A Changing Time

It's Not Always Easy

If Bishop Mahoney or Monsignor Robinson were alive today, they could tell many stories about Catholics who didn’t readily accept the changes that Vatican II initiated. As the number of people in Religious orders decreased, the laity, including women and girls, had to take on more and more responsibility. In 1984, when the Pope came to Canada, he was forewarned that in Canada, women are quite proactive in the Church. But not all have embraced this reality; in fact, there are still people today - men and women - who would rather take Communion from a priest than from a lay person, especially if she’s a woman.

The Legacy Continues

Vatican II mandates that the Church change with the times. It’s true that not as many Catholics are filling the churches, but that doesn’t mean that God is no longer working through ordinary Catholic people. Now one only has to look at the leadership provided by the diocesan ministry offices and their work with lay formation, foundations and ministry training. Opportunities and challenges for spiritual growth are abundant through organizations like Queen’s House of Retreats, Catholic Family Services, St. Paul’s Hospital Spiritual Care and Medical Ethics teams, St. Ann’s, St. George’s or St. Volodymyr’s Seniors Homes or St. Mary’s Redemptorist Lunch Program. The work of Catholic clergy, the Brazil Mission Team, Catholic organizations, parish councils, and ecumenical groups show that God’s work is alive and well.

One doesn’t have to look hard to see Christ in action amongst the staff of our Catholic schools, or amongst the Catholic school board trustees as they work behind the scenes to preserve and safeguard the privileges that our Catholic children enjoy in Saskatchewan. And our youth! No, they are not like us; they are not like the generation before us! They are a global generation. They have access to information that we will never have, and they will use that information to stand up against injustice in the world. A few last stories illustrate the heart of our youth.

Changing the World, One Step at a Time

Monsignor Robinson once said, “Never deny the people the opportunity to give.” The youth of today may not go to church every Sunday, but they certainly create for themselves opportunities for service in the global community. The following are five examples of little ways that ordinary young people have done the work of Christ in the world.  One recent winter, when Father Les returned to the Diocesan Mission in Brazil, several young people who had decided to give up pop and bottled water during Advent gave him the money they had saved to take to the people in the Mission. Last spring, when a group of students investigated the unethical production of blue jeans, they contacted the manufacturer and explained why they refused to buy them; then, they began shopping in second-hand stores. Other young people took the time to befriend new immigrants from Sudan and Iraq and to become aware firsthand of what is going on in those countries. Recently, students organized a Mardi Gras and collected more than $3,000 for relief efforts in New Orleans. Students in all of the high schools have educated themselves about the world’s water problems, and have operated cake and box lunch auctions to raise funds for CCODP. Students in both elementary and high schools have developed partnerships with each other, the elderly and with the community. The list could go on and on.

Ordinary people doing extraordinary things! Our past and our future! We rejoice with thanksgiving and hope!