By Peter Oliver, Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan In January 2024, the Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan (CHAS) identified working with the Saskatchewan Bishops to develop a provincial response to medically-provided euthanasia (known as Medical Assistance in Dying or MAiD) as a top priority. Instinctively this felt right, but I’m prone to ask questions and I...
Category: Canada
Child’s death certificate muddies Edmonton class-action allegation
An alleged murder that is part of a class action suit against the Archdiocese of Edmonton was actually death from meningitis, a government record obtained by The Catholic Register affirms. In court filings last February, lead plaintiff Sphenia Jones says she witnessed fellow student Vicky Stewart dying “after being hit in the head with a wood implement...
The Catholic carbon tax conundrum: balancing solidarity, subsidiarity, governance, and prudence
As the world navigates the complexities of the climate change issue, the implementation of a carbon tax has become an unavoidable reminder that political and practical choices and actions often have complex and unforeseen consequences. They can, for example, have impacts not only on the environment, but on individuals who have to deal with the...
Former trustee feels vindicated by dicastery’s dignity document
Reading the passages about gender theory written in the new Vatican document Dignitas Infinita (Infinite Dignity) offered Francine Champagne, a former school trustee in Winnipeg, a feeling of vindication. “The document supports what I have been saying all along: We are born male or female,” said Champagne. “God makes no mistakes.” The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith...
Columnist admits he ‘MAiD’ an error
Pundits generally, and perhaps columnists in particular, do not often admit to making mistakes. Or, at least, to errors in judgement publicly expressed. Earning, as they do, their daily bread by purveying opinion, it doesn’t do, as they say in England, to be chopping and changing. So, it is a special kind of pundit who...
Catholic high school football star eyes God over NFL draft as path to success
Days before the April 25-27 NFL draft, Theo Johnson was reconnecting with his Windsor, Ont., roots instead of focusing on being pegged by Bleacher Report as the 107th-ranked prospect. “I’m back in the places that built me up to who I am,” said Johnson. “Seeing my old high school reminded me a lot of the...
Audience erupts in anger as trustees oppose flying pro-life flag at Toronto Catholic schools
The International Pro-Life Flag will not fly over Toronto Catholic schools this May. Toronto Catholic District School Board trustees voted against an April 23 motion proposed by trustee Michael Del Grande that the pro-life flag fly outside all schools and the Catholic Education Centre during the month of May, just as the board voted to...
Our Lady of Fatima’s visit to Vancouver: a decade-long journey
For Ethelyn David, Catholic event organizing seems to be second nature. From Marian conferences to parish missions, she has been promoting and coordinating celebrations of faith and devotion across the Archdiocese of Vancouver through her Mediatrix Conferences organization. But she hadn’t intended to be front and centre in Our Lady of Fatima’s visit to Vancouver....
Celebrating the Easter art of pysanky
For decades, the Madonna House Apostolate has been practising the Ukrainian tradition of pysanky, the “writing,” or dying of ornate eggs. Now the tradition has taken on new significance by helping to create a sense of solidarity with people in Ukraine, says Madonna House community member Emmanuella Kim. The centuries-old Ukrainian practice of pysanky is...
Priests pumped to add voices to synod panel
They have yet to receive an agenda outlining what their Vatican visit will entail, but Fr. Fábio de Souza, Fr. Pierre Ducharme, O.F.M., and Fr. Daniel Ouellet told The Catholic Register they are ready to discern, listen and share at the “Parish Priests for the Synod” international meeting. At the Holy See’s behest, the Canadian Conference of...