Ottawa’s Celebration of St. André Bessette

Matthew Harrison

January 11, 2011
This year we celebrated Brother André's first feast day as Saint André.
There were many special celebrations throughout Canada, and at Ottawa's Notre Dame Cathedral there was a bilingual Mass of Thanksgiving for Canada's newest saint.
Ottawa’s Archbishop Terrence Prendergast was the main celebrant.  In his homily, he spoke of the qualities that make Brother André a saint.
We celebrate this Mass of Thanksgiving for Brother André’s life and example of holiness with a Gospel [Matthew 11.25-30] that expresses the foundation of his simplicity.  The passage begins with Jesus giving praise to the Father for revealing personal knowledge of God not to the wise and clever, but to the innocent and little ones. Yes, that is what the heavenly Father chose to do, to remind all—even the shepherds and Magi who are very much in our minds at this Christmas season—that the Kingdom is God’s gift to us and that we must receive it with the humility and simplicity of those who become “children” in the heavenly Kingdom by knowing intimately God the Father and Jesus Christ his Son.
You can see a presentation of this special bilingual Thanksgiving Mass on Salt + Light Television this Thursday, January 13th, at 8pm ET or 9pm PT.