Pleas to return religious artifacts inside trailer stolen from west Ottawa

Ottawa’s Catholic community are appealing for the return of religious items, including a model of the Ark of the Covenant. CTV’s Katie Griffin has more.

Members of Ottawa’s Catholic community are pleading for the return of religious items that were inside a trailer that was stolen in the city’s west end last week.

A large model of the Ark of the Covenant and two angel statues were among the items inside the trailer that had been parked in the area of Baseline and Merivale roads.

“Thankfully we had taken the pilgrim statue of Our Lady of the Cape out of the trailer,” said Dennis Girard, the director of the Marian Devotional Movement. “But the Ark and the angels are irreplaceable because they were made in 1947 for the historic procession that went from Canada’s national Marian Shrine to Lansdowne Park.”

Girard said the trailer was stolen sometime between June 9 and June 12.

Girard and his wife Angelina travel with the items all over Canada, the United States and overseas.

The artefacts were also on stage when Pope Francis visited Canada in 2022.

“I was so thankful that the actual statue of Our Lady of the Cape was not taken away with the trailer,” Angelina Girard said.

“There are so many prayers inside of that ark. There are people that are suffering in this world. They’re suffering a lot. And if you have this trailer, if you have this ark, just read those prayer intentions, start reading them and see what happens to your heart,” she said.

The Girard’s believe whoever stole the trailer didn’t know what was inside.

Ottawa police are investigating and urge anyone with information to contact them.

“We desperately would love to see it returned, no questions asked,” said Dennis Girard.“ Just even drop that ark and angels somewhere, so that we can continue that work of bringing the Ark, the angels and carrying Our Lady to many more souls throughout Canada and the United States in the coming years.”

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