I recently attended the Western Conference of Catholic Religious Educators held in Banff, Alberta. I was asked to give a tribute to Muriel Loftus at the conference banquet. The article that follows is that tribute. Some of what I said was taken from the reflection presented by Sister Rose-Marie Goguely SSA at the prayer vigil for Muriel.

At our last conference held in Victoria, BC, we celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Western Conference of Catholic Religious Educators (WCCRE). At that banquet, we honoured Muriel Loftus as one of the founders of this organization.

Muriel recognized a need for the opportunity to gather to support one another, to network, and to provide ongoing formation for those involved in catechesis and faith formation. Without her vision and hard work there wouldn’t have been a WCCRE.

It was truly a blessing that we did honour her at that time because on October 4, Muriel was called home to God. I’ve been asked to share some of Muriel's story with you. It is my privilege to do so. Muriel was my mentor, my colleague and my friend.

Muriel believed she was called by God to be a catechist. She spent her life making the message and meaning of Jesus Christ available and accessible to people of all ages and walks of life. Probably her greatest gift was to recognize the gifts of others and call them forth. Many of us were touched by Muriel in this way.

As Diocesan Director of Religious Education in Victoria, she was a member of the first team to work at the translation and adaption of the French resource Viens vers le Père, which became known as the Come to the Father catechetical resource for English-speaking Canada. Muriel was a true pioneer in the Canadian Catechetical movement.

Muriel was a true catechist: she was an echoer of the Word; she could make the gospel stories come alive. The stories of peoples lives were also important her. She had a wonderful gift of being able to link the two stories together.

At Bishop Remi De Roo’s invitation, Muriel hosted Christianne Brusselmans and began the first Rite of Christian Initiation Institute in Canada which served as the launching pad for beginning the RCIA process in the Diocese.

When the Canadian Bishops decided to publish their own Canadian Catechetical resource for English Canada, Muriel was invited to join the writing team. When working on the program development with Lawrence DeMong OSB and others at the National Office, any programs that either she oversaw or to which she served as a consultant, Muriel ensured that the RCIA process was incorporated in a manner that was faithful to the learning styles of children and adults. After her retirement, Father Lawrence and Muriel co-authored another resource for the initiation of children to Confirmation and Eucharist still used in our Diocese: Come to the Table.

Life in this ministry had its fire and high water but Muriel hung in there, trusting that this was God’s work and that God was with her. She frequently quoted St. Ireneaus of the 2nd century AD, “The glory of God is the person fully alive; and to be alive is to behold God.” She believed Jesus the Christ was the “fully alive” person and that we are called to grow into becoming “fully alive:” the persons God intended us to be.

The last year of Muriel’s life was not an easy one. In August, she left her home in Nanaimo and moved to St. Ann’s Residence in Victoria. The Sisters of St. Ann, the staff and nursing staff looked after Muriel with love, tender care and respect.

During August and September, I was blessed to spend time with her. We shared many memories and stories of the early days of catechetical ministry in the Victoria diocese, writing team days in Ottawa, Banff conferences and many more. Many people were a part of those memories. Also, it was a time to thank Muriel.

Muriel sought to live the sacrament of the present moment. I have this wonderful image of Muriel and many of the early members of the WCCRE watching and rejoicing over us here in the mountains.

I’ll close with the words Bishop Claude Champagne OMI reminded us of and address them to Muriel: “In the fulfillment of God’s reign we will be together again.”

Following in her mentor’s footsteps, Marg is a Master Catechist in her own right. She has served people in various catechetical ministries right across the country in her capacity as a leader, whether for a parish, a diocese or school system. Marg has been a member of various writing teams for national catechetical programs, and is a frequent contributor to Celebrate! magazine.