A modest crowd braved the cold night to attend a benefit concert for Centre 454 performed by the Paul Weber Band, and they were rewarded with great music and songs full of stories and the local history of eastern Ontario.

Mary Martha Hale, a retired former executive director of Centre 454, welcomed the audience and thanked the band for their generosity in doing the concert.

Shauna-marie Young, the current executive director of Belong Ottawa, thanked everyone for coming. “Your presence is an act of solidarity, and it means more now than you may ever know and more than ever before.” Centre 454 faces opposition from businesses and residents in the area who want it closed or relocated. “This evening would not be possible without the ongoing support of St. Albans, and the leadership of the Rev. Michael Garner, and the legacy of Mary Martha Hale,” Young said.

“Every day, the people who walk through the doors of Centre 454 and all of the sites for Belong Ottawa face bitter cold, hunger, loneliness, and the uncertainty of simply making it to tomorrow. In fact, today, on King Edward Street, three of my team who work at 454 offered lifesaving overdose support and revived a gentleman who had stopped breathing and had turned blue overdosing.” By the time paramedics arrived, the man was up walking and refused the ambulance.

“The work we do saves lives,” Young said. Since June 2025, “our team has responded to more 2 ,000 incidents on the streets in this neighbourhood, and with today’s intervention, 27 lives have been saved from overdose,” she reported.

“For more than 70 years, Centre 454 has been a place of refuge, offering warmth, nourishment, dignity, and human connection, said Young. “And the need continues to grow…. Since June of 2025, Belong Ottawa has served more than 56,000 meals from this site here, and 110 ,000 meals at all three drop -in day programs. …Beyond meals, we offer warm, clean, and safe places to rest, along with showers, laundry services, and a real sense of connection. Centre 454 is a doorway to support, and for many, a pathway to recovery. to healing, to employment, to income, and ultimately, it is sanctuary to all.

“Some of our participants recently shared with me at a town hall meeting what 454 means to them: ‘It’s like a second home.’ And another young man said, ‘I feel human again when I’m here.’ Another person responded, “You save lives.”

Young thanked everyone “for believing in Centre 454 and Belong Ottawa, and most importantly, for believing in the people who rely on us. Everyone deserves safety, care, and belonging.”

The post Paul Weber Band performs benefit concert for Centre 454 appeared first on Perspective.

Since 2014 when the Diocese, under the leadership of Bishop John Chapman, set up what became the Homelessness and Affordable Housing Working Group, the City of Ottawa’s wait list for affordable housing has ballooned by almost 5,000 to 15,000 at the end of last year.

Appropriately then, nominees in the episcopal election were asked a question about their views on the diocesan ministry to people who are vulnerable.

The bishop-elect is a founding and continuing member of the working group that was rebranded as the Bishop’s Panel on Housing Justice (BPHJ) in 2024. In her written response to the question she offered two suggestions.

“We can connect in a deanery forum,’ she said, “to share, inspire and brainstorm opportunities and creative solutions to the challenges encountered as we minister to those in our local context.”

She also wanted to explore the creation of an advisory panel to raise awareness of the root causes of the increasing need in the diocese. This could lead to advocacy, with partners, to all levels of government for measures to address root causes and reduce the numbers in need.

At one of the pre-election forums, Moira Alie, chair of the Bishop’s Panel on Housing Justice, asked specifically about the prevailing urban and rural urban housing crisis. “What is your vision for the Diocese,” she said, “when it comes to affordable housing and housing justice?”

Alie said that while each candidate offered a unique vision for the Diocese’s path, it was “deeply encouraging to see a unanimous consensus: the Diocese has a fundamental, undeniable role to play in housing justice.”

Responding to Alie’s question, the Bishop-elect said housing justice is a core personal passion. She emphasized that the Diocese needs to stay active.

She highlighted that when the Diocese lacks expertise, it must proactively seek out experts. She pointed to the development of Hollyer House, (the Christ Church Bells Corners project that became a community hub with 35 affordable housing units) where she collaborated closely with experts to bridge the gap between vision and execution.

Ultimately, Otley argued that faith communities possess something unique, through their land and through volunteer networks. By mobilizing every parish, participating in advocacy and spreading awareness, she said she believes the Diocese can make a transformative impact on affordable housing.

She provided leadership at Christ Church Bells Corners as the parish decided to use available land for the creation of affordable housing.  For eight years, she was the chair of the Affordable Housing Action Group of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario.

In the written statement she saw brainstorming in deanery forums as way for every parish to be engaged, harking back to one of the goals of the original working group, the others being action, advocacy, learning and prayer.

Going forward, while the need has expanded, the Diocese is building on success that has come from the inspiration and dedication of parishes. The former working group established a campaign to create 125 new units with every parish engaged for the Diocese’s 125th anniversary in 2021.

With the opening of Hollyer House and Cornerstone Housing for Women’s Eccles Street residence 151 units were completed.

In 2024, then-Bishop (now Archbishop) Shane Parker renewed the working group’s mandate with the name change. Diocesan Synod endorsed new terms of reference that included providing advice to the Future Fund panel concerning grants related to affordable housing and homelessness and assisting parishes in reaching out to partners in their communities and working with them.

With construction under way on the Ellwood House extension at St. Thomas the Apostle Alta Vista and the Halton Street residence in Perth, led by St. James the Apostle, a further 50 units will likely be available by the end of the year. Both projects require fundraising that offers an opportunity for support.

With the exception of the Cornerstone residences, the efforts to create more affordable housing have been driven by parishes, with various forms of support from the Diocese such as seed money for feasibility work in Perth and fundraising for Hollyer House.

The post Housing justice advocates welcome bishop-elect with a track record of action on the issue appeared first on Perspective.

Stewart previously was a volunteer, summer student and contractor with the Diocesan Archives between 2008 and 2015. Since then, she worked at the Provincial Archives of Alberta before moving back to Ottawa and working for Health Canada in regulatory affairs for medical devices.

She says she “has been a church-mouse of all trades at the Cathedral since 2005.” She loves a records treasure hunt and reading, especially memoirs and biographies.

The post Staff news — April 2026 appeared first on Perspective.

The Rev. Bob Albert, warden of lay readers, told Perspective that in the past, medallions were worn by lay readers in the diocese of Ottawa, but in more recent years they have been wearing a blue scarf with their white albs (robes).

Albert had been working with Bishop Shane Parker (prior to his election as Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada) to streamline the information and documents about training and becoming a lay reader, and in the process, they also discussed what lay readers wear. The bishop thought the blue scarves were too similar to the stoles that clergy wear with their robes and it might be confusing. He suggested that medallions would be more distinctive.

Albert started working on the concept and initial designs. The bishop had suggested that the design should incorporate the diocesan colours and ray logo, so Albert consulted with Carole Breton, diocesan director of communications, on ways to incorporate diocesan branding. Breton enlisted the help of Marcela Hurtado, who is the diocesan donor relations officer but also has a background as a graphic designer. She recently created the logo for the new diocesan Hearts of Compassion Fund.

The result of their collaboration is now realized in medallions that Albert is distributing to incumbents to present to the lay readers. The design incorporates symbolic elements associated with lay ministry, including an open book and cross, representing scripture, proclamation, and service. These elements are framed by a laurel wreath, a traditional symbol of honour, dedication, and faithful service, reflecting the commitment entrusted to lay readers.

There are about 60 Licensed Lay Readers in the diocese. Albert explained the process of becoming a lay reader begins when an incumbent identifies a parish need for additional services that are not necessarily clergy-led and sends a request to the bishop for one or more lay readers.

Historically, the next step would require a few years of training, but Albert says that people who are interested in becoming licensed lay readers have often already done quite a lot of educational work such as the Education for Ministry program or taken courses at theological schools, so there is now more flexibility for an incumbent to assess what training the individual still requires.

Albert created training modules and checklists to help incumbents assess a person’s readiness to become a lay reader.

The lay readers have gatherings every six months with a focus on supporting and learning from one another, he said.

The post Licensed Lay Readers receive newly created medallions appeared first on Perspective.

How diverse are the faiths represented in the chaplaincy?

In fact, we have people of no faith in our chaplaincy … humanist chaplains, Christians of all stripes, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, traditional Indigenous spirituality, and we are working on a training program for a Sikh chaplain and additional humanist chaplains.

How closely do they work together?

We have diverse teams and our motto is ‘Called to serve.’ The idea is that whatever the need is of the person in front of us, it could be expressed to any chaplain and that chaplain would be responsible for facilitating what that person requires. If they were asking for a particular religious service that was not the chaplains’ that they were speaking to, then either they ask a colleague on their team or they have relationships with those in the community to make sure that that spiritual need is provided for.

What are some of the challenges and rewards of working together in this way?

We’re really a model in the worldwide chaplaincies….This idea of chaplains of varying faiths and belief systems working so closely together is quite anomalous for other chaplaincies who are quite focused on the care of their own religious tradition. It’s really enriched all of us in ways that we couldn’t imagine. Starting just even from ecumenical relationships with other Christians. Our Protestant chapels … are an ecumenical group of all the Protestants, whether they be Pentecostal or Baptist or Anglican. It’s a joy and a challenge to work with people of diverse perspectives — finding common ground, finding a place of respect, being open to others’ joys and spirituality and how they express that…St. George’s Chapel in Petawawa is a really active chapel and a really great example of this ecumenical model.

…All of our chaplains are really guided, directed to stay firmly rooted in the tradition that they come from and represent. … So even as you are working closely with other people, you’re not there to lose yourself. You are there to continue to represent who you truly are in that group of people.

When did you feel called to ministry and to the military?

I grew up in Calgary…and in university I discerned a call to certainly greater theological studies. I wasn’t quite sure where it was going to take me, because I grew up Roman Catholic… but I wanted to study theology in a more in-depth way, and so I went straight over to Toronto School of Theology, University of St. Michael’s College after I finished my undergrad. I did a Master of Divinity where, again, as a Roman Catholic layperson, I wasn’t sure what the ministry opportunities were. I did placement work in prison and hospital settings.  I felt that institutional chaplaincy was something that I would be drawn to and would be very interested in, as opposed to just regular church work.

And then I saw a poster for Cadet Camp Chaplaincy [as it was called then], which is our cadet and junior rangers program….They were asking for theological students to go and spend summers on these training centres and … offer spiritual care…. I did that for two summers… the second of which was on a working military base where I talked to military chaplains… I really felt that this was a place where I felt called…. I was bilingual. I was adventurous, younger, and felt that having this take-the-church-to-the-people model, bringing the spiritual care to the people, which is kind of what chaplaincy is… was something that I felt really drawn to.

I was hired as a Roman Catholic lay pastoral associate. It’s almost a diaconal role. Pastoral associates had a kind of mandate from the bishop to provide care, help out at churches, bring communion, and do baptisms and weddings where they were required, but in doing that, I felt drawn to greater leadership and felt and saw myself in an ordained ministry position.

I had always dropped in and out of Anglican churches to experience the spirituality and the openness of the Anglican church. In 2008, I discerned that … I had to make the step towards being ordained in the Anglican Church of Canada and found great support from the Anglican Military Ordinariate of the time and Bishop Peter Coffin. Bishop John Chapman was the one who facilitated my training and my eventual reception into the ordination into the Anglican Church of Canada.

What does being the first woman to be appointed Chaplain General mean to you?

It’s always hard to answer because I spent 25 years in the chaplaincy…. You are conscious, as a woman, that you are in the minority. But there was always this growing number of women and a growing recognition that that’s part of our diversity that we really need to continue to foster. Our CAF is made up of men and women and diverse gender identities. Everybody needs somebody to be able to talk to. So, to be the first woman, in a way, you almost feel like it’s a bit late in coming…. But I’m really humbled. I’m really honoured just to be named Chaplain General…. Our motto is Called to Serve and I feel very much called to serve those who serve, and to do that in a way that represents a gender minority in our CAF as an example to all women, especially women of faith. We’ve often been in the minority in our faith communities as well, not recognized as spiritual leaders. So for me, it is a special recognition that women can be spiritual leaders and military leaders. And people have told me that it’s important for them to have that example, and so I honor that.

What proportion of chaplains are women?

About 10 to 15 % of our chaplaincy are women. We would love to have more. I would love to have more because to me that is still clearly not representative of Canadian society, and it is not representative of all of the richness of our faith traditions and their leadership either. And so that is continually [a goal], as we work on recruiting, maintaining a representative face of Canada. It’s really important to me, whether that be spiritual and faith tradition diversity, and certainly gender diversity as well.

Aside from deployments abroad, the CAF often helps with wildfire and floods here at home. Those situations must also be challenging for chaplains.

We’re spiritual first responders when we walk alongside a lot of these other first responders who are going into those disasters when the sensible people are leaving. And it’s a very particular calling to stand alongside people who are doing this difficult work for Canada at home and abroad.

What else would you like readers to know about the work of CAF chaplains?

The chaplains are there in the small times of life, and post COVID, I think we’ve realized that people look for and need connection. …The world is unstable, and so people are looking for grounding and meaning and purpose. I’m really proud that the chaplaincy serves in the Canadian Armed Forces to be that source of hope and inspiration and meaning for people. And as we’re sharing this with [a readership in] the Anglican Church, it’s a place where I think many of our clergy would flourish [serving] either on a part -time or a full -time basis. It’s a very meaningful ministry.

It’s challenging… This is the church that has been sent into this difficult setting… in different parts of Canada and around the world. So, I invite the prayers of our readers because I think our chaplains need prayer and spiritual support and really welcome that. When our chaplains show up in Anglican churches, they’re probably looking for a little bit of nourishment themselves. And so, [I] invite everyone to welcome them and hear their stories, because it’s a very powerful witness to spirit of goodness and hope in the world.

The post Col. the Rev. Canon Lisa Pacarynuk leads as Chaplain General appeared first on Perspective.

For the past eight years, the Ven. Eric Morin has served our parish. Last year, under the guidance of Executive Archdeacon Linda Hill and the direction of then-Bishop Shane Parker, our parish entered into amalgamation discussions with Christ Church Aylmer, St. Mary Magdalene Chelsea and Good Shepherd-Wakefield.

In the fall of 2025, all six churches passed a motion and agreed to amalgamate as one parish.

Our new parish is now called the Parish of the Holy Spirit.

In December 2025, our diocesan administrator Bishop Michael Bird announced that Archdeacon Eric Morin was appointed incumbent of the parish of St. Thomas Stittsville, effective March 23, 2026. Archdeacon Eric’s last Sunday in our parish is March 15, 2026.

In January, it was announced that the Rev. Dr. Sony Jabouin has been appointed as associate incumbent of our newly amalgamated Parish effective Feb 23, 2026.

For the last two years, under the guidance of Archdeacon Eric, we have had three lay people in training to become Licensed Lay Readers. — Jean Macnab, Warden

A multi-point parish

Parishes in the diocese located in Quebec have now officially amalgamated. The new parish has been named Parish of the Holy Spirit/ Paroisse du Saint-Esprit.

The new parish will be made up of the congregations of:

The former Parish of West Quebec

St. Paul’s Shawville

Holy Trinity Danford Lake

Holy Trinity Radford, with the chapels of:

St. George’s Thorne Centre

St. James Wright

St. Matthew’s Charteris

St. Stephen’s Greermount

St. Stephen’s Kazabazua

The former Parish of Chelsea-Lascelles-Wakefield

St. Mary Magdalene Chelsea

Good Shepherd Wakefield

The Chapel of Holy Trinity Lascelles

The former Parish of Christ Church Aylmer with the chapel of:

St. Luke’s Eardley

The post Parishes in Quebec amalgamate to become the new Parish of the Holy Spirit appeared first on Perspective.

Bishop-elect Kathryn Otley kindly shared her answer with Perspective.

I am honoured to have the opportunity to respond to the question. The first gift I will highlight is the style of leadership I practice: non-anxious leadership. In times of great change there is great anxiety, and people respond reactively, taking a defensive posture, stymying growth. A bishop, by setting a tone of calm composure, helps to settle the atmosphere, empowering people to react responsively, with thought. And an environment is created in which we are able to accomplish our tasks.

The gift of working well with others — more than simply collaborative: as it says in Ephesians: God gives us grace… to equip God’s people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ. I “equip God’s people” by encouraging others to bring forward their ideas, and I recognize their contributions. A bishop celebrates this rich diversity of gifts — the abundance of God’s grace working through each of us. I have a gift of recognizing leadership qualities both clerical and lay. It is a Bishop’s role to raise up leaders- supporting and empowering their ministry.

The gift of fostering partnerships is crucial in our changing context. In my service across the ecclesiastical province and the county, I developed a gift of connecting with other dioceses, bishops, clergy, and laity. I have partnered with non-profit and for-profit organizations, with ecumenical and interfaith partners, and municipal and federal organizations. As bishop, I’d offer the gift of experience in negotiating with prospective partners, communicating clearly our Anglican perspective, identifying our shared goals and learning from their experience.

God gives direction, we need to map the course. A bishop must keep the diocesan ministry direction aligned with its purpose, set clear goals, make decisions, be accountable.

When working with wider church councils, I learned to focus on what is most appropriate to address at each level. I share that gift here: there are so many tasks before us, without focus the result will be scattered, make no impact, we could become discouraged. I offer the gift of setting priorities at diocesan level; then empowering clergy at work in parishes, with their congregations, to minister in their communities.

The bishop must carry out complex decisions and make hard choices which can result in conflict. An important part of healthy growth and change, conflict is not to be avoided. The gift of addressing conflict is necessary for bishop. I have the gift of experience in dealing with conflict; listening, reflecting with colleagues and then enacting decisions with compassion and firmness. I take responsibility for decisions and when I make a mistake, I learn from it.

Gift of perspective (two ways):

1. In my various diocesan leadership roles, I developed a broad perspective of the many facets of our diocese: rural, suburban, village, town and city. This is an important gift for a bishop, who will face issues of employment, governance, finance, pastoral and property —and must deal with them contextually.
2. A bishop also represents our Diocese to whole church. While working at the provincial level I received the gift of perspective from outside our diocese — seeing us through eyes of wider church —learning what we, ADO [the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa], uniquely have to offer and how we can combine our strengths to drive change, through raising awareness, advocacy and action.

It is the role of bishop to teach and there is a thirst for knowledge, for expanding our understanding of faith & our call to serve God. As bishop, I would share my gift of the joy of teaching and learning. I would facilitate teaching, my own and others’, throughout our diocese.

The bishop is the chief pastor exercising gifts of listening, presence, prayer, and support. My pastoral support of parishioners and colleagues is a gift I offer and a key skill a bishop needs in navigating the often-delicate relationships in ministries. This includes the gift of setting boundaries — all living things have boundaries; healthy boundaries create an environment of safety and well-being that we require to thrive.

Our rapidly changing world tempts us to try to ‘hang on to what we have left’; that is operating from a model of scarcity. My gift is to remind us that as a people of faith, we are called to live from a model of abundance — to throw open our doors and, emboldened by prayerful reflection, risk new ideas and seek out challenges.

We can refresh and strengthen the things that traditionally define us — and then ‘widen our tent’ and be enriched by the ideas and gifts of those who are new and those who are our neighbours.

We are a diocese alive in hope, energized by the Spirit and gifted with talented, generous and faithful people. I offer my gifts of leadership as a candidate for bishop, together let us renew the ministry of the church.

The post Bishop-elect shares the gifts she brings appeared first on Perspective.

The election took place on Feb. 28 at Christ Church Cathedral Ottawa. Otley was one of three archdeacons nominated, with the Ven. Brian Kauk and the Ven. Monique Stone, from among clergy in the diocese. She was elected on the second ballot with 53.62 percent of the vote from clergy members of the electoral Synod and 50.39 percent of the vote from lay members. Election requires a majority (more than 50 percent) in both orders.

Archbishop Anne Germond, metropolitan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario who offered the homily at a Eucharist worship service prior to the election and chaired the election proceedings, thanked all of the nominees for allowing their names to stand in the election process and for their faithful service in the church.

In a brief word to the Synod after her election was announced, the bishop-elect said she was honoured that “among such gifted colleagues you have elected me to be your bishop, leading our Diocese at a time that is full of challenges, but I believe challenges that we can transform into opportunities together. We do that by calling on the sure and certain hope of our faith. And so, I just want to close with the words of Paul in Romans: ‘May the God of hope fill us with all joy and peace in believing that we may overflow with hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.’ Amen.”

Otley has been a territorial archdeacon in the Diocese for eight years. She currently serves as incumbent at All Saints’ Westboro in Ottawa, and prior to that was incumbent at Christ Church in Bells Corners for 10 years, incumbent for the Parish of Fitzroy Harbour for five years, and served as associate curate at Saint John the Evangelist on Elgin Street. She was first ordained as a deacon in 2006 and as a priest in 2008 after earning her Bachelor of Theology and Master of Pastoral Theology at Saint Paul University.

Serving the diocesan church, Otley has worked on governance committees, clergy wellness and development ministries, been a member of the All My Relations episcopal panel. She has served the Anglican Community Ministries as a chaplain to the Well, board member of the Ottawa Pastoral Counselling Centre and served on the Community Ministries Committee. She is a member of the Bishop’s Panel on Housing Justice. At the Ecclesiastical Province of Ontario, she served as diocesan representative for 15 years – chairing the Homelessness and Affordable Housing working group in that time. At the national church level, she now chairs the Public Witness for Social and Ecological Justice Coordinating Committee.

Otley is the first woman to be elected as bishop in the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa and joins 12 other women currently serving as bishops in the Anglican Church of Canada. The Rt. Rev. Victoria Matthews was the first woman elected as a bishop in the Anglican Church of Canada in 1994.

Otley said that she is honoured to be the first woman elected as bishop of Ottawa and to join the ranks of women bishops. She added that she stands “in solidarity with and builds on the strong foundation of leadership of all genders.”

The bishop-elect will be consecrated and installed as Bishop of Ottawa on Saturday, May 9, 2026, at Christ Church Cathedral Otawa. All are welcome to attend the service, which will also be livestreamed.

The post Archdeacon Kathryn Otley elected to be Bishop of Ottawa appeared first on Perspective.

Qu’est-ce-que ce thème peut vouloir représenter pour nous, francophones et francophiles du diocèse anglican d’Ottawa?

Pour commencer, nous « mettre en mouvement, sortir à la rencontre des autres et multiplier les occasions » de nous rassembler, c’est quelque chose que nous recherchons activement en tant que communauté croyante à St-Bernard.

St-Bernard, est une communauté anglicane francophone qui existe depuis plus de 40 ans dans le diocèse anglican d’Ottawa. C’est la seule communauté exclusivement francophone dans tout notre diocèse.

St-Bernard ouvre ses portes à toutes et à tous et continue d’accueillir de nouvelles paroissiennes et de nouveaux paroissiens. Cependant, comme dans plusieurs paroisses, la communauté vieillit et le nombre de bénévoles diminue. Nous souhaitons faire grandir la communauté et accueillir de nouvelles personnes pour renforcer la vie de St-Bernard. Nous vous invitons à vous joindre à nous, à venir nous rencontrer et à découvrir tout ce que notre communauté a à offrir.

Voici quelques façons de participer activement à la vie de notre communauté :

• Choisir St-Bernard comme votre lieu de culte hebdomadaire : la messe dominicale a lieu à midi, à l’église Trinity, au 1230, rue Bank, à Ottawa. Nous serons heureux de vous y accueillir dans une ambiance conviviale et fraternelle. (Au fil des ans, la communauté a célébré dans différents lieux, et elle a trouvé, depuis plus d’un an, un foyer chaleureux à l’église Trinity.)
• Participer à la messe, à la prière du matin et aux autres activités, aussi souvent que possible. Même une ou deux fois par mois peuvent faire une grande différence : votre présence fait vivre la communauté et, en retour, la communauté vous nourrit et vous soutient dans votre cheminement de foi.
• Se rassembler, tous les jeudis matin, à 9 h, sur Zoom, avec des membres de la communauté pour un moment de prière et de partage.
• Contribuer financièrement à la communauté en faisant un don par courriel à donsstbernard@gmail.com ou sur la plateforme CanaDon en cliquant sur le lien qui se trouve au https://communautestbernard.ca/faites-un-don/ .

Et ce n’est pas tout! Au fil de la dernière année, la communauté de St-Bernard a partagé de très beaux moments de fraternité et de convivialité.

Chaque dernier dimanche du mois, Bible et Bouffe offre un temps privilégié pour se retrouver, échanger et tisser des liens autour d’un repas simple et chaleureux.

Au début de 2026, des rencontres sur la Bible ont été offertes par Pierre LaViolette de l’Université Saint-Paul.

Soirées cinéma

Notez aussi dès maintenant dans vos agendas les dates des soirées cinéma qui auront lieu les 20 et 27 mars, ainsi que les 10 et 17 avril. On se retrouvera à 19 h dans la salle Canterbury pour regarder des films réalisés par des cinéastes autochtones et produits par l’Office national du film du Canada, qui traitent de la réalité quotidienne des premiers peuples de ce territoire aujourd’hui appelé le Canada.

En plus du pur plaisir de regarder de très bons films, on aura l’occasion d’explorer les nombreuses questions entourant la vérité et la réconciliation dans ce pays.

On va accompagner notre séance de cinéma avec des pizzas et d’autres snacks légers. La soirée est gratuite, mais les dons sont les bienvenus.

• 20 mars – On va regarder un film classique d’Alanis Obomsawim, Mère de tant d’enfants. Marie-Alice Belle constate que ce film « est encore d’actualité dans la mesure où il parle entre autres des provisions de la “Loi sur les Indiens” qui forçaient les femmes à abandonner leur statut si elles se mariaient avec un non-autochtone. Or les questions de transmission du statut en cas de mariage “mixte” sont actuellement en débat au Sénat. »
• 27 mars – Un autre film à ne pas rater est Nous les enfants, On découvre les rêves et les espoirs d’un groupe de jeunes des Nations atikamekw, Eeyou-crie et innue, de leur point de vue.
• 10 avril – Chasseuse de sonTanya Tagaq, l’une des interprètes les plus innovatrices de notre époque, conduit l’auditoire à travers la douleur et le triomphe dans cette expérience musicale et cinématographique viscérale.
• 17 avril – Finalement, on va regarder Face-à-Face En 1985, la Nation haïda a changé le cours de l’histoire canadienne en se dressant sur la route de la destruction.

Le 2 avril, nous nous rassemblerons au sous-sol de l’église pour un repas « potluck » et pour la messe du Jeudi saint.

En tant que communauté, nous restons ouverts à de nouvelles idées, donc n’hésitez pas à communiquer avec nous. Aussi, si vous souhaitez du soutien pastoral ou des célébrations anglicanes en français, n’hésitez pas à communiquer avec le curé de la communauté de St-Bernard, le révérend kevinwflynn@gmail.com. Il nous fera plaisir de vous accueillir.

The post En ce Mois de la Francophonie, soutenir St-Bernard et sa mission auprès des francophones du diocèse appeared first on Perspective.