canadianjourney

SPIRITANS FROM COAST TO COAST
Although this web page is by no means a complete history of the TransCanada Spiritan Province , a preliminary peek into the past is necessary if one is to see present "mission experiences" in their true perspective, i.e. against the background of over 260 years of Spiritan presence in Canada.
"From sea to sea" (A mare usque ad mare) from the Atlantic to the Pacific, is proudly emblazoned on the official coat of arms of Canada. It graphically describes Canada, an immense country; it could also be used to describe the Spiritans who have been north of the 49th parallel (the friendly border between Canada and the United States) since 1732, can now be found anywhere from the tiny islands of St Pierre Miquelon in the Atlantic to the big island of Vancouver in the Pacific.
As one great Canadian put it; "We are all immigrants. The Indians and lnuits were only just the first in a long line." In this tradition, the Spiritans of Canada, too, are immigrants but no new-arrivals. They have been here for 260 years...
The story of the early Spiritans in Canada, something outside the scope of this web page, is a record of daring adventure, like that of Father Jean Louis Le Loutre, who burned down his church at Beausejour, Nova Scotia, on June 16, 1755, escaped into the woods with the Indians, and captured on the high seas on his way back to France was imprisoned for eight years on the Island of Jersey, England - the only reason for all his troubles with the British - his wholehearted support for the Acadians (the French colonists of Nova Scotia) and his fearless defence of Micmac Indians in their early struggles for self-government.
The Islands of St Pierre And Miquelon.

The Spiritans have been in these islands off the coast of Newfoundland since 1765. Discovered by the Portuguese explorer Faqundes and claimed for France by Jacques Cartier in 1535, St Pierre and Miquelon have been the scene of countless invasions, expulsions and re-occupations. By the Treaty of Paris, 1815, they finally became and still are French territory, and as such are served by Spiritans from France.
Today, the islanders (St Pierre -5,500, Miquelon -500), almost completely Catholic, are served by three Spiritans from France, Mgr. Lucien Fischer (the bishop), Fr. Danielou and Fr. Moal.
The Maritimes and Quebec
The Spiritan connection with the Maritimes and Quebec goes back to the 1732 period when Spiritans like Fr Francis de Ia Mothe staffed the Quebec Seminary, Fr. Pierre Maillard compiled the first dictionary and grammar for the Micmac Indians or Fr John Le Loutre was called the "Father of the Acadians".
Spiritan missionary work for the French colonists and the native populations, however, came to an abrupt end when the area was caught in the middle of a mighty military struggle between France and England With the final defeat of the Acadians and Micmacs, the Spiritan missionary presence on mainland Canada came to an end.
Only in the 1900's did the Spiritans from France return when Fr Amet Limbour sailed from Le Havre on May 13, 1903, landed in New York, trekked north to Montreal and started a small agricultural college in the Gatineau Hills near Ottawa.
In 1912, this agricultural school became what is known today as College St. Alexandre, a bilingual classical institute affiliated with Laval University. Its early academic successes (1912-1967) made it one of the most prestigious schools in Canada. Past students like Paul Martin and Jean Vanier reached a high prominence in Canadian public life and 89 of its students became members of the present Quebec-based francophone Spintan Province du Canada.
Caught in the "quiet revolution" and the Quebec Government's educational reforms of the 1960's, the college could easily have folded, like so many others; but in 1969, the staff and past students reaffirmed St Alexandre's traditional ideal - French Canadian Catholic education with a strong emphasis on both lay and priestly service to the Church at home and overseas.
The present provincial administration of the Quebec-centred Spiritans is on Avenue Papineau in Montreal and while many of its priests and brothers are posted to parishes, universities, missionary animation and retreat work, care of immigrants and refugees, chaplaincies to hospitals and rehabilitation centres across the province, the "missions" are not forgotten.
Today, the Quebec-based Spiritans have flourishing missions in Nigeria and Mexico and the novitiate which until recently served all the North American Spiritans, U.S.A. and all Canada, was at Farnham, Quebec. It was bilingual.
Ontario and Upper Canada
Despite repeated efforts to establish a Spiritan base in English-speaking Canada at Sandwich in 1862 arid Kingston in 1870, it was not until 1954 that this was done by the Spiritans from Ireland.

That year, under the leadership of Fr Leo Brolly, they opened a parish (St Rita's) at Woodstock in the diocese of London and from that base, by means of a small "mission band", first introduced the Holy Ghost Fathers to English speaking Canadians.
In 1958, the Spiritans made their first venture into education in English-speaking Canada. That year, they opened Neil McNeil High School in Toronto. Since then, they have branched out in many different directions: teaching posts and chaplaincies in Scarborough Community College (1964) and Universities like that of York (1974) and McMaster (1975), educational specialist positions with the Toronto Metropolitan Separate School Board and founding-principalships for three of the Board's new high schools, Fr Francis Liberman High School, Queen of Peace High School and the Marian Academy. In 1984, Fr John Geary became Superintendent of Secondary Education for the Catholic School Board of Toronto.
As well, the Toronto-based Spiritans quickly took on more and more pastoral work outside of St Rita's parish in Woodstock. They built Holy Rosary Church, Guelph and up until recently served ten city and rural parishes in the dioceses of Toronto, London and Hamilton (e.g. Woodstock, Guelph, Highland Creek, Port Elgin and Kennilworth)
Nor were the missions forgotten. In 1980, the TransCanada Spiritans opened their first overseas mission in Malawi, Central Africa. Much of the credit for this initiative goes to Spiritans Fr Paddy O'Donoghue, Fr Louis Cassidy and the late Fr Tadg O'Riordan as well as Bishop Paul O'Byrne of Calgary and his Diocesan Mission Council.
Together they set up a unique experiment in Third World development and evangelization - the twining of two dioceses, Chikwawa in Malawi and Calgary in Canada and the teaming of diocesan priests of the Calgary diocese with members of a missionary congregation (the Spiritans) as a mission-team,
In 1980, the Trans-Canada Spiritans opened a second mission in Papua New Guinea. This was in the diocese of Aitape and the two pioneers of this venture were Fr Bernard Kelly and Fr Colum Corrigan.
During this period, as English-speaking Canadians came to know the Spiritans and to work closely with them in shared enterprises, many wished to do so in a more structured manner. In 1970, those wishing to serve overseas organized, under the direction of Fr Des McGoldrick, into what is now known as Volunteer International Christian Service (VICS), a lay missionary association sponsored by the TransCanada Spiritans that has sent nearly 400 professional or trade specialists to Papua New Guinea, the Caribbean, Central America, Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia, etc.
In 1974, a beginning was also made in Toronto to set up a Lay-Spiritan Association, distinct from VICS, which would enable the laity, who so wished, to share more closely with the TransCanada Province in Spiritan spiritual and community charisms. Prime movers in this organization were Dermot and Deirdre McLoughlin and Fr Michael Doyle.
Alberta and the Prairies

In 1965, the Spiritans, moved west to the prairie provinces. A new parish (Holy Spirit) was pioneered by Fr John Cunningham while Frs Colum Corrigan and Michael Troy took up teaching at the new Archbishop MacDonald High School. By 1967, there were 5 Spiritans on its staff.
Over the years responsibility for other parishes in the archdiocese of Edmonton were added e.g. rural parishes like Villeneuve, Grande Cache, Mayerthorpe, Evansburg, Stettler, Innisfail, Hinton. Until recently, the Spiritans served two city parishes in Edmonton (Holy Spirit and Immaculate Heart) and several rural parishes, including, Mayerthorpe, Stettler and Hiriton. One is chaplain at St Joseph's High School in the city.
In 1969, the Spiritans, at the invitation of Bishop Paul O'Byrne, moved to Calgary, the Stampede City. There, as in Edmonton, they have served mostly in the rural parishes e.g. Raymond, Coalciale, Crowsnest Pass, Vulcan, Strathmore, Fort McCleod, Beiseker, and Vauxhall. For several years, they also served at Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish in downtown Calgary. Today they serve in Rockyford, Banff and Lake Louise.
One of the most important achievements of the Calgary-based Spiritans, as has been mentioned, was the highly successful twining of the Calgary diocese with a diocese in Malawi, Africa and the teaming of the local diocesan clergy with the Holy Ghost Fathers in a joint evangelization and development outreach to that part of Central Africa.
Vancouver and the West Coast

The first Spiritan to reach the west coast of Canada was Fr Joe Jackson of the English Province. Stationed first in Holy Spirit Parish, Edmonton and then in Victoria, Vancouver Island, he was soon joined by Fr Harold Heard, also of the English Province. Both have done sterling work there. Fr Jackson, until his retirement, was Vicar General of the diocese of Victoria.
In 1975, the first Spiritan of TransCanada Province to reach the Pacific was Fr. Des McGoldrick. Fr. Des served as pastor of All Saints Parish, Coquitlam in British Columbia for many years until sickness forced him to retire in 1997.
The opening of these Spiritan parishes in British Columbia marked the final stage of the Spiritans' westward trail across Canada. It like the historic moment when Canada's Prime Minister, John A. MacDonald drove the "last spike" to join the east and west sections of the first trans-Canada railway line, with these new parishes the Spiritans could now at last boast that they too had reached the Pacific.
It was a great achievement but only made possible by the combined efforts of three groups of Holy Ghost Missionaries - the Province of France in St Pierre and Miquelon, the Province of Canada (French) in Quebec and the Province of TransCanada in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia.
The journey had been long and the time taken longer than expected. It was 243 years since John Louis Le Loutre arrived in Quebec. Pioneers, like Amet Limbour and Leo Brolly would only dream such dreams. Others, more fortunate, thanks to them, would see the dream come true.