Patrick Jamieson, Victoria, BC

February 19 was the evening of a dinner discussion organized by Doug Roche and Pearl Gervais, with Archbishop Don Bolen as special guest, at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Victoria. The idea was to kick about ideas from experience on the state of the church and the ways ahead, from a mixed group on Vancouver Island, sponsored by The Remi De Roo Institute administered by Pearl Gervais.

The crowd included Char and Gerry Herkel from Qualicum Beach, Nancy Stuart of Development and Peace experience, two Sisters of St. Ann, Marie Zarowny and Joyce Harris.

When I got on the elevator to go to the second floor Gabriola Room of the hotel, Diocesan priest William Hann was there with Bishop Don. I wanted to introduce myself to the bishop because he had attended theology school in Ottawa in the 1990s with my younger sister Christine and they had remained fast friends due to similar pastoral interests, particularly Indigenous Spirituality which they continue to teach together at various events nationally and beyond. I enjoyed how his face lit up when I explained who I was in relation to Christine.

Coincidentally William Hann also attended theology school at St. Paul’s but at an earlier period. William is from Newfoundland. He said he and Don Bolen in those days spoke often about the prophetic ministry of Bishop Remi De Roo, and here he was now the vicar General of the Diocese of Victoria.

The conversation was like that all evening, casual, from the heart, no big analysis, tentatively feeling our way as an ad hoc prophetic community full of mutual respect and curious about how to bring about the synodal church of the late Pope Francis and Bishop Remi, in the light of Pope Leo’s teaching exhortation Dilexi Te, he has loved you.

Typically, Pearl Gervais had provided us each with this reading material which I found interesting from a psychological point of view, as it indicated how well prepared the new pope was to complete the work started by his immediate predecessor. Doug Roche, now 96 years young, served as moderator, keeping the dialogue moving and on point. Doug went first, throwing out a challenge to the Archbishop to start the conversation.

Doug and I have been meeting on this theme for any number of years. I feel he is the most apt candidate to spearhead the lay aspect of our responsibility to bring about possible progressive change. After all, he founded Canada’s first Vatican Two newspaper, the Western Catholic Reporter out of Edmonton in 1965, was elected as a forward looking progressive conservative Member of Parliament in the Seventies and Eighties. He was appointed a senator by a Liberal prime minister, and appointed United Nations Ambassador for Peace and Disarmament by a Conservative one. (see Doug’s article in the “Main Feature” tab)

He has been recently writing for Island Catholic News about Pope Leo and the new prime minister, Mark Carney as potent antidotes to the virulence of Donald Trump.

Some anguish was expressed around the subject of the slowness of some parishes to take seriously the synodal process or even Vatican II, and of course the generational gap in church attendance, but the general theme was creative ministry in the fields of social justice, progressive faith