Toponymie | Canton de Potton | Place Names

On a hill, not far from Vale Perkins to the north of Peabody Road, you will find this tiny wooden Chapel.  Known more familiarly as the Ukrainian Chapel, it is more properly called chapelle Saint-Jean-Baptiste . 

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Chapel is of the Eastern rite Catholic Church.  Unfortunately is it now rarely used for worship.  It was built in 1954 and enlarged in 1985.  Its architecture is typical of wooden churches found in the Carpathian Mountains of Ukraine.  Myron Monczak designed and helped to build this stunning little chapel, which is a small scale of the church found in Vorokhta, Ukraine, the birthplace of Ivan Telishewski.  He and his wife, Stephania, immigrated to Canada in the 1940's.  In 1954, they bought a farm on Chemin du Lac which belonged to Josephat Rodrigue.  Many families of Ukrainian descent came to the farm for summer vacations.  Eventually, several purchased land from Mr. Telishewski and a seasonal community of significant size grew more permanent; however few of these proprietors remain.

The Chapel is situated on private property.  Because of the terrain, the Chapel is somewhat difficult to see when approaching from the south; it is more apparent from the opposite direction, that is to say coming towards Vale Perkins.  The structure to the right of the Chapel itself houses the bell, a practice typical of these small wooden churches.  The chapel is on private property, and the building is inaccessible except by permission.  Potton Heritage has published a folder about the Chapel, in its history of Vorokhta, the Ukrainian settlement which once thrived in Vale Perkins.  Potton Heritage folders are available in the local tourist office or by contacting us directly.

According to Wikipedia, the faithfuls of Eastern rite tradition believe that John was the last of the Old Testament prophets, thus serving as a bridge between that period of revelation and the New Covenant.  According to Sacred Tradition, John the Baptist appears at the time of death to those who have not yet heard the Gospel of Christ. He preaches the Good News to them, so that all may have the opportunity to be saved.  Churches will often have an icon of St. John the Baptist in a place of honour on the iconostasis, and he is frequently mentioned during the Divine Service.  The Eastern Church remembers St. John the Forerunner on six separate feast days, two of which coincide with those of the Roman Catholic Church, June 24, the Nativity of St. John the Forerunner, and August 29, the Beheading of St. John the Forerunner. 

The Feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist has long been considered the national holiday of Quebec, actually since 1834, when the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste was created.  St. John the Baptist was decreed in 1908 as the patron saint of Quebec by Pope Pius X.  It was in 1977 that “la fête de la Saint-Jean” or June 24^th became an official holiday of Quebec.  June 24^th, the Feast of St. John the Baptist, is also a day of significance to Masonic orders the world over.