St. Joseph (Foyer Statue)

Mount Joseph Catholic Hospital
Vancouver, B.C. Canada

"Joseph (Hebrew: יוֹסֵף‎, romanized: Yosef; Greek: Ἰωσήφ, romanized: Ioséph) is a figure in the canonical gospels who was married to Mary, Jesus' mother, and was Jesus' legal father.^[1] In the Apocrypha, Joseph was the father of James, Joses, Jude, Simon, and at least two daughters. According to Epiphanius and the apocryphal History of Joseph the Carpenter, these children were from a marriage which predated the one with Mary, a belief that is accepted by some select Christian denominations. Perspectives on Joseph as a historical figure are distinguished from a theological reading of the Gospel texts.^[2]

"Joseph is venerated as Saint Joseph in the Catholic Church, Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Church, Anglicanism and Lutheranism.^[3][4] In both Catholic and Protestant traditions, Joseph is regarded as the patron saint of workers and is associated with various feast days. Pope Pius IX declared him to be both the patron and the protector of the Catholic Church, in addition to his patronages of the sick and of a happy death, due to the belief that he died in the presence of Jesus and Mary. In popular piety, Joseph is regarded as a model for fathers and has also become patron of various dioceses and places.(Link 2)

Chapel

"Mount Saint Joseph Hospital opened in Vancouver in 1946, but its history begins many years earlier, with the dream of a young Quebec girl named Délia Tetreault.

Altar Area

"In 1902, Delia Tetreault of Marieville, Quebec, helped found the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception – the first missionary congregation for women in Canada. Nineteen years later, four Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Conception moved across Canada to Vancouver. In a home on Keefer Street, they provided health and education services primarily to the Asian community.

"By the time the Sisters marked the 25-year anniversary of their arrival in Vancouver, their work had outgrown three buildings, leading to the opening of Mount Saint Joseph Hospital (MSJ) in 1946. During their years in Vancouver, a total of 173 Sisters have served through health care, education, parish work and family counseling. Each and every Sister has been faithful to the teaching of Mother Délia.

 (Right of Altar Statue)

Left of Altar Statue

"Today, MSJ is a 240-bed acute and extended care facility with an international reputation for excellence in providing for the needs of multi-faith and multi-ethnic communities. MSJ was founded on the principles of adaptability and responsiveness to ever-changing community needs, and continues to fulfill that mission. 

Sanctuary Banner

"A HISTORY OF MILESTONES

1946 — Mount Saint Joseph Hospital opens.
1948 – Mount Saint Joseph Hospital is recognized as a general hospital.
1956 – A 50-bed wing is added, thanks in part to the work of the newly created Ladies’ Auxiliary.
1960s – A dramatic drop in maternity admissions leads to a decision to close the maternity ward.
1965 – The chronic care department is converted into an Extended Care Unit, with state-of-the-art physiotherapy facilities.
1969 – A new three-bed Intensive Care Unit is created.
1970 – The Day Care Surgery Centre opens.
1979 – The Short Stay Assessment and Treatment Centre opens, establishing the first specialized geriatric service of its kind in BC.
1984 – Mount Saint Joseph Foundation is established.
1989 – The Lifeline Emergency Response System is introduced (Now the second-largest program of its kind in Canada, the system allows at-risk individuals to wear a button linking them to an emergency centre 24 hours a day, allowing them to safely remain in their own homes.)
1991 – An addition to the fourth floor paves the way for the new pediatric unit; two years later the hospital joins forces with BC’s Children’s Hospital to share expertise and to jointly operate MSJ’s expanded pediatric wing.
1992 – MSJ creates the positions of director of Multicultural Services and a coordinator of Interpreter Services." (Link 1.)

Sanctuary Side Windows

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Photos: Taken in September 2019 by SW.

Link 1: http://www.providencehealthcare.org/hospitals-residences/mount-saint-joseph-hospital/overview/history

Link 2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Joseph

Prayer

God, be with persecuted Christians throughout the world. Amen (SW.)

Our Mother of Sorrows Chapel
(3rd Floor Burrard Building)

St. Paul's Hospital Chapel
Vancouver, B.C. Canada

Our Mother of Sorrows Chapel is on the 3rd floor of the Burrard Building of St. Pauls Hospital at 1018 Burrard St. in Vancouver, B.C. Canada.  The double doors leading to the chapel each feature three red glass crosses.

The altar at the front of the chapel features a relief sculpture of  The Last Supper. On the wall behind the altar is a crucifix and in the right hand corner a statue of The Virgin Mary.

Altar-The Lord's Supper

The Virgin Mary-right front corner of chapel

Lining the west wall of the chapel, and opposite the doors are three sets of doubled windows.  The glass panes are multiple diamonds of opaque leaded glass.  The east and south walls of the chapel are lined with carved Stations of the Cross.

Station of the Cross-#5

In the rear of the chapel a pedestaled Holy Water Font sits next to the double entrance doors.  Statues of the Pieta and The Christ Child  line the east wall. And hanging from the east rear corner is a golden angel.

Pieta

Angel

Services in the Chapel include: Roman Catholic Mass Monday through Thursday and Sundays with Confession before and after Mass and Anglican communion on Fridays.  All these services are at 12:30 pm.  "Spaces are available to persons of all faiths and religious traditions for prayer, meditation, and quiet reflection." (REF.)

***

"From the beginning, the sisters, staff and physicians of St. Paul’s were keenly interested in using the latest medical technology. The hospital became one of the first to have its own X-ray machine, circa 1906. By the 1970s, plans were in place to remake the 500-bed hospital to fulfill its new role as a provincial referral and tertiary care centre for specialty services, with the ability to respond to changing needs in community care.

"Now a renowned teaching hospital with a strong research focus, St. Paul’s Hospital is recognized provincially, nationally and internationally for its work in the areas of heart disease, kidney disease, nutritional disorders, HIV/AIDS, and the care of the disadvantaged. 

St. Paul's Hospital
1081 Burrard Street

(Janet Wood painting)

"1843 – Sisters of Providence is founded in Montreal.
1894 – The congregation establishes St. Paul’s, a 25-bed compassionate care hospital.

1904 – A surge in Vancouver’s growth brought on by the Klondike gold rush allows for the first of many expansions, with the addition of 50 more beds. 

1906 – St. Paul’s becomes one of the first hospitals to have its own X-ray machine.

1907 – The School of Nursing at St. Paul’s Hospital is officially opened on September 1.

1914 – A modern fireproof structure with a new surgical department and 120 beds is added.

1931 – The North Wing is completed.

1945 – The South Wing is completed - combined with the North Wing this means an additional 500 beds.

1969 – The first lay administrator is hired and runs the hospital while the Sisters continue their involvement in the hospital and on the board.

1983 – The first 10-story tower is completed.

1991 – The second 10-story tower is completed." (Link )

Photos: Taken in Jan 2014 by SW.
Reference: "Care of the Human Spirit" pamphlet by Pastoral Care Services, Provindence Health Care.

Link: http://www.providencehealthcare.org/hospitals-residences/st-pauls-hospital/overview/history

Prayer

God, be with the persecuted Christians through out the world. Amen (SW.)