Celebrating God’s love in the world is a hallmark of our Catholic faith. On Oct. 6, many parishes within the Diocese of Hamilton gathered as one community to celebrate its annual Multicultural Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Christ the King.

It was a marvellous celebration of faith shared by all present and the powerful expression of our faith in many languages and cultures.

With wonderful diversity, the Cathedral Basilica shone with joy at the beautiful unity of our universal faith experience in Christ Jesus.

The sound of cultural choirs, musicians and vocalists from different communities filled the Cathedral Basilica before, during and after Mass with glorious music, song and prayer to the Holy Trinity.

The liturgy began with a procession of youth and adults in native dress, offering flowers representing the beauty in diversity of God’s creation. Hamilton Bishop Douglas Crosby, OMI, welcomed everyone in different languages. The first and second Scripture readings were proclaimed by members of the Polish and Spanish communities in their languages, with the Gospel proclaimed in Vietnamese.

The bishop reminded everyone in his homily that the Cathedral is home to all within the diocese; that once we arrive in Canada, regardless of nationality, we are no longer refugees or migrants,  but newcomers. Each of us is a newcomer in Christ.

The Prayer of the Faithful was prayed in eight different languages, praying for Church, leaders of nations, all peoples of the world, for those seeking and living a life in Christ, for freedom, for refugees, the poor and sick and of course, for those who have died.

The bishop invited the assembly to pray the Our Father in their native languages.

After Mass, many of the national communities danced and sang while we enjoyed a wide variety of national foods in McNally Hall as another sign of the vibrant community that is the Diocese of Hamilton. Praise God for the diversity of creation.