John Paul II visited Vancouver, Abbotsford 40 years ago

Forty years ago, Pope John Paul II touched down at Vancouver International Airport on Sept. 18, marking the first visit by a Roman Catholic Church leader to Canada, and his only visit to British Columbia.

The Pope’s arrival was part of a broader Canadian tour that brought him to Vancouver and Abbotsford for two public events.

After arriving in Vancouver he was taken by helicopter to Abbotsford Airport, where he travelled a 1.5-mile route in his popemobile among the people before celebrating Mass.  site of a Mass that drew tens of thousands of people. 

The Pope then travelled to Vanier Park in Vancouver and proceeded across the Burrard Bridge, down Georgia to Richards and arriving at Holy Rosary Cathedral.

The highlight of the visit was the evening’s Celebration of Life at B.C. Place, where an estimated 55,000 attendees gathered. 

He left the next morning for Ottawa. 

The Pope’s visit to Canada began on Sept. 9 with his arrival in the Quebec City suburb of Ste. Foy. His 15,000-kilometre marathon took him from the Atlantic to the Pacific. When his stay ended on Sept. 20, he had visited Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, Montreal, St. John’s, Moncton, Halifax, Toronto, Midland (Ontario), Winnipeg/St. Boniface, Edmonton, Yellowknife, Vancouver and Ottawa/Hull. His scheduled trip to Fort Simpson in the Northwest Territories was cancelled due to severe weather, but he returned for a five-hour stop in 1987 and  in 2002 for World Youth Day.

Read more about the visit on the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops website.

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