Rev. Henry Igantius Bader, 1923-1989

 

Henry Ignatius Bader was the thirteenth of 13 children and the tenth of 10 boys born to Adrianus Theodorus Bader and Johanna Maria van Leeuwen. Born in 1923 in the small town of Warmond Holland, Henry, known as Henk, lived in that country for only three years before his family emigrated to Canada. His two older brothers had arrived in North America in 1924 and sent for the rest of the family, who arrived in 1926 when Henk was still a toddler.

Henk (youngest) and his 12 siblings in Holland

So Henk grew up in Vancouver from the time he was three. He attended St. Joseph’s elementary school, and then for high school, he attended Vancouver College, a Catholic school for boys operated by the Congregation of Christian Brothers. In the early years, many of the students who attended Vancouver College went on to become priests, and Henk was one of them.

Strong Catholics (one branch of the family in Holland became missionaries), it was not a surprise that one of the Bader boys decided to become a priest. After secondary school, Henk attended Seminary of Christ the King.

The Roman Catholic seminary was founded in 1931 by Archbishop William Mark Duke of the Archdiocese of Vancouver.  The seminary was located in Ladner BC from 1931 to 1940, and then at Deer Lake in Burnaby. In 1939, five Benedictine monks were sent from Mount Angel Abbey, Oregon, to British Columbia to found a priory and to take over the running of the Seminary of Christ the King. The abbey, officially named the Abbey of Saint Joseph of Westminster (Saint Joseph is the abbey's patron saint), was established in Mission, BC. The seminary was moved to that location in 1954 and currently has 200 acres.

From the newspaper Pax Regis, published by the Seminary of Christ the King, dated 30 May 1947.

“Rev. Henry Bader comes from St. Edward’s Seminary, Kenmore, Washington, after completing the wartime accelerated course in theology. He entered the Seminary of Christ the King from St. Joseph’s parish, Vancouver, in 1939. During the one year at Ladner and the four years at News Westminster he held the positions of seminary sacristan and associate editor of the PAX REGIS, and was a member of the school cantorum. ‘Henk’ graduatws in 1944 and since that time has been studying the year year round because of the accelerated course. With two fellow students he organized the elaborate Catholic Action study program now functioning at St. Edward’s.”

Henry then would have ‘interned’ for some time before ordination. That position is sometimes called transitional deacon.  

Henry Bader was ordained in 1947 at the age of 24.

Original clipping from family archive (unknown newspaper/date)

 

 

Photograph of Father Henry Ignatius Bader and his mother and siblings
at his ordination celebration in 1947 (his father and one sister had already died)

It’s unclear where he was posted for the first three years of his priesthood, but a photograph shows Father Bader with other clergymen in relations to the military.

 

Then, in 1950, he became editor of the B.C. Catholic newspaper. Father Bader began his editorship during the Korean War. You might imagine a weekly Catholic newspaper in 1950 to be tame and conservative, full of information on parish bazaars. But Father Bader’s B.C. Catholic was anything but. One article focused on ‘the death of Catholic clergy in Korea begins, “The Red murder machine in Korea has ground out the lives of one Bishop and ten priests, beaten to death two nuns, and left the fate of nearly one-third of all the priests in Korea shrouded in mystery…” 

Father Bader’s editorials and ‘Thought for the Week’ columns took on everything from children’s reading materials to the danger of a third world war. His paper was controversial and thought provoking. Priests are by their vocation devoutly religious and his opinions did not differ from the church that he believed in so strongly. He was just seemed to be more outspoken than the average priest at the time. His editorial style consisted of strong language, powerful words and a charismatic message of Christ, Catholicism, family and community. 

For ten years, Father Bader remained at his post at the B.C. Catholic, but a priest needs to minister. So during that decade he was also pastor at two hospitals. 

In 1961, Father Bader organized and hosted a conference for Catholic Press in Vancouver. This was an enormous task. Then he was given a parish. Well, not exactly. What he was actually given was the site of a new parish — an empty lot. Father Bader had to build the St. Pius X parish in North Vancouver from the ground up. First he raised funds and then had a hall built, which served as everything from chapel to residence. Then came the church and finally the rectory. During construction of the parish, Father Bader was chaplain for the British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught’s Own).

In 1963, Father Bader organized a family reunion for his Bader clan, which was held at the Villa Hotel in Burnaby on Thanksgiving weekend. He held a mass for the extended family at his new church in North Vancouver on the Sunday. 

Father Bader with his siblings outside his parish church
during a family reunion weekend in 1963

Father Bader stayed at St. Pius X for only a few years, as the quiet life of a parish priest was not for him. In 1966, Father Bader became a part-time pastor at the Matsqui Correctional Institute. Then in 1968 he returned to the B.C. Catholic. The newspaper was being revamped, and the diocese wanted an experienced captain at the helm during the transition. That job lasted until 1971, and he likely continued as a prison chaplain during that time. Then in 1972 he was appointed Catholic Chaplain of the Lower Mainland Regional Correctional Service.

Also in 1972, Father Bader commemorated the 25th anniversary of his ordination with a large celebration for family and friends. The event was held on 31 May 1972 at the Thomas Aquinas High School auditorium in North Vancouver, BC with 300 in attendance.

The Eucharistic Banquet for the anniversary consisted of hymns, penitential rites and readings by John Bader (Henk’s brother), Father J.W. Strewart (Henk’s brother-in-law?), and Father T.F.M. Corcoran (Henk’s best friend, known as Corky). Speakers during the banquet were Rev. Father M.R. Hanley, William Bader (Henk’s brother) and Henk himself. Finally, His Excellency, Archbishop James F. Carney, D.D., offered a message and blessing.

In 1979, Henk organized a second Bader family reunion, which was held at the Airport Inn in Richmond, B.C. with several generations of Baders in attendance from across Canada and the USA.

A series of parishes, prison chaplaincies and missions comprised Father Bader's life work. Finally, in 1983, Father Bader became parish priest at St. Luke’s Church in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, where he remained until his death from cancer in 1989. 

From "A Brief History of St. Luke's Parish." 

"Father Henry Igantius Bader arrived in the summer of 1983. A former editor of the B.C. Catholic, Father Bader was also chaplain of Okalla Correctional Centre. With the parish population nearly doubling during his pastorate, he felt the urgency for the need for a larger church. He added as[sic] extra Sunday Mass, but knew that a more permanent solution had to be found. With energy, enthusiasm, generosity, patience and even great personal sacrifice and suffering, he dedicated himself to the new church building project. Throat cancer robbed him of the satisfaction of seeing the project brought to completion. He last celebrated Mass in the parish on April 16, 1989 and submitted his resignation as pastor a month later. Father Bader died on July 6, 1989. May he rest in peace."

Throughout his life Henk remained close with his family and spent time relaxing in Birch Bay with family and friends.