Ottawa’s Mass for the Fallen honors those who ‘paid the ultimate price’ for freedom

“A powerful symbol of peace after years of devastating war.”

That’s how Bishop Scott McCaig described the Armistice of Compiègne, the international agreement that ended fighting in World War I in 1918.

The agreement, also known as the Armistice of 11 November 1918, was signed on that day in the Compiègne Forest, with the last fighting continuing until 11 a.m. local time.

McCaig said the symbolic alignment of the date and time of the signing — taking place at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of that year — was given special significance after the brutality of the long global conflict.

“Over time [in Canada] the day evolved to honor not only those who died in the First World War, but also all Canadian soldiers who served and sacrificed their lives in subsequent wars and military conflicts,” McCaig said.

The prelate, who serves as the bishop of the Military Ordinariate of Canada, will mark that observance this week with the Mass for the Fallen, held in Ottawa’s Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica on Nov. 11.

McCaig said the Mass is “offered for the dead, specifically those who have died in wars, in service to God and country, and the veterans who have passed away.”

“We offer the holy sacrifice and pray for them in gratitude for the sacrifice they made to defend our freedoms and liberate those oppressed by unlawful invasion of their countries,” he said.

The bishop said the observance dates back years, though at one point it was dropped in favor of the national Remembrance Day Ceremony at Ottawa’s cenotaph.

Yet McCaig said that recently the government “has placed increasing restrictions on prayer to the point of an outright banning of any reference to God.”

The military ordinariate subsequently reinstated the memorial Mass. This year will mark the fourth such Mass, and “the numbers are growing from year to year,” McCaig said.

The Canadian War Museum says that around 61,000 Canadians were killed during World War I, though other government figures put the number as high as 66,000.

The government said the contributions of Canadians to the war effort “earned Canada a separate signature on the Treaty of Versailles,” the peace treaty that officially ended the state of war in June 1919.

McCaig said response to the Mass for the Fallen continues to be positive.

“Many serving members, veterans, and family members have expressed their deep appreciation for the Mass for the Fallen,” he said. “Some are deeply moved during the Mass, remembering friends who have fallen in battle.”

“It honors those who have paid the ultimate price for the freedoms we enjoy, not the least of which is freedom of religion,” he said.

Source: https://www.ewtnnews.com/world/americas/ottawa-s-mass-of-the-fallen-honors-those-who-paid-the-ultimate-price-for-freedom