The Catholic Church in Canada

Canada's National Shrines

Canada has a number of religious shrines. Many of them are popular pilgrimage sites, such as Saint Joseph’s Oratory and Notre-Dame-du-Cap. The Shrines listed below have been officially recognized by the CCCB as Canada’s national shrines.


Saint Joseph’s Oratory

http://www.saint-joseph.org
3800 Queen Mary Road
Montreal, Quebec

Built on the slopes of Mount Royal and inaugurated in 1955, St. Joseph’s Oratory owes its construction to Brother André, whose tomb can be found in the votive chapel. The nave of this immense basilica is one of the largest in Quebec. Devotion to St. Joseph draws huge crowds every year on his feast day, March 19. The Oratory is also host to seasonal organ and bell concerts, as well as a renowned winter exposition of Christmas crèches from around the world.

Saint Anne de Beaupré

http://www.ssadb.qc.ca
10018 Avenue Royale
Sainte-Anne-de- Beaupré, Quebec

More than 1.5 million visitors and pilgrims travel to this shrine each year to show their devotion to Saint Anne, the mother of the Virgin Mary. The shrine was established in 1658. The building’s magnificent mosaics, illuminated by 240 stained-glass windows, describe the important moments in the life of Saint Anne. The shrine is renowned for its commemorative chapel, the Scala Santa chapel, and an outdoor way of the cross. The feast of Saint Anne is July 26.

Shrine of Our Lady of the Cape

http://www.sanctuaire-ndc.ca
626 Notre-Dame-du-Cap Street
Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec

Considered the most important Marian shrine in North America, Notre-Dame-du-Cap was inaugurated in 1964. However, its roots go back to the middle of the 17th century. Magnificent stained glass, a large organ with 75 pipes and a vast park overlooking the St. Lawrence River make this shrine a beacon of peace and reflection. The principal celebration is held on the feast of the Assumption on August 15. Sunday concerts are featured during the summer.

Canadian Martyrs' Shrine

http://www.martyrs-shrine.com/
Midland, Ontario

Dedicated to the memory of the Canadian Martyrs (also known as the North American Martyrs): Jean de Brébeuf, Antoine Daniel, Gabriel Lalement, Charles Garnier and Noël Chabanel, killed in Canada in the area near Midland, Ontario. Isaac Jogues and two lay volunteer associates, René Goupil and Jean de La Lande, were killed in the United States in the region of Auriesville, New York.

Saint Anthony’s Hermitage

http://www.st-antoine.org
Lac-Bouchette, Quebec

St. Anthony’s Hermitage is a place of pilgrimage famous for the high quality of its religious and spiritual approach as well as its exceptional natural environment. “Open to the world”, the Capuchin fathers, supported by the Hermitage team, will give you a unique opportunity: a time to meet and exchange with others and come away enriched by this human experience. The Hermitage is an oasis of calm, silence and peace for individuals, couples or families who wish to get together and re-discover each other.

The Bishop Velychkovsky Martyr’s Shrine

http://www.bvmartyrshrine.com/
Winnipeg, Manitoba

The Bishop Velychkovsky Martyr’s Shrine holds the holy relics, a fully intact body, of Blessed Bishop Vasyl Velychkovsky (1903-1973), a modern Ukrainian Greek Catholic Martyr, who was persecuted and tortured under the Soviet regime for his religious activities. He died in Winnipeg, Manitoba, from injuries sustained during his imprisonment. On 20 July 2014, before a crowd of 200,000 people during the All-Ukraine Pilgrimage to Zarvanytsia, Ukraine, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk solemnly proclaimed Blessed Vasyl the Patron of Prison Ministry for the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.