Joint Communique #01
National Second Vice-President and Chairperson of Spiritual Development Cathy Bouchard, National Chairperson of Christian Family Life Dorothy Johansen, National Chairperson of Community Life Faith Anderson and National Chairperson of Education and Health Margaret Schwab, April 8, 2022.
Dear sisters in the League,
The League is officially recognized by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) as a lay association of women. It is also affiliated with the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organisations (WUCWO), a worldwide federation holding membership in the conference of International Catholic Organizations and having consultative status with agencies of the United Nations.
On June 11th, WUCWO’s executive committee will have the honour of a private audience with Pope Francis. The committee has decided to give him two gifts that demonstrate the spirituality and the service of its’ member organizations. In this way, the committee can show the scope of WUCWO and include all its members.
WUCWO Vice President General and Regional Vice President North Maribeth Stewart Blogoslawski has invited the League to take part in a spirituality gift of a spiritual bouquet consisting of a listing of the number of masses, rosaries and hours of adoration offered by each region for the intentions of the pope. Can you please ask your diocesan counterparts to inform members of this initiative, collect the numbers of masses, rosaries and hours of adoration your members will offer for the intentions of His Holiness and send those numbers to National Second Vice-President and Chairperson of Spiritual Development Cathy Bouchard (info@cwl.ca) by May 6th.
A spiritual bouquet is composed of personal or council offerings of acts of devotions or prayers said on behalf of Pope Francis and his intentions. Some devotional acts include a celebration of the Eucharist or time in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, making First Fridays or First Saturdays, acts of charity or self-denial. Prayers of offering could be litanies, chaplets, novenas, rosaries, specific individual prayers and offering up a mass or masses for the pope’s intentions.
Here are a few ideas for wording a bouquet:
- “The following are offered for you and your intentions…”
- “I, (name), have offered the following prayers and devotional acts for you and your intentions…”
- “We, (council name, i.e., Sacred Heart Parish Council, Red Deer, Alberta) have offered the following for you and your intentions…”
- “For you and your intentions, the following are offered…”
The second part that the League has been asked to participate in is gifts of service. The service gifts represent work done by the League in the last few years and will be highlighted along with the spiritual bouquet. These will include the 100th anniversary tree planting, support for the lonely, shut-ins and seniors, women’s shelters and food programs. There will also be a focus on the League’s ongoing work on building relationships and partnerships with Indigenous peoples in Canada. WUCWO will bring the League’s gifts of faith, service and social justice to the Holy Father as a sign of its commitment to Catholic and Living It!
Thank you for your gifts for the Holy Father.
“For God and Canada,”
Cathy Bouchard
National Second Vice-President and Chairperson of Spiritual Development
Dorothy Johansen
National Chairperson of Christian Family Life
Faith Anderson
National Chairperson of Community Life
Margaret Schwab
National Chairperson of Education and Health