Holy Family Parish

DECREE OF ESTABLISHMENT
Parish of Holy Family
in the city of Vancouver, British Columbia

Whereas, Pope Benedict XVI has stated:

‘Following the insistent prayers of these faithful, long deliberated upon by our predecessor John Paul II, and after having listened to the views of the Cardinal Fathers of the Consistory of 22 March 2006, having reflected deeply upon all aspects of the question, invoked the Holy Spirit and trusting in the help of God, with these Apostolic Letters we establish the following:

Art.1. The Roman Missal promulgated by Paul VI is the ordinary expression of the Lex orandi (Law of prayer) of the Catholic Church of the Latin rite. Nonetheless, the Roman Missal promulgated by Saint Pius V and reissued by Blessed John XXIII is to be considered as an extraordinary expression of that same Lex orandi,and must be given due honour for its venerable and ancient usage. These two expressions of the Church’s Lex orandi will in no way lead to a division in the Church’s Lex credendi (Law of belief). They are, in fact, two usages of the one Roman rite.

It is, therefore, permissible to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Mass following the typical edition of the Roman Missal promulgated by Blessed John XXIII in 1962 and never abrogated, as an extraordinary form of the Liturgy of the Church. (Apostolic Letter Summorum Pontificum.)

Whereas, it is the right of the diocesan bishop to erect or alter the limits of parishes after consulting the Presbyteral Council (canon 515),

And Whereas, the Presbyteral Council of the Archdiocese of Vancouver at its meeting of April 24, 2008, was consulted about the establishment of Holy Family Parish;

I hereby decree as follows:

For the greater glory of God and the salvation of souls, by virtue of my pastoral office, I do hereby establish canonically a personal parish (canon 515, §1) to be known as ‘Holy Family Parish’, to serve the faithful of the Archdiocese of Vancouver who remain attached to the Roman Missal promulgated by Blessed John XXIII in 1962.

The parish is established subject to the following provisions:

1. The parish is to be a personal parish (canon 518). Membership is obtained by registration in the parish or by regular attendance at its liturgical services.
2. This parish is under the full jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Vancouver and is subject to the prescriptions of the Code of Canon Law, the Archdiocesan Synodal Statutes and any approved customs of the Archdiocese.
3. The pastor shall by appointed by the Archbishop of Vancouver according to the same canonical prescription.
4. The ministry of the pastor of Holy Family Parish is cumulative with that of the territorial pastor of each member.
5. The parish will keep registers of baptisms, marriages and funerals as required by canon law.
6. The parish has juridic personality by law. It will rely for support on the donations of the faithful who will also be asked to contribute to the customary diocesan collections and Project Advance.
7. The pastor shall be bound to the obligation of the Mass pro populo according to canon 534.
8. The parishioners of Holy Family Parish may also approach, as need arises, the pastor of the territorial parish where they reside.
9. Within six months after the establishment of Holy Family Parish, and in accordance with diocesan norms, the pastor will appoint a pastoral council from those registered in the parish according to diocesan norms.
10. In accordance with canon 537, it is required that a parish finance committee be established in the parish.
11. Holy Family Parish will belong to the Vancouver East deanery.
12. By virtue of his appointment, the pastor of Holy Family Parish has the faculty to celebrate the marriages of his subjects throughout the Archdiocese, with the power to delegate.

This decree will take effect on July 1, 2008.

I entrust to the Lord under the title of Holy Family the continued spiritual growth and development of this community of Christ’s faithful. May those who choose to belong to this new parish continually develop their sense of belonging to the Church, in close communion with the Archbishop of Vancouver, and strive to be an integral part of the pastoral activities of the Archdiocese of Vancouver.

Given at Vancouver, BC, on the Fourth Day of June, in the year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Eight.

Most Reverend Raymond Roussin SM
Archbishop of Vancouver