Memories of Lac Ste. Anne

With the anticipated visit of Pope Francis to Canada this summer, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact location where he should spend time to meet with the natives and deliver an apology from the Catholic church for the harm that has happened in residential schools. 

Where can he stand to satisfy the desire of each nation traumatized by the harm done to the native children and their families?

Where can he voice apologies to all the people who suffered as students in residential schools?

I believe that Lac Ste. Anne, Alberta is the proper place for Pope Francis to deliver his message.  It is on the banks of Lac Ste. Anne’s sacred waters where many residential school survivors can gather.

Lac. Ste. Anne is a pivotal point; the Spirit blows to south, north, east, and west.

The Pope’s apology will blow in all directions to represent the tribes who will gather at the shrine.  Lac Ste. Anne is sacred ground with openness to reconciliation.  There will be more meaning to having the Pope’s apology given at Lac Ste. Anne than in his visiting a school here and a grave there; this is not the same as going to holy ground where people’s minds and hearts are open to reconciliation in a prayerful, peaceful atmosphere.

Lac Ste Anne is located 45 miles northwest of Edmonton, Alberta. It is an hour’s drive from the village of St. Albert to the waters of Lac Ste. Anne.  Years ago, in the mid-eighteen eighties, the Oblate Fathers, established a mission along the shores of God’s Lake which today is known as Lac Ste. Anne. Their mission was to serve the Cree Nation in the area.  In July 1889, the first annual pilgrimage to these sacred waters was founded and organized by the Oblate Fathers and the Cree of the mission. 

In 1974, I made the day-long trip from Yellowknife where I was a missionary to be present for the annual July 26th retreat pilgrimage at Lac St. Anne.  This was a special, important day when the native peoples brought their tents and travelled great distances from all directions to take part in the deeply spiritual celebrations. Throughout the years, Lac Ste. Anne become a widely known pilgrimage destination.

The native peoples have deep devotion to pilgrimages.  They leave their homes in great anticipation and travel in groups, often on foot, prayerfully singing and praying along the week-long route. They arrive just in time to celebrate the July 26th feast of St. Anne, who is referred to as the mother of Mary to whom Jesus was born.

Each day of the pilgrimage is hosted by the native communities: the National Aboriginal Parish (Edmonton), the Cree of Northern Alberta, communities from the NWT, northern Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and the Blackfoot from Southern Alberta.  All the pilgrims join in the liturgy, singing and praising God in their own language.  The cacophony of sound produced by the various languages singing and praising together is an amazing, uplifting experience.

Spiritual activities that occur during the days of the pilgrimage include recitation of the rosary with each praying again in their own language. Stations of the cross are recited by the faithful and confessions are heard everywhere by the clergy.  A highlight of the entire days is the evening procession with a statue of Mary, the mother of Jesus.  It is adorned with flowers and rosaries and carried along a winding pathway.

Many bishops representing the northern dioceses attend the pilgrimage activities at Lac Ste. Anne, especially for the daytime ceremony of the blessing of the lake and its healing waters.  It was inspiring to see fully clad people and leaders walk into the sacred lake. People fill their gallon jugs with the blessed water to be taken to their homes.

First Nations people enjoy pilgrimages and celebrations.  It is a time to gather, share food and tell stories.  Feasting and fun are important parts of special occasions.  Caribou, smoked fish, and bannock are brought to every table. There is never a dull moment.  Children run around playing games, yelling, screaming, and enjoying life.  Tarps are at hand for any kind of weather.

Sister Mary Jo

In the late 1980s, Lac Ste. Anne became more widely known.  Vendors arrived to sell their wares on the outskirts of the beautiful sacred grounds.  This has resulted in more settlers visiting the area.  Consequently, people stray from the shrine to buy the cheap wares on display.  Despite this encroachment, the Native peoples have never lost their love for their grandmother, Saint Anne.

- Sister Mary Jo Fox

The schedule of Pope Francis’ visit to Canada has now been released, it can be viewed here.

St. Jean Baptiste Day

St. John the Baptist, an ascetic Jewish prophet, is most known to Christians as a blood relative of Jesus, Jesus’ forerunner and a preacher about God’s final judgement who offered a baptism of repentance. The Blessed Virgin Mary traveled approximately 81 miles to visit her cousin Elizabeth prior to both John and Jesus’ births. Given the times and the distances it is unlikely John and Jesus ever met until Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan. Scripture tells us that on that encounter John recognized Jesus as the one who was to come.

Growing up in the parish of St. John the Baptist in Peterborough there was always great celebration on or about June 24th. Beginning with a special Mass, all then went ahead to the grounds of the church for our parish festival where there was entertainment by parishioners and the children from the school, games for children and adults, special draw prizes, home baking, tea-room, 50/50 draw and more. All of that was intended to honor our patron saint, raise enough to pay our insurance costs, and more importantly to build community.  As recently as June 22nd the tradition continued after 72 years. One could say mission accomplished.

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day originated from celebrations of the summer solstice, an ancient pagan tradition in which fires were lit to celebrate light on the longest day of the year. In France, the Roman Catholic Church adapted this holiday and associated it with John the Baptist, cousin of Jesus. For our French Canadian brothers and sisters in Quebec and throughout Canada St. Jean-Baptiste Day has always been celebrated with great flourish often beginning the evening of the 23rd and filling the next 24 hours with religious celebrations, music, special food, bonfires and community-building fun. It is also a celebration of Canada’s francophone identity and of their incredibly rich and proud culture.

John the Baptist preaching

As a youth I had thought of St. John the Baptist as a holy and faithful man of God who preached repentance. I also thought his camel hair clothes and meals of locusts and wild honey were to say the least unusual. Today, on further reflection of his legacy of community and cultural celebrations in his honor, he has for me become a catalyst for religious reflection, celebration and relationship building.

Who is he for you?

Bonne Saint-Jean-Baptiste a tous !

 -Maureen Condon, CSJ Associate

The Absent Father

Being from a single parent family was never a claim I made.  However, my knowledge from a very young age was that my father had died at 57 from a medical emergency that is immediately addressed today and known as a “strangulated hernia”.   Many were the times I would ask Mom why Dad died and always it was this same answer. 

Dad and me.

Writing now about Father’s Day still stirs loss even with his longstanding absence.  Yes, there are several memories I treasure.  Children appear to handle trauma well, but do we really?   All of us come to know suffering, loss and separation at the beginning of life and learn that nothing in life is permanent but hope to the contrary, that it was.  We know many separations along our journey.  Yet, there is a more current view that tells us separation is an illusion and that “we are all “One”.  I find the idea of “oneness” comforting and resonate more with belief that dad and I are now connected, both in body and spirit. 

Integrating the experience of death into my 4 yr. old self, did not always come easy as I keenly remember Dad was my idol, my love, my hero.  I hated saying he was dead because a following conversation then seemed flat, there was nothing more to say.  As an example, I was walking home from school one day with another 6 yr. old girl, when she soon asked me, “What does your father do?”  I said I did not have a father, that he was dead.  Immediately I did not like the sound and feeling of those words, so I said, “no that’s not right.  That man who died was not my father. My oldest brother is really my father, but we don’t want the neighbours to know”.  I knew I was lying and feared my mother might hear this tale I had told, so quickly added, “we don’t want the neighbors to know”, meaning do not repeat this. 

Imagination is a creative way to bring joy, let the spirit fly, fantasize. It is also a way to buffer painful life issues for children, adults, all of us, to create a more acceptable story.  While thoughts/memories even on this Father’s Day are thin for me, they are more treasured with added years. 

Most precious for me are the memories shared about dad, with my mother, when I was very young.  In those moments when no one else was around, she would take from her bottom bedroom dresser drawer, a big white box.  It contained a white shirt with lots of tiny pleats.  Then she would say, “this was your dad’s wedding shirt”.  Pausing a while, then she would tenderly lift something else, colourful long, and narrow, and say “these were your dad’s ties”.  Those occasional experiences with her helped fill a gap which words lacked.     

How can we each make this year Father’s Day a special time to remember Dad, whether he be living or deceased?  What about remembering those who have served us as substitutes, (especially mothers) for an absent father.  To these substitutes in my life I owe deep gratitude, especially my Mom and oldest brother Francis, who now enjoys eternal rest with my absent, yet ever-present father. 

Sister Patricia St Louis, csj 

The Perfect Storm

Every time we turn our attention to the news, we hear of one crisis on top of another – rising food prices, cost of gas, gun shootings in several cities in the U.S. and war in Ukraine.  Each of these events alone present new challenges, but when they all seem to be happening at the same time, we can feel overwhelmed as we try to emerge from COVID 19.   And I have heard several people say they feel depressed and helpless as they we live this reality in one way or the other. 

Image: Unsplash/Louis Reed

However, one of the messages coming from the Climate Movement is to remind us that all life is interdependent.  When one part of our Beautiful Blue Home thrives, we are all better.  The reverse is also true.  We also experience the pain and sadness of the effects of climate change, war, and sickness.  We are all interconnected and what happens to one also impacts others.

In the past few weeks, I have been working with some wonderful people who have just arrived in Canada after fleeing conflict in their home in the Congo and then living several years in a refugee camp hoping to come to Canada.  Their life has not been easy, and they are people filled with hope, gratitude, and love. They are eager to settle, improve their English and find work.   Their positive outlook has been a blessing - a kind of visitation from God. 

“Sometimes God shows up in our lives in human form and visits us in a way we do not expect.”

Sometimes God shows up in our lives in human form and visits us in a way we do not expect.  If we open our minds and hearts to welcome the human face of God, not as I expect it, but as God choses to visit we might discover more wholeness and hope. 

Rumi, the poet expresses this so well in the poem called The Guest House.  I will offer a few lines…

…This being human is a guest house,

Every morning a new arrival, a joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected guest …

Be grateful for whoever comes because each has been sent as a guide from beyond…

Welcome and entertain them all!

Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of furniture, still treat each guest honourably. 

He may be clearing you out for some new delight… (by Rumi)

 -Sister Joan Atkinson, CSJ

Mother Martha

Remembering Mother Martha von Bunning | 1824 – June 13, 1868

In recognition of the 170 years since the Hamilton foundation, I was asked to reflect on why Mother Martha is so significant to the Hamilton sisters. Her story is poignant and instructive, and its meaning is still unfolding. Her story as a Sister of St. Joseph reflects the pascal mystery of death and resurrection. Martha followed in the footsteps of Jesus who died an apparent failure.

We first heard Martha’s story following Vatican 11 when Rome directed all religious congregations to revisit their founding charism.  On hearing Martha’s story for the first time there was initial shock, surprise and a sense of embarrassment which gave way to anger/resentment.  Remember this was an era of awakening for women containing new truths and insights. We symbolized our support of Martha by the removal of a large picture of the first Bishop of Hamilton, Bishop Farrell, which had been hanging prominently in the Mother House and gifted it to the Chancery Office where it now hangs in the Diocesan library named after him. A more appropriate home for His Grace.

Martha was born in Germany, emigrated to the USA, and entered the Congregation in 1845 at the age of 21. She was missioned from St. Louis Missouri to Toronto and from there to Hamilton in 1852.   At 28 Martha was named the superior of the Hamilton community.  Martha understood that love is expressed in service of the dear neighbour and readily accepted the challenge of caring for the typhus and cholera victims of arriving immigrants but at a cost of the lives of the sisters.  Ten years into the foundation, in 1862, unjustly accused Martha was banished from the community by the Bishop. This resilient and humble woman made a second attempt at reconciliation in 1868 even though her health was failing but was again denied a meeting with the Bishop and made her way to Toronto, walking all the way. The archives are silent on this detail, however, she was warmly received by the Toronto community and died 9 days later.

I said earlier Martha’s story is instructive.  She was courageous in responding to unmet needs, resilient in the face of adversity, humble and forgiving in the dark night of unjust condemnation, and uncompromising in living the charism of unity and reconciliation. It seems to me that Martha’s short life reflects our own congregation’s Chapter Statement: Moving with Love and embracing each moment of possibility as a graced path to Transformation.    Amen.

-Sister Ann Marshall, csj

Sister Mary reflects below on Sister Ann’s words and the words of Mother Martha herself:

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Thank you, Ann.   You have expressed very beautifully exactly why we honour Mother Martha today: I quote: “courageous in responding to unmet needs, resilient in the face of adversity, humble and forgiving in the dark night of unjust condemnation, uncompromising in living the charism of unity and reconciliation.”  

What more is there to say?   I was asked to speak about why all of us, not just Hamilton, honour this woman today.    Well, I was having trouble coming up with anything to add to Ann’s wonderful words.  So, I asked Mother Martha what I should say, and here is what  that very humble woman had to say to me and to all of us:

 “My dear Sisters, please don’t celebrate me because of the one very painful experience I had.  Rather celebrate the amazing love and providence of God, acting in each moment of our lives to shape and transform us into the image of Jesus.   If you must honour me, then do so for God’s action in the ordinary  life I lived before that painful time:  the many times I moved to new places when I was sent, the way I did my best to adjust and give myself to the ministries that presented themselves: caring for orphans, and immigrants, teaching, care of typhoid and cholera victims, and, of course,   leadership.  It was God’s grace in my daily life in the years before that shaped within me the strength, resilience, courage and reconciling heart that ultimately allowed me to get through that last and most painful experience.  Sisters, this is what each of us does each day.  In faith we see all that happens in our lives as allowed by the loving Providence of God, and somehow meant to shape us.   It is that day- b-y day fidelity in the small moments and little sufferings of our lives that deepens the well within us, allowing it to be filled, drop by drop, with love for God, love for every kind of neighbour, love that gives itself in service, fidelity and humility that ultimately allows us to forgive and reconcile.  Father Medaille urges us, in honour of the Holy Spirit, to become “All Love”.  It is precisely in living our daily reality with love and faith that we are gradually transformed by “each moment of possibility” into the living image of Jesus in our life, our world, our reality today.  So, dear Sisters, when you honour me, know that you are celebrating yourselves, as each of you is doing exactly what I did, trying to live each day and each moment as a graced moment of transformation into Christ.”

 Mother Martha, pray that we may be faithful to this glorious call.

- Sister Mary Diesbourg, csj