CCCB 2011 National Forum with Catholic Movements and Associations

Wednesday, December 07 2011

(CCCB – Ottawa)…  From November 25 to 27, 2011, the Standing Committee on Relations with Catholic Movements and Associations of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) held a forum with national Catholic movements and associations in Mississauga, Ontario.  The forum was organized around the theme Witness of Communion, and drew 40 participants representing almost 30 groups from across Canada, including L’Arche, the Catholic Health Alliance of Canada, Canadian Campus Catholic Ministry, Vie Montante, Catholic Christian Outreach, the Canadian Religious Conference, and Communications et Société.  This CCCB Standing Committee is responsible for ensuring a continued link and conversation between the Episcopal Conference and national movements and associations. 

Father Daniel Renaud, O.M.I., served as keynote speaker, with the participation of the Bishops who are members of the Standing Committee, including its Chair, the Most Reverend Gary Gordon, Bishop of Whitehorse.  The Most Reverend William Terrence McGrattan, Auxiliary Bishop of Toronto, presented the opening session on The New Evangelization: An Invitation to Communion and Mission.  The forum included discussions by French and English language groups and the celebration of the Eucharist, as well as other moments for prayer.  The Archbishop of Toronto, the Most Reverend Thomas Collins, led the participants in an experience of lectio divina.

Among the main topics, the movements and associations discussed their lived experiences of communion within their dioceses and parishes, and how this communion could be further cultivated and renewed for the good of the New Evangelization. 

The CCCB has convened this type of forum every second year since 1996, in order to foster personal contacts and discussion among movements and associations from across the country on common issues and activities. In recent years, forums have been organized on the following themes: The Bishop, Servant of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for Hope in the World; World Youth Day 2002 – the Catholic Church in Canada Before, During and After; Launch out into the Deep; Catholic Witness in the World Today; Social Justice: From Words to Action; Ministry and the Eucharist; and The Word of God: Identity and Mission.

Summary Report on CCCB Forum with Catholic Movements and Associations