June

	Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Quebec and the Primate of Canada, is not commenting on charges laid against his brother that include having sexual relations with a girl under the age of 14. La Presse newspaper reported June 27 that Paul Ouellet, 62, appeared in court in Amos, Que., June 25, faced with charges from incidents that allegedly occurred in Abitibi, Quebec, between 1982 and 1991. He was released from custody but is to appear in court again in July.
	Born in Zimbabwe, Rev. Ishmael Noko -- general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation (lWF) -- says those who have criticized churches for lagging behind secular society in taking leadership over troubled Zimbabwe are justified in their point, Ecumenical News International reported June 26. The lkeader of the 68-million strong LWF said churches have made a mistake in assessing the country's president, Robert Mugabe. He was speaking at a news conference before the opening meeting of the LWF's main governing body that is meeting in Arusha in northern Tanzania from June 25-30. Civil rights leaders in Zimbabwe have lamented divisions in the country's churches, and accused the Zimbabwe Council of Churches of not speaking up enough about atrocities meted out to people suspected of voting against Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party in March elections, ENI reported.
	Gen. Rick Hillier, the retiring chief of defence staff, is the new chancellor of Memorial University of Newfoundland. Premier Danny Williams announced the appointment Dec. 26 in St. John's. The resignation of Hillier, 52, takes effect July 2.
	Huron University College in London, Ont., has conferred the degree of Doctor of Divinity on Bishop John Chapman, its former Dean of Theology, who is now the Anglican bishop of Ottawa. The degree was presented at the university's convocation ceremony May 8. "His seven-year term as dean was marked by remarkable program innovations and enhanced relationships with the Church through his thoughtful attention to the clergy and laypeople whom the faculty serves. the university said in a news release. "He also built bridges between the work of his faculty and that of Huron's Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences."

	Twenty years ago, Phil Fontaine, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations led the way for other abuse victims by publicly disclosing his abuse in a residential school. The federal government's apology to abuse victims June 11 was a moving experience for him.
	Phil Fontaine, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations, and Governor General Michaëlle Jean embrace after Fontaine was presented with a framed copy of the Statement of Apology.
	Prime Minister Stephern Harper presents Phil Fontaine, the National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations with a framed copy of the Statement of Apology.
	Governor General Michaëlle Jean arrives in the Reading Room of Parliament Hill for ceremonies linked to the government's apology to victims of residential school abuses.
	Margeurite Wabano who, at 104, is the oldest residential school survivor, waits for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, aboriginal leaders and abuse victims to walk down the stairway beside her before joining them as they enter the House of Commons.
	"Finally we have heard Canada say it is sorry," said Assembly of First Nations chief Phil Fontaine after Prime Minister Stephen Harper, on behalf of the Canadian government, apologized in the House of Commons June 11 to victims of abuse in Indian Residential Schools.
	Prime Minister Stephen Harper and aboriginal leaders and guests pause for a photo before entering the House of Commons June 11 where Harper formally apologized to victims of residentials schools on behalf of the Canadian government.
	Prime Minister Stephen Harper presents a framed Statement of Apology to residential school survivor 104-year-old Margeurite Wabano.
	Archbishop Fred Hiltz, the Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, is interviewed by a reporter on Parliament Hill.
	Ottawa Bishop John Chapman, (left), the Rev. Gloria Moses, co-chair of the Anglican Council of Indigenous Peoples, and Archbishop Fred Hiltz, Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada, on Parliament Hill for the government's historical formal apology to residential school victims.
	Bishop Mark MacDonald, the national indigenous bishop for the Anglican Church of Canada, said that June 11, the day that the federal government apologized to residential school victims, "was an extraordinary day and one of the best days of my life."
	Archbishop Gerard Pettipas, president of the 50 Roman Catholic corporations who are signatories to the understanding between aboriginal peoples, the federal government and the churches, was among the many church leaders who came to Ottawa to hear the federal government's formal apology for its role in the residential school system.
	Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl sign the Statement of Apology made to residential school survivors June 11.
	Former Liberal cabinet minister and diplomat Allan Rock has been appointed as president of the University of Ottawa, succeeding Gilles Patry on July 15. Rock, who was also Canada's ambassador to the United Nations, becomes only the second anglophone to head the university in its 120-year history. Rock graduated with a law degree from the Ottawa university in 1971.
	Former NDP leader Alexa McDonough, 63, says she won't be seeking re-election to Parliament in the next election. The Nova Scotia MP led the federal NDP from 1995 to 2003. She served as a politician for almost 30 years and was one of the first women to lead a major political party in Canada.
	This Waco Taperwing, performing at an air show in Ottawa in 2006, will be used in a new film about ill-fated pilot Amelia Earhart, to be portrayed by actor Hilary Swank. But instead of Swank flying the plane it will be Ottawa millionaire Michael Potter, the CEO of Vintage Wings of Canada, based in Gatineau, Quebec, where the plane is part of the Vintage Wings collection. Potter recently spent four days shooting scenes in Dunville, on the south shore of Lake Erie in the Niagara Peninsula, the Ottawa Citizen reported June 5.
	The Catholic Church in Quebec is hoping that the week-long International Eucharistic Congress, which opens June 15 in Quebec City, will lead people to rediscover the church that many of them left during the province's "Quiet revolution" -- a period of intense social change in the 1960s when many past values were rejected.
	A statue of Blessed Francois de Laval, in Old Quebec City, has arms extended invitingly as the Catholic Church in Canada prepares to host the International Eucharistic Congress from June 15-22. The event coincides with the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City and the 350th anniversary of Laval's appointment as Canada's first bishop.
	Vandals spray-painted satanic symbols on two exterior walls, a window and a sign outside the newly opened Holy Spirit Catholic Church in the Stittsville area of Ottawa over the weekend. The markings included upside-down crosses, 666s and other Satanic symbols. Police believe the same vandals later spray-painted similar satanic symbols on two walls of a United Church in nearby Kanata. And as parishioners of Holy Spirit Church attended mass on Sunday morning, vandal(s) smashed a window of a car in an overflow parking lot used by church members and stole a GPS unit. Police are investigating the incidents.
	Archbishop Fred Hiltz, the primate of the Anglican Church of Canada -- speaks at a rally on Parliament Hill May 29 as part of the National Day of Action in support of First Nations. Representing the churches, Hiltz told the crowd of about 1,000, "We stand solidly with national chief Phil Fontaine in appealing to the government for consultation with the Assembly of First Nations in the drafting of the apology" to victims of abuses in residential schools. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is to make the apology in the House of Commons June 11.
	Marchers carrying banners and placards make their way to Parliament Hill May 29 for a rally as part of the National Day of Action in support of First Nations.
	Activist pro-life priest, Fr. Tony Van Hee, is nearing the end of his 19th year of prayer and fasting on Parliament Hill during House of Commons sessions. A Jesuit, Van Hee is a staunch opponent of abortion, euthanasia and active homosexuality.
	As above
	A plaque stolen from the base of this statue of an aboriginal scout in a park near Parliament Hill is believed to be linked to a rash of thefts of bronze items from monuments and properties in Ottawa this year. Officials believe that the high price for scrap metal is the motive behind the thefts.
	The Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa will be the venue for an exhibition and year-long festival marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of world-renowned Ottawa photographer Yousuf Karsh. Karsh, who attended mass at Notre Dame Cathedral, is buried near the graves of members of the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa in Notre Dame Cemetery. The portrait Gallery of Canada is organizing the events for next year although the centenary of Karsh's birth is actually Dec. 23 of this year.
	Tulips grow alongside the National War Memorial in Ottawa a week after the annual Canadian Tulip Festival ended May 19.