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Last Updated: Friday - 09/24/2010

Week of December 6, 2004

Memories, tears flow at service

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Edmonton

In the rising of the sun and its going down,
we remember them.
In the blowing of the wind and in the chill of winter,
we remember them.
In the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of spring,
we remember them.
So long as we live, they too shall live, for they are now a part of us,
as we remember them.
Holding a lit candle in their hands, about 18 people recited this responsive prayer in memory of their loved deceased ones Nov. 28 at the annual archdiocesan Advent Candlelight Service of Remembrance at the chapel of the Catholic Pastoral Centre.

The Office of Family Life and Health Care has organized the event for the past three years to help the grieving cope with their losses, especially at Christmas.

“We are remembering people who have been a part of our lives,” service organizer Sister Mary Laurene Bradley told the congregation. “We come here to support each other and to share the sadness of their departure and the joyful moments we shared with them when they where part of our lives.”

Archbishop Thomas Collins noted the service is held at a time when people’s feelings are particularly strong. “We remember them because they are part of our family,” he said. “They are in a another dimension of the community of saints. We not only remember them but we (also) pray for them.”

The congregation lit candles of remembrance from the Advent wreath as a symbol of hope.

Angela Smythe of St. Joseph’s Basilica Parish came to remember her husband Gerry who passed away two years ago Dec. 1. “I’m really lucky this service falls so close to his anniversary,” she said. “I came last year too. It really helps me to remember him.”

Carole Ross, a non-Catholic, attended the service to honour the memory of her husband, who died 11 years ago in December. “This is very nice,” she said of the service. “It gives us something concrete to do every year.”

Elizabeth Kontek of St. Thomas More Parish was emotional throughout the 30-minute service. She is still grieving the deaths of her sister four years ago and of her brother the following year.

“I’m having a difficult time because it’s Christmas, like my sister and I used to live together,” Kontek said at a reception following the service. “We were friends and sisters. It was a really deep loss for me.”

Kontek said the service allowed her to remember her siblings and to find consolation.

The Advent Service of Remembrance began three years ago at the request of the archbishop after he realized few parishes in the archdiocese were offering one. Some 50 people attended last year.

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