July 1 is a big day: 1. Step 3: BC congregations can finally meet again in person, without restrictions; 2. Canada Day ‘celebrations’ are overshadowed by residential school revelations; 3. On a personal (and arguably less significant) note, my summer…
A June 8 Leger poll indicates that “66 percent of Canadians think the Church should bear the responsibility for the tragedies committed at residential schools, while 34 percent think the Government of Canada should be held responsible.” Local Roman Catholic leaders…
Students from a number of BC Catholic schools spent more than half an hour interviewing Dr. Bonnie Henry last week, as can be seen on a YouTube video posted January 20. The questions were polite, covering topics such as: *…
When everything is ‘unprecedented,’ it’s tough to choose just a few highlights for an Around Town column after taking a two-month summer break (which was very pleasant). Thus I have just decided to focus on several law-related stories, news of…
Local Christians are inviting anyone who would like to pray for our city to join them as they participate in Thy Kingdom Come, a worldwide movement of prayer. (See video below of the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Pope…
Ron Reed has crafted a powerful play focused on the relationship between two of the 20th century’s most influential writers. Tolkien is the play’s name, but it could have been Tolkien-Lewis (apart from awkwardness) because so much of it is based…
When Pope Francis visited Myanmar (Burma) earlier this week, most of the world’s attention was focused on whether he would refer to the nation’s persecution of its Rohingya people. He did not, as the CBC’s National Today pointed out November…
Vancouver is hosting the annual five-day (April 24 – 28) TED Conference (which organizers say is “at the heart of TED”), and so we also hosted Pope Francis earlier this week. Speaking on themes of hope, inclusion and tenderness, his TED Talk…
You know times are changing when the Roman Catholic Church hosts the first local celebration of the Reformation. The 500th anniversary will take place in 2017, but St. Mark’s Theological College on the UBC campus will be hosting The Catholic…
Several significant events over the next few weeks will focus on environmental issues. 1. Laudato Si’ +1 Just over a year ago, Pope Francis released his encyclical Laudato Si’: On care for our common home, which focused on the…