Even that was cut short by his health problems.

"The image that comes to me is that of an unfinished symphony."

Arthé Guimond was born near Rimouski, Quebec, one of 11 children. The family moved to the Peace River Country in 1951. Six years later, Guimond was ordained a priest for the northwestern Alberta archdiocese. He will celebrate his 50th anniversary of ordination on June 23.

After ordination, he served in parishes, studied in Montreal and Rome, taught in a seminary, and served as a theological advisor to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops for 12 years.

Found his niche: He'd been away from Alberta for a long time, but when he returned, it seemed he'd found his niche as a pastor to parishes in Fairview and Peace River.

But in 1998, ArchbishopHenri Goudreault died suddenly and the priest consultors for the archdiocese chose Guimond to be the archdiocesan administrator. It took two more years before the pope appointed him archbishop.

Now, looking back on his "unfinished symphony," Guimond speaks of four principles derived from Vatican II that guided his work as archbishop:

1. Allowing the light of Christ to shine on the face of the Church.

2. Seeing the Church as a communion of people with God.

3. Seeing the work of the Church as one of co-responsibility. Bishops are co-responsible for the whole Church with the pope as well as for their individual dioceses; the laity are the front line of the Church whose role is to consecrate the world to Christ.

4. Treating evangelization as the reason for the Church to exist.

"These