The 28th World Day of the Sick will be celebrated, as it is every year, on 11 February, the memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes. The Holy See has released the Holy Father's Message which is entitled "Come to me, all you who labour and are burdened, and I will give you rest" (Mt 11:28). In his Message, Pope Francis writes: "On this XXVIII World Day of the Sick, Jesus repeats these words to the sick, the oppressed, and the poor. For they realize that they depend entirely on God and, beneath the burden of their trials, stand in need of his healing. Jesus does not make demands of those who endure situations of frailty, suffering and weakness, but offers his mercy and his comforting presence. He looks upon a wounded humanity with eyes that gaze into the heart of each person. That gaze is not one of indifference; rather, it embraces people in their entirety, each person in his or her health condition, discarding no one, but rather inviting everyone to share in his life and to experience his tender love."

Message of the Holy Father

Link to a text on the World Day of the Sick by Dr. Moira McQueen of the Canadian Catholic Bioethics Institute

The National Week for Life and the Family will be celebrated across Canada 10 to 17 May 2020, with the start of the week coinciding with Mother's Day. For the eighth consecutive year, the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) is offering dioceses/eparchies, parishes as well as Catholic organizations and associations groups possible resources and options for planning and organizing local activities. The theme for 2020 is "Children: The Crowning Glory of Marriage". The resources have been prepared by the Catholic Organization for Life and Family (COLF), working in collaboration and consultation with the CCCB, and are available online, and may be freely downloaded and reproduced by dioceses/eparchies, parishes and other non-profit groups.

The Most Reverend Richard Gagnon, Archbishop of Winnipeg and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), wrote to the Prime Minister of Canada, the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, regarding the proposed changes to legislation on the expansion of eligibility criteria for euthanasia/assisted suicide (which the government refers to as "Medical Assistance in Dying/MAiD"). In his letter, after noting that euthanasia/assisted suicide is "the direct taking of human life or the participation in his/her suicide, which can never be justified," the CCCB President states: "We strongly urge the Government of Canada, before proceeding further, to undertake a more extensive, thorough, impartial, and prolonged consultation on the question, in order to ensure all pertinent factors – social, medical, and moral – are carefully and thoroughly considered," and adds "Palliative care, which has yet to become fully realized and accessible in our own country, offers a compelling answer – the only respectful, comprehensive and ethical alternative to the problem the government is trying to address."

Link to the letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Ottawa – Today, His Holiness Pope Francis appointed the Father Guy Boulanger Bishop of the Diocese of Rouyn-Noranda. At the time of his appointment, Bishop-elect Boulanger was serving as Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Sherbrooke. Upon his episcopal ordination, he will assume the pastoral governance of the diocese which had been entrusted to the Most Reverend Gilles Lemay, Bishop of the Diocese of Amos, as Apostolic Administrator in June 2019, following the resignation of the former Bishop, the Most Reverend Dorylas Moreau, because of illness. Bishop Moreau died 22 October 2019.

The Most Reverend Wayne Kirkpatrick will be installed as the Bishop of the Diocese of Antigonish at the St. Ninian Cathedral, on 3 February 2020 at 3:00 p.m. with the participation of the Most Reverend Luigi Bonazzi, Apostolic Nuncio to Canada, as well as a number of Archbishops and Bishops from across Canada. When appointed Bishop of Antigonish by the Holy Father on 18 December 2019, Bishop Kirkpatrick was serving as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Toronto. The Most Reverend Brian Dunn served first as Bishop and then as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Antigonish for the past ten years.

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) continues to post possible homily ideas and prayers of the faithful to help link the Sunday liturgy with the national pastoral initiative for life and family. The proposed texts for the month of February 2020 include suggestions from the Presentation of the Lord, 2 February, to the 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time, 23 February. As usual, the suggestions for homilies and prayers can be easily adapted for family prayer, as well as for personal prayer or for use with other groups or organizations. The texts for the month of February are available on the special Life and Family webpage, under the section "Documents and activities proposed by the CCCB".

About the Consultation

On Monday, 13 January 2020, the Government of Canada, through the Department of Justice, launched a two-week general public consultation on the expansion of eligibility criteria for euthanasia/assisted suicide (which the Government refers to as "Medical Assistance in Dying"/MAiD). This consultation follows the September 2019 Superior Court of Québec ruling which found it unconstitutional to limit access to MAiD only to individuals nearing the end of life and which gave the federal government the option to appeal the decision or amend legislation within six months. The Government of Canada chose not to appeal the Québec court ruling, but instead has indicated it would be prepared to change the law for the entire country.

The consultation targets one specific component of the legislation ("Eligibility Criteria") and is intended to help the Government form its response to the Québec ruling. The survey does not ask whether or not euthanasia/assisted-suicide should be expanded to include persons with disabilities, that instead is assumed. It concentrates on whether a person should be allowed to request euthanasia/assisted suicide by means of his or her own advance directives or whether the Government's current "safeguards" are sufficient to prevent abuse of or pressure on patients whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable, such as individuals with mental health conditions or physical disabilities.

The Coordination of Episcopal Conferences in Support of the Church in the Holy Land held its annual meeting in the Holy Land, 11 to 16 January 2020. Among the participants were the Most Reverend Richard Gagnon, Archbishop of Winnipeg and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), together with Mr. Carl Hétu, National Director for Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA) Canada. As customary, the participating Bishops issued a news release at the conclusion of their annual visit.

Link to the news release

Today, His Holiness Pope Francis appointed the Most Reverend Kenneth Nowakowski, currently Eparchial Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of New Westminster, as Eparchial Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of the Holy Family of London, an area that includes Ukrainian Catholics in England, Wales and Scotland. Pope Francis likewise appointed the Most Reverend David Motiuk, Eparchial Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Edmonton, Apostolic Administrator "sede vacante" of the Eparchy of New Westminster.

From 11 to 16 January 2020, the Most Reverend Richard Gagnon, Archbishop of Winnipeg and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), will participate in the annual meeting of the Coordination of Episcopal Conferences in Support of the Church in the Holy Land. Archbishop Gagnon will be accompanied by Mr. Carl Hétu, National Director for Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA) Canada. This annual international gathering involves representatives from Conferences of Bishops in Europe and North America who meet with the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land (AOCTS) to promote dialogue and peace in the region.

The annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity will be celebrated 18 to 25 January 2020 on the theme "They showed us unusual kindness" (Acts 28:2). The resources in English and in French can be freely downloaded from the Canadian website for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The theme and biblical texts for this annual Week of Prayer are jointly prepared by the Holy See's Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches. The thematic introduction to the 2020 materials comes from Churches in Malta. National and regional Councils of Churches adapt the resources for their local context. The resources for Canada are produced by an ecumenical writing team coordinated by the Commission on Faith and Witness of the Canadian Council of Churches (CCC). The CCCB is a member of the CCC and is also represented on its Canadian writing team for the Week of Prayer.

Link to Canadian resources
Link to international version of the resources

The Canadian Catholic television network Salt + Light has released its special broadcasting schedule for Christmas and New Year celebrations to be presided by Pope Francis. Visit Salt + Light's website at https://saltandlighttv.org/advent/ for the complete schedule.