Oil Sands Mine Project, proposed by Teck Resources.