MESSAGES FROM THE BISHOP'S OFFICE
- BISHOP DABROWSKI & AUXILIARY BISHOP LOBSINGER -
BISHOP DABROWSKI'S EASTER 2026 MESSAGE
CONTACT YOUR MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT REGARDING
BILL C-218 - THE RIGHT TO RECOVER ACT
sHARE LENT MESSAGE FROM
HIS EXCELLENCY, BISHOP JOSEPH DABROWSKI, CSMA
LENTEN MESSAGE FROM
HIS EXCELLENCY, BISHOP JOSEPH DABROWSKI, CSMA
cccb statement on bill c-218:
no "maid" for mental illness
Date posted on February 6, 2026
The Permanent Council of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has issued a statement strongly supporting Private Member’s Bill C-218, which seeks to prevent persons whose sole medical condition is mental illness from accessing euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (“MAiD”).
The CCCB has a strong record of opposing “MAiD” and seeking to limit its scope in Canadian society. This statement has been approved by 14 Bishops from across Canada, who together form the Permanent Council, CCCB’s most authoritative voice between Plenary Assembly meetings.
The statement’s position aligns with the Permanent Council’s 2023 Open Letter to the Government of Canada on Permitting Persons Living with Mental Illness to Access Euthanasia/Assisted Suicide: “To enable or assist in the suicide for these patients directly contradicts national suicide prevention strategies and reneges on our collective social responsibility to provide persons living with mental health challenges with treatment, support, and hope through therapeutic interventions.”
Referencing empirical research and the professional judgment of many mental health professionals, today’s statement notes that mental illness is not necessarily irremediable. This implies that access to treatment for mental illness, including palliative care, must be improved.
The Permanent Council concludes with an exhortation to allow parliamentary voting on Bill C-218 to proceed according to their conscience rather than following party line.
Read the full statement:
https://www.cccb.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2026-02-04-Statement-by-CCCB-PC-Support-of-Bill-C-218.pdf
The Permanent Council of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has issued a statement strongly supporting Private Member’s Bill C-218, which seeks to prevent persons whose sole medical condition is mental illness from accessing euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (“MAiD”).
The CCCB has a strong record of opposing “MAiD” and seeking to limit its scope in Canadian society. This statement has been approved by 14 Bishops from across Canada, who together form the Permanent Council, CCCB’s most authoritative voice between Plenary Assembly meetings.
The statement’s position aligns with the Permanent Council’s 2023 Open Letter to the Government of Canada on Permitting Persons Living with Mental Illness to Access Euthanasia/Assisted Suicide: “To enable or assist in the suicide for these patients directly contradicts national suicide prevention strategies and reneges on our collective social responsibility to provide persons living with mental health challenges with treatment, support, and hope through therapeutic interventions.”
Referencing empirical research and the professional judgment of many mental health professionals, today’s statement notes that mental illness is not necessarily irremediable. This implies that access to treatment for mental illness, including palliative care, must be improved.
The Permanent Council concludes with an exhortation to allow parliamentary voting on Bill C-218 to proceed according to their conscience rather than following party line.
Read the full statement:
https://www.cccb.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2026-02-04-Statement-by-CCCB-PC-Support-of-Bill-C-218.pdf
HIS EXCELLENCY, BISHOP JOSEPH DABROWSKI
installation mass
february 2, 2026
View Highlights Here: Installation Mass Highlights
TENTH BISHOP OF HAMILTON ANNOUNCEMENT
BISHOPS RAISE SERIOUS CONCERNS ABOUT THREATS TO
CHARITABLE STATUS DESIGNATION
| CCCB Letter to the Honorable Francois Philippe Champagne PC MP Minister of Finance |
the spirit garden
A project seven years in the making, was officially opened at Nathan Phillips Square, Toronto City Hall, on September 30th, 2024 the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation. More than 100 residential school survivors were the first to walk in the space along with Indigenous community members and politicians. The project of the Toronto Fire Indigenous Council, supported by many Catholic organizations including the Diocese of Hamilton, is designed to bridge cross-cultural dialogue through teaching, learning, sharing and healing for both Indigenous communities and all who visit. It responds in part to a Call to Action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The Spirit Garden features a six-foot tall limestone turtle sculpture, and 36-foot-long stainless steel spirit canoe with laser-cut artwork and painted panels, a five-foot-tall Inuksuk, a teaching lodge and two-way Wampum walkway, and a Three Sisters garden planted with beans, squash and corn, accompanied by artwork etched onto Muntz metal panels. It is the most recent “must visit’ location in the city!
forward together in christ
A digital copy of the Forward Together In Christ document resulting from the deanery meetings with parish delegates from across the Diocese is now available. To view it, click here. A PDF file is below.
| Forward Together in Christ |
conflict in the holy land, ways to help
LIVING AS CATHOLICS IN THE PUBLIC SQUARE:
FREEDOM OF RELIGION AND CONSCIENCE IN CANADA
| CCCB - Living as Catholics |
From the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishop's website
Indigenous reconciliation fund
| Indigenous Reconciliation Fund Collection April 2023 |
Pastoral Letters to the Indigenous Peoples of Canada
from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) released a series of Pastoral Letters to First Nations, Inuit, Métis, and the People of God in Canada, to affirm its ongoing commitment to renewing and strengthening relations with Indigenous Peoples at the national, regional, and local levels.
Each of the distinct Pastoral Letters in this series titled, That We May Walk Together, is the fruit of many months of listening, dialogue, and encounter with Indigenous Peoples, especially through Listening Circles held in dioceses across the country, the Indigenous Delegation to the Vatican in April 2022, and Pope Francis’ Apostolic Voyage to Canada in July of the same year.
You may access the PDF files on the CCCB website, in English and in French, by clicking the following links
https://www.cccb.ca/indigenous-peoples/that-we-may-walk-together-series-of-pastoral-letters-2023/
For additional context, please refer to the announcement on the CCCB website:
https://www.cccb.ca/announcement/cccb-invites-indigenous-peoples-to-continue-walking-together-on-the-journey-of-truth-justice-healing-reconciliation-and-hope/
Each of the distinct Pastoral Letters in this series titled, That We May Walk Together, is the fruit of many months of listening, dialogue, and encounter with Indigenous Peoples, especially through Listening Circles held in dioceses across the country, the Indigenous Delegation to the Vatican in April 2022, and Pope Francis’ Apostolic Voyage to Canada in July of the same year.
You may access the PDF files on the CCCB website, in English and in French, by clicking the following links
https://www.cccb.ca/indigenous-peoples/that-we-may-walk-together-series-of-pastoral-letters-2023/
For additional context, please refer to the announcement on the CCCB website:
https://www.cccb.ca/announcement/cccb-invites-indigenous-peoples-to-continue-walking-together-on-the-journey-of-truth-justice-healing-reconciliation-and-hope/
Synod, forward together in christ
| Frequently Asked Questions - IRF |
| Pastoral Letter Re Indigenous Reconciliation Fund |
COVID VACCINES
The official position of the Catholic Church is that all available COVID vaccines are ethical and all Catholics who are able are encouraged to receive the vaccine. Bishop Douglas Crosby, OMI, encourages every member of the Catholic Church within our Diocese of Hamilton to be fully vaccinated.
| Statement of Apology by the Catholic Bishopes of Canada to the Indigenous People |
to inform, to encourage, to heal
For further information, please visit: https://hamiltondiocese.com/residential-schools/
Updates will continue to be posted to this website.
Updates will continue to be posted to this website.
| Letter from Bishop Crosby - To Inform, To Encourage, To Heal |
For more information, visit: https://hamiltondiocese.com/residential-schools/
THE CALL FOR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH TO APOLOGIZE...
THE CALL FOR THE CATHOLIC CHURCH TO “APOLOGIZE” for our involvement in government sponsored Indigenous Residential Schools is loud and clear. The apologies actually began 30 years ago, when the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate offered an apology at the annual Lac Ste. Anne (Alberta) pilgrimage – a long-time sacred pilgrimage site for thousands of Indigenous Peoples from North America. The Oblates were marking their 150th anniversary of presence and ministry in Canada, and chose to make the apology an important part of the anniversary year. You can read the apology here.
