Regina_03_31

Bolen: ‘I haven’t done anything yet!’

By Frank Flegel

SASKATOON — March 25, 2010 was one of those memorable days that stays with you forever. It was the day that Msgr. Don Bolen, a diocesan priest from the Regina archdiocese, was ordained and installed as bishop of the Saskatoon diocese. (See related stories, below and page 1.)

The celebration began with a reception for invited guests at the Sheraton Cavalier Hotel, followed by dinner and a bus ride to St. Patrick’s Church for the ordination and installation. Attendance at all functions was by invitation only. Special guests included Regina archdiocesan staff and priests, Saskatoon diocesan staff and priests, Bolen’s family, bishops and archbishops from across Canada, one from Australia and several guests from Rome. Bolen for seven years worked in Rome with the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

Archbishops, bishops, priests, ecumenical guests and lay people mingled in what could almost be described as a reunion at the reception. The dinner was a joyous occasion, the room decorated with streamers, the chairs draped with white satin and the tables adorned with a centrepiece that contained a streamer with a quotation from Thomas Merton’s The Sign of Jonas: Mercy within Mercy within Mercy.

Previous Saskatoon bishop Albert LeGatt, appointed Archbishop of St. Boniface last year, directed his dinner remarks to Bolen. “These are your beloved children,” he said of the Saskatoon diocese. “They are adults in the faith. You are the shepherd showing the way to Christ, but don’t expect them to follow you blindly,” he joked. You will have many friends in Christ who will work together with you in the mission of the church, he said.

Several gifts were presented to Bolen, including a chasuble hand made by a group of sisters in Rome. A pastoral staff from the Saskatoon diocese being specially made in Ontario which will be presented later, along with a gift from the Regina clergy.

Bolen received a sustained, standing ovation when he took the podium for his remarks, to which he laughingly responded, “I haven’t done anything yet!”

He opened his brief remarks by saying, “What a wonderful gift to gather here with all of you.” He noted that he was 17 when he first worked for the Regina archdiocese. “I learned my faith there. You are a part of me.”

Chartered buses took the guests to St. Patrick’s Church which was filled to capacity with an estimated attendance of 1,400 people. There were 37 archbishops and bishops, about 130 priests, and a dozen guests from several denominations who occupied a special place beside the podium.

The archbishops and bishops shared the podium with Bolen, principal consecrator Regina Archbishop Daniel Bohan, co-consecrators Rev. Brian Farrell, LC, Secretary for the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity in Rome, and former Bishop of Saskatoon James Weisgerber, now Archbishop of Winnipeg.