Reflections on the heritage, life & work of faith communities in Ottawa and Eastern Ontario
A portrait of St. Paul towered over the clergy and laity that gathered at de Mazenod Chapel on January 22 for an ecumenical liturgy marking the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in Ottawa. Hosted by Saint Paul University’s Pastoral Services and the Christian Council of the Capital Area, the liturgy — which drew around…
The dedicated and talented St. Joseph’s Parish Choir at 174 Wilbrod Street, led by Jamie Loback, Director of Music and Liturgy, hosted the annual St. Joseph’s Parish Festival of Lessons and Carols on Sunday, December 21, in support of the St. Joe’s Supper Table community meal programme and food bank. The service, elevated by music…
Jesus Christ is the light of the world, Reverend Geoffrey Chapman said as he opened the candle-lit Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at St. Matthew’s Church in the Glebe. A light no darkness can extinguish, the congregation responded. The Anglican church, filled to capacity, was illuminated by row upon row of the faithful standing…
I arrived at the candle-lit Church of St. Bartholomew on the evening of December 7 to experience the richness of Advent, the liturgical season sometimes forgotten or unceremoniously truncated in the hurry to celebrate Christmas. This Anglican community in New Edinburgh — founded in 1867 and with the church dating back to 1868 — has…
The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa, the Macdonald Highland Dancers, the Governor General’s Foot Guards Quartet and the Ceilidh Band joined forces to bring a taste of Scotland to St. Giles Presbyterian Church in the Glebe on Friday, December 5. It was all in support of the Centretown Community Food Centre, a ministry of the Centretown…
St. Cecilia, the patron saint of musicians, and the martyr’s feast day served as an opportunity for a choral Evensong featuring Matthew Larkin’s Caelis Academy Ensemble. The Evensong service on November 22 was also a coming together of Catholic and Anglican traditions. Fr. Doug Hayman, Rector of the Church of the Annunciation of the Blessed…
God doesn’t forget us, even when we forget Him. These words are not about a loss of faith; they acknowledge the quiet suffering of those struggling with Alzheimer’s, dementia and other forms of memory loss. It was the first time I ever heard a hymn speak so explicitly and movingly to those losing their ability…
Parishioners at St. Clement’s Parish in Lowertown and St. George’s Parish in Westboro may have been exposed to measles, Ottawa Public Health warned on October 22 in a public service announcement. Those who attended St. Clement’s at 528 Old St. Patrick Street on Sunday, October 12 between 10:20 am and 2:00 pm are advised to…
The Centretown Churches Social Action Committee held its annual “Walk for the Centre” event on October 5, and with a thoroughly ecumenical group of participants raised $40,000 to help address food insecurity in the heart of the nation’s capital. All proceeds support the Centretown Community Food Centre, a food bank operated by the Committee at…
With Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada no longer providing funding to house 130 asylum seekers in Ottawa hotels, people of faith in the nation’s capital have stepped up to assist newcomers facing homelessness. Volunteers and clergy from Kitchissippi United Church, including Council Chair Denise Bonomo and Reverend Daniel Addai Fobi, have helped 20 asylum seekers…