In 1944, the Congregation of Holy Cross sent religious from French Canada to Haiti to begin a new mission. Today, the work of the Congregation in Haiti includes eight of the country’s 10 dioceses, and two Holy Cross priests now serve as bishops. The Congregation administers 14 primary and secondary schools. Altogether, Holy Cross educates over 5,000 Haitian children each year.
The Congregation also serves in eight parishes, and its ministries entail advancing the work of providing public health to the poorest.
The Vicariate of Tamil Nadu inaugurated the new community residence at Holy Cross School, Samarasampettai, and celebrated the Final Vows of five seminarians.
The patronal feast of the Congregation of Holy Cross was prayerfully commemorated by the parish community of the Church of Notre-Dame de Sainte-Croix in Le Mans.
In the wake of the residential schools tragedy, Fr. Wilson Andrade, C.S.C., of St. Ann’s Church in Toronto has helped the Archdiocese in the path of reconciliation and healing.
Blessed Basil Moreau put the entire Holy Cross family under the patronage of Our Lady of Sorrows, whose Feast Day we celebrate on September 15. We look to Our Lady of Sorrows as the one who can instruct us and strengthen us in the core of our spirituality to proclaim the cross of Christ as our only hope – Ave Crux Spes Unica!
The title of Mary as Our Lady of Sorrows comes from the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, during which the prophet Simeon says to Mary, "And you yourself a sword will pierce" (Luke 2:35). According to Tradition, Mary suffered seven sorrows in her life, beginning with the very prophecy of Simeon.