By Kiply Lukan Yaworski, Catholic Saskatoon News

A focus on the impact of Pope Francis on ministry and mission in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon was part of the Bishop’s Dinner this year, falling as it did in a  nine-day period of mourning for the Holy Father, known as “novendiali.”

The gala evening presented by the Diocese of Saskatoon Catholic Foundation on May 1 at the Cathedral of the Holy Family in Saskatoon opened with a prayer for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis, led by Fr. Prince Sarpong, pastor of parishes at Fox Valley, Leader, Liebenthal, and Richmound in the southwest corner of the diocese.

“We did not think we would be here tonight, recalling the death of Pope Francis” noted Bishop Mark Hagemoen in his address at the 2025 Bishop’s Dinner, five days after the pope was laid to rest at St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome.

“We did want to make this shift tonight,” he said of adding a tribute to the Holy Father to the theme for the dinner: Bringing Hope to the Table. “Pope Francis has had a tremendous effect on our diocese, including on many of the features of our diocesan work and ministry, and also the work of other Catholic organizations and charities in this city and beyond.”

Before offering his own reflection on the Holy Father’s legacy, Hagemoen introduced a video (click link below) featuring local members of the Catholic community reflecting on the impact that Pope Francis has had on their ministry, faith, and mission.

Video reflections:

Speakers featured in the video (above) include:

• Fr. Joseph Salihu, pastor of Holy Spirit Parish in Saskatoon;
• Sr. Malou Tibayan of the Verbum Dei Missionary Fraternity;
• Sandi Harper of Our Lady of Guadalupe Indigenous Parish who serves on the Diocesan Council for Truth and Reconciliation;
• Diane Boyko, Chair of Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools;
• Dr. Carl Still, President of St. Thomas More College;
• John Hickey, Evangelization and Mission Leader in the diocese of Saskatoon;
• Fr. Kevin McGee, diocesan Vicar-General and pastor at St. Mary Parish in Saskatoon;
• Brenda FitzGerald, Chair of the diocesan Safeguarding Committee;
• Dr. Gordon Martell, Co-Chair of the Indigenous Reconciliation Circle and the Indigenous Reconciliation Fund granting committee;
• Corey Miller, President and CEO of Emmanuel Health;
• Myron Rogal, Coordinator of Justice and Peace in the diocese of Saskatoon;
• François Rivard, Director of Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools;
• Peter Oliver, Director of the Catholic Health Association of Saskatchewan, and
• Sr. Marta Piano of the Verbum Dei Missionary Fraternity.

“God is not afraid — and we are all called to be missionary disciples. These are two phrases that stood out for me in this video presentation on the impact of Pope Francis’ leadership,” the bishop said, before adding his own reflections about themes of Pope Francis’ legacy that have inspired ministry in the diocese of Saskatoon.

Bishop’s reflection

“The first theme is fraternity and dialogue,” said Hagemoen, citing the papal document Fratelli Tutti, which encourages peace, encounter, solidarity, and active engagement and respect for peoples, religions, and cultures. “In many ways it has inspired the development of leadership programs and mentored programs here — in addition to Called and Gifted, it has inspired Project Timothy for youth and young adults, and also our vocations work at Sts. Benedict and Scholastica.”

The bishop also noted that Pope Francis has been a reformer in many ways. “His vision about reform really inspired me, and many of my brother bishops, but also many others who worked in administration in various businesses, not-for-profit organizations, in addition to the church.”

Pope Francis encouraged a spirit of both subsidiarity (encouraging a focus at the local level) and solidarity (pursuing a bond of unity and support at all levels), noted Hagemoen, describing how these two principals are also fundamental in how the diocese has undertaken ministry — striving to support parishes in what they are doing at the local level, while providing resources and leadership when help is needed.

The goal is always to function as a Christian community, for the purpose of Christ’s vision and mission for the world, he said. “The Synod on Synodality is actually the life-blood of church reform. It is not about pastoral objectives, but it is about establishing a Christ-like mindset and the methodology where we engage with others: we listen, we listen, and then, we listen more. And that is a tough exercise. But in all of this we strive to be Christ-like.”

Pope Francis’ documents on Care for Creation are another part of his legacy that have resonated for Hagemoen — for instance, the papal exhortation Laudato Si’ was released when as bishop of the northern diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith, he was visiting Indigenous leaders working to have Great Bear Lake declared a world heritage site. He recalled the Elders of the community saying about Laudato Si’: “this is good teaching; our Elders have been talking about this for many, many years.”

The bishop added: “I never forgot that phrase, and it has stayed with me ever since: to think about how the relationship with creation and all the universe is built into the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the scriptures, and it is a part of God’s plan for us to truly live in ‘shalom’ — true peace and right relationship. And that relationship is with one another, with God of course, and with all creation — then we find peace in ourselves.”

He also pointed to Pope Francis’ commitment to addressing the plight of migrants and his tireless efforts to bring attention to both moral and social issues on the world stage. “I am thankful for that, and it continues to remind me as a bishop that in all our pastoral and ministerial work that there is a healthy relationship between moral and social issues, and we must hold them up together, and we must be brave enough and wise enough to know how to engage in those issues in our world.”

The importance of the poor is another key theme of Pope Francis’ papacy, said Hagemoen, expressing appreciation for the words of Fr. Kevin McGee about this theme in the video shown earlier. Establishing a warm-up shelter in winter months at St. Mary Parish Hall to respond to a critical need “was a prophetic cry from a local pastor, reflected by many people around him,” said the bishop.

Pope Francis continually emphasized mercy and forgiveness, Hagemoen added. “That is such a central message and theme that we need more than ever,” he said. “Mercy and forgiveness needs to infuse all the work, all the tasks, all the programs, all the relationships that we carry out.”

As for the pope’s relationship with Canada, and the historic visit to meet with Indigenous Peoples of this land in July 2022, Hagemoen said he was privileged to travel to Alberta with others from the community during the papal visit there. “That was a difficult time and then a wonderful time,” he said. It began with the difficult day of Pope Francis’ apology at Maskwacis, following up on the meetings he had with an Indigenous delegation in Rome a few months earlier. That was followed by powerful times of prayer and celebration at the Edmonton Indigenous parish and at Commonwealth Stadium, before joining pilgrims at Lac Ste Anne.

“I am grateful to Pope Francis and to Almighty God for the way he inspired me,” the bishop said. “Pope Francis has really challenged me in many ways when it comes to pastoral initiatives — I know from what many of you and others have said, that Pope Francis has really inspired and informed your pastoral initiatives.”

Bishop Hagemoen concluded by pointing to the holy water and mustard seeds given to every guest at the dinner, describing how they offer a powerful and tangible symbol of “taking the very little we have in good days and in bad, in sickness and in health, and committing that and investing it, and adding a little blessing to it, and before you know it, great things happen…. This is the Jubilee Year of Hope… a year that Pope Francis declared, and it is the legacy he leaves us. Hope is not just a positive attitude. It is something we commit to, because God has gone there first, shown us the way.”

Dinner program

In addition to the bishop’s address and the reflection on Pope Francis, the annual fund-raising dinner, organized by the Diocese of Saskatoon Catholic Foundation, also included a gala farm-to-table meal prepared by chefs from the Canadian Culinary Championships and the Great Canadian Bake-off (Calories and Queen City Cakes); music by the Dean McNeill Jazz Combo and singer Alexis Normand; prayer, and presentations.

Information about the Jubilee 2025 year and upcoming summer pilgrimages was also provided to guests, in the form of a “pilgrimage passport.”

Ray Kolla, Chair of the Diocese of Saskatoon Catholic Foundation, highlighted the contributions of the Ursulines of Prelate, including a recent donation to enhance evangelization and rural catechetics programming in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon.

Kolla also introduced and thanked Catholic Foundation Director Raissa Bugyi and Development Manager Andrea Alas, and noted that Bugyi would be speaking along with Sr. Malou Tibayan at a Feminine Genius III women’s breakfast in the diocese of Saskatoon on May 14.

MC Jenn Sharp of the “Flat Out Food” television series announced that proceeds from the 2025 Bishop’s Dinner will be directed to the Saskatoon Friendship Inn, Development and Peace-Caritas Canada, St. Mary Parish outreach efforts,, and the Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools nutrition program.

The dinner program continued with Jim and Brenda Tryhuba of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Saskatoon speaking about the diocesan Called and Gifted program, offered through the Catherine of Siena Institute, and describing how it has enhanced and invigorated their faith journeys.

“God gave each one of us a gift, and if we can find that gift, it gives such meaning to life,” said Jim. The couple explained the Called and Gifted three-part process, which has been offered several times in the diocese, as well as on a recent mission trip to the Philippines by the diocesan Called and Gifted team. Charisms are given to us by the Holy Spirit not for our own benefit, but to share with others to evangelize and build up God’s kingdom, they stressed.

The gala night concluded with dessert, more music, and opportunities for visiting.

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Kiply Lukan Yaworski is the communications coordinator for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon: rcdos.ca.

Communications and Catholic Saskatoon News are supported by gifts to the Bishop’s Annual Appeal: dscf.ca/baa.