A trip to Alberta – the heartland of the Canadian West – combines the opportunity to explore the majestic heights of Canada’s Rocky Mountains while getting to know the places and people central to the story of Catholicism’s emergence in western Canada.
The provincial capital of Edmonton is an excellent gateway for undertaking this journey. The two national parks at the heart of the Rocky Mountains – Banff and Jasper – are both about a four drive from Edmonton, while most of the historic Catholic sites are within an easy hour drive of the capital city.
Edmonton
Edmonton boasts several popular attractions including the West Edmonton Mall – the largest mall in North America that covers about 48 city blocks and has everything from an indoor waterpark to roller coasters; the Royal Alberta Museum (an impressive natural history museum); the Telus World of Science; the unique shops and restaurants along the 4th Street Promenade (and the unique Museum of Neon Signs) and the Fort Edmonton Park which brings to life several historic periods from the city’s past.
One historic church tied to the city’s foundation at Fort Edmonton is St. Joachim. The parish was originally established in 1854 as a house chapel at the fort but was later relocated to its present location in the city. The church has been at the center of the city’s French-speaking community ever since.
The northwest corner of Edmonton is home to two historic Catholic churches: Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples and St. Josephat.
“Christ animates the very center of all culture. Thus, not only is Christianity relevant to the Indian people, but Christ, in the members of his Body, is himself Indian”
-St. John Paul II, Apostolic Visit to Canada 1984
Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples is the home for Indigenous Catholics in the city and was visited by Pope Francis during his 2022 visit. It was designated as Canada’s national Indigenous parish in 1991 and is a testament to how Catholicism has been embraced by many Indigenous communities, while preserving certain Indigenous traditions. Most striking are the poles of a tepee that converge above the altar, underneath the words from the Gospel: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The tepee represents a temporary home and place of refuge for the Indigenous, and in this context, it serves as a poignant reminder that God pitched His tent, His home, among His creation. Elsewhere, the church is lined with Indigenous works of religious art and there is a weekly Sunday Indigenous mass.
In the next block over from Sacred Heart is the imposing Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral of St. Josephat. The historic church was completed in the 1940s amidst a surge in Ukrainian immigrants to Edmonton following the Second World War. It is built in traditional eastern style, crowned with seven domes representing the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit and the seven sacraments. The interior is filled with the bright colors and stunning icons and artwork that bring the faith alive. The Cathedral also has a museum telling the story of the Ukrainian Catholic experience in western Canada.
Lac Ste. Anne
About one hour west of Edmonton is historic Lac Ste Anne. This Catholic pilgrimage site is particularly sacred to the Indigenous peoples of western Canada, drawing over 40,000 pilgrims each July. Among the pilgrims that have come to pray at Lac Ste Anne was Pope Francis in 2022.
The lake had an important role in local native spirituality, known as “God’s Lake,” prior to the arrival of the missionaries in the nineteenth century. It was then named after the grandmother of Jesus, largely because of the critical role that the grandmother plays in Cree society.
For over a century, pilgrims have come to bathe in the lake’s water and have reported miraculous healings; as represented by the many crutches and other ex voto offerings on display at the shrine church.
Skaro
About an hour north of Edmonton is the tiny hamlet of Skaro, where a most unexpected site awaits amidst rural country highways: a Lourdes Grotto.
This is not just any Lourdes Grotto. It was not the work of professional engineers, but rather of faithful impoverished immigrants to northern Alberta. Most of these newcomers, mostly from Poland and Ukraine, worked for over two months in the summer of 1919 to clear the land, and move 600 wagon loads of stone and 300 bags of cement to build this outdoor shrine. Starting that year in 1919, and every year thereafter, pilgrims gather on the Feast of the Assumption to honor Our Lady. It is a remarkable site to behold and can be combined with a visit to the church of Our Lady of Good Counsel.
St. Albert
Just outside of Edmonton’s city limits is the town of St. Albert, which holds a very special place in the history of western Canadian Catholicism.
This was the center of the missionary enterprise in the northwest, with Oblate missionaries establishing a mission here in 1861 that would quickly become one of the largest Metis communities in western Canada. It was also here, atop Mission Hill, that the first diocese in Alberta was established in 1871, responsible for all of Alberta and most of Saskatchewan; it later was subsumed into the Archdiocese of Edmonton.
Today that hill is home to both Alberta’s oldest building (the original log chapel), the historic St. Albert Parish (with daily mass Tuesday through Sunday), and the graves of two men on their way to sainthood, in the St. Albert parish cemetery.
The two future saints, whose heroic virtue has already been recognized by the Pope earning them the title “venerable,” provided a profound and courageous witness to earlier generations of Albertans and Indigenous alike. Both of these men belonged to the Oblates of Mary Immaculate; an order known for enduring the toughest conditions for the salvation of souls.
The Venerable Anthony Kowalczyk was the first Polish Oblate in Canada, affectionately known as “God’s blacksmith.” He was a very humble man (left with one arm following an accident at a lumber mill), who worked for close to 30 years as a handyman, porter, gardener and sacristan at Edmonton’s College Saint-Jean. He became a trusted spiritual advisor for students and area residents and was known to work many small miracles. To the many students who arrived feeling homesick, his prescription was invariably to pray the Hail Mary. One example of the many reported miracles was of a boy that sought his help after losing a bus ticket home to Winnipeg; after the two prayed, they stepped outside and there was the bus ticket stuck in the snow. Anthony was declared venerable by Pope Francis in 2013.
The Venerable Vital-Justin Grandin was the first Bishop of St. Albert. He suffered from chronic poor health and a speech impediment and felt unworthy of becoming a bishop (his motto was God chooses the weak of this world). Yet, he ultimately traveled over 25,000 miles on snowshoe and many more on dog sled and horseback to visit all corners of the Prairies and Northwest Territories to accompany and minister to his flock; he was also an ardent defender of Indigenous rights and his missionaries would often accompany the First Nations people on their bison hunts, living for months alongside them during their travels and bringing the Gospel to them.
Also atop Mission Hill is the original wooden chapel that formed the first mission established in St. Albert in 1861. Today, it is a public museum and the oldest standing building in the province of Alberta. Here, at the Father Lacombe Chapel, visitors can tour the chapel and a museum that re-creates the missionary experience in nineteenth century Alberta.
The chapel is named after the Oblate missionary Fr. Albert Lacombe, who was arguably the most influential Catholic missionary in northwest Canada in the later nineteenth century (he is also buried in the St. Albert parish cemetery). He worked tirelessly across the province to introduce the Catholic faith and gain the confidence of the various Indigenous tribes that settled the land. Known as “Good Heart,” by the Blackfoot peoples, and “Noble Heart” by the Cree, he traveled around Alberta preaching to Indigenous peoples on the plains for over fifteen years, as well as some time spent in Minnesota and North Dakota. He is credited with resolving various disputes between the Government and the Indigenous peoples and for establishing Alberta’s first school and building the first bridge in the West.
The splendor of the Canadian wilderness
Before ending your trip to Edmonton, it is definitely worth investing in the journey to one of the national parks in the Rocky Mountains. Jasper National Park is the one closest to Edmonton and is the largest of the national parks in the Canadian Rockies. Here, you are surrounded in spectacular mountain scenery and can cruise along glacier fed lakes, walk along the glaciers at the world renowned Columbia Icefields, ride the Jasper Sky Tram, and see the iconic mountain wildlife like grizzly bears, elk, and moose.
Closer to Edmonton is Elk Island National Park, less than an hour by car from the capital. This is a stunning federally protected preserve, where the bison still roam freely, the elk can be easily spotted and there are many scenic hiking and canoeing trails (or trails for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in the winter months). It is also one of the best night viewing spots in central Alberta for taking in the spectacular Northern Lights.
CATHOLIC CONCIERGE 
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