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Umbrellas were raised and prayers sent heavenward as a small band of Catholics gathered in a relentless downpour to celebrate the midway point of the Archdiocese of Vancouver’s 40 Days for Life campaign.

The annual Lenten pro-life campaign has yet to bear legislative fruit in Canada, as the country’s politicians continue to refuse to pass laws to place any restrictions on abortion.

But the two dozen men and women at the March 23 rally showed no signs of discouragement as they joined with Father Larry Lynn, the Archdiocese’s pro-life chaplain, in saying a heartfelt Rosary.

“I’ve never heard the Hail Mary prayed with so much reverence and, well, ardour,” said participant Alex Fantillo. “It was truly inspiring.”

The rally’s guest speaker, Father Mark McGuckin, boosted spirits with a speech that celebrated pro-life activists’ courage and faithfulness.

Father McGuckin, the pastor of St. Francis de Sales Parish in Burnaby, said the commitment shown by campaign participants evoked the spirit of Our Lady of Sorrows.

“Matching Our Blessed Mother’s wounded heart as she knelt before the cross on Mount Calvary, our collective hearts are heavy with the manifold tragedies that lie before us,” Father McGuckin said later. “The steamroller of the culture of death in our society continues to crush our most vulnerable brothers and sisters.”

Father McGuckin said the pro-life faithful are responding by matching “the fearless, forward motion” of the Blessed Mother who drew close to Our Lord at the foot of the cross when most devotees and loyalists abandoned him.

“Our call is just to remain faithful, in the lighter times and in the heavier times,” he said. “We are kneeling in sorrow with Our Blessed Mother, and we also stand, resolute, next to her.”

As he stood under an umbrella held by Father Lynn, Father McGuckin encouraged Catholics to remain faithful to their convictions and to continue to put that faith into action.

“This is the age now of victory,” he said. “This is the age of the Church, and no amount of darkness will be able to eclipse that truth about the sacredness of life that we have been entrusted with to share.”

Fantillo, a parishioner at St. Joseph’s in Mission, said he was motivated to drive 75 kilometres through stormy weather to gather with his fellow pro-life faithful and hear Father McGuckin, who “never fails to inspire.”

“Father Mark needs thanks as he took us to the next level, promoting the most holy missionary call that will, sooner or later, stir in us all,” he said.

During the season of Lent a few years ago, I decided that I would commit to a morning habit of not turning my phone on until after I have had my personal prayer time with Jesus. Part of my rule of life is to find a practical way to connect with Jesus first in the beginning of my day. I found this to be more challenging than I anticipated! Bombarded with constant texts, emails, messages, Instagram, and Facebook notifications, my phone controlled me more than I liked to admit. Plagued with a compulsion to scroll, I had become a slave to technology. Choosing not to reach for my phone to check messages first thing in the morning for forty days turned out to be an interior battle. I knew I couldn’t do this on my own, so I needed to ask for God’s grace everyday and I had to come up with a practical game plan. Each night, I put my phone on “airplane mode” and set my alarm for the time I would get up to pray in the morning. When I would wake up, I would deny myself the urge to turn airplane mode off to see who had messaged me. In order to stay focused, I had a routine: I would set a timer for how long I was going to pray, read the gospel readings of the day, read my devotional book (Jesus Calling by Sarah Young), and pull out my journal. I would reflect on what spoke to me from the readings, and re-read any parts that would resonate with me (Lectio Divina). Through my imagination, I would place myself in the gospel scene with Jesus (Ignatian Spirituality). I would then listen to hear what He had to say, and journal any insights down. After my timer had gone off, I would end with an Our Father. 

For me, I have come to understand a rule of life as a set of practices that I intentionally create or implement in order to preserve something precious. For example, I make it a practice to go to confession at least once a month, in order to cleanse my soul from my sins and failings. During this particular season of Lent in my life, I needed to take action against the vices of being distracted by my phone and neglecting my personal prayer time. I knew that if I made time for Jesus first, the fruits of the spirit – peace, love, hope, and joy – would be a natural result of this commitment.The blessings that came from consistently living out denying myself my phone first thing in the morning during Lent were absolutely astounding.

Shortly before returning to his home in the Vatican on Sunday, Pope Francis made a brief appearance from a fifth-floor balcony of the Gemelli Clinic in Rome to a crowd of faithful gathered outside the hospital.

The moment marked his first public engagement in weeks. Waving and giving a “thumps-up” before blessing the faithful gathered outside Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, the Pontiff briefly thanked one well-wisher for bringing flowers for the occasion.

After the short interaction, the Holy Father was discharged from the hospital and taken to the Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore, where he delivered flowers to place before the icon of the Virgin Salus Populi Romani.

Afterward, he returned to the Vatican, according to the Holy See.

The Pontiff prepared a written message published by the Vatican while briefly appearing at approximately noon to greet the faithful and impart his blessing.

“During this long period of hospitalization, I have had the opportunity to experience the patience of the Lord, which I also see reflected in the tireless care of doctors and health care workers as well as in the attentiveness and hopes of the patients’ families,” Francis noted.

“This confident patience, anchored in God’s love that never fails, is truly necessary for our lives, especially to face the most difficult and painful situations.”

In his written address, the Pope reflected on this third Sunday of Lent’s Gospel reading about the barren fig tree, drawing parallels between the patient farmer in the parable and God’s merciful approach to humanity.

On the situation in Gaza, the Pope called for a ceasefire and “that weapons be silenced immediately; and that there be the courage to resume dialogue, so that all hostages may be freed and a definitive ceasefire reached.”

Francis emphasized that the humanitarian situation in Gaza “is once again extremely serious and requires the urgent commitment of the warring parties and the international community.”

On a more positive note, the Holy Father expressed satisfaction with diplomatic progress in the Caucasus region.

“I am pleased, however, that Armenia and Azerbaijan have agreed on the final text of the peace agreement,” he said. “I hope that it will be signed as soon as possible and can thus contribute to establishing a lasting peace in the South Caucasus.”

Prior to his window appearance and return to the Vatican, Pope Francis briefly met with medical staff and the hospital leadership to thank them for his treatment.

Hospital officials indicated on Saturday that the Pope will continue convalescing at his apartment in Casa Santa Marta for at least two months and will require ongoing oxygen therapy during his convalescence.

TORONTO—For anyone troubled by the state of society or the world, MP Garnett Genuis offers a message of hope and encouragement from St. Peter, who knew something about trouble and sacrifice in times of political distress.

“But even if you should suffer because of righteousness, blessed are you. Do not be afraid or terrified with fear of them…. Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence, keeping your conscience clear.” (1 Pet 3:14-16) 

The Alberta Conservative MP for Sherwood Park – Fort Saskatchewan is also co-chair of Parliament’s Canada-Holy See Friendship Group and spoke recently in the comfortably-crowded common room of Toronto’s Ernescliffe College.

Peter’s message, Genuis said, is for the whole Church, and Catholic citizens hold a critical public office.

It’s up to Catholics, acting individually and together, to make Canada the place it should be through a realistic, open-eyed, patriotic love by Catholics sharing their stories boldly and clearly, projecting their convictions with hope and respect for all who hear them.

No matter how bad things might seem, giving up is no option, he said.

“The idea of giving up on our country should horrify us as citizens,” Genuis said. Instead, Catholics must take up their democratic duties.

Quoting then-Senator John F. Kennedy, he said, “In the final analysis, the kind of government we get depends upon how we fulfill those responsibilities. We, the people, are the boss, and we will get the kind of political leadership, be it good or bad, that we demand and deserve.”

That responsibility, said Genuis explained, means participating at all levels of government and society, in accordance with one’s well-formed conscience and political affiliations. 

For guidance, Genuis pointed to three under-used channels of participation at the federal level:  parties, petitions, and Parliamentary consultations. 

Political parties, he said, fill a fundamental role in shaping democracies by defining the policies that they intend to pursue in government.

It’s also surprisingly easy for individual citizens to have a significant voice in party processes, given that party membership fees tend to be low and only a small fraction of the Canadian electorate join a party.

Every member of a party is entitled to vote in leadership races, and volunteer service on committees and campaign activities can greatly increase one’s scope for influence, Genuis said.  Even going door-to-door provides opportunities for faithful, persuasive exchanges with the public.

As for petitions, these come in many forms, with varying degrees of potential effect. Online petitions can be used persuasively by elected representatives, lobby groups, and other advocates, and can offer the advantage of connections to their sponsors, such as email lists. 

Prime Minister Mark Carney is poised to trigger a snap federal election for late April or early May on Sunday by asking Governor General Mary Simon to dissolve Parliament, setting in motion what could be the most consequential national vote in generations.

As Canadians prepare for the upcoming campaign, Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) president Bishop William McGrattan urged Christians to get involved in the electoral process. 

“I think it is important to realize we do have this freedom and also the responsibility to exercise a decision that will support the country in moving forward in a way that respects common values,” said Bishop McGrattan, who is Bishop of Calgary.

Discourse between relatives, friends, co-workers and fellow churchgoers about the daily news and philosophical debates about the soul of the nation will magnify during the campaign timeframe.

Instead of adopting a combative and intolerant posture during a political discussion with someone expressing clashing viewpoints, Bishop McGrattan said people can exchange ideas charitably.

“I think the first step is to make sure that one is educated or aware of the issues so that one can speak with a certain degree of knowledge,” said Bishop McGrattan.

“And then be open to listening to another person’s perspective and question why they might hold that particular perspective on an issue. Maybe then say, ‘from my perspective of my life of faith, I see this in this light.’

“Faith is not a political position, but faith provides values that we need to be reflecting in our discussions and in making decisions regarding the future of a country and a society.”

Catholics, specifically, are encouraged to resist being one- or two-issue voters by meditating upon all seven core principles of Catholic Social Teaching (CST):

•    Dignity of the human person from conception to natural death;

•    Call to family, community and participation;

•    Rights and responsibilities;

•    Option for the poor and vulnerable;

•    The dignity of work and the rights of workers;

•    Solidarity;

•    Care for God’s Creation.

Lay associations, such as the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, the Catholic Women’s League, the Knights of Columbus, Development and Peace-Caritas Canada, and pro-life groups that champion these values with their respective missions have been active in previous election cycles.

Bishop McGrattan suggested clergy can meaningfully assist these groups by being aware of the realities of food insecurity, mental illness, euthanasia, and health-care barriers in their local context and then “bring those to the attention of our faithful in their discernment and education as the election unfolds.”

For discernment, he said prayer to the Holy Spirit for guidance and wisdom is “essential at this time as we prepare to go into an election.”

The Church encourages us to make sure our kids are “taught the true meaning of penance,” even though fasting rules don’t apply to them.

It’s Lent — time for fasting, for no meat Fridays, and for almsgiving. But do kids have to fast? Or abstain from meat? No! Canon law says that only those from ages 18 to 59 have to fast, while those 14 and older have to abstain from meat. However, at the end of the paragraph about fasting and abstinence in canon law, there is a note for parents I had never noticed before. Parents are supposed to ensure that their children are “taught the true meaning of penance” once they reach the age of reason, even though children are “not bound by the law of fasting and abstinence” (Canon Law 1252).

Why would kids need to know the true meaning of fasting and penance? Also, what is the true meaning of fasting and penance? My answer to both of these questions goes back to one evening at an Indian restaurant a few years ago. My family and I were deciding what to eat from the menu with my husband’s parents, and it was a Friday. We discussed which options did not have meat, and our Indian server overheard us.

“Oh, you don’t eat meat on Fridays then?” she asked.

 “No, we don’t,” we responded.

 She quickly replied, asking “Ah, you do it for Jesus?”

 “Yes, that’s right!” was our resounding reply.

That moment comes back to me every time I am having a hard time making a decision regarding fasting and abstinence, like when I am struggling to figure out what meatless meals we will eat this Friday. Why am I doing this thing, making this sacrifice? Is it because it is just an arbitrary rule that I have to follow if I call myself Catholic? No! It’s for Jesus! I’m doing this for Jesus — the God who loves me and died for me and who becomes present in the Eucharist just so He can be close to me. 

If we can teach our kids that Lent is a time to grow closer to Jesus, and one way we do that is by giving up meat or our normal meal schedule, I think we are well on our way to teaching them the true meaning of penance. And if they learn that lesson now, while they are small, then perhaps it will just be the normal fabric of life by the time they reach their teenage years, rather than a burdensome or arbitrary rule with no context.

Here are a few ideas on how to introduce penance and fasting to your children.

Today, Fr. Mark-Mary guides us through discernment for how to hear the Father’s voice more clearly this Lent through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Are you afraid to approach God?

Jesus says, “When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them… But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” Matthew 6:5-6 

Fr. Mike reminds us that God sees us, notices us and cares for us. Don’t be afraid to approach the throne of grace.

A B.C. Catholic reader and frequent letter writer reached out to us “with astonishment” over last week’s obituary of Sister Dorothy Bob, a Sister of St. Ann who died in Victoria at the age of 92.

Marianne Werner noted that Sister Dorothy Bob had discerned becoming a sister of St. Ann while she was at the Kamloops Indian Residential School. 

Yes, the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

Werner wondered whether Sister Bob had ever been interviewed about her experiences at the school. “Working as a young woman cook at the Kamloops Indian Residential School, she must have seen and heard how students were treated there,” said Werner.

 For many, the Kamloops Indian Residential School has become the embodiment of cultural, if not literal, genocide, to the point that the federal government is thinking about making it a crime to “deny” the veracity of any allegation made by anyone about the school.

Yet, Sister Bob was “impressed sufficiently by the work of the Sisters to become a Sister of St. Ann herself,” notes Werner, and she went on to work in other residential schools.

Above, Sister Dorothy Bob in 1996, and at right in 1959. (B.C. Catholic files)

With a little research, it turns out there is more information about Sister Dorothy Bob’s upbringing. Born on the Fountain Reserve, now the Xaxli’p Band, near Lillooet, Dorothy Bob was an Interior Salish of the Lillooet tribe. 

She attended Kamloops Indian Residential School as a young girl but left after four years to care for her sick mother. She later worked as a cook at the school. Determined to complete her education, she undertook private study in Victoria, finishing Grades 5–10 in one year and then completing Grades 11 and 12 the following year at Camosun College.

She told The B.C. Catholic in 1990 that she recalled searching for a religious community but not knowing how to begin the process. “I kept looking for a community, but I did not know how to become a sister,” she said.

It was only when a Sister of St. Ann approached her and asked if she had ever wanted to be a sister that she took the next step.

“I said ‘yes,’ and that’s how it started,” she recalled, admitting to feeling “a small amount of fear” about the application process. With the guidance of a supportive sister and her trust in God, she overcame the hurdle and embraced her vocation. And so, in her early 20s, Sister Bob entered the Sisters of St. Ann, becoming the first Indigenous girl to do so in the congregation’s hundred-year presence in British Columbia.

On a chilly February morning with light snow falling, hundreds of parish representatives gathered in Coquitlam at Our Lady of Lourdes Church for a planning meeting over coffee and conversation. Volunteers shared their hopes and strategies for this year’s 40 Days for Life campaign, energized by a shared commitment to prayer, witness, and defending life. 

“We’re not organizing an event for one day but a movement that takes place over 40 days and involves hundreds of people,” said Father Larry Lynn, pro-life chaplain for the Archdiocese of Vancouver. “It is certainly unique in that regard.”

The meeting set the stage for what Father Lynn says has been an encouraging start to the campaign. As the largest coordinated pro-life effort in the world, 40 Days for Life unites people from all walks of life in a mission to affirm the dignity of human life and resist cultural forces threatening to dehumanize it.

“It is a stand against the killing of innocent human life in all its forms, starting with abortion and euthanasia,” said Father Lynn. “But it also includes actions that reduce the dignity of human life through torture, murder, human trafficking, slavery, and any other form of violence or neglect.”

Unfortunately, many see abortion or euthanasia as “positive, even necessary actions,” he said. “If you have a basic understanding of Catholic social justice teaching, you would be able to respond that we are the Imago Dei. We are made in the image and likeness of God, and we are all equal in dignity, no matter our circumstances.”

Over the past several decades, a “politics of progression” influenced by philosophers who deny the existence of God has taken hold, he said. “Their ideas have been infused into how society thinks and speaks about human life.” Talk about “reproductive rights” fails to acknowledge that life in the womb “is as worthy as any other.”

Statistics bear out his point. According to the World Health Organization, about 73 million abortions are performed worldwide each year. In Canada alone, there were 97,211 abortions in clinics and hospitals in 2022, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information. Meanwhile, euthanasia accounted for 15,343 deaths in Canada last year, representing five per cent of all deaths. Since euthanasia was legalized in Canada in 2016, there have been 60,301 deaths by assisted suicide.

That’s why prayer is at the centre of pro-life efforts, Father Lynn said. “It’s about changing hearts and minds.”

A focus of this year’s campaign is shedding light on how modern medical and technological advances, such as commercial surrogacy, fetal farming, in vitro fertilization (IVF), gamete donation, and cryopreservation (freezing embryos), increasingly commodify human life.