On April 16, 2018, media informed the offices of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) that a motion relating to the Catholic Church and the operation of the former Indian Residential Schools will be debated in the House of Commons and possibly also in the Senate. The CCCB has released a document intended to provide some context on the overall issue and also to clarify a number of inaccuracies which are being circulated or reported.
Read moreThe Archdiocese of Ottawa and the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa rejoice this morning upon hearing the announcement from the Vatican that Mother Élisabeth Bruyère, founder of the Sisters of Charity of Bytown (now Ottawa) has been declared Venerable, a first step toward a possible canonization in the future. Archbishop Prendergast, expresses his joy at learning of this good news and takes this opportunity to remind us of the great contribution Mother Bruyère and members of her congregation have exercised in the city and the diocese since their very foundation.
Read moreOn Saturday April 14, the English-speaking Catholic community in Montreal was pleased to welcome Sister Nuala Kenny, SC, whose recent book, Rediscovering the Art of Dying has made an important contribution to a challenging debate in Canada. Since Bill C-14 became law in 2016, Medical Aid in Dying has posed a particular challenge for those engaged in the ministry of palliative care and those physicians philosophically opposed to active or passive euthanasia.
Read moreLongtime northern Canadian missionary Sister Fay Trombley, SCIC, received the prestigious Polar Medal from Governor General Julie Payette at Government House on March 21, 2018. The Sister of Charity of the Immaculate Conception (SCIC) has ministered in Tuktoyaktuk, N.W.T. since late 2005 among mainly Inuvialuit Indigenous people.
Read moreOn March 8, 2018, the CRC has held a formation day on the topic “New evangelization in an intercultural context”. We were delighted to have with us Prof. Catherine Clifford as the keynote speaker of the day and in the afternoon, Sister Rachelle Watier, SCO (Sisters of Charity of Otttawa) and Father Jack Lynch, SFM (Scarboro Foreign Missions) who hosted a panel discussion on the topic.
Read moreThe inauguration of the archival exhibition “educate to liberate” on February 28 officially launched in Quebec the 175th anniversary year of the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary (SNJM), the first teaching congregation of women religious founded by a canadian woman. Many guests from all over the greater metropolitan area were present for this special event. As of now, the exhibition is open to the public of all ages, by appointment, at the Congregational House until January 25, 2019.
Read moreAn Interamerican gathering was held on February 22-23 in Tucson (Arizona) between several religious conferences of America: the LCWR (Leadership Conference of Women Religious), the CMSM (Conference of Major Superior Men), the CIRM (Conferencia de Superiores Mayores de Religiosos de México), the CLAR (Confederación Caribeña y Latinoamericana de Religiosas/os) and the CRC (Canadian Religious Conference).
Read morePope Francis invited all the faithful to take part on February 23rd in a special Day of Prayer and Fasting for Peace, especially in South Sudan and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Read moreOn February 7 and 8, close to 100 people from all over the country convened at the Mary Ward Center in Toronto for the JEM (Joint Ecological Ministry) annual gathering. The CRC had the opportunity to finally meet and hear Dr. Heather Eaton from St. Paul University in Ottawa. Her two-day exchange with participants was both inspiring and challenging.
Read moreIn 2018, the Catholic Church in western and northern Canada will celebrate a momentous anniversary, the 200th anniversary of the establishment of the Roman Catholic church in this wide and beautiful, yet also challenging and even at times forbidding land.
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