- The Governor General of Canada
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John Michael Miller
Vancouver, British Columbia
Grant of Arms
March 25, 2009
Vol. V, p. 432
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Blazon
Arms
Argent an open book proper bound Gules edged Or, on a chief dancetty Gules a dove reguardant Argent between a rose and a Pacific dogwood flower both Argent barbed and seeded proper;
Motto
VERITATI SERVIRE;
Symbolism
Arms
The book symbolizes the Word of God, which a bishop must proclaim and teach. It also recalls the task of education, to which Archbishop Miller has dedicated himself as a teacher, a university president, the Secretary of the Congregation for Education at the Holy See, and as an archbishop responsible for Catholic schools. A book also appears in the arms of the Congregation of St. Basil, of which the Archbishop is a member. The division line symbolizes the mountainous landscape of the Archdiocese of Vancouver. The dove is a symbol of St. Thomas Aquinas, patron of theologians, and it appears in the arms of the University of St. Thomas, Houston, Texas, of which Archbishop Miller was president. The rose represents Our Lady of the Rosary, patroness of the Archdiocese of Vancouver and its cathedral. The dogwood is the provincial flower of British Columbia.
Motto
VERITATI SERVIRE, a Latin phrase meaning “To serve the truth”, was adopted by Archbishop Miller when he became a bishop in 2003.