I belong to a worldwide missionary order known as the Redemptorists which was founded by Saint Alphonsus Liguori in 1732. As a Redemptorist I was formed by the stories of St. Alphonsus and our early founders who would seek out the places in their world where the Gospel had not been heard or where people just did not have access to the life of the Church in a way that most of us take for granted.

I guess it is only natural then that, in the spring of 2009, when I received an invitation to go to the remote Montagnais village of Pakuashipi, Quebec, to celebrate the Easter Triduum, I jumped at the chance. Here was an opportunity, in my eyes, to be a true Redemptorist missionary. It was during this journey, which was also my first real experience of working with Indigenous people, that I received the most amazing blessing in the early days of my own priesthood.

We had just come to the end of the Easter Sunday Mass which I had celebrated with the help of a local interpreter. During the Mass we had blessed a large vessel of water to do a sprinkling Rite with the people and I explained that the water was now available for the people to take home to their families and loved ones who had not been able to come to church. As I was tidying up after the service, I was disappointed to see that nobody had seemed to pay the water any attention and that the church had so quickly emptied out.

I was about to explain to the interpreter, who was the only one who remained behind, that if the water was not used it should be put outside on the ground where it could at least water the trees. But before I could finish my thought, I began to hear the distant sound of snowmobile engines growing closer and closer. I soon realized that not only had many of those who had attended the Mass had returned but also many people who had not been there had joined them after hearing the news through the grape vine that holy water was available. People young and old flooded the church with all kinds of jars in their hands, there were jam jars, pickle jars, cheese whiz jars, all that they could salvaged from their home to take the holy water away. By the time the last person had gotten their fill there was not a drop left.

In seeing the devout faith and spiritual hunger of so many people, who rarely had a chance to celebrate the Eucharist, my heart was touched and I developed a desire to explore this type of ministry in a deeper way.

After that experience, as I often as I could, I would volunteer to spend time, at Christmas and Easter, in small communities where a priest was seldom available. Over time my resolve to do this as a full-time ministry grew and I began to make inquiries about where that could be done. In Canada we have numerous missionary dioceses covering millions of square kilometres. I chose to contact Bishop Murray Chatlain in the one of largest dioceses known as Mackenzie-Fort Smith

To make a long story short, after much prayerful discernment and discussion with the local bishop and with my own Redemptorist community, I found myself as the pastor in the western-arctic region of the Northwest Territories, which included the parish of Inuvik, as well as the mission parishes of Tsiigehtchic, Tuktoyaktuk and Paulatuk. There I was able to live out my Redemptorist and priestly vocation in a way that filled my heart with joy.

My desire to be a fulltime missionary in the north, now fulfilled, I had to ask myself, “now what exactly does a northern missionary do?”

Saving souls and bringing people to Christ once described the missionary purpose and while there may still be validity to that motivation, I began to see a very different missionary approach needed to go with a more modern understanding of the vocation.

I do believe that Jesus is the gift of God Son for us who offers plentiful Redemption. This is our Redemptorist motto and our charism, but as a missionary in the vast territory and history of the North, I realize that I am only human. I know how deeply there has been hurt caused by over-zealous evangelization by some missionaries who have preceded me.

The painful history of the Indian Residential School System is one tragic example of the harm that can be caused when we intervene without a clear understanding of our effect on a culture in which we have no roots and have not taken the time, or cared to understand.

To believe that I am the one bringing salvation would certainly be arrogance on my part. To believe that I am the one to right the wrongs of history would also be foolhardy.

So what can I do? Well I always wanted to work on trying to understand that I am here in a very special kind of give and take relationship with my parishioners. As a Redemptorist I have been formed by our founder’s charism which is to Evangelize but also to be Evangelized by those to whom we are sent.  And so always, as I share my faith with the people, in so many ways, big and small, the stories and wisdom of the people that they share with me give me new direction in my faith that keeps it alive and growing.

I have been formed by many missionaries who have shared their experience with me. These were men who took time and learned the local languages, they learned how to travel on the water by kayak and on the land by dog team and later by boat and skidoo. These men took time to learn the customs of the people and to get to know the families and the relationships.

As the people of the north have had to adapt to the changing technology of our time, the role of the missionary has also needed to adapt. Today being a missionary is to be a presence that journeys with the people, helping to bring awareness to how God is already with then, with the people he or she has come to serve.

In my homilies and pastoral outreach, I have learned to point out the goodness that has been present throughout the history of the Northern peoples; here long before White missionaries came to convert them. And, where there is suffering, I try to bring the message that the people are not alone, that God is with us always.

This is the way that Jesus shared the message of his Father’s love for us all.

Jesus took the laws and the stories from the scriptures and distilled them into a simple message of love for God and for neighbour that everyone could understand and appreciate.

We read in the gospel of Matthew, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’  This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 

Along with this simple wisdom, Devotion to Mary, Mother of Jesus, Mother of God, is also part of the missionary understanding and the love of Mary throughout the North is strong.

Mary is a guide for all of us, and she unites us, north and south, as we learn to put these simple laws of love into our everyday life of faith. Mary comes to us as we need her. Sometimes we need comfort, sometimes we need healing, sometimes we just want to know that we are loved the way only a mother can love and care for her child

As Mary was there for Jesus so she wants to be there for us as our mother. On the cross, in his hour of death, Jesus turned to his beloved disciple and, referring to Mary, he said, “This is your mother”. Jesus was concerned for his favourite disciple, for all the disciples, and so he gave his mother to care for them, to care for the whole Church, to care for us who call upon her name.

Yes, the love of Mary is widespread in the North. There are so many parishes and missions named after Mary. My first parish in the north was Our lady of Victory, famous for its beautiful church fashioned as giant igloo with many details of indigenous life and spirituality decorating its beautiful domed interior.  There is Our Lady of Lourdes in Paulatuk with its painting behind the altar of Mary with Inuit features and wearing a winter parka. There is our Lady of Grace in Tuktoyaktuk, Our Lady of Light in Kugluktuk among numerous others.

Though their churches may have been named by foreign missionaries, the prayers of the people are personal, spoken in their own language, offering up the needs for which only their hearts can give voice.

They too are evangelists, helping me to understand in today’s terms what it means to truly be a missionary.

We don’t have to go to some remote location to find people who are spiritually hungry when so many around us are longing to discover the meaning in life that comes from knowing God. All of us can learn that message and teach it by our word and our actions.

But if you do feel the call of the North, and desire to find yourself in the midst of a great adventure maybe you should think about coming up here for a little while, or for longer.

If you are attracted to learning about other cultures and ways of relating to the environment, to the Holy Spirit, to creation, please, I would love to hear from you.

And if you find yourself called to a missionary life, be ready to be a learner before you are teacher and be ready to listen before you spend much energy thinking about what you might have to say.  Be ready to put all your trust in God and ask the Holy Spirit for the gifts of perseverance, strength, courage and humility.

And know that there is a place for a modern missionary in the north and perhaps that missionary is you.

May Almighty God bless you: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.