Notre Dame Basilica, Montréal

Over the years we have been lucky enough to travel overseas, Graham and I have visited many cathedrals and churches. But today, at Notre Dame Basilica in Montreal, I believe that we saw the most beautiful high altar we have ever seen. The use of blue light is striking. Judge for yourself.

The cathedral quite uniquely also charts much of the local history and historical personalities. There are many female saints included in these stories, For example, Saint Marguerite d'Youville, founder of the Grey Nuns, is depicted in a chapel “Giving to the Poor” (1991). The altar in this chapel was the high altar of the old Notre-Dame church. Marguerite d'Youville was beatified and proclaimed “Mother of Universal Charity" by Pope John XXIII in 1959 and then became the first Canadian woman to be canonized in 1990. Then there is Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680), baptized as Catherine, from the Kanien'kehá:ka nation (often referred to as the Mohawk nation), the first North American Indigenous person to be canonized.

The intimate relationship between religion and pedagogy is exemplified in the story of Saint Marguerite Bourgeoys (1620-1700). She was the city's first teacher. And overall you could say that cathedrals as physical objects teach stories in visual displays and architectural shapes. They also strive to teach emotions too, especially reverence and awe. It was very effective at this type of teaching as far as we were concerned!

Luciano Pavarotti gave a concert in the Cathedral in 1978. The whole concert is on YouTube but for a snippet, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb5tzATl4oo
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