Reflections on the heritage, life & work of faith communities in Ottawa and Eastern Ontario
In Canada, Anglican churches are at the forefront of choral training. Their embrace of the traditions of sacred music enhances the liturgical experience. The same can be said of Episcopalian communities south of the border. On May 17, Trinity Episcopal Church in Watertown, NY — 200 kilometres southwest of Ottawa — hosted a concert featuring…
On May 9, more than 530 people filled the pews of Christ Church Cathedral for a grand liturgy and a momentous occasion. The Venerable Kathryn Otley, the first female Anglican Bishop of Ottawa, was ordained and installed before a sea of clergy and parishioners from across the vast swath of the Diocese, and witnessed by…
On May 3, I joined 100 parishioners of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish at 1758 Alta Vista Drive for 11:00 AM Mass. Opened in 1955 during Ottawa’s postwar suburban boom, I found a friendly and multi-generational faith community with a robust choir. Upon arrival, I was welcomed warmly by a greeter. The most striking…
On April 26 — a Sunday that was as bright and warm as can be — I visited the Holy Name of Mary Parish in Almonte, joining over 80 parishioners for the 10:30 AM Mass. The Gothic Revival church at 134 Mill Street was consecrated in 1875, but the local Roman Catholic community’s presence stretches…
I arrived at the Anglo-Catholic Church of St. Barnabas, Apostle and Martyr on the cusp of dusk. The sounds of the robust parish choir rehearsing from the organ loft filled the church, while the herbal scent of incense from the morning liturgies lingered in the nave. And on April 19, the evening sun lingered too….
The March 20, 1885 issue of The Freeholder characterized the newly opened St. Finnan’s Church in Alexandria as “an exceedingly handsome and commodious edifice.” On April 19, 2026, I joined over 120 parishioners at the 10:30 AM High Mass and found that to this day, the nineteenth century newspaperman’s assessment remains accurate. The Gothic Revival basilica,…
Built in the same year as Expo 67 and mere months after Star Trek first beamed into living rooms across North America, the futuristic St Ignatius of Loyola Parish in Montreal’s west-end is among the most architecturally striking mid-century churches in Canada. I attended the Easter Vigil on April 4 at 8:00 PM, alongside 200…
Built in 1912, with a Neo-Byzantine sanctuary that can accommodate over 800 faithful in pews and an imposing Romanesque Revival exterior, Dominion-Chalmers United Church at 355 Cooper Street is among Ottawa’s early twentieth-century architectural gems. On Palm Sunday, I joined 40 members of this small, but engaged congregation for their 10:30 AM Sunday service. While…
At the height of the Cold War, on March 2, 1954 — standing before 500 people gathered at the newly dedicated Westminster Presbyterian Church — Progressive Conservative MP and soon-to-be Prime Minister John Diefenbaker declared that Christianity was “freedom’s finest fruit” and called upon “this wonderful church [to be] the embodiment of freedom.” I visited…
The Venerable Kathryn Otley will be installed as the Anglican Bishop of Ottawa on May 9, 2026. She is the first woman elected to lead the Diocese of Ottawa, which has a history stretching back to 1896. I interviewed Bishop-elect Otley on March 20. We spoke about her experience in parish ministry — most recently…