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Our HistoryOur VisionAt St. Margaret Mary’s Parish, we are a community that strives to be welcoming, hospitable, inclusive, and pastoral; that calls forth values, supports and develops the gifts of each member; that works for peace and justice, that is based on the gospel message of love, forgiveness, compassion and service. We pray this will continue to shape us as the People of God. We promote and continue the transformation begun at the Second Vatican Council, rooted in Scripture, respecting church tradition and open to the mystery of God’s renewing Spirit among us. In so doing we cooperate in our reshaping as a parish and we regain and renew the unity of liturgy, catechesis and the doing of justice. Parish HistoryIn January 1929, a committee of Roman Catholics in Ottawa South petitioned Archbishop Guillaume Forbes of the Archdiocese of Ottawa to establish a parish in the area. The petition was granted, and a Catholic community began to form. The first Mass of the parish was celebrated in the chapel of the Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood on Echo Drive, whose convent was only steps away from the present parish church. With the emerging parish now established, it began to look for a property on which to build a church. A church building previously occupied by Calvin Presbyterian Church was bought in 1930 for $20,000, although the building needed extensive repairs and considerable renovation in order to conform to Roman Catholic liturgical requirements of the time. The present church still shows many features of the original church, however, such as a sloping floor in the narthex, and windows glazed in plain yellow glass, features to be observed in may protestant churches in Ottawa. After the repairs and modifications were made under J. P. MacLaren, Architect, the church was dedicated and the parish was canonically recognized in January 1931. Fr Albert Armstrong was appointed as the first pastor. The church was dedicated to St Margaret Mary Alacoque, a religious sister in the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Paray-le-Monial in France. St Margaret Mary was renowned for her devotion to the Sacred Heart and for her achievements is spreading the practice of First Friday Devotions to the Sacred Heart, a practice at one time common in many Roman Catholic churches. Substantial repairs and modifications have been made to the church building over the years, particularly in 1967, 1971-72, 1975, 1981, and most notably the interior of the church was extensively modified in the late 1990s. A pipe organ installed in the church in 1971 was sold to a Lutheran church during the modifications of the late 1990s. The 1990s modifications entailed a complete refitting of the liturgical space of the church, as well as extensive plumbing, electrical and other work. The kitchen and church hall area in the basement, now called Mary Beattie Hall, was completely renovated during this time. Although the parish church was dedicated in 1931, it was consecrated by Archbishop Marcel Gervais on October 16, 1993. In July of 1931 St Margaret Mary's school was built at the cost of $30,000, and a house at 341 Riverdale was purchased as the first rectory at a cost of $6,500. It was sold in 1945 and the present rectory immediately next to the church was purchased for $8,000. A church, however, is always much more than buildings or renovations. It is the People of God gathered in a particular place to worship God and to be a sign to all people of the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ in that place. It is characterized by its reverence and acts of worship, its fidelity to the Gospel and to the sacraments, and by its acts of caring and mercy for all people. Over the years, the parish has been an active and lively Roman Catholic parish that seeks to be welcoming, hospitable, and inclusive. To that end, in recent years some of the notable projects and programs that have developed include the establishment of a vitally active Parish Pastoral Committee with a number of active subcommittees. These include a tremendously active Social Justice Committee, which in the winter months feeds up to 100 needy people per week in the renovated Mary Beattie Hall. A Pastoral Care Committee provides a personalized ministry to the sick and shut-ins of the parish. There are active ministries around the music of the church. The Rite of Christian Initiation, Sacramental Initiation (Baptism, First Eucharist, First Reconciliation), the proclamation of the Word of God (Lectors), and the administration of the Eucharist (Eucharistic Ministers), Children's Liturgies. Former Pastors and Administrators |
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