On June 1^st, 2011, Msgr. Patrick Powers, P.H., General Secretary of the CCCB, accompanied by the CCCB Director of Administration, Mr. Paul Bowman, received close to 40 diocesan financial administrators.  This meeting took place as part of the diocesan financial administrators’ annual meeting, which was held in Ottawa from May 30^th to June 2^nd and hosted by the Archdiocese of Ottawa.  During their visit to the CCCB offices, the diocesan financial administrators shared a light meal and were able to exchange with the General Secretary on the projects and challenges they meet in their service to the Church. Msgr. Powers used the occasion to explain the specific mission of the CCCB, as well as its progress in maintaining a balanced budget while responding to the needs of the bishops, in collaboration and in service of the dioceses.  He highlighted, for example, the CCCB Publications Services as a privileged means of financing the work of the Episcopal Conference, while at the same time encouraging the evangelization and formation of many people involved in the pastoral life of our Church.

The visitors were happy with their visit and exchange with the CCCB General Secretary.  For the CCCB, it is important to maintain good relations with diocesan administrators and to encourage better communication in today’s world of rapid communication tools, like the internet, despite that the dioceses and CCCB offices are often separated by hundreds of kilometers. 

(CCCB – Ottawa – May 27, 2011) – His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI appointed, on May 23, 2011, Archpriest Mikael Mouradian, as Bishop of the Eparchy of Our Lady of Nareg for the Catholic Armenians in the United States and Canada.  Bishop-elect Mouradian succeeds Bishop Manuel Batakian, I.C.P.B., whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same eparchy has been accepted by the Holy Father. 

Before is appointment, Archpriest Mikael Mouradian was the vicar of the Institute for the Patriarchal Clergy of Bzommar, Lebanon and superior of the convent of Notre Dame of Bzommar.  The bishop-elect was born in Beirut, Lebanon in 1961 and was ordained a priest in 1987. 

The Eparchy of Our Lady of Nareg, based in New York, of the Armenians includes 3 000 Catholics in Canada and two parishes, in Toronto and Montreal, three priests and two permanent deacons.

In a letter dated 6 April 2011 to Elections Canada, the President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), the Most Reverend Pierre Morissette, had expressed concern that the advance polls for the next federal elections are scheduled for Good Friday and Holy Saturday. This, Bishop Morissette had said, could limit Elections Canada staff or volunteers who wished to participate in religious services.

The Chief Electoral Officer, Mr. Marc Mayrand, has replied to the CCCB President. In a letter he states that “Elections Canada is aware that advance polls … coincide with several days of significant religious observance for the Christian and Jewish communities.” At the same time, the Chief Electoral Officer points out that “the dates for advance polls … flow from legislative requirements” and so “will occur on the 10^th, 9^th and 7^th days before Election Day.”

Adding that he fully understands and appreciates the concern and interest of the CCCB President, Mr. Mayrand said that “when poll workers accept employment at advance polls, they are made aware of the days and hours of operation of those polls, as set out in the Canada Elections Act.” Employees, he added, are encouraged “to inform their supervisors, should they wish to modify their work schedules so that appropriate arrangements can be made.”

Mr. Mayrand concludes his letter by stating that “we share your interest in being responsive to the needs of electors and election workers, to the extent possible, in the context of the electoral calendar and the requirements of the legislation”.

This past Friday, 1 April, the Most Reverend Terrence Prendergast, S.J., Archbishop of Ottawa, in consultation with Mr. Michael Casey, National Director of the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace, cancelled a visit by Father Luis Arriaga, S.J., Director of the Centre Prodh in Mexico City. Father Arriaga had been scheduled by CCODP as a Share Lent speaker. Earlier last week, Mr. Casey had already cancelled the engagements by Father Arriaga in the Diocese of Alexandria-Cornwall. The Centre Prodh was one of the Mexican groups that had been at the source of a controversy two years ago involving Development and Peace.

The decisions to cancel the speaking engagements were made in view of allegations about the Centre Prodh and Father Arriaga, because of which it appears that “prayer protests” were being planned. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Archdiocese of Ottawa and also Development and Peace have requested clarifications about Father Arriaga and Centre Prodh from the Archdiocese of Mexico City.

The CCCB General Secretary has worked closely with Archbishop Prendergast and Mr. Casey on this and continues to do so. In addition, the CCCB Standing Committee on CCODP will shortly discuss the questions which have been raised.

Development and Peace has been working closely over the past two years with the CCCB and what was formerly its Ad Hoc Committee on CCODP. The Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace is committed to respect for life, and is making every effort to ensure its programs are in full compliance with Church teachings. The recent questions and concerns that have been expressed underscore the need for the CCCB Standing Committee and the importance of Development and Peace continuing to work in full collaboration with it.

The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has received recognitio for all sections of the English translation of the revised Roman Missal for use in Canada. The Permanent Council has agreed that the first Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2011, will be the date for the implementation of the English translation of the Missal. The official decree for this date has not yet been published, because our Conference is still clarifying the exact wording of one of the adaptations for Canada.

This process of clarification will not in any way slow down the preparation of the English translation of the revised Missal for Canada. Both the English Sector National Liturgy Office and the CCCB Publications Department are busy preparing the new publication and their work is proceeding on schedule.

As well, the National Liturgy Office is preparing to start the launching of the catechetical material it has already prepared. The resource Celebrate and Song, which contains the parts of the Mass spoken by the people, as well as three newly composed Mass settings and the ICEL chants, is now finished and will be available from the CCCB Publications Service during the first half of April. This resource, which contains the texts of Eucharistic Prayers I-IV and 40 hymns not currently found in the Catholic Book of Worship III, will be available from the Publications Service at http://www.cccbpublications.ca/.

Starting the first week of April, the National Liturgy Office will begin posting texts and power-point slides to be used for workshops at the local level – including workshops dealing with the theology of Eucharist, the process of translation and revision, and the history of the Eucharist. These will be available on the website of the National Liturgy Office, http://www.nlo.cccb.ca/.

Two DVDs will also be produced by the National Liturgy Office in collaboration with Salt + Light TV. These will be ready for distribution by the end of August. The first will be a two-hour presentation on the theological emphases of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. The second will be an hour-long presentation with a teaching DVD on the structure of the Mass and the meaning of each part of the Mass. The National Liturgy Office will provide a packet of material including suggested workshop formats and questions for discussion at the parish level. Early in September, the National Liturgy Office will have CDs ready with a cantor singing a dozen or so of the new prefaces to assist priests who do not read music but would like to sing the prefaces.

As part of a visit organized by the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CCODP), a delegation from the Democratic Republic of Congo met in Ottawa on 31 March with representatives of the federal government and of the Church in Canada. The Most Reverend Nicolas Djomo, Bishop of Tshumbe and President of the country’s Conference of Bishops, and Sister Marie-Bernard Alima Mbalula, secretary of the Conference’s Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace, drew attention to the present situation in the Congo and asked for Canadian collaboration in re-establishing peace and reconciliation in their country.

From left to right: Msgr. Patrick Powers, P.H., General Secretary of the CCCB; Sister Marie-Bernard Alima Mbalula, secretary of that Conference’s Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace; Bishop Nicolas Djomo, President of the Conference of Bishops of the Democratic Republic of Congo; and Archbishop Roger Ébacher of Gatineau.

As part of a visit organized by the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CCODP), a delegation from the Democratic Republic of Congo met in Ottawa on 31 March with representatives of the federal government and of the Church in Canada. The Most Reverend Nicolas Djomo, Bishop of Tshumbe and President of the country’s Conference of Bishops, and Sister Marie-Bernard Alima Mbalula, secretary of the Conference’s Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace, drew attention to the present situation in the Congo and asked for Canadian collaboration in re-establishing peace and reconciliation in their country.

During their visit to the offices of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB), the Congolese delegation met with a Bishop and several CCCB staff to help strengthen collaboration. This is the third official visit of a Congolese delegation to Canada over the past 10 years. The two previous delegations had visited Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto in September 2003 and December 2008. On both occasions they participated in meetings with the public as well as with the government.

From 7 to 28 October 2012, some 300 Bishops from around the world will come together in Rome for the XIII Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, to reflect on the theme of “The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith”.  According to Pope Benedict XVI, the Synod is to be a moment to examine the journey that had been made and to resume with fresh impetus the urgent work still to be done in evangelizing today’s world. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) will eventually elect four of its members to take part in this major event in the life of the Catholic Church. Their names will be published as soon as the Holy Father has ratified their election.

The first of a series of documents relating to the Synod, the Lineamenta (from the Latin, meaning an “outline”), was recently published. This document essentially provides a common basis on which to begin reflections. Following suggestions and recommendations that will be received from the Bishops and also from other members of the Church, an Instrumentum laboris (working document) will then be produced and given to all the participants for discussion at the Synod.

Read the Lineamenta…

(CCCB – Ottawa)… With a federal election campaign underway, the Commission for Justice and Peace of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has issued a guide inviting Catholics to vote with discernment.

In its “Federal Election 2011 Guide”, the Commission lists some basic principles from Catholic moral and social teaching to help voters analyse and evaluate public policies and programs.

The document focuses especially on respect for life and the dignity of the human person, social justice, the family, world peace and the environment.

While recognizing there are times when “choices may prove very difficult,” the Commission for Justice and Peace also observes that a well-formed Christian conscience does not permit one to vote for a political program or an individual law which opposes or differs from the fundamental content of faith and morals.

(CCCB – Ottawa)… As of 2 May, Mr. René Laprise will become Director of Media Relations for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB). He replaces Ms. Christine Choury who is beginning new employment outside the Conference.

Mr. Laprise is a seasoned professional in Church communications. He is currently director of communications for the Archdiocese of Gatineau, a position he has held since 1990. Since 2006, he has also been the Chair of the Board for the Montreal-based organization Communications et Société. In 2001 and 2002, he worked for the organizing committee of the 2002 World Youth Day in Toronto, as the French-language assistant to the director of communications.

A married man and father of three daughters, René Laprise is originally from Saint-Félicien, in the Saguenay – Lac Saint-Jean region of Quebec. Together with a bachelor’s degree in communications from Laval University, Quebec, he holds a diploma in theology from the University of Sherbrooke and a diploma in social communications from Saint Paul University, Ottawa. As well, he has done immersion studies in English at Queen’s University, Kingston.

In his new functions at the CCCB, Mr. Laprise will be responsible for media relations and for replying to media requests for information. In addition to assisting the General Secretary with communications strategies for major events, he will coordinate interviews and assure the circulation of CCCB news releases and public statements. He will also serve as the secretary of the Standing Committee on Communications, plus being responsible for current information on the CCCB website and in other social media.

Mr. Laprise will work part-time at the CCCB until this coming July, so as to finish up his ongoing responsibilities with the Archdiocese of Gatineau.

Representatives from various faiths participated in meetings and discussions on poverty, 7-8 March 2011 in Ottawa. These included reflections with the four major federal political parties, giving special focus to the recommendations in the November 2010 report, Federal Poverty Reduction Plan: Working in Partnership towards Reducing Poverty in Canada. The report had been issued by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of People with Disabilities (HUMA).

Among those participating was the Most Reverend François Lapierre, P.M.É., Bishop of Saint-Hyacinthe and a member of the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB). The interfaith event also involved members of other Christian Churches and communities, as well as Buddhists, Hindus, Jews, Muslims and Baha’i. Mr. Jonas Abromaitis, Secretary of the CCCB Commission for Christian Unity, Religious Relations with the Jews, and Interfaith Dialogue was present, as well as Dr. François Poitras, Secretary of the CCCB Commission for Justice and Peace.

At the end of the event, the interfaith representatives issued a declaration which invited the government to “partner with us in ending poverty.” “We call upon government to champion public policies that defend everyone’s rights to dignity and abundant life,” the declaration stated.

The interfaith participants also committed themselves to launching a national conversation about poverty, and to deepening and multiplying commitments to alleviate poverty. “It’s time for leadership,” they insisted. “It’s time to act.”

The interfaith event was organized by the Canadian Council of Churches, the Canadian Interfaith Delegation from the World Religions Summit 2010, the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, and Dignity for All.