Reflections on the heritage, life & work of faith communities in Ottawa & Eastern Ontario
Farther afield, on Sunday, September 20 at 10:00 AM, I joined 100 parishioners of St. Thomas’ Anglican Church in Montreal for the 185th anniversary of this English-language faith community and to celebrate 75 years since the construction of their current church at 6897 Somerled Avenue. Located in NDG — a historic and predominantly Anglophone neighbourhood…
The Reverend Canon George Kwari of the Church of St. Barnabas, Apostle and Martyr invited me to attend a special evening liturgy on September 11, 2026 in memory of the late King Oyo of Tooro, a regional kingdom within Uganda. On August 27, King Oyo died of cancer. He was just 34 years old. Diplomats…
St. Aidan’s Anglican Church, in the Elmvale Acres neighbourhood, is a daring example of Mid-century modern church architecture. It is among the most striking A-frame modernist churches in Ottawa, with a steep roof-line and a triangular wall of glass that illuminates the interior. I attended their 9:30 AM Sunday liturgy on June 21, joining 60…
In Canada, Anglican churches are at the forefront of choral training. Their embrace 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 sacred classics for…
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…
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 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…
On the Fourth Sunday of Lent, March 15, I visited a friendly little Anglican congregation at 24 Sandridge Road in Manor Park. The 40 parishioners in attendance for the 10:00 AM Holy Eucharist included a wonderfully “churched” dog who calmly visited parishioners in the pews before the service and attentively sat through the liturgy. St….
St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Kanata is a bright, crisp and modern house of worship built in 2004 as the third church to be constructed on this site. The traditionally-designed cruciform church is a reminder of two prior Anglican houses of worship that stood here, the first built in 1874 and the second in 1937….
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…