august 2016 convocation & jazz mass

The newsletter of THE CHURCH OF ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST Montreal, Quebec 2 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 3

The Jazz Mass By tony whitehead, editor • photos by janet best unday 3rd July was the first Jazz was by Professor Norman Cornett who dis- Mass at St. John the Evangelist, a cussed the Gospel in detail. We had a fine sax- Sbrilliantly sunny day for the congre- ophone recital from the Pulpit by Joel Miller gation of over 110 to experience a brilliantly which gave the right Jazz mood to the Congre- organized Jazz Mass by Father Alain, the Cel- gation and keened as it should. ebrant. The Gospel were sung fairly Your Editor was most excited because for well by a Congregation steeped in Anglican eleven years he has tried to get St Johns to Hymnody, who freed themselves to sway with have a Jazz Mass. It was a superbly brilliant the Gospel Rhythms. The Mass setting was and joyous Mass. 3 the Little Jazz Mass by Bob Chilcott, and Fed- erico improvised the accompaniment of the This page, top: Conor O’Neill and Claude Vieilleux (basses); Dwain Richardson (tenor); Propers. The Choir threw themselves into the Aura West, Catherine Murray, and Helen Tucker This page, top right: Professor Cornett at the pulpit. singing with a double bass, drums and timpani, (altos/mezzos); Kristal Calvert, Rebecca Bain, and Bottom left: Joel Miller delivers his solo. Angèle Trudeau (sopranos). Accompanied by Pierre Bottom right: The Celebrant Father Alain with Mother Wendy and saxophone accompaniment. The Address Cartier (double bass) and Valérie Lacombe (drums). and Tyson Røsberg During Communion 4 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 5

the rector’s charge Summer Praise By fr. keith Schmidt Oh! Ye Winter and Summer bless ye the Lord, praise him and magnify him forever. Benedicite ost people probably find it eas- ier to “Bless” the Lord in sum- Mmer than in a winter blizzard. Having said this, summer church attendance in Canada is not known to be particularly high. Below left: Father on a Mountain. Above: A Gothic Chapel the academic life In Montreal and in the area of the Quartier time to rest. As you enjoy your Sabbath Sea- des Spectacle in particular, in Summer Fes- son this Summer, take in the beauty of God’s Convocation tival season. As we move into vacation mode creation and the world around and remember Report by the Editor please don’t forget that while Masses during Him who created and redeemed it. the Summer are simpler and shorter, they I spent a week travelling route 132 from he Convocation of the Montreal all to the Convocation on behalf of the Parish. still need your sup- Montreal’s South Shore and around the Gaspé. Diocesan Theological College was Scripture Readings were followed by The port. This year the The scenery of the Gaspé and the Matapedia Theld in our Church on Monday Chaplain leading Prayers. Nativity of St John valley was extraordinary. The many “Chapelle 2nd. May, 2016 at 7:30 pm. The President The Principal then gave his Report and the Baptist is on Fri- de Procession” and “Les Croix de Chemin” that was the Bishop of Montreal, The Right Rev’d The anthemO Sing Joyfully by Adrian Batten day June 24, Mass at dot the Quebec countryside were impressive Mary Irwin-Gibson and the Principal of the (1591–1637) followed and at last we got to the 10:30 am and the Feast as well. One of the sad aspects of this of course College The Rev’d Donald L. Boisvert. Awards to our Parishioners. of the Assumption is was the near impossibility of visiting many of The Procession of the President, Princi- The Student Academic Prizes were intro- on Monday August 15, the Churches en route because everything pal, Faculty, Governors, Committee Mem- duced by the Principal: Mass at 5:45 pm.We must be kept locked these days. Yet these won- bers, Academic Visitors, Graduands and Tyson Røsberg won two Prizes: The Rev. will be moving our Weekday Masses to the derful buildings are reminders of the Faithful- Students convened in the Church Hall Canon Dr. Lettie James Prize in Feminist or Jubilee Chapel beginning sometime in mid ness of Generations before and a continuing where Gowns and Hoods were adjusted the Pastoral Theology, for his essay Seeking to June. inspiration to us today. Procession called into line and entered the Define the Incomprehensible: Gender-Bend- July and August in Canada is a time for All ye Works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord, Church singing “Ave Virgo Virginum”. ing, Feminism, and the Holy Trinity, and The refreshment and relaxation from the routine praise and magnify him for ever. 3 The College Chaplain, The Rev’d Jennifer Bishop Russel Brown Award, for having made work schedule. In Creation, God rested on Yours in Christ, Bourque said the College Collect. Our Rector the greatest contribution to the life of the the Seventh day and called it the Sabbath, a Fr Keith The Rev’d Keith A. Schmidt then welcomed Community during the Year. This was voted 6 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 7

by the Student body. Above: Tyson receives his Awards from the Presi- ity have made her a known and trusted quan- who surveyed his achievements. dent the Bishop of Montreal, The Right Rev’d Mary Jonathan Widell was then presented with Irwin-Gibson. Top right: The President presents Canon tity to groups and performers in our neigh- After the Anthem Come, My Way, My The College Prize for Overall Academic Simons with his Honorary Degree. Bottom left: The bourhood Quartier des Spectacles; her tireless Truth, My Life with words by George Herbert Rev’d Karla Holmes, RoseMary, Afra, and the Presi- Excellence dent. Bottom right: Jonathan and the President. Oppo- presence and big heart have served her well (1593–1633) and Music by Alexander Brent The HymnLiebster Jesu was sung and we site: Glen Marcotte with the President, and Rev’d Karla as a volunteer at St. Michael’s Mission. She Smith (1889–1950), The Honorary Degree of got to the Degrees and Diplomas. would like to think that the course of EfM, the Doctor of Divinity (honoris causa) was Con- The Education for Ministry Diploma: Rose- Evangelist, where RoseMary is Rector’s War- readings, discussions, and theological reflec- ferred on our Friend and Colleague, the Mary Brinkema was presented by Afra Saskia den. Her hard work and commitment, was tions had enriched RoseMary’s experience of Retired Principal of the Montreal Diocesan Tucker, Diocesan Coordinator for the EfM evident in her pursuit of Theological Stud- these Ministries. Theological College, The Rev’d Canon Dr. John Programme. ies over the past four years in the EfM pro- Glen Marcotte was introduced for his The Simons. She had spent over a decade with Rose- gramme. Around the Parish, everyone knows Education for Ministry Diploma by The Rev’d He was presented by The Rev’d Prof. Patri- Mary as a fellow Parishioner at St. John the RoseMary. Her sense of adventure and curios- Karla Holmes B. Mus, Bed, MA, Dip. Min cia G. Kirkpatrick: In Baie Comeau he was 8 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 9

Above: A joyous reception educated in French, baptised in the local Angli- of the biblical narrative. can Church. His upbringing was a dual Cul- According to John, the Word-made-Flesh, tural format giving constant strength and fero- should join in one the joy that belongs to God cious dedication to contextualizing that has with the joy that God inspires in the human been John’s vocation in life and as Principal of soul. “I have said these things to you that my the Montreal Diocesan Theological College joy may be in you and your joy may be full.” memoir from 1991 to 2015. Honours Degree in Philoso- He said joy, is not an episodic and subjec- phy and Theology from Bishops University, an tive emotion, but our affective attuning to the The Summers’ of Our Lady Advanced Degree in Sacred Theology at Trin- renewal of creation promised in the Gospel Peter Harper ity College Toronto and a PhD at Georgetown and achieved in principle through the resur- University in Washington. rection of Christ. Christian joy accepts, am a child of the Lièvre River Valley. (phosphate, mica, feldspar, dolomite . . .), as As Principal he fought the Administration indeed inhabits, our essential vulnerability My home town of Masson is at the con- well as hydropower. The valley was for a long who wished to weaken Theology as a Faculty. and is liturgically mediated. It is therefore a Ifluence of the Lièvre and the Ottawa time dominated by the James Maclaren Co. Canon Simons then gave his Convoca- rich repertoire of expectancy, wonder, indig- River of which it is a major tributary. There who ruled over it as the Scottish lairds they tion address: Exsultet. He said that St. Paul, nation, sorrow, triumph and laughter! is little agricultural land in the area; the town were. The sequence of high waterfalls on the chose one of the fruits of the Spirit as joy, yet The College HymnPro Christo et Ecclesia is an industrial rather than a farming com- river did not lend itself to boat travel, and the Christians rarely mention it! Therefore Canon was then sung and the Faculty, Guests and the munity. The main industry is forestry, from company always opposed the railroad. The Simons made it his focus! Was it because Joy Academic Officers and President filed out to pine/oak square wood in the 1820s, to spruce upper river region thus remained undevel- is a natural emotion, a passion of the soul from Mendelssohn’s Sonata V, op. 65, Allegro maestoso. planks in the 1860s, to present-day fir pulp oped, despite earlier hopes in the 19th century. ancient times? However joy is a major theme A reception followed in our parish hall. 3 wood in the sulfite paper mill; but also mines The population is an interesting mixture of 10 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 11

Gaelic Scots, English Protestants, French and during a lifetime of devotion into the hands Mother of God (deipara, theotokos). The women in the confessional was “T’empêches Irish Catholics, and German Lutherans and is of the Blessed Mother, who could dispose bishop had agreed to come and bless it, on pas la famille, au moins?” He organised each largely bilingual. of them at her convenience. The person thus condition it were “decent”. A first painting com- year a great feast to honour the mothers of The French established a number of set- exposed him-/herself to a lengthened stay in missioned in 1895 burned with the first church the parish on Mothers’ Day: a solemn high tlements along the river, mostly under the purgatory to the benefit of others. Our third in 1902 and was replaced by a new one painted mass with full choir and polyphonic music impulse of Father François-Régis Michel rector, Fr. Routhier (1897–1934), had made locally by the rector’s niece. The devotion to (“messe en parties”) with an appropriate long (1828–1910), a Frenchman ordained in Ottawa such a remittance in his will to our astonish- the nursing Mother has been maintained to sermon extolling Mary and motherhood. In and long-time rector of the core parish in ment, admiration, and indeed terror; he had this day by the Servantes de Jésus-Marie, an the evening, all the parish crowded into the Buckingham. This old generation of celibate declared himself her slave. He prayed all his order of enclosed nuns founded in the par- parish hall for speeches, songs, short plays French priests brought with them a very strong life to die on a feast-day of the Virgin; he died and “tableaux vivants”— a recent mother was devotion to Our Lady, no doubt kindled by a on St. Cecilia’s Day, pretty close. During the This “park” was the work of chosen to present her first baby to her peers to similar affection for their mothers. This is 19th century, the multiplication of apparitions Fr. Lombard, and contained a encourage them along in their duty. reflected in the names given to the parishes and shrines, the increase of pilgrimages with shrine to Our Lady of Fatima, Next to my childhood church (actually established upriver, from Notre-Dame-des- the expansion of railroads, and the multiplica- at the foot of which were kneeling the third, an ugly hall-chapel used from 1930 Neiges in my hometown of Masson, upstream tion of religious orders dedicated to the Vir- statues of the three children. to 1960 after the second church burned down to Notre-Dame-du-Laus, Notre-Dame-de- gin led to an unprecedented development in with half the village), there was a wooded la-Garde (Val-des-Bois), Notre-Dame-de-la- Marian devotion. ish in 1894 by the first rector, Father Mangin grove with footpaths enclosed by a cob- Salette, Notre-Dame-de-Pontmain, Notre- My own town of Masson is dedicated to (1889–1896). Their special ministry, in imita- ble-stone fence topped by blocks of white crys- Dame-de-Fourvière (Mont-Laurier), and Notre-Dame-des-Neiges; the title refers to tion of that of Mary, is the nurture of Jesus talline dolomite. This “park” was the work of Notre-Dame-du-Saint-Sacrement (Ferme the Roman Basilica of . in the Reserved Sacrament by perpetual ado- Fr. Lombard, a French priest of alpine peasant Neuve). The Irish who settled generally away The dedication feast is on August 5th and ration and the spiritual support of priests (as stock and boundless physical energy. It con- from the river on the scarce arable patches recalls the miracle of snow falling in mid-sum- representatives of Jesus) by their life of prayer, tained a shrine to Our Lady of Fatima with added Our Lady of Knock (Mayo) and Our mer in the 4th century Rome to mark the work, and sacrifice. Mary in her motherly role the life-size characteristic statue at the foot of Lady of Victory (Buckingham). The Lièvre position on Esquiline Hill where Our Lady is central to their spirituality: “In Bethlehem, which were kneeling statues of the three chil- Valley is thus truly the Valley of Our Lady. wanted her church to be built. Each year in she breast-fed the Victim, on Calvary, she dren, Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco, to whom The devotion to Mary had been much Rome the event is commemorated by a “snow- offered the Victim . . . in her double priestly role.” the Virgin had appeared. North of the grove, promoted and defended by Saint Alphon- fall” of white rose petals from the ceiling of the The emphasis on the nurturing Virgin there was the usual large statue of the Sacred sus Maria de Liguori (+1787), an Italian basilica during the Mass — I witnessed this influenced much our parish life. Motherhood Heart on a pedestal set up in the 1910s when Redemptorist bishop and moral theologian, spectacular event in 2001. was a special concern of the fourth curé, Father it was commonplace to thus dedicate parishes. who wrote extensively on In my parish, there was over the altar a Lombard (1934–1966) —“il vénérait les mères”. South of the grove, along the provincial high- and the devotion to her. He advocated for large painting of Our Lady of the Snows He kept close watch on the reproductive lives way, there was a Calvary, a large crucifix with the truly devout the so-called “Total Dona- breast-feeding the Holy Child — after all, the of his flock. When I was born, an only child life-size statues of Our Lady and Saint-John. tion” in which a person remitted all the mer- designation is associated with Mary being after three years of marriage, his comment was South of the church in a small depres- its and indulgences he/she had accumulated declared by the Council of Ephesus (449) “on l’attendait celui-là” and a frequent query to sion crossed by a stream, an elaborate grotto 12 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 13

1960 and the grotto fell into disrepair. And obviously). We sang our favorite canticles: now the church is closed and for sale; all « C’est le mois de Marie. C’est le mois le plus that is left is the painting of Our Lady some- beau. À la Vierge chérie, Disons un chant nou- where . . . and the Calvary along the highway. veau. » and « Les saints et les anges En chœurs Materials from the old church were used to glorieux Chantent vos louanges, O Reine des build a chapel at Fr. Lombard’s cottage at cieux. Ave, ave, ave Maria! » Half Moon Lake upriver — it was aptly called Spring was a time of pilgrimages. The the Ave Maria Chapel. favorite destination in our parish was the shrine of Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes in Rigaud, hus surrounded by images and titles about 100 km away. I remember going there as of Our Lady, our devotions were a child on a trip organized by the good Broth- Tparticularly spread throughout the ers as an end of the year reward for mass serv- summer season. Winter had been spent with ers and choristers. The highlight of the day the Christmas-Lent-Easter cycles; the sum- was a visit to the nearby “Devil’s Garden”— a mer was free to be consecrated to Mary. It all large moraine field of stones rounded and started with the on March 25th, deposited by the glaciations; it is also known though this feast tended to be obscured by the as “le champ de patates” which legend said tail end of the Easter-Pentecost season. was the potato field turned to stone because The first great Marian event was the Month the impious farmer persisted in tilling it on of May dedicated to Our Lady which was Sundays. A moral warning there. My most marked with devotions every evening at 7 vivid recollection, however, is of bringing back pm in the church which were well attended. home a red eft (a juvenile Eastern newt) in my They generally consisted of the (5 dec- lunch box. So much for a journey of devotion. ades), a pious reading from the pulpit gener- The dedication festival of Our Lady of (Grotte de la Victoire, inaugurated in 1944) a float from Cap-de-la-Madeleine to Ottawa ally about one of the apparitions of Our Lady the Snows was celebrated on August 5th, represented the apparitions of Our Lady to with stops all along the way — it culminated (Lourdes, Fatima, La Salette . . . a different with much more solemnity in the earlier Bernadette Soubirous in Lourdes; the stream in celebrations at Landsdowne Park presided one every year) and a short Benediction (an years — they even fired an old canon in front recalled the “gave” of Lourdes. It was meant over by cardinal James McGuigan as papal del- open tabernacle and a blessing with the cibo- of the church for the occasion. There was a to be a pilgrimage centre for the region. Its egate. The float stopped at the Masson grotto rium). In school, we brought flowers to deco- composed for the feast, but it is long greatest moment of glory came in 1947 dur- to a great concourse of local people; the young rate Mary’s statue in the hall, some violets but forgotten, and rightly so because it was pure ing the Great Marian Congress of Ottawa women of the parish all dressed in white to mostly trilliums in full bloom at the time (but doggerel. “Reine du ciel, part de mon hérit- organized by Archbishop Alexandre Vachon. greet her. short-lived as cut flowers); later in the month, age, Calice du breuvage immortel, Enivre-moi This involved a long procession in which the The wooden grove was cut down for the there were apple blossoms, lilacs, lilies of the d’amour et sois mon doux partage, Toujours statue of Notre-Dame-du-Cap was driven on building of the beautiful fourth church in valley, and bleeding hearts (“coeurs de Marie”, jusques au ciel.” 14 The Evangelist August ⁙ 2016 15

With the construction of the grotto, the recitation of the Rosary. It was supported this lovely life Assumption on August 15th became the by the immensely popular 15-min “Chapelet major festival in honour of Our Lady. All the en famille” daily on CKAC radio at 7 pm with parish assembled for an evening torchlight Bishop (later Cardinal) Léger starting in The Summer procession to the grotto lighted with hun- 1950. (So much so that it forced Radio-Can- dreds of votive lamps. We carried our can- ada to reschedule its highly successful “Un of Love A light-hearted seasonal reflection dles in cardboard flame-guards while singing homme et son péché” in 1953.) The Broth- by Mtr Wendy Telfer the great Marian hymns in French “J’irai la ers at school encouraged us children to have voir un jour”, “Je mets ma confiance Vierge en our parents sign a pledge to that effect. Most esus said, I came that (you) may have votre secours”, “Chez nous, soyez Reine” and did, but not my father who did not believe life, and have it abundantly. ( John in Latin “Tota pulchra es”, ‘O Sanctissima”, in such things. But we were not off the hook J10:10). For Canadians, summer is ‘Salve Mater Misericordiae”. The evening for all that. We spent much of the summer the season of abundant life. For Canadian procession was a revival of an old French at the cottage in Lac Simon with my mater- Christians, summer is illumined by both the practice (observed as well in New France) nal grandparents; it was a second marriage light of the sun and the light of Christ, whose following the dedication of the Kingdom for both of them and, as was often the cus- resurrection is usually celebrated in closer Above: Nina and Gomez climbing l’étagère of France to Mary by Louis XIII in 1638 in tom at the time, the groom (my grandfather) proximity to summer than it was this year. thanksgiving for the birth of Louis XIV. had pledges to stop drinking and to pray Many of us are old enough to remember the new and abundant life that surrounds me. Then came the Nativity of Our Lady the Rosary daily. So come 7 pm, Grandfa- the Summer of Love. In 1967 people gath- It is a time to marvel at the miraculous (overshadowed by the beginning of school) ther switched on the radio (connected to ered in San Francisco to celebrate peace, love transformation of bare trees and dead-look- and October was the Month of the Holy a car-battery — we had no electricity) and and understanding. Here in Montréal we ing earth into a profusion of colours and Rosary. This was a repetition of the month we united our mumbles to the screeching celebrated Expo ’67, the world fair. I say “we” scents. Spring does not exist in Gaspé, so of May with devotions every evening in the voice of Mgr. Léger. We — the women and because it marked my first visit to the city for the first time in four years I am wander- church, this time centering on the Litany of children mostly — all knelt with our backs which is now my home. I travelled by car from ing about dreamily, stopping to inhale the Loreto and generally with a full service of straight, except grandfather who was allowed Toronto with my parents. My only memory is aroma of lilacs and honeysuckle and roses, Benediction with monstrance and incense. to crouch on his chair; indeed, as the fateful of the enormous pink stuffed poodle that my and to recall the names of perennials. The The culmination came on October 7th the hour loomed, the adult males became restless father won at the midway. Fluffy, the name sad-looking tree in front of my building was feast-day of Our Lady of the Rosary which until, to their relief, one suggested, “Let’s go which popped into my six-year-old imagina- removed and replaced with a Japanese lilac recalled the victories of Christian armies for a walk.” tion, was considerably bigger than I was. The on the verge of blossoming. When it reaches over the infidels at Lepanto on this date in Then the days shortened and our devotions two of us filled the better part of a double bed its full height the squirrels will once again 1571 and later before Vienna in 1683. From turned towards the dead and the parish visit during an overnight stop on the way home. have access to my front balcony — and to my that time dated the invocation “Mary, help to the graveyard. The Immaculate Concep- Nearly fifty years later I am celebrating a garbage. On Sunday I was awakened by the of Christians” in the litany. tion on December 8th, though a feast of obli- rather different summer of love. I read recently cries of raccoons so there may be competi- The presence of Our Lady in our homes gation and a civic holiday, never really caught that a move to another city is a kind of rebirth. tion for table scraps. Urban fauna is fearless. was also maintained by the daily family on; Christmas was looming too strongly. 3 As I explore Montréal I give thanks to God for There has been renewal in the cycle of 16 The Evangelist life indoors as well. This winter the family home was transformed into a circus. Nina and was reunited; my son, our three elderly cats Gomez race everywhere, climbing the screens and I were back under one roof. Mona, who and the curtains and burrowing under the was ailing, died in January. In springtime, as I bed linens. They tear through the apartment gazed upon Blanche and her ancient compan- in a tangle of tabbiness; wrestling, grooming, ion Paws spooning on the couch, I thought and finally sleeping together. Life does not get it was time to revitalize the feline herd. We more abundant than this. As Paws, now of were directed to le refuge pour chats de Ver- blessed memory, instructed me in the contem- dun. It was just before kitten season and there plative life, the Glimmer Twins demonstrate were only two little ones looking for a home, the active life. Everything is new and exciting, the remainder of a litter of five brown tabbies a source of wide-eyed wonder. abandoned on the street in winter. Les chats I hope we can all share their enthusiasm, inséparables — would we consider a double enjoying the long-awaited season of sunshine adoption? and festivals and food trucks. Bring on the Overnight the Pointe-Saint-Charles rest whoopee pies and the jazz! 3

Tony Whitehead, Senior Editor Kieran Wilson & Roland Hui, Assistant Editors Carolyn Roper, Art director, Brian Morgan, guest art director for this issue The Evangelistis published by The Church of St. John the Evangelist 137 President Kennedy Avenue, Montreal, Quebec, H2X 3P6 redroof.ca • facebook.com/redroof.ca • [email protected]• 514-288-4428 The Reverend Keith A. Schmidt, Rector Father Alain Brosseau, Associate