Just Before Vacation: Christ the Redeemer Church Blessing

Just before leaving for vacation, I had the happy experience of blessing the newly completed Church of Christ the Redeemer in Swift Current, pictured above. The project was exemplary in its involvemnt of so many parishioners who, in the true spirit of Stewardship gave generously, even more than generously, of their time and of their talent in many, many volunteer hours of skilled workmanship to bring this church building to the point of being ready to house the church community for its worship of God. This, coupled with generous financial support from the rest of the community, allowed this church building to be completed with remarkable dispatch. It was a joyous day of great celebration and thanksgiving.

While getting pictures of the actual liturgical celebration hit a snag, I did get this wonderful group of Acolytes who served with great skill and grace, enhancing the liturgy as the ministry of acolyte is supposed to do.

A very nice gathering of priests also made the blessing special. On the left is Fr. Rick Krofchek, the Dean of the Swift Current Deanery, next to him is the Parish Priest, Fr. Sathiadas Antony, then Fr. Tonny Dizi, Archdiocesan Chancellor. Then next to me are three former priests who served Swift Current over the years: Msgr. Ken Millar, PH, VG; Fr Stephen Bill and Fr. Raymond Rodrigez.

Also adding to the solemnity were the Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus. The Knights of Columbus are an excellent Catholic mens' organization who do much good work and wonderful service to the church.

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Confirmation at Forget

The day after the Centennial Celebration in Forget, we celebrated the Sacrament of Confirmation for the young people of the parishes which make up the pastoral unit served by Sr. Jacqueline. I am very moved by the positive spirit that is shown by our young people when they receive this Sacrament which makes them now fully members of God's holy people: the Church.

Again, excellent Altar Servers and Lectors. The lay ministries of Acolyte and Lector are so important for the Church to celebrate the Liturgy effectively with respect and reverence. We are blessed with so many fine and dedicated people who carry out these ministries with great preparation and competence.

It is also very encouraging to see those who are older among our youth continuing to give of their time and experience to God for the sake of the Church's prayer.

And here we all are at the end of a very special celebration.

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Estevan Deanery Celebrates Archdiocesan Centennial

On June 21st. the first of the Deanery Celebrations of the Centennial of the Archdiocese of Regin took place in Forget for the Estevan Deanery. This event took place during the annual pilgrimage to the Grotto at our Lady of LaSalette parish.

This was our main server at the Pilgrimage and at the Mass that followed. A very competent and helpful young lady.

I am impressed by the quality of music which the parishioners provide throughout the diocese. People with great talent and generosity share their time and talent to enhance the community's worship of God and celebration of their faith. Another example of good Stewardship!

The priests of the deanery came together to celebrate the Eucharist and I was assisted by our two seminarians, Andrew Young and James Zick.

The Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus also were on hand to provide an honour guard and lend a special solemnity to the occasion. The Knights of Columbus are an excellent Catholic men's organization who do an immense amount of good work in support of the church and the priests in our Archdiocese.

Sr. Jacqueline Lussier, the Parish Minister at Forget was delighted to see a packed church for this event.

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A Day of Instruction on the new Sacramentary

Recently Bishop Raymond Lahey, the Bishop of Antigonish, NS, spent a day with both the priests and lay pastoral workers to outline some of the changes that will be found in the new Roman Missal which will be published in the near future. The Missal is the book which contains the prayers for the various celebrations of the Eucharist throught the year. The General Instruction which accompanies it contain the proper proceedures and rituals for the celebration of the Eucharist in our churches in Canada.

Bishop Lahey is a member of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy. The International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL) is a mixed commission of Catholic Bishops' Conferences in countries where English is used in the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy according to the Roman Rite. The purpose of the Commission is to prepare English translations of each of the Latin liturgical books and any individual liturgical texts in accord with the directives of the Holy See.

There was an excellent turn out of priests and lay people who came to be informed and brought up to date on the liturgy of the Church and its proper celebration.

The Eucharist is the source and the summit of our Christian life so it is most important that it be celebrated both properly and reverently so that all may receive its full benefit and be able to participate fully and actively. Workshops such as these are of great benefit in achieving this.

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Some more Faces of Confirmation

One of the pleasures of celebrating the Sacrament of Confirmation in the many parishes of the Archdiocese is meeting the young people who give of their time to serve at Mass. This generous gift of time is a great example of Stewardship that is practiced by our youth. Here are the servers at St. Lawrence Parish in Maple Creek. Fr. Rick Krofchek, who is the Dean of the Swift Current Deanery, took part in the celebration while the Parish Priest, Fr. Faustino, was away.

And here are the young people who were confirmed at St. Lawrence.

Then we moved on to Notre Dame d'Auvergne parish in Ponteix. Another fine group of young people seen here with their pastor, Fr. Raymond Carignan and Fr. Fernand Ducharme.

I usually take the opportunity to talk to the young people a bit before the celebration and meet them. Here we are in Resurrection Parish in Regina.

As you can see, a goodly number of fine young people together with their Pastor, Fr. Stephen Bill.

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Some Faces of Confirmation

As I mentioned, I have spent a considerable amount of time since Easter travelling throughout the Archdiocese celebrating the Sacrament of Confirmation for our young people. I find these such a hope-filled events. I meet such fine young people who clearly open their hearts to God's Gift of the Holy Spirit. Here are some from St. James Parish in Southey

And St. Patrick's Parish in Cupar.

And their Pastor, Fr. Gary Lindenbach.

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I must ask your indulgence, with the Celebrations of the Sacrament of Confirmation over the past ten weeks, I haven't been able to find sufficient time to share with you what's been going on in the Archdiocese. However some important things have been happening. Not the least of which is that we have begun the celebration of our One Hundredth Anniversary in our Archdiocese of Regina. The Centennial year was opened officially in all the parishes of the diocese with the reading of the Centennial Proclamation.

This was done in Holy Rosary Cathedral by the Rector Fr. Brian Meredith.

The following is the text of this Proclamation:

Centennial Proclamation

“ O Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things” Psalm 98:1

As the People of God in the Archdiocese of Regina, we give praise and thanks to God, our loving Father, who has blessed us with so many gifts for 100 years. Therefore it is with gratitude in our hearts that we proclaim with great joy a Centennial Year beginning on the Solemnity of Pentecost 2009 and culminating with the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ 2010.

We begin on Pentecost celebrating the outpouring of the Holy Spirit giving birth to the Church, enlivening the faithful since our establishment as a Diocese on March 4, 1910 and later as an Archdiocese.

We are grateful for the faith lived today by the people of God in our families, parishes, and communities.

We are grateful for our youth for their enthusiasm and vision, their ability to take risks to improve our society.

We are grateful for the Aboriginal peoples with their spirituality, culture and respect for the environment.

We are grateful for the pioneers who brought a strong faith and resilience in dealing with the harsh realities of the prairies. They requested priests and helped form parishes.

We are grateful for the stalwart people of strong faith who persevered during the Great Depression and the tragic wars of the 20th Century.

We are grateful for the leadership in our Church, the seven Archbishops of Regina and seven Bishops of Gravelbourg, along with dedicated priests, religious orders of men and women who share their faith and energy in building a strong church on the prairies.

We in this Centennial year receive a positive legacy – we celebrate our past but now we go forward with expectant hope for our future.

This proclamation is read today in each parish in our Archdiocese. We are to celebrate on the parish, deanery and diocesan levels. May we celebrate our theme “Faith Alive! Celebrating our Past; Hope for our Future.”

May that faith which gives meaning to our lives be shared with succeeding generations as we begin the next hundred years.

May our Patroness, Our Lady of the Rosary, grant us her protection, guide us to welcome her Son Jesus in our midst.

With joy we cry out “Give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known His deeds among the nations, proclaim that His name is exalted” (Isaiah 12:4) and we pray “Lord send forth your spirit and renew the face of the earth.”


Given on the Solemnity of Pentecost, May 31, 2009
In the City of Regina, Saskatchewan


_________________________________________________
Most Reverend Daniel J. Bohan
Archbishop of Regina

The Proclamation was then read in French by Joan Pratchler, Chair of the Archdiocesan Centennial Committee.

The Gospel was proclaimed by Deacon Barry Wood. Barry is now the second Permanent Deacon in the Archdiocese. He has recently been hired as Archdiocesan Finance Officer and has moved with his wife Sheila from Mississauga, Ontario.

A beautiful Icon has been "written" by artist Gisele Bauche for the occasion of the Centennial. The Icon is that of Our Lady of the Rosary. Our Lady of the Rosary is the patron of the Archdiocese of Regina.

The Icon was blessed during the Mass and will travel throughout the Archdiocese to every parish over the coming year.

Also the new translation of the Sunday Lectionary came into use also on Pentecost Sunday and was blessed in all of our parishes.

Another blessing for the celebration was the participation of a choir from Holy Rosary School, who sang beautifully for the Communion Rite of the Mass.

Then the Liturgical celebration was concluded with a great barbecue on the Cathedral grounds. Similar celebrations and community activities took place throughout the Archdioces on Pentecost Sunday. A fitting beginning to our Centennial Celebrations.

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