We are blessed on Wolfe Island with a magnificent church — more like a cathedral, visitors often say. Dedicated to our Lady under the title of the Sacred Heart of Mary, it was built in 1916-1917, and dedicated in June 1918. I had begun thinking a few years back how to mark the centennial.
Fr. Raymond J. de Souza
Fr. Raymond J. de Souza is the pastor of Sacred Heart of Mary parish on Wolfe Island, and chaplain at Newman House at Kingston, Ont.’s Queen’s University.
A former student sent me a notice that caught my attention, for both artistic and pious reasons. The Cantata Singers of Ottawa will be at St. Joseph’s Church later this month where the entire program will consist of settings of the brief Eucharistic and Marian hymn, Ave Verum, including those of Lassus, Byrd, Mozart, Elgar, Liszt, Saint-Saëns and Poulenc.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
Fr. Thomas Rosica, CEO of Salt & Light Catholic Media Foundation, published a blistering assessment of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the pages of a Jesuit magazine, identifying in practice what Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger memorably called the “dictatorship of relativism.”
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
In January, I had the great blessing of preaching at the Holy Mass for the relic of St. Francis Xavier in the parish in Mississauga named after him. There was an immense congregation, and in the very first pews were various political figures from the federal Parliament, provincial legislature and city hall.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
February 8, 2018
Fr. Raymond J. De Souza: New altar at Notre Dame Cathedral lights up the sacrifice of Christ
OTTAWA – On Feb. 2 in Ottawa’s Notre Dame Cathedral, I knew we would have a special liturgical experience. After all, a new altar for the cathedral was being dedicated, a beautiful rite that only happens once or twice in the life of a church. What I didn’t expect was something utterly and wholly unique.
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Columns
January 17, 2018
St. Francis Xavier relic highlights vital role of immigrants
The visit of the relic of St. Francis Xavier to the Mississauga, Ont., parish named after him will likely be the largest Catholic event of the year in Canada. Numbers are not the most important part of any pilgrimage, but they do tell part of the story. And the 13,000-plus pilgrims that came to St. Francis Xavier parish to honour their patron is an important story about the state of the Church in Canada.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
The relic of St. Francis Xavier is making a Canada-wide visit this month. It began with stops in Quebec City, St. John’s, Nfld., Halifax and Kingston, and visits the Toronto area before heading to the four Western provinces.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
December 14, 2017
Fr. Raymond J. De Souza: A blessing of Providence after church fire
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
November 23, 2017
The Queen and her prince keep royal traditions alive
In a democratic age, we need to be reminded that the governing image of Christ Jesus is kingship, a biblical image of deep resonance.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
Anniversaries of importance for the universal Church have abounded this year — 500 years since the Reformation, 100 years since Fatima, 25 years since the Catechism of the Catholic Church. For me though, two more modest anniversaries — 10 years — were celebrated this past fortnight.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza
September 21, 2017
Comment: Immigrants vital to growth of the Church in Canada
A celebration planned by the Canadian Goan Christian Group for St. Joseph’s parish in Mississauga on Oct. 14 will highlight the role that immigrants play in keeping the Church in Canada alive and vibrant.
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Fr. Raymond de Souza