NONPOLITICAL STATEMENT

Mr. Neil Gaudry (St. Boniface): May I have leave for a nonpolitical statement?

Mr. Deputy Speaker: Is there leave for the honourable member for St. Boniface to make a nonpolitical statement? [agreed]

Point of Order

Mr. Gaudry: On a point of order, if the Premier wants a briefing on the convention of the weekend, I will do that later on for him.

Mr. Deputy Speaker: The honourable member did not have a point of order.

* * *

Mr. Deputy Speaker: The honourable member now has leave to put his nonpolitical statement.

Mr. Gaudry: Monsieur le vice-président, il me fait grand plaisir cet après-midi de saluer le Diocèse de Saint-Boniface.

Le 8 décembre dernier marquait l'ouverture officielle d'une année de célébrations entourant le cent-cinquantième anniversaire de la fondation du Diocèse catholique de Saint-Boniface. Plusieurs milliers de Manitobains et Manitobaines auront, au cours de l'année, l'occasion de se joindre à ces fêtes et à mieux connaître sa belle et grande histoire.

Le 16 juillet 1818, trois missionnaires catholiques débarquaient devant le Fort Douglas, ici, à la Rivière-Rouge. Ils représentaient la première présence permanente chrétienne dans L'Ouest. Grâce à la vision et la générosité de Lord Selkirk, ils jetèrent les fondations d'une grande oeuvre qui a marqué non seulement notre province mais le Canada entier.

Vingt-neuf ans après l'arrivée des premiers missionnaires--

Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order, please. Could I ask the members wanting to carry on a conversation to do so either in the Loge or out in the halls. The honourable member for St. Boniface is attempting to put forward his statement at this time. The honourable member for St.Boniface to continue.

Mr. Gaudry: Merci. Vingt-neuf ans après l'arrivée des premiers missionnaires, le Saint-Boniface est érigé en diocèse le 4 juin 1847. Ce diocèse s'étend des Grands Lacs aux Rocheuses et de la frontière américaine au pôle Nord. C'est un vaste pays de mission qui ne compte que deux paroisses, Saint-Boniface et Saint-François-Xavier.

Au cours des 150 dernières années, le Diocèse de Saint-Boniface a joué un rôle significatif dans le développement de la nation métisse, l'éducation, les soins de santé, l'entrée du Manitoba dans la Confédération canadienne, les négociations de traités avec les Premières Nations et le mouvement de colonisation. Il assure la fondation de journaux, d'écoles, de collèges et de services sociaux. Son oeuvre a été grande et pleine de mérite.

Je suis certain que tous les Manitobains et Manitobaines se joignent à moi pour apporter nos meilleurs voeux en cet anniversaire.

Merci beaucoup.

[Translation]

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am very pleased this afternoon to honour the St. Boniface Diocese. Last December 8 marked the official opening of a year of celebrations around the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Catholic Diocese of St. Boniface. Several thousand Manitobans will, in the course of the year, have the opportunity to join in these celebrations and to become better acquainted with its great and fine history.

On July 16, 1818, three Catholic missionaries landed before Fort Douglas here on the Red River. They represented the first permanent Christian presence in the west. Thanks to the vision and generosity of Lord Selkirk, they laid the foundations of a great undertaking which marked not only our province but all of Canada. Twenty-nine years after the arrival of the first missionaries--

Mr. Deputy Speaker: Order, please. Could I ask the members wanting to carry on a conversation to do so either in the loge or out in the halls. The honourable member for St. Boniface is attempting to put forward his statement at this time.

The honourable member for St. Boniface, to continue.

Mr. Gaudry: Twenty-nine years after the arrival of the first missionaries, St. Boniface became a diocese on June 4, 1847. This diocese stretched from the Great Lakes to the Rockies and from the American border to the North Pole. It was a vast mission territory comprising only two parishes, St. Boniface and St. Francois Xavier.

In the course of the last 150 years, the St. Boniface Diocese has played a significant role in the development of the Metis nation, education, health care, the entry of Manitoba into the Canadian Confederation, treaty negotiations with First Nations and the colonisation movement. It undertook the founding of newspapers, schools, colleges and social services. Its work has been great and filled with merit.

I am certain that all Manitobans will join with me in offering their best wishes on the occasion of this anniversary.

Thank you.