“My dear child. Am I not here, I, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle, in the crossing of my arms?"
- Our Lady of Guadalupe

Members of the Oromocto First Nation (Maliseet) have been an integral part of the St. John Paul II community at St. Vincent de Paul church from the beginning.

From time immemorial our Creator cherished the Maliseet people. The Maliseet are the aboriginal peoples of the areas of western and northern New Brunswick, eastern and northern Maine and into Quebec. Samuel du Champlain first recorded meeting the Maliseet people in 1604 where he was greeted with feasts and celebratory dance.  The Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ was soon embraced and shared by the Maliseet.  Since that time, the Maliseet people have defended their Catholic Christian identity despite the ever changing political landscape of modern history. And, like all human relationships our bond has been strained by differences, disappointments, and change. 

At about the time the Maliseet first encountered the French explorers, Our Lady of Guadalupe offered a message of Hope and Comfort to the native people of the Americas.  The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is a magnificent masterpiece of the fusion between distinct peoples. The image of her right hand is whiter and delicate in colour while the left hand is darker and bolder. They symbolize the union of two different races; we are neither Indian, European, etc.; but ONE people in the eyes of God.