The Joy of the Family

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

It has been about 20 months since the Archdiocese of Vancouver adopted the motto “the Church Never Stops” in response to the challenges that faced us during the first year of the pandemic. As we approach the end of the second year of this crisis, I remain grateful that our local Church has indeed never stopped. Our mission of evangelization has continued without faltering.

The trials of this past year in some ways proved more challenging than those of last year: added restrictions on religious worship, increasing attacks on the sanctity of life, widening divisions in our society, and yet another painful reminder of the legacy of the Catholic Church’s involvement in operating government-established residential schools for Indigenous Peoples.

Amid these crosses and challenges, however, the Church never stopped. We continued to be Christ’s hands and feet in the world. We witnessed the providence of God working in the Church in Vancouver in numerous ways:

• We are thankful that our churches and schools are now fully open to worship and education.
• New opportunities have arisen for bringing healing to the longstanding pain of residential school survivors through the Archdiocese’s formal commitment to those who have suffered.
• Our Men’s Shelter now operates from its new location at St. Paul’s Hospital. It is working closely with its partners BC Housing and Providence Health Care to shelter and care for transient or destitute men in downtown Vancouver.
• We experienced a year of blessings as Pope Francis declared the Year of St. Joseph and the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. These celebrations remind us that our country’s patron saint accompanies us in our trials, and that in the face of a throwaway culture that marginalizes the elderly we should honour our older generations.

• The Holy Father blessed the Church by proclaiming the Year of the Family. Appropriately this year’s Archbishop’s Dinner proceeds are funding our reinvigorated Marriage and Family Office, as it helps us testify to the joyful love found in marriage and the family in a culture that desperately needs this witness.
• Despite setbacks that the necessary restrictions brought about, vocations to the priesthood continue to flourish. We celebrated two priestly ordinations: Father Richard Conlin and Father Raffaele Salvino. This October, we were blessed to ordain nine new permanent deacons, who immediately began assisting parishes and other ministries.
• This year we are joyfully celebrating the 500th Anniversary of the Evangelization of the Philippines. Our Filipino Ministry Office has been coordinating a highly creative and successful year-long celebration of events including special Masses, devotions and pilgrimages.

No one knows what challenges may lie ahead in 2022. I am confident, however, that our Catholic community will continue to labour and pray with its customary dedication to ensure that the Church’s mission continues. It is to them that I dedicate this Annual Report, appropriately titled “The Joy of the Family.”

Placing our faithfulness and trust in God’s grace, and through the prayers of the Holy Family, we will continue to ensure that the Church in our beloved Archdiocese of Vancouver, “the Church Never Stops”.