Immigrant communities helping Catholic church grow in the GTA

ABOVE:  Archdiocese of Toronto has built a new church every year for fourteen years with three more to come. Marianne Dimain reports.

As Catholics around the world gather for Good Friday, the Archdiocese of Toronto says the number of parishioners in the GTA is growing in size and diversity.

Archbishop Thomas Cardinal Collins says multiculturalism is what’s helping drive the growth of the Catholic church in the city.

“We’ve opened a mega church, a large thousand person church, once a year for the last fourteen years. We have three more on the drawing board,” said Collins.

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The Blessed Chinese Martyrs parish in Markham is one of the big churches that has been built over the years. Parishioners heading inside for Good Friday mass say churches that reflect the diversity of the growing community are a good idea.

“I think it’s important because it makes Catholic people feel special,” said Stephen Chang as he walked out of the church with his father.

“It helps people with language barriers. It gives people a chance to experience it in their own tongue,” said Craig Barcial.

At St. Basil’s church downtown, parishioners taking part in a procession from the Newman Centre at the University of Toronto demonstrate the different cultures that make up the congregation.

“When I look out from my chair or the front of the altar and I look out at the congregation there’s not one skin tone that dominates the congregation. There are various skin tones, people speak different languages,” said Father Chris Valka. “It is the common ritual of the mass that brings us all together and that is what we share.”

Archbishop Thomas Cardinal Collins said with the construction of even more churches planned, the community is growing. And as it does, the church makes sure mass reflects its members.

“The Archdiocese of Toronto is very much influenced by the tremendous immigration from all around the world we always point out we celebrate mass in 37 different languages every Sunday,” said Collins