ST. PETER'S PARISH (1884-2006)

Saint John, New Brunswick

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At the invitation of Bishop John Sweeney, the Baltimore Province assumed the responsibility of St. Peter’s parish just at the end of the church’s construction. The monastery was completed in 1887 and became the Toronto Province Novitiate from 1921 to 1941. It also became the centre for the Redemptorists preaching Missions and Retreats throughout Eastern Canada, especially in the Maritimes. A cemetery for Redemptorists was created in 1909 behind the church with 46 confreres buried there. A thriving parish, it was the centre of social and athletic activities at the adjacent ballpark and at the recreational centre, which was built in 1938 under pastor Fr. Gerald Koster’s direction. St. Peter’s Credit Union received its charter in 1937. The parish, which produced more than 45 Redemptorist vocations, the largest number in Canada, was returned to the Saint John Diocese by the Edmonton-Toronto Province. The church was demolished in 2022, while the Redemptorist monastery eventually became the home of the Divine Mercy Catholic School.

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ST. BRIDGET'S CHURCH (1884-2006)

Chapel Grove, New Brunswick

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Built in 1871 beside a cedar grove, the mission church was served by the Redemptorists from 1884 until the withdrawal from St. Peter’s in 2006. A community of summer residences, Chapel Grove was a favourite spot for vacationing confreres, especially Frs. Gerald and Joseph Owens for 40 years. Under pastor Fr. Gerald Koster, Our Lady’s Camp was opened for needy children from St. Peter’s and operated from 1939 until 1964.

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PAROISSE NOTRE-DAME-DU-PERPÉTUEL-SECOURS (1948-1972)

Moncton, New Brunswick

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In 1947, Bishop Norbert Robichaud separated part of the parish of Saint-Louis-de-France, Lewisville and founded a new parish in Humphrey, in the northeast of the city, under the name of Notre-Dame-du-Perpétuel-Secours on March 25, 1948. This parish, entrusted to the Redemptorist Fathers, had about a hundred families. The parish moved to the basement of the new Redemptorist seminary on Elmwood Street in 1956, where it remained until 1972. Notre-Dame-du-Perpétuel-Secours merged with another Catholic mission named Stella-Maris in 1972 to become the Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix parish.

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SÉMINAIRE NOTRE-DAME DU PERPÉTUEL-SECOURS (1956-1968)

Moncton, New Brunswick

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In 1954, Bishop Robichaud authorized the Redemptorists to build the Notre-Dame-du-Perpétuel-Secours minor seminary in Humphrey, which was opened and blessed in 1956. More than eight hundred young Acadians benefited from this educational institution until its closure in 1968. It then became a home for the elderly, the Villa du Repos, and was finally demolished in 2007.

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BOUCTOUCHE RETIREMENT HOME (1956-1969)

Bouctouche, New Brunswick

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The Redemptorists ran an elderly retirement home in Bouctouche from 1956-1969. In June 1965, the Redemptorists of the Bouctouche Retirement Home began serving Big Cove to assist the priest of St-Charles. Among others, we note Father Raphael Caron and especially Father Gabriel Gagnon (1966-1969). Finally, when the Bouctouche Retirement Home closed in the summer of 1969, Big Cove received its first 'resident priest' in the person of Father Gagnon in September 1969. Since that time, except between 2011 and 2015, Redemptorists have lived in Elsipogtog (Big Cove). Over time, they have also served Bass River, Indian Island, as well as the English-speaking communities of Rexton and South Branch.