25 June 2015

Dear Pastors, Pastoral Animators and Parishioners,

The Archdiocesan Pastoral Council In the course of the Archdiocesan Congress, some people have heard about and asked for more details about the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council. For the benefit of all, let me say a brief word about this vital body in the Archdiocese. I’ll begin by pointing out that just as most parishes have a Parish Pastoral Council, so the Archdiocese also has such a council. In fact, in Church law, the point is made primarily that all dioceses should have a pastoral council. By extension, the law goes on to say that parishes also should have a pastoral council. The Archdiocesan Pastoral Council (APC) is made up of representatives from the many pastoral groups and organizations in the archdiocese. The five deaneries have reps, as well as the CWL and Knights of Columbus, the Holy Family and Catholic school boards, the various pastoral committees in the archdiocese (such as faith formation, youth, Natives, Sisters), the Cursillo movement and Catholic Family Services. This pastoral council meets four times a year. These meetings include Mass, the review of a couple of archdiocesan policies from the policy manual, reports from each of the member bodies, and a free exchange on any pastoral issue that we face in this archdiocese. Now that the Congress has worked on a pastoral plan over a five year stretch, it is the role of the APC to monitor our progress each year on the plan. In order to show the relationship of the many bodies in this Archdiocese to one another and yo the archbishop, I am including at the end of this letter our organizational chart. It may help those of you who are visual learners to understand our diocesan Church.

Sisters of Holy Cross During this Year of the Consecrated Life, I continue to speak of the various religious communities of men and women who have had an impact on this archdiocese. I come now to the Sisters of Holy Cross. The Sisters of Holy Cross originated as the Marianites of the Holy Cross, founded in 1841 in LeMans () by Father Basile-Antoine Moreau, who was motivated by the need for quality education for the youth of France. Having established themselves in Montreal in 1847, the Canadian province of the Marianites became an autonomous congregation in 1883, under the name of Sisters of Holy Cross.

The first five Holy Cross Sisters in western arrived in Falher from Montreal on 9 November 1920 to teach in a school there. By 1923, their numbers had increased to 9 Sisters. The community of Holy Cross Sisters expanded and grew in our diocese: in 1929, a boarding school in Falher was blessed. This was followed by convents being established in Donnelly (1928) and Grande Prairie (1929). The year 1934 saw the creation of the Western Province of Holy Cross Sisters in . Called the Ste-Therese de l’Enfant Jesus Province, it comprised 32 Sisters serving in four communities: Falher, Donnelly, Chauvin (near Wainwright) and Grande Prairie. The provincial headquarters was located in Donnelly. Other foundations

10301-102nd Street, Grande Prairie AB T8V 2W2 Phone 780.532.9766 Fax 780.532.9706 Email [email protected]

in our diocese followed: (1942), Tangent (1943), Guy (1947) and Jean-Côté (1950). In the majority of these places, the Sisters were teachers in schools that were both French and Catholic. The Sisters’ ministry expanded into some other areas as well. From 1940 to 1950, the Holy Cross Sisters conducted summer schools of catechism. After the 1950s, the Sisters expanded to teaching in schools in non-Catholic settings: Eaglesham (1954), Sexsmith (1957) and (1960). Eventually, the provincial headquarters moved from Donnelly to , and a new provincialate and residence for Sisters was built in Edmonton in 1956. The Sisters were also noted for their involvement in other realms of teaching and community leadership: music and choral concerts, preparation of adults for Baptism (what now we have as the RCIA), catechetical and pastoral ministry, and a French-Canadian youth movement called La Relève, which promoted leadership qualities among francophone youth.

Sisters of the Holy Cross are still found in a few communities in the archdiocese. Sr. Georgette Payeur, originally from Spirit River, resides in Peace River, where for many years she was the director of the Adult Lay Formation Programme. Sister Doris Hamerl lives in Grande Prairie, and in Falher, a community of three sisters provide a variety of services in the parish and in the community: Sisters Edith Boucher, Pauline Granger, and Jeannine Handfield.

Father Michael Uso-Ereyi On June 24th, Michael Uso-Ereyi was ordained to the priesthood in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, McLennan. Most of our priests were present, along with many parishioners from across the archdiocese. Along with his mother from Nigeria and a cousin who lives in , there were many priests from Nigeria, faculty members from St. Joseph Seminary, and other seminarians. It was truly a high celebration of the Lord’s anointing on our brother, who now shares in the ordained ministry of the Church. After a vacation at his home in Nigeria, Father Michael will begin his ministry as the associate pastor of Our Lady of Peace Parish in Peace River.

Father Deepak D’Souza We welcome to our diocese Father Deepak D’Souza, from the Diocese of Allalabad, India. Father Deepak will be arriving on July 6th, and after a time of preparation he will be assigned to ministry.

Pastoral Plan By September, you will see a final outline of the pastoral plan of our archdiocese, as worked on at the Church Alive! Congress in Peace River from 16-18 April past. There was a great deal of spirit shared at the congress,, and I am pleased to see that there has been a renewed focus on pastoral planning since then in many of our parishes and deaneries. As we all heard at the congress, positive action only happens if we plan for it, so our planning is a key.

As we head into the summer months and time of vacation, I pray that the need for rest and relaxation is greatly provided for all of you. Don’t neglect your prayer and Sunday Mass during these weeks of sun and fun. The Lord isn’t losing sight of us; nor should we of Him.

+ Gerard Pettipas, C.Ss.R. Archbishop of -McLennan

10301-102nd Street, Grande Prairie AB T8V 2W2 Phone 780.532.9766 Fax 780.532.9706 Email [email protected]