Bishops / Holiness

Jean-Jacques Lartigue was born in Montreal on June 20, 1777 – the only son of a French father, Jacques Lartigue, who was a doctor that immigrated to New France in 1757, and a Canadian mother, Marie-Charlotte Cherrier, of Saint-Denis sur le Richelieu. Through his mother, Jean-Jacques Lartigue was related to three great families of the Montreal bourgeoisie; the Cherriers, the Vigers and the Papineaus; who played an important role in the community – particularly during the 1837-1838 revolt.

Intelligent and quick-witted, Jean-Jacques completed his classical studies at the age of 16 at the Collège de Montréal which was founded by the Sulpicians in 1767 following The Conquest of 1760. He then spent a full year studying English and then a further three years studying civil law. On the verge of being called to the Bar, he suddenly decided to enter the priesthood.

The Bishop of Quebec, Pierre Denaut, who lived in Longueuil where he was also a pastor, eagerly accepted Jean-Jacques’ candidacy. Jean-Jacque began to study theology at the Collège de Montréal. On October 28, 1799, he was chosen by Msgr. Denaut to be his secretary. On September 21, 1800, he received priestly ordination at the age of 23 in the Saint-Denis-sur-le-Richelieu church where his uncle, François Cherrier, was the parish priest.

Having become a priest, he was appointed as vicar in Longueuil while remaining as secretary to Msgr. Denaut. This double function allowed him to acquire experience in parish ministry and knowledge of the whole “district of Montreal” by accompanying the bishop in his long pastoral visits.

After Msgr. Denaut’s death on January 17, 1806 in Longueuil, where he was buried (until his remains were moved to Quebec City in 1970), Jean-Jacques realized his already professed desire to enter Saint-Sulpice. His application for admission was joyfully approved on the following February 15th. He became vicar at Notre-Dame for thirteen years (1806-1819) and was responsible for a large neighbourhood where he visited and helped many, especially the sick and the poor.

He kept himself up to date with the country’s affairs. He was sympathetic to certain demands of the Canadian Party without, however, subscribing to the doctrinal radicalism and revolutionary ideas of civil disobedience and armed revolt that circulated there.

Finally, on June 29, 1819, the superior of the Séminaire de Montreal, Mr. Auguste Roux, entrusted Mr. Lartigue with a sensitive mission: to go to London and defend the rights of Saint-Sulpice which were still contested by the British authorities. There were numerous attempts at outreach to London and Paris; however, they remained unsuccessful.

Auxiliary Bishop and Vicar General suffragan of the Bishop of Quebec for the district of Montreal (1821 – 1836)

It was during this ten-month stay in Europe (August 14, 1819 – June 14, 1820) that Jean-Jacques Lartigue learned of his appointment as auxiliary bishop and vicar general; suffragan of the Bishop of Quebec, for the district of Montreal. It must be understood that this was an appointment to the same and vast diocese of Quebec, and that we use the civil term “district of Montreal” because it was not yet a new “diocese”.

Jean-Jacques Lartigue was very hesitant to accept this promotion and the heavy responsibilities it entailed. He anticipated the opposition of his colleagues, the French Sulpicians of Montreal, who had governed the territory for over a century.

Before accepting the episcopate, Jean-Jacques Lartigue consulted his general superior in Paris and his local superior in Montreal. The latter replied with an unsettling letter: he agreed to the project, provided that the chosen candidate did not reside at the Seminary, that he covered the costs of his office by accepting a parish outside the Island of Montreal (for example, south of the St. Lawrence River); that he be discreet, serving, and far from Montreal… The intervention of the Bishop of Quebec, Msgr. Joseph-Octave Plessis, and a formal order from Pope Gregory XVI, brought and end to the reluctance of Jean-Jacques Lartigue who ultimately gave his agreement. He would temporarily stay at the Seminary!

On January 21, 1921, Msgr. Plessis conferred upon him the episcopal ordination in the old church of Notre-Dame. For the time being, the Auxiliary Bishop of Quebec had neither a personal residence nor a cathedral. He soon moved to the Hôtel-Dieu on rue Saint-Paul, where the Religious Hospitallers of Saint-Joseph generously welcomed him and offered him a modest room and office. It has been said that the Hôtel-Dieu was the first bishopric of Montreal.

Jean-Jacques Lartigue’s relations with several of his colleagues did not improve. Several diocesan priests, friends of the Sulpicians, also contested his authority; one of them even publicly affirmed that a bishop was useless in Montreal. Finally, the wardens of Notre-Dame told Msgr. Lartigue that he was not welcome in their church.

What kind of man was this bishop who aroused so much opposition? One can imagine that a certain coldness of character would explain this resistance towards him. Msgr. Lartigue was a man with a wholesome character; energetic and determined, a dynamic personality who did not lack warmth and attentiveness. Witnesses from this period can corroborate the presence in the prelate of the traits that are recognized here. Moreover, Msgr. Lartigue himself admits that he prefers above all “to be frank”, even with his opponents.

Let us return to the beginnings of Msgr. Lartigue’s episcopate in Montreal without detailing all the known sources of resistance, such as those of Anglo-Protestant political power. Here, financial and moral support from many Montrealers was leveraged to allow the new bishop to gradually assert his authority. Thus, a committee was formed by the inhabitants of the Faubourg Saint-Laurent to build a house and a church for their bishop. On May 23, 1823, Msgr. Lartigue blessed the first stone of his church. The ceremony was attended by numerous faithful and clergy. The Sulpicians abstained. Two years later, on September 22, 1825, Msgr. Plessis came from Quebec City to preside over the blessing of the church and an adjoining house for the bishop; both located on Saint-Denis Street between Sainte-Catherine Street and today’s Boulevard de Maisonneuve where the main building of UQAM stands today. It was the first cathedral of Saint-Jacques (which a fire would destroy in 1852). This, again, was done in the presence of about fifty diocesan priests out of a hundred, yet no Sulpician.

After the death of Msgr. Plessis in December 1825, his successor, Msgr. Bernard Panet, reiterated his support for Msgr. Lartigue. Confirmed in his function, Lartigue got back to work. He established a school of theology for candidates to the priesthood which he entrusted his secretary and right-hand priest Ignace Bourget to direct. He had a keen interest in the cause of education in the conviction that it was an exclusive responsibility of the Church. He himself opened a school for boys in Santiago and then another for girls. He took a keen interest in the Collège de Saint-Hyacinthe, of which he was the director. He was concerned about the secularist tendencies of the Assemblée Nationale which, in the name of so-called liberal principles, tabled two bills: one on elementary schools, the other on parish fabriques. He saw “the current spirit of old France” in both of these bills… A showdown had begun between the Church and political leaders.

Fortunately, on the other hand, a rapprochement began in 1835 between Msgr. Lartigue and the Sulpicians. A happy event sealed this reconciliation. The celebration of the priestly jubilee of the Sulpician Roque and the renewal of the vows of priesthood by the venerable old man in the hands of his former pupil on September 24, 1835 brought the two parties closer together. The superior of the Seminary had warm words: “Everyone, without exception, was delighted with admiration and joy… we can even say that the bishop of Telmesse (the title worn by Msgr. Lartigue as auxiliary bishop) and the director of the Seminary are one.”

The situation had suddenly become favourable to the designation of a bishopric in Montreal; one distinct from that of Quebec. In November 1835, Lartigue addressed a request to Rome from the clergy of Montreal – one which the priests of the Seminary had signed – in favour of a bishopric in Montreal.

On May 13, 1836, Pope Gregory XVI signed the paper for the designation of the new diocese and the brief proposing Jean-Jacques Lartigue to the seat of Montreal. Before this final act, London, in an unanticipated move, accepted the new bishop.

Msgr. Lartigue took charge of his episcopal chair on September 8, 1836 with general enthusiasm. The superior of Saint-Sulpice gave an unequivocal welcome to the first bishop of Montreal in the new church of Notre-Dame (1829).

From 1836 to 1840, great harmony reigned. The “district of Montreal” finally became the diocese of Montreal; an immense territory – a square cut out in the south of Quebec, crossed by the St. Lawrence River, bounded to the north by the villages of Berthier and Sorel, to the south by the Native mission of Saint-Régis, to the east by a line beyond the Richelieu, and to the west by a line beyond Saint-Jérôme. A population of nearly 300,000 faithful lived within it amidst about 100 parishes and missions.

Not with standing the fact that all things were well in place, a difficult political period began. We can say that the last years of Msgr. Lartigue’s episcopate were among the most painful of his life. They coincided with the crisis that shook Lower Canada: The Troubles of 1837 – 1838 and their consequences. A confrontation was brewing between the Patriots and the British government in power. From his cathedral on July 25, 1837, the Bishop of Montreal cautioned the faithful of his diocese against any revolutionary action. For two days, more than twelve hundred Patriotes marched in front of Saint-Jacques cathedral to contest the Bishop’s directives. Not allowing himself to be intimidated, Msgr. Lartigue addressed his diocesan priests on October 24th to protect them against the rebels’ speeches and threats. He reminded everyone of their duty to legitimately established authority, he evoked the horrors of a civil war and the bloodthirsty character of any popular revolution.

The Patriots did not hesitate to describe this proclamation as “anti-reason”, even “anti-Catholic”, accusing the bishop of seeking to win the favour of the authorities, of having ignored the misfortunes of his people, and of being insensitive to their temporal and spiritual miseries…

On January 8, 1838, Msgr. Lartigue came with a second call in which he asked his diocesan brothers in particular: “What must you think today (after the fighting and the destruction of the autumn) of your clergy who made every effort to protect you against perverse doctrines, who even incurred the hatred of many, because they did not speak to you in the sense of a faction in which, unfortunately, some of you were engulfed at the time…”

It is understood that Msgr. Lartigue’s attitude was based on two considerations: the legitimacy of political power, which is of divine origin as theology then advocated, and the inequality of the forces involved; that is, the militarily under-equipped rebel patriots on the one hand, and the abundant resources of the English army on the other. The Patriotes’ record: one victory, several defeats; many deaths, the children and fathers of families; brutal reprisals (burned villages, scorched earth strategies, incarceration of the defeated…).

Lartigue had tried to remain calm in the midst of the turmoil. History would prove him right. The revolution ended in considerable failure. In warning his compatriots against a patricidal and unequal struggle, Lartigue had shown a political flair and wisdom that many took note of, especially the moderate Patriotes of the Quebec region.

Let’s add a few words. Popular opinion had long spread the idea that Msgr. Lartigue had excommunicated certain leaders of the rebellion. Often questioned about whether to amend or annul this act, the Bishops of Quebec published (under the signature of their President, Msgr. Jean-Marie Fortier, then Archbishop of Sherbrooke) a document on March 27, 1987 entitled: The One Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Rebellion of 1837. Msgr. Fortier wrote: “The offenders were neither excommunicated nor subjected to any ecclesiastical censorship whatsoever.”

What is true is that Msgr. Lartigue did not authorize the priests to bury “in their blessed cemeteries the bodies of those who had died with weapons in their hands.” It was a disciplinary measure that took place in a deeply religious environment where disobedience to the Church was scandalous or at least surprising. Msgr. Fortier notes that descendants of the Patriotes called for the burial of the remains of the victims with their own long-deceased relatives. He concludes, “It appears to the Church’s authorities in 1987 that this prayer can be heard and answered…” today’s bishops… “[believe] that God alone has judged the value of their lives (the Patriots) and knows how to appreciate their devotion.”

All this suggests that the pastoral action of the first bishop of Montreal ended in a climate full of suffering. He wanted to appease people by being there for the families who had suffered by interceding with the civil authorities to soften the pain and hardness of the prisoners’ lives.

When Msgr. Lartigue died at the Hôtel-Dieu in Montreal on April 19, 1840, right as he approached his sixty-third year, the man “whom his country successively applauded, insulted, and blessed” received a deep mark of respect. At his funeral at the new Church of Notre-Dame, more than 10,000 faithful showed their respect for their bishop. So many were present the next day at Saint-Jacques Cathedral to join in the tribute paid by Msgr. Ignace Bourget, now coadjutor, to the first Bishop of Montreal.

Ignace Bourget was born on October 30, 1799 in St-Joseph-de-Lévis; the son of Pierre Bourget and Thérèse Paradis, “inhabitants”, according to the term of the time, well-rooted in their land and their faith. He was the eleventh child in a family of thirteen.

In 1811, he entered the small Séminaire de Québec. During the seven years of his studies in this institution, he was noticed for his faithful attitude and his great piety.

Admitted to the Grand Séminaire de Québec, he was tonsured on August 11, 1818 and then, a month later, directed to the Nicolet seminary. There he spent three years teaching Latin while simultaneously continuing his theological training.

In January 1821, Msgr. Joseph-Octave Plessis of Quebec appointed him secretary to Msgr. Jean-Jacques Lartigue, who had just been made auxiliary bishop of Quebec for the district of Montreal. One year later, Ignace Bourget received priestly ordination in the chapel of the Hôtel-Dieu from Msgr. Lartigue. During the nineteen years or so during which he worked alongside Msgr. Lartigue as secretary, vicar general, and then coadjutor bishop, he was a reliable disciple, a faithful friend, a confidant, and a close collaborator. The influence of the first bishop of Montreal certainly marked the episcopate of the second.

Thus, the day after his ordination, Msgr. Lartigue asked Abbé Bourget to see to the construction of the Saint-Jacques church, of which he later became chaplain, just as he entrusted him with the direction of the twenty seminarians housed in the episcopal house adjoining the cathedral.

During the decade from 1825 to 1835 in particular, Ignace Bourget joined in the struggles carried by Msgr. Lartigue, participating in his fatigue, his worries, and his humiliations.

The secretary, who became vicar general in 1835, received from Msgr. Lartigue the episcopal ordination as coadjutor bishop with a future preferment on July 25, 1837 on the feast of Saint James the Greater. For three years, Msgr. Ignace Bourget made a special effort to visit the parishes of such a vast diocese.

The death of Msgr. Jean-Jacques Lartigue on Easter Day, April 19, 1840, deeply affected him.

It is worth first emphasising that Msgr. Bourget’s pastoral activity during his long episcopate of thirty-six years took place in a social, cultural, and political context that was constantly in turmoil.

Let us simply consider the aftermath of the Rebellion of 1837-1838, the growing poverty of Montreal and Quebec, the strong demographic growth of the city, the hardships and catastrophes of the era: the typhus epidemic, the cholera epidemic, the great fire in downtown Montreal; the relaxation of morals, the scourge of alcoholism, the political debates surrounding two constitutional reforms in the country: The Act of Union (1840) and Confederation (1867). With these facts in mind, one cannot but admire the human and Christian commitment of a pastor always on the front lines.

The diocese that Msgr. Bourget oversaw was a Church without personnel or financial means. Msgr. Bourget dedicated himself to furnishing the necessary resources; the infrastructure he lacked. That was the purpose of those trips to Europe – seven of varying duration – which he undertook in the second year of his episcopate as Bishop of Montreal.
 

• In 1841 (May – December). In search of priests and religious life, Msgr. Bouget went to Paris, Chartres, Lyon, Marseille, Rome, Le Mans, and Angers.
• From 1846 to 1847 (September – May). He went to Marseille, England, and Ireland for the same purpose.
• From 1854 to 1856 (October of ’54 – July of ’56). The longest trip. He was in Rome for the proclamation by Pope Pius IX of the Immaculate Conception.
• In 1862 (Summer). In Rome.
• From 1864 to 1865 (December to June). In Rome to deal with the division of the parish of Notre-Dame. Rome authorised him to erect as many parishes as necessary in Montreal. He also discussed the proposed project of founding Université de Montréal.
• From 1869 to 1870 (January of ’69 – August of ’70). In Paris and Rome. In Rome, he attended the opening of the First Vatican Council on December 8, 1869. This council concluded on July 18, 1870 with the proclamation of the dogma of the infallibility of the pontificate.
• In 1881 (August – October). In Rome during his retirement, he still wanted to intervene for the cause of Université de Montréal. Propaganda deemed that there would only be one Catholic University in Quebec; Montreal would be a branch of Université de Laval.
   

Among the results of his travels, the happiest is certainly the arrival of several religious communities (male and female) or religious orders that have enriched our diocesan Church and our whole society. Let us simply name them according to the order of their arrival in the country:
 

• The Oblates of Mary Immaculate (1841),
• The Jesuits (1842),
• The Ladies of the Sacred Heart (1844),
• Fathers, Brothers, Sisters of the Holy Cross (1847),
• The Clerics of Saint-Viateur (1847),
• The Brothers of Charity, of Belgium (1864),
• The Carmelites (1875),
• The Missionaries of Africa (1875).
   

At the same time, four women’s religious communities arose in the diocese itself; a happy blossoming responding to the needs of the time. They were initiated by four women inspired by the Holy Spirit and were supported and guided by Msgr. Bourget. They worked at the service of the Church and society in the domains of education, health, and social assistance:
 

• The Sisters of Providence, with Émilie Gamelin (1843);
• The Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, with Eulalie Durocher (1843);
• The Sisters of Mercy, with Rosalie Cadron-Jetté (1848);
• The Sisters of Ste-Anne, with Esther Blondin (1848);
   

In the service of the diocese for a long time:
 

• The Religious Hospitallers of Saint Joseph (1636);
• The Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal (1658);
• The Sisters of Charity of Montreal (Grey Nuns) (1737);
   

Under the episcopate of Msgr. Bourget and thanks to his vision and his many forms of action, the Diocese of Montreal has given itself, or rather received, valiant institutions that have been among the many hands placed in the service of the Lord and of the Christian and human community of Montreal and the region. In short, an infrastructure that would enable it to accomplish its mission.

Let us make two observations here. The first: by the time of the turn century in the year 2000, religious communities no longer had the presence and vitality they did in the past, but they have been able to diversify their commitment and continue their service with admirable charity by volunteering and through the extreme generosity with which they fund a host of humanitarian initiatives or organisations that are in keeping with their fundamental objectives. The second is that one day we will have to get rid of this cliché which still describes their past presence as a “monopoly” in the medical, educational, and social fields. The first reason for this is because monopoly is a market term that evokes exclusive domination; yet the work of religious communities has nothing to do with the world of markets, nor with some exclusive domination. It was exercised to cover fields of action that neither civil society nor the public authorities of the time were able to assume. She (the Church) hasn’t eliminated anyone. Indeed, rather than an act of substitution, it has generously brought itself to the aid of women, men, and children in need: this is the very meaning of living Christian charity.

The list of religious communities that was just enumerated and the various objectives they pursued reflect Msgr. Bourget’s social concerns.

His social commitment stemmed from his deep knowledge of the social environment and the state of society itself. He wanted institutions dedicated to the prevention of social ills; to the reintegration of the marginalized. That is why, at the heart of his European travels, he visited schools for the mentally ill, homes for the deaf and the mute, the blind, beggars, penitentiaries, hospitals, maternity hospitals, and shelters for children.

As early as 1842, Msgr. Bourget published a mandate establishing the Diocesan Association of Charity that was inspired by the diverse experience of charitable groups, such as those of the Ladies of Charity, of the Ladies of Providence, etc., and the experience of the Diocesan Association of Charity. He rallied and persuaded the people necessary for the implantation of new initiatives. We note, for example, the generous contributions of a patron, Mr. Olivier Berthelet, to the Hospice Saint-Antoine (Mont St-Antoine) and to the Sisters of Mercy. It was the commitment of the laity that he had in mind when, in 1847, he established the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul in Montreal, whose first council he convened at the bishopric.

It is impossible to list all the facts and accomplishments of such a long and rich episcopate within the limits of this article. Let us just highlight a few of them.

The first important act of Msgr. Bourget was to entrust the formation of diocesan priests to Saint Sulpice in 1840. In 1854, the Grand Séminaire, which was initially housed in the former Collège de Montréal on Saint-Paul Street, was definitively established on its present site on Sherbrooke Street West and was given the wonderful name of Le Grand Séminaire de Ville-Marie à la Montagne.
 

• In 1841, he fulfilled a desire of Msgr. Lartigue by launching a publication, Les Mélanges religieux, which later became La Semaine religieuse de Montréal, then the Église de Montréal, and finally today’s Vivre en Église.
• In 1844, having taken over from Msgr. Lartigue, he contributed to the formation of the first ecclesiastical province in Canada, comprised of four dioceses of United Canada (Act of Union): Quebec, Montreal, Toronto, Kingston.
• In 1846, he became engaged in a completely different area of activity when he participated in the founding of the Banque de la Cité et du District de Montréal with the goal of promoting economic activity among workers. Today, it is known as Laurentian Bank.
• In 1847, a large number of Irish immigrants, driven from their country by famine, entered Canada. With them came a typhus epidemic. Msgr. Bourget mobilized the people living in the diocese. Religious sisters died caring for the sick. He himself paid for his involvement with his own life and had to be hospitalised.
• In 1852, a large fire ravaged the entire downtown area. A great fire that sowed dismay. A thousand houses were burned. Nine thousand people were left in the street. The cathedral and the episcopal residence were burned down.
   

For a long period, the cathedral became the chapel of the Asile de la Providence and the bishopric stayed at the Hospice Saint-Joseph. In 1854, Msgr. Bourget acquired land in the west of the city to build a new cathedral. A bold and forward-thinking move. For him, the city centre would develop towards the west. In 1856, he decided in Rome that the future cathedral would be a scaled-down copy of St. Peter’s in Rome to symbolize the Canadian Church’s attachment to the Holy See. It was only in 1870 that the first stone of the present cathedral was laid, on René-Lévesque Boulevard between Mansfield and de la Cathédrale.
 

• Also in 1852, a first division of the diocese was made to form the diocese of Saint-Hyacinthe. Msgr. Jean-Charles Prince, coadjutor in Montreal since 1844, was the first bishop.
• The diocese of Montreal, which had a hundred parishes in 1840, had one hundred and forty in 1870.
• In 1873, Canon Edouard-Charles Fabre was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Montreal, with a later preferment.
• In 1874, the diocese was divided for a second time to form the Diocese of Sherbrooke.
• On September 9, 1876, Msgr. Bourget resigned.

Exhausted after so much work, he retired to Sault-au-Récollet, at Maison Saint-Janvier, where he arrived on June 16, 1877. It was a residence that had been built near the church in 1853 by the parish priest of Visitation, Msgr. Janvier Vinet, to receive the elderly. The diocese acquired it and entrusted its direction to the Sisters of Providence “for the care of Msgr. Bourget and the disabled priests.”

It was a few steps from this Saint-Janvier House, demolished in 1970, that Cardinal Paul Grégoire, Archbishop of Montreal (1968-1990), had a residence built in 1981 for sick or resting priests. He christened it Residence Ignace-Bourget in memory of its distant and illustrious predecessor.
However, Msgr. Bourget did not remain idle. In 1880, in response to a circular letter from Msgr. Fabre, he became a “donation collector” to help his successor face the financial difficulties of the diocese. He finished his collection on December 8, 1882 at Nativité-de-la-Vierge church in Hochelaga. He had raised a total of $84,782.

Msgr. Bourget’s illness recurred in 1883. On June 8, 1885, in the late afternoon, he died after being in painful agony. He was 85 years old.
The next day, a convoy of eleven hundred carriages took three hours to escort Msgr. Bourget’s tomb from Sault-au-Récollet to Notre-Dame Church.

That same day, in La Vérité, a text appeared in Quebec City by Father Henri Têtu, biographer of the Bishops of Quebec, in which we read: “God has called to Himself this great bishop, this great citizen, this beautiful intelligence, this true saint.”
The funeral was celebrated at Notre-Dame Basilica where the superior of Saint-Sulpice, Mr. Louis Colin, lauded Msgr. Bourget as “a champion of orthodoxy, a saint in his works and in his trials.” The next day, a second celebration took place at the cathedral.

Msgr. Bourget’s memory is engraved in two remarkable works of art that express the esteem and admiration that the diocesan faithful of Montreal have for him. Outside the Cathedral, on a mound at the corner of René-Lévesque Boulevard and de la Cathédrale, an imposing statue was erected by the Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste in 1903. Inside the cathedral, in the funeral chapel of the bishops built in 1931, stands a magnificent mausoleum crowned by a recumbent effigy which covers the tomb of Msgr. Bourget.

These are two large works that testify to the place held by Msgr. Ignace Bourget in the history of the Church of Montreal.

On February 28, 1827, Édouard-Charles Fabre was born in Montreal into a family that was well-known at the time. His father, Édouard-Raymond, was a successful bookseller and publisher. He was a very patriotic man and was a close friend of Louis-Joseph Papineau. He became politically involved and took part in the revolt of 1837-1838; he was taken prisoner and was pardoned because of his wife’s illness. When peace returned, he showed great generosity towards the victims of the conflict, particularly towards those exiled to Australia. Ten years after the Troubles, he became mayor of Montreal from 1849 to 1851. The cholera epidemic would overcome him in 1854, at the age of 55.

The mother of Édouard-Charles, Lucie Perrault, was a woman of action, involved in social works, charitable institutions, and home visits for the poor. Édouard-Charles was the eldest of six children. A sister, Hortense, married the lawyer and politician Georges-Étienne Cartier. A brother, Hector, became a lawyer, journalist, senator, and diplomat in Paris. It should be noted that Édouard-Charles, who was ten years old in 1837, was not affected by the events of the Revolt. A conciliatory man by temperament, he would become a peacemaker.

Édouard-Charles Fabre completed his classical studies at the Séminaire de Saint-Hyacinthe in 1843; he was sixteen years old. He aspired to become a priest. His father was firmly opposed to this desire and sent his son to Paris to spend a year with his aunt, Julie Fabre, so that he would experience the world. Édouard-Charles travelled around Paris and its surroundings, frequented good society and theatres, but far from slowing down, his desire was reinforced. His father eventually accepted this choice and Édouard-Charles, with paternal authorization, devoted two years to studies in philosophy and theology at the Seminary of Issy-les-Moulineaux, directed by the Sulpicians.

On July 25, 1846, he returned to Montreal with his family. The following September 15th, he established himself at the bishopric and continued his theological studies under the direction of Msgr. Jean-Charles Prince, coadjutor bishop.

It was this very individual who conferred upon Édouard-Charles priestly ordination on January 23, 1850. He was then appointed vicar at Sorel where he worked for two years, then as a parish priest in Pointe-Claire for another two years. He was called back to the bishopric in the fall of 1854. One year later, on December 25, 1855, he was installed titular canon of the Cathedral; he was twenty-eight years old.

Thus, a varied ministry began for him; one that would last eighteen years. He collaborated in diocesan administration, was chaplain to medical students, and preached retreats in many parishes and educational houses. He showed in these charges remarkable qualities: lively spirit, sense of charity, prodigious memory, composure, gifts of oration and improvisation; he was a pious priest, worthy, smiling, simple, frank, and unrelenting to sorrow.

On April 1, 1873, Rome appointed him coadjutor bishop of Msgr. Bourget, with later preferment. He received his episcopal ordination in the church of Gesù from Msgr. Alexandre Taschereau, Archbishop of Quebec.

He became the third bishop of Montreal on May 16, 1876 following the resignation of Msgr. Bourget. He was forty-nine years old. Ten years later, on June 8, 1886, Rome appointed him first Archbishop of Montreal with the bishops of Saint-Hyacinthe and Sherbrooke as suffragants.

Incidentally, it was under Msgr. Fabre that a third partition of the diocese was created in 1892 with the creation of the diocese of Valleyfield, in the southeast of the initial territory.

During the twenty years of his episcopate as titular bishop of Montreal, he had no auxiliary and presided at all the important celebrations. He ordained 210 priests from his diocese in addition to 820 other priests including 88 from other parts of Canada, America, or other dioceses; all of which were priests trained by the Grand Séminaire de Montréal. He confirmed 222,438 children and made 1,254 parish visits. His qualities as a liturgist and president of an assembly were greatly put to good use.

Like Msgr. Bourget, he welcomed ten religious communities from Europe to his diocese: The Little Sisters of the Poor, the Trappists, the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament, the Franciscans, the Missionaries of the Company of Mary, the Marist Brothers, the Brothers of St Gabriel, the Brothers of the Sacred Heart, the Brothers of Christian Instruction.

A severe economic crisis during the last quarter of the 19th century, particularly between 1879 and 1884, forced Msgr. Fabre to face great financial difficulties in his diocese. High unemployment rates, strong urban population growth due to immigration, and the arrival of thousands of inhabitants in the city would destabilize the entire economy of Montreal. The Archdiocese first assumed the cumulative debt of $840,000 of the sixteen new parishes on the island of Montreal. Then, in his circular letter of June 10, 1879, Msgr. Fabre proposed some practical solutions. He asked each fabrique, as well as for religious communities and more affluent individuals, for an interest-free loan of $1,000. Bazaars were organised along with social evenings, collections, and donations. Msgr. Bourget, retired and sick, volunteered himself to search everywhere.

Nevertheless, Msgr. Fabre ensured that the Church of Montreal showed the greatest possible generosity to the unemployed and their families. With one of his priests, the popular priest Antoine Labelle, he promoted colonization.

With the economic situation having improved, construction began on the Saint-Jacques cathedra resumed in 1885 after having been interrupted for seven years. They were completed in 1894, 42 years after the fire in the previous cathedral built under Msgr. Bourget.

Let us also mention the steps taken by Msgr. Fabre to advance the cause of the Université de Montréal. The Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, to which the Pontifical Charter of the University then belonged, had promised the institution status as a branch of Laval University. Thanks to the constitutional amendment of February 2, 1889 obtained from Rome by Msgr. Fabre, the Université de Montréal became quasi independent. Its new incorporation and the beginning of courses in the autumn of 1890 sanctioned the existence of the faculties of theology, law, medicine, and the arts.

Through his pastoral acts; visits, meetings, celebrations, as in his rigorous management and his social and cultural initiatives, Msgr. Fabre always showed himself to be an affable, jovial, conciliatory, and highly intelligent man. His kindness and popularity made him very comfortable in the presence of all manner of people. This did not, however, prevent him from raising his voice, sometimes with a certain rigorism, to condemn conduct or deviances that he considered harmful to his diocesan brothers.

He left his successor a healthy diocese with 450,000 faithful, 503 diocesan or religious priests, 33 male and female religious communities, and 164 parishes.

Msgr. Édouard-Charles Fabre died on December 30, 1896 in his episcopal residence at the age of 69, surrounded by the solicitude of his priests. At his request, there was no eulogy at his funeral. His mortal remains lie in the Cathedral, in the funeral chapel of the bishops.

On October 29, 1855, Paul Bruchési, son of Paul-Dominique Bruchési and Caroline Aubry, was born in the parish of Saint-Joseph in Montreal, which was then considered to be the neighbour of the future Cathedral. He was part of a family of seven children; another of his brothers, Barthélemy, also became a priest; another, Benjamin, a lawyer.

He did his classical studies at the Collège de Montréal, his philosophy at the Séminaire d’Issy-les-Moulineaux, near Paris, his theology and canon law in Rome, at the Séminaire français, at the Collège romain, and concluded at the Apollinaire from where he obtained a doctorate in theology and a doctorate in canon law.

He received priestly ordination in the Basilica of St John Lateran on December 21, 1878 from Cardinal Rafaele Monaco La Valetta. Among the others ordained was Giacomo Della Chiesa, who became Pope Benedict XV.

Back in Montreal in 1879, he was appointed private secretary to Msgr. Fabre. From 1880 to 1884, he was a professor of dogma at Laval University in Quebec City. Returning to Montreal in 1885, he was successively vicar in the parishes of Saint-Joseph and Sainte-Brigide. In 1887, he became the director of the diocesan magazine, then called La Semaine religieuse. In September of the same year, he taught a course in apologetics at Laval University in Montreal.

In 1891, Msgr. Fabre appointed him titular canon of the Cathedral. On Easter Sunday, March 24, 1894, on the occasion of the official opening of Saint-Jacques Cathedral, Msgr. Fabre entrusted him with the task of giving the first sermon in the new Cathedral before a large audience.

On June 25, 1897, six months after Msgr. Fabre’s death, Pope Leo XIII invited Canon Bruchési to become Archbishop of Montreal, and on August 8, Msgr. Louis-Nazaire Bégin, Archbishop of Quebec City, conferred upon him episcopal ordination at the Cathedral.

This appointment will not surprise anyone. By the age of forty-two, the new Archbishop had already shown aptitudes and qualities that justified Leo XIII’s choice: keen intelligence, open-mindedness, doctrinal solidity, in-depth knowledge of the concerns and problems of the contemporary world, refinement of man, eloquence of the orator, love and respect for the Pope and the universal Church. His long episcopate of forty-two years, happy at first, then tragic, was to meet expectations and then arouse compassion.

Msgr. Bruchési began his mission by visiting, one by one, some ten women’s religious communities on which he relied greatly and which he would always carry in his heart.

It was under the episcopate of Msgr. Bruchési that Saint Joseph’s Oratory of Mount Royal was founded with his approval in 1904. The Archbishop presided over the inital and rapid developments of the sanctuary.

It is under his episcopate that yet a fourth partition of the diocese was carried out in 1904; the diocese of Joliette in the North-West region of the initial territory.

The most beautiful and historic page in Msgr. Bruchési’s life and episcopate was without a doubt that of the preparation, planning, and celebration of the International Eucharistic Congress in Montreal from September 7 to 11, 1910. It’s worth covering in detail.

In 1909, the 20th Eucharistic Congress was held in London. Archbishop Bruchési was there and had given a very remarkable speech. The idea came to him to ask the Central Convention Committee for permission to organize the 21st Congress in Montreal. It was pointed out to the Archbishop that there had not yet been a Eucharistic Congress in America and that Montreal was not the largest city in America… The Prelate subtle remark that it was, nevertheless, the largest Catholic city, surely helped him win his cause.

The Holy Father Pius X appointed Cardinal Vincenzo Vanutelli as Legate. More than one hundred and twenty-five bishops from all over the world responded to Msgr. Bruchési’s invitation. The event was a total success. The archbishop shone in the improvisation, the presentation of the speakers, and the occasional thanks.

Only one incident nearly threw a wet blanket on the event. It is well known to people of a certain age. On the eve of the closing of the Congress, September 10, in a Notre-Dame Church filled to capacity, Msgr. Bourne, Archbishop of Westminster, gave a speech where he developed the following theme: Canada must grow and be populated by colonists of diverse origins who will all speak English; the Catholic Church must use the growing influence of English in Canada… The Catholic religion and the English language must be united in the future. This surprised and dismayed the audience. At the end of Msgr. Bourne’s speech, the Archbishop of Saint-Boniface, Msgr. Adélard Langevin, defender of the French cause in the West of the country, approached Henri Bourassa, who was the third speaker to come, and said to him: We cannot let this stand; you must answer. Bourassa, in fact, slipped into the text that he had prepared an improvised and respectful response to the words of the Archbishop of Westminster. Referring to the minority status of Francophones, he said: “Let Catholics of all nations who abound in this hospitable land of Canada have the right to pray to God in the language of their race, their country, the language of their father and mother. But, they will say, you are only a handful; you are inevitably destined to disappear; why do you persist in the struggle? We are only a handful, it is true; but it was not at the school of Christ that I learned to count law and moral forces by number and wealth. We are only a handful, it is true, but we count for who we are, and we have the right to live.” He was met with an ovation.

The next day, the Congress ended with an impressive procession through the streets of the city. Having begun around noon, the procession ended only in the evening, around seven o’clock, at Parc Jeanne-Mance with the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

This Congress is part of the history of Quebec, Canada, and the universal Church. Much of the credit goes to Msgr. Bruchési’s initiative and multiple talents. It is thus proper to write that the Archbishop of Montreal was, from beginning to end, the central figure of the Congress.

Msgr. Bruchési’s last long-standing act, before entering into the long suffering of his illness, was to obtain autonomy status for the Université de Montréal on April 29, 1919. His skill made it possible to successfully conduct the long dialogue with Rome over forty-three years.

Returning to the rich years of his active life, it should be noted that Msgr. Bruchési erected sixty-three parishes, published numerous mandates and pastoral letters on the most diverse subjects: Christian marriage, justice, workers, and peace.

As early as 1919, Msgr. Bruchési had felt the symptoms of a strange evil characterized by a mixture of physical depression and moral anguish that deprived him of all initiative and decision-making capacity. It was observed that his illness coincided with the death of a vicar general whom he loved very much, Msgr. Émile Roy. Some saw it as the consequence of the strong pressures to which the archbishop was subjected during the war and which would wear him out prematurely.

Thus, for eighteen years, Msgr. Bruchési lived in the shadow of the cross, fulfilling more than ever his motto: In God I entrust myself. On October 18, 1921, Msgr. Georges Gauthier, his auxiliary since 1912, was appointed Apostolic Administrator, and on January 24, 1923 he became coadjutor with the right of preferment.

Subsequently came fifteen years of a sort of imprisonment in the archdiocese’s apartments, followed with the last three years which allowed him to go out a few times to visit religious communities. Msgr. Gauthier remained compassionate and always surrounded him with deep veneration.

On September 20, 1939, Msgr. Paul Bruchési rendered his soul back to God. He was 84 years old. His funeral was celebrated at the Cathedral in front of a considerable audience; a gathering of about thirty bishops, hundreds of priests, and a crowd of faithful. They were presided over by Msgr. Georges Gauthier, who concluded his predecessor’s eulogy with these very appropriate and touching words:

“We have the firm hope that you have entered into the definitive rejuvenation of Heaven. Live gloriously in God’s bosom. We will follow you there from our filial and faithful memory, making the words of Saint Paul our own: ‘Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.’ (Heb 13:7)”

1897: Back in Montreal, he taught canon law at the Grand Séminaire.

1898: He was attached to the Cathedral while chaplain at Mont Sainte-Marie, then a prestigious institution of the Sisters of the Congregation of Notre-Dame.

1904: He was appointed parish priest of the Cathedral, as well as titular canon of the Diocesan Chapter.

1912: On June 23rd, Canon Gauthier was elected Auxiliary Bishop of Montreal.

1917: He was appointed vice-rector of Université Laval à Montréal.

1920: He became the first rector of the Université de Montréal which was in the process of becoming autonomous.

1921: On October 18th, Rome appointed him apostolic administrator of the diocese because of Msgr. Bruchési’s poor health.

1923: On April 5th, the Sacred Congregation of the Consistor issues a rescript appointing Msgr. Gauthier Archbishop of Tharona and Coadjutor of Montreal with right of preferment.

1939: On September 20th, after the death of Msgr. Paul Bruchési, Msgr. Georges Gauthier, after eighteen years as administrator and coadjutor, became Archbishop of Montreal.

The wise pastor

Msgr. Gauthier was a man of great culture and wise reflection. He read a lot and retained everything with extraordinary ease. He was a rigorous observer, aware of the new realities of his diocese.

The excellent orator

His incomparable eloquence was a precious asset in all circumstances. His elevated thinking, the skill of his realised and imaged initiatives, his perfect diction, his warm and sympathetic voice, his natural gestures, would captivate all his listeners. Whether here or abroad, his speeches impressed. This was particularly evident at the Eucharistic Congress in Lourdes in 1914 (accompanied by a vibrant Henri Bourassa) and at the Chicago Congress in 1926. In both venues, he gave a brilliant speech in front of eminent people. He was always up to the task no matter the occasion.

Education, both primary and higher, would be one of Msgr. Gauthier’s major concerns.

The Université de Montréal would play a major role in his concerns. Msgr. Gauthier’s name must be added to those of Msgr. Bourget, Msgr. Fabre, and Msgr. Bruchési in recognition of their efforts to obtain full, independent status for the Université de Montréal. It was at Msgr. Bruchési’s request that he began the final talks to this end in 1917. He used his experience as vice-rector, then rector, to move things forward. The year 1919 marked the “detachment” ad experimentum of Laval University. In 1920, a civil charter was granted, giving the Université de Montréal legal status. In 1924, Rome granted it “definitive autonomy”, and in 1927 a papal document ratified this autonomy. Finally came long gestation period in which the reluctant Université Laval, Roman authority, and civil power intermingled.

At the beginning of his rectorate (1920-1923), Msgr. Gauthier set up a Faculty of Arts, a Faculty of Sciences; and the School of Social, Economic, and Political Sciences.

One feature of Msgr. Gauthier’s academic work that should be highlighted is the intense collaboration he sought and promoted between lay people and ecclesiastics in the life and development of the Université de Montréal.

Msgr. Gauthier also gave impetus to the higher education of young girls and to the preparation of teachers for teaching. He supported and encouraged the founder of the Institut pédagogique (1926), Mother Saint-Anne-Marie, CND, a remarkable educator who had already established the first classical college for girls in Montreal, Collège Marguerite-Bourgeoys (1908). Msgr. Gauthier again supported the founding of several scolasticats-écoles normales, promoted the classical system of education in Montreal through the founding of André-Grasset (1927) and Sainte-Croix (1929) colleges.

It is thanks to Msgr. Gauthier that we owe the foundation of the École sociale populaire which was instrumental to awakening and forming the social engagement of Christians.

He was one of the first promoters of Catholic trade unionism. He became chaplain to the first Catholic union formed in Montreal.

He was delighted when Marie Gérin-Lajoie founded the Institute of the Sisters of Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil, which he canonically established on April 23, 1923, for the formation of people involved in women’s social projects and in the direction of such projects.

During his term as Coadjutor Archbishop, Msgr. Gauthier founded no less than thirty-seven parishes.

He welcomed seventeen religious communities into the diocese and canonically erected four more: the Institute of the Sisters of Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil (1923), the Société des Missions-Étrangères (1925), the Oblates franciscaines de Saint-Joseph (1929), the Filles réparatrices du Divin-Cœur (1929).

In May 1933, he called for the holding of a diocesan Synod.

He successfully led the creation of the diocese of Saint-Jean-de-Québec (1933), which became the diocese of Saint-Jean-Longueuil, the fifth diocese to be separated from the original diocese of Montreal.

Msgr. Georges Gauthier died at the Hôtel-Dieu in Montreal on August 31, 1940 at the age of 68.

A few days before his death, he confessed to his priests during their annual retreat his fear, not of “old age, but of ageing” and acknowledged that he had entered “the novitiate of death”.

In accordance with his last wishes, his remains were placed in a modest wooden coffin covered with a simple black cloth. No funeral oration was pronounced during the funeral at the Cathedral. Then the coffin was taken to the funeral chapel of the bishops that he had built between 1930 and 1933.

According to canonical rule, he was titular archbishop of Montreal for less than a year: eleven months and ten days. Chronological reality shows us, however, that his episcopal service in Montreal was 28 years, 17 of which as Archbishop with full powers.

In less than a year, the diocese lost three bishops: Msgr. Paul Bruchési, who died on September 20, 1939, Msgr. Emmanuel-Alphonse Deschamps, an auxiliary, who died on June 23, 1940, and Msgr. Georges Gauthier, who died on August 31, 1940.

Joseph Charbonneau was born on July 31, 1892, in the Franco-Ontarian village of Lefaivre. He was the third of the 10 children of Daniel, a farmer, and Caroline Yelle. Through his mother, he was the cousin of a promiment Canadian bishop, Émile Yelle, P.S.S., coadjutor archbishop of Saint-Boniface in Manitoba (1933-1941).

Joseph Charbonneau began his classical studies at the Montfortian Juniorate in Huberdeau and completed them at the Seminary of Sainte-Thérèse. It was at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal that he did his theology. He was ordained priest on June 24, 1916, in his native village, by Archbishop Charles H. Gauthier of Ottawa.

He held a variety of positions that revealed many talents: vicar in Gatineau, student in sociology at the Catholic University of Washington, vicar again in Buckingham, Hawkesbury, and Lefaivre; professor in Montreal where he taught sociology at the Seminary of Philosophy, and finally a student in Rome where he spent two years (1923-1925) obtaining a doctorate in ecclesiastical sciences.
Upon his return, he was appointed first secular superior of the Major Seminary of Ottawa, adding the office of chapter vicar to that of vicar general until his appointment, in 1934, as principal of the École normale de Hull.

On June 22, 1939, Rome appointed him Bishop of Hearst, a new French-speaking diocese that had just been created in Northern Ontario. His tenure was brief (11 months), the time to establish the first structures of the diocese, visit parishes, become aware of the problems of settlement, agriculture, and education, and be very happy.

On May 18, 1940, Msgr. Joseph Charbonneau was appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Montreal to assist and eventually succeed Msgr. Georges Gauthier who was alone, in poor health, and who died on August 31. That same day, at the age of 48, Archbishop Charbonneau became titular Archbishop of Montreal.

Though little known here in Montreal, the man impressed many. Large in stature, noble in habit with a broad forehead and graying hair, he was the very essence of distinction. His delicate but confident voice forced people to listen and his often innovative views were surprising and thought-provoking.

The first act of Msgr. Charbonneau was the opening of the School of Social Work at the Université de Montréal in October 1940; a school long desired by his predecessor. It can be viewed as an indication of the social concerns of the new Archbishop.

On June 29, 1941, he published his Letter on Catholic Action (64 pages), a major document of his episcopate in which he reviewed the lived experiences, the structures, the projects, the directions to be taken for an apostolic movement which developed within the Church of Quebec since the mid-1930s and which was called to grow widely within it. The Archbishop wrote of the confidence he placed in the younger generations and the place that lay Christians must take in all sectors of human activity.

On August 15, 1941, he conferred episcopal ordination on two vicars general, whom he made his auxiliaries: Msgr. Joseph-Conrad Chaumont and Msgr. Lawrence Patrick Whelan. He became the first English-speaking bishop to be a member of the diocesan curia of Montreal. Msgr. Charbonneau’s desire to recognize the place and role of the English-speaking community within the Church of Montreal was an audacious move; one which some French-speaking Catholics considered questionable. Msgr. Charbonneau was not afraid to innovate.

In the fall of 1941, the Archbishop, with the help of Mr. Georges Perras, p.s.s., set up the École normale secondaire to train teachers for classical teaching. Its focus was with an educational concern and a search for competence in teachers of this level.

In a similar manner, Msgr. Charbonneau attended the first Congrès de l’enseignement secondaire (classique) in the summer of 1942. In an address to the participants, directors, and professors of all the classical colleges in Quebec, he had the boldness to express his regret to see the entrance to universities restricted only to those with a bachelor’s degree in arts; that there were so many other young people to bring to the university level. In his eyes, there was a huge loss of talent in Quebec. That was long before the rapport Parent.

On February 2, 1943, the Archbishop founded the l’Oeuvre des vocations, another initiative concerning the preferment of priests, which he entrusted to Mr. Arthur Delorme, p.s.s. l’Oeuvre des vocations proves to be a necessity more than ever nowadays.

Aware of the role and importance of the family in the Church and in society, and to mark the fifth anniversary of the one hundred and five J.O.C. marriages, he appointed Father Albert Sanschagrin O.M.I. in 1944 as chaplain of the Marriage Preparation Service. A member of the J.O.C., he responded to a real need and obtained remarkable success: in three years, 3,000 couples received Christian marriage training there. The formula created here in Montreal was implemented in several countries.

In 1945, the Family Education Service appeared, a diocesan coordinating body, in which the Franciscan Fathers became intensely involved in studying the various problems of the family and supporting it.

Following in the footsteps of his predecessors at the headquarters in Montreal and as Chancellor of the Université de Montréal, Msgr. Charbonneau closely followed its development. In 1947, he launched an $11 million fundraising campaign in his diocese. This was the first major undertaking for the newly established university since its establishment in 1942 on the slope of Mount Royal.

It is also worth emphasizing his concern for poor children who died prematurely, his concern about the problem of housing in his diocese, his concern for how to respond to the spiritual needs of a growing population through the foundation of parishes (25 during his episcopate), the welcome he gave new religious communities, and his fundamental predilection for the small and the poor.

Nothing illustrates this concern better than his attitude during the famous asbestos strike at the Asbestos and Thetford Mines in 1949. His actions were the most significant in popular opinion during his episcopate. To give a voice to the declaration of the Sauvons les travailleurs de l’amiante on May 1, 1949, he publicly and firmly took a position that very day at Notre-Dame Church in Montreal in favour of the striking asbestos workers. Hammering his words, he said in particular:

“The working class is the victim of a conspiracy that wants to crush it, and when there is a conspiracy to crush the working class, it is the duty of the Church to intervene. Our heart is close to this working class and we designate this collection to prevent small children from suffering from hunger.”

This intervention by the Archbishop of Montreal had profound and numerous echoes. Collections were held throughout the province and his stance was no stranger to the resolution of the conflict.

At the beginning of 1950, a completely unexpected event shook the Catholic population of Montreal. Confirming rumours that were circulating under the cloak, the newspapers published news on February 9th of the resignation of Msgr. Joseph Charbonneau as Archbishop of Montreal. What happened?

In short: on the preceding January 2nd, the Archbishop’s letter box contained a letter from the Secretariat of State asking him to resign with accusations that remained unknown. This resignation was thus not a volition on his part; it was ordered. The Archbishop asked the Vatican authorities to let him respond and present his defence. This was denied. The decision was made, he had to submit to it.

Occurring during a young episcopate, such a resignation created a surprise, a shock, even anxiety, among the priests and faithful of the diocese. Why? Why? What mysterious reasons could justify it? Assumptions were made. Was it a political problem? A confrontation with the provincial government which was then led by Mr. Maurice Duplessis? Was it the Archbishop’s Statement on Social Issues? A divergence of views at the Assembly of Quebec Bishops? Was it pressure on Rome, and by whom? Poor administration style? None of these hypotheses could really be substantiated. Credible witnesses, people who were closer to the event, challenged or denied them. At this point, we are still only left with snippets of information.

What we know is that on January 31, Msgr. Charbonneau left Montreal. He left for Victoria, British Columbia, where he lived in anonymity and simplicity for nine years, avoiding all publicity until his death. He visited the sick at St. Joseph’s Hospital and accepted to be chaplain at the Provincial House of the Sisters of St. Anne. He read abundantly, answered many letters, welcomed many visitors. He passed his days in prayer, in servitude, and certainly in reflection. In 1955, he suffered a heart attack. On the afternoon of November 19, 1959, he died at the age of 67.

His memorial services were impressive in both Victoria and Montreal. Most Reverend Hill, Bishop of Victoria, invited Msgr. Laurent Morin, Bishop of Prince Albert and former Vicar General of Msgr. Charbonneau in Montreal, to deliver the eulogy.

The Archbishop of Montreal, Cardinal Léger, was on his way to Rome for his ad limina visit. He addressed a message to the archbishopric, expressing his “great desire to see our predecessor rest in the crypt of the Bishops of Montreal” and encouraged all the priests and faithful of Montreal to pray for the one who was, for ten years, their spiritual father.

On November 27, 1959, in the Cathedral in Montreal, a moving funeral was celebrated in the presence of a considerable crowd, composed of bishops, prelates, religious superiors, priests particularly touched by the death of their former archbishop, members of his family, friends, representatives of all governments, and faithful from all walks of life. Msgr. Sebastiano Baggio, Apostolic Delegate to Canada, who had recently taken up his post in Canada, delivered a eulogy that revealed a particular knowledge of the deceased. He had these evocative words:

“The majesty of death and its sublime transfiguration in the faith and in the liturgy of the Church take even more prominence near the coffin of a bishop, and especially of this bishop with a troubling biography, so deeply marked by the scandal of the cross…”.

Msgr. Joseph Charbonneau had asked for nothing other than to be simply buried in the cemetery of his native parish. He who had chosen as his episcopal motto Ad augusta per angusta (Through difficulties to Honours) entered the chapel where his fellow bishops rest, supported by the sympathy of an apostolic delegate, by the prayer of a gathered and grateful crowd, and with the cross he had carried.

Denise Robillard, « Pourquoi Mgr Charbonneau a-t-il démissionné? » Bulletin d’Histoire Politique, 2015, 23 (2), 204–218.

Denise Robillard, Monseigneur Joseph Charbonneau. Bouc émissaire d’une lutte de pouvoir. Québec, PUL, 2013, 507 p.

Paul-Émile Léger was born in Valleyfield on April 26, 1904; the son of Ernest Léger and Alda Beauvais and brother of Jules, who played a leading role in Canadian diplomacy. He did his classical studies at the Seminary of Sainte-Thérèse and his theological studies at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal. He was ordained priest on March 25, 1929, by Msgr. Georges Gauthier, for the diocese of Valleyfield.

As a priest, he enrolled at Saint-Sulpice and left for Paris where he went into his “solitude”. He obtained a degree in theology and canon law and taught the latter discipline at the Seminary of Issy-les-Moulineaux (1929-1933).

His first appointment took him on a mission to Japan where, for six years, he was the founding superior of the Fukuoka Seminary (1933-1939). He then returned to Montreal to teach sociology at the Seminary of Philosophy (1939-1940). He then devoted seven years to Valleyfield where he was vicar general of the diocese and parish priest of the cathedral (1940-1947). Finally, he became rector of the Canadian Pontifical College in Rome and was its director for three years (1947-1950).

It was from this latter position that Pope Pius XII chose him to become Archbishop of Montreal on March 25, 1950. One month later, on 26 April, he was ordained bishop in Rome on the day of his 46th birthday. On the evening of May 17, Archbishop Paul-Émile Léger was installed as Archbishop of Montreal in the Basilica Cathedral by the Apostolic Delegate to Canada, Msgr. Ildebrando Antoniutti.

One episcopate, two stages and two styles

As has already been frequently pointed out: this episcopate is really divided into two stages of life with two different styles.

The first era spans approximately from 1950 to 1957. This is that of the post-war period, of rapid industrial development, of a strong demographic expansion, and of a Church that launched projects and held a certain degree of power. Nevertheless, the pastoral style of the new bishop exercised profound influence on the faithful who recognized Msgr. Léger as a charismatic leader. In terms of thought, he remains a man of tradition, suspicious of new things.

The second era spans from 1958 to 1967. It encompasses one of the great challenges facing Quebec society as a whole; the disruption of the certainties of yesterday. This was the beginning of the “quiet revolution”. The pastor’s style was quite different. Without losing his magnetism, Cardinal Léger was a bishop capable of being a patient listener to people, eager for a Church that knew how to look with confidence at the evolution of times and put itself at the service of the real world.

Le chapelet en famille

One of the Archbishop’s first moves was to give a unique impulse to Marian worship in our milieu. He created “Le chapelet en famille”, a 15-minute family prayer on the radio every evening that began in the fall of 1950. A moment of prayer to the Virgin Mary and a meditation on the Christian life, which brought together an immense invisible audience to which the Archbishop addressed himself after the family supper. The experience of reciting the Rosary on the airwaves still lasts: it has entered its fifty-first year.

Social commitments

From the very beginning of his episcopate, Msgr. Léger’s social preoccupations were affirmed in public interventions, in bold personal commitments, in interventions, and in commitments that took the form of concrete ecclesial initiatives before the era of socialization.

The list of his initiatives includes the Foyer de Charité founded in 1951 and entrusted to the direction of Father Ovila Bélanger of the Hôpital Saint-Charles-Borromée, the object of the “Grande Corvée” of 1955, which since then has welcomed thousands of chronically ill people.

Cardinalate and legacies

On November 29, 1952, Msgr. Paul-Émile Léger was appointed Cardinal by Pope Pius XII. This was a first in the history of the diocese. The faithful were in joy, especially during the Consistory held in Rome on January 12, 1953, and throughout the religious and civic receptions organized on the return to Montreal of the new “Prince of the Church”.

Founding of organizations

Cardinal Léger worked to renew or set up diocesan organizations needed in those times. Thus was born the Service diocésain des cours sur la Bible in May 1951 as a response to the growing desire of the faithful to know the Scripture better.

In January 1952, he opened the Inquiry Forum, an information centre on the Church, with Fr. Irénée Beaubien, S.J., which gave birth to a Diocesan Commission for Ecumenism (1962) and then later the Canadian Centre for Ecumenism (1963).

The diocesan Synod, promulgated (according to the expression of the time) on December 9, 1953, put new mechanisms in place for the diocesan curia. It featured the creation of the Offices which, since then, under often modified names, have become important bodies in the Church of Montreal: Office of the clergy, Office of the religious, Office of education, Office of works… A new method of remunerating priests was introduced: salaried employment for all, including parish priests.

La Grande Mission

At the crossroads of his personal evolution, much like the Church that was soon to enter into the Second Vatican Council, the Cardinal launched La Grande Mission in 1960, a considerable operation inspired by the experience of a mission carried out in Milan by Cardinal Montini (future Pope Paul VI), and which had as its theme “God is our Father”. La Grande Mission was an opportunity for reflection on the milieu. It sought to identify current pastoral needs. It called everyone to inner conversion. A vast plan of preaching and meetings aimed at rediscovering the fundamental theological truths of the Church, about the responsibilities of the laity, and about Christian communities.

The assessment of this “Grande Mission”? It was beautifully organized, it certainly reached a considerable number of faithful and gave them reason to reflect. We were in Christendom… but also in the early hours of the Quiet Revolution, socioreligious changes were brewing. La Grande Mission was an intense moment in ecclesial life.

The Second Vatican Council

This was surely the other great event of the second era of the episcopate of Cardinal Léger. Four sessions were held (1962-1965) which, every autumn between September and December, led him to Rome. The Cardinal’s participation in the discussions of the Council was important and appreciated. His interventions, fed by the consultations he had conducted in Montreal with groups of faithful and priests which were developed in Rome during the course of the Council, were listened to attentively and had their influence.

On December 5, 1965, three days before the end of the Council, the Cardinal addressed a letter to all the members of the Church of Montreal, priests, religious, and laity. He delivered the last impressions of the happy and enthusiastic conciliar Father that he was.

“The Second Vatican Council met the expectations it set before itself. (It) was a new Pentecost… It is in the very spirit of the Gospel that gave it strength and led to a radical purification, according to that spirit. It sought to renew Christian life and behaviour.”

A lighter Church

Before, during, and after the Council, Cardinal Léger worked to modify certain features of the diocesan Church. He showed an openness to the assumption by the laity of their social responsibilities, particularly in the field of education. For example: St. Paul’s College was entrusted to the laity (1961). Lay people, instead of priests, were appointed to the three posts of commissioners who were left to be decided on by the Archbishop of Montreal at the C.E.C.M. (1964).

The Cardinal believed that the Church ought to be relieved of certain powers, of a certain substitute role. Omnipresent until then, she accepted to be relieved of loads that she could no longer carry, and that society had become able to assume.

A present Church

The desire to make the Church present in Montreal society ultimately characterized the episcopate of Cardinal Léger. Newly present in the territory: 109 new parishes, new missions, ethnic and ritual communities – all erected in seventeen years. His presence in the Church and in the city took the form of 5,000 addresses, homilies, and speeches given in a very wide range of settings. A visible, active, and growing presence in the 1950s became more discreet, capable of detachment, and sharing in the 1960s.

Axious but no less shocking news. On November 9, 1967, at a press conference at the Archdiocese of Montreal, Cardinal Paul-Émile Léger announced his decision to leave his post as Archbishop of Montreal to go on a mission to Africa. His departure from Montreal was not an escape. It was part of “a logic of faith and life”. The cardinal opened serenely:

“It is precisely this religious crisis that makes me leave a command post to become a simple missionary priest again… At the 1967 Synod of Bishops, during the discussion on the problem of faith and atheism, I lived a true drama of conscience… The Lord demands from me actions, in addition to words”

The following December 7th, he flew to Africa, to Cameroon, where the Bishop of Yaoundé, Msgr. Jean Zoa, a friend, welcomed him with great esteem. Under the direction of Cardinal Paul-Émile Léger, the Church of Montreal had just written a very rich chapter in its history.

Leaving his post in Montreal at the age of 63, Cardinal Léger never considered that he was retiring. In the twenty-four years he still had to live, he dedicated them to serving the Church with ardour. His motto inspired him: Ipsa duce non fatigaris (With [Mary] leading, we shall not tire). Let us summarize these years.

He served in Yaoundé for seven years. He lived in a modest trailer and knew the long and dark nights of the country – moments of solitude too. He presided at liturgical celebrations, visited the villages, and spoke often with the children. He built a modern hospital for lepers…

At the age of 70, he returned to Montreal at the offer to do parish ministry, but noted the limits of his age. Instead, he would pursue a missionary aim.

He dedicated himself to the humanitarian work by founding “Fame pereo”, which he would integrate into a larger enterprise: “Le Cardinal Léger et ses œuvres”. This latter’s objectives were varied; aid to African countries, aid to the local elderly, etc. A well-structured team of collaborators worked to collect funds and distribute the donations received. It was a pleasure to meet them every morning; to chat in a relaxed way with one or the other. He also spent time answering letters.

Age and illness were constraints that kept him in the residence of the Old Seminary where he lived with his Sulpician brothers.

Hospitalized at the Hôtel-Dieu, he died there on November 13, 1991 at the age of 87. For two full days, he rested in an ardente chapel at Notre-Dame Basilica, where thousands of Montrealers came to pay tribute to him with a glance and a prayer. It was also the site of a moving funeral on November 16th. His coffin was then transported to the cathedral and placed in the funeral chapel of the bishops.

Paul Grégoire was born on October 24, 1911, in the Saint-Clément-de-Viauville Parish in Montreal, but shortly after his birth, his family settled in Verdun, where he spent his childhood and teenage years. He was the firstborn of J. Albert Grégoire and Marie Lavoie. He had two brothers, and when he was in his twenties, his parents adopted nine cousins, the children of a deceased widower uncle.

He completed brilliant classical studies at the Séminaire de Sainte-Thérèse (1925-1933), followed by theological studies at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal (1933-1937). He was ordained a priest at the Cathedral of Montreal on May 22, 1937.

His first appointment brought him back to the Séminaire de Sainte-Thérèse. There he pursued a teaching career, interspersed with university studies in Montreal, earning a doctorate in philosophy, a licence in letters, a master’s degree in history and a certificate of teaching competence, and after all these studies he became director of students at the Séminaire de Ste-Thérèse (1937-1950).

In 1950, Archbishop Paul-Émile Léger entrusted him with the role of chaplain to the students of the Université de Montréal, a ministry he carried out for eleven years (1950-1961); the students were already affectionately calling him Mgr Greg.

On December 27, 1961, he was ordained bishop as an auxiliary to the Archbishop of Montreal, Paul-Émile Cardinal Léger, and was appointed to the positions of vicar general and director of the Office for Clergy. He especially worked to prepare the creation of pastoral zones, clusters of parishes made as a follow-up to Fr. Norbert Lacoste’s socio-religious survey on the religious practice in Greater Montreal; the report on this survey had just been filed in November 1961. During the Second Vatican Council, he was the administrator of the diocese in the Cardinal’s absence for the fall sessions of 1962, 1963, and 1965, and he took part in the 1964 session in Rome.

Again apostolic administrator on December 11, 1967, upon the Cardinal’s departure, he was appointed Archbishop of Montreal by Paul VI on April 20, 1968.

Archbishop Paul Grégoire took up his office at a crucial moment in the history of both the universal and diocesan Church. The Second Vatican Council had just ended in 1965. The issue was the follow-up to the Council and the concrete application of its major orientations. The country was still going through the “Quiet Revolution” and the turmoil of a society which, in the name of renewal, summarily rejected many values and wanted to turn its back on the past. The task at hand was to gather all the active forces of the Christian community to face the rising winds.

During the inaugural speech of his episcopate, Archbishop Grégoire spoke of unity, union of forces, new structures based on the participation of priests, male and female religious, and the faithful at all levels of responsibility.

Relying on provisional committees and taking all the time needed, Archbishop Grégoire undertook to create the Councils that were suggested or mandated by the Second Vatican Council:

the Presbyteral Council (1969), to study the issues connected to the life and ministry of priests as well as the pastoral issues on which priests have opinions to express;

the Pastoral Council (1972), including a majority of laypeople, to cooperate with the bishop for the promotion of pastoral care in general;

the Council of the Religious (1975), to provide them with a discussion forum towards better involvement in the life and action of the diocesan Church through their charisms.

One should add the creation of a Council that gathers around the bishop his immediate collaborators of the Diocesan Curia, which was called Bishop’s Executive (1971), then Episcopal Council.

The size and extreme diversity of the diocese required intermediate bodies. Therefore, Archbishop Grégoire adopted the formula of pastoral regions directed by their respective episcopal vicars. The diocese had 1,570,000 Catholics divided into six French-speaking pastoral regions—one group of parishes for English-speaking Catholics, and one group of ethnic and ritual communities.

Regional episcopal vicars have been appointed since 1976.

Archbishop Grégoire felt that these necessary structural elements should support the major orientations of the Church of Montreal, derived from the major themes of the Council. These orientations were embodied in diocesan pastoral projects. Prepared by ad hoc teams which produced, for each project, explicative documents and practical instruments, these projects had significant and generous titles: Bâtir des communautés vivantes (1974), Ensemble annoncer Jésus-Christ (1977), Responsabilités et engagements des chrétiens dans l’Église et dans la société (1982). These projects were providentially followed by festive events that were their extensions in some ways: the Pope’s visit to Canada, particularly here in Montreal (1984), celebration of the 150th anniversary of the diocese (1986), and the appointment of Archbishop Paul Grégoire as a cardinal (1988).

Also in the wake of the Council, sacraments and their celebration, under the influence of Archbishop Grégoire and with his support, were judiciously rejuvenated. Let us recall the pastoral care for the baptism of children with the well-received document Porté au baptême (1978), parish committees for baptismal pastoral care, and other committees for the sacraments of Christian initiation (Penance, Eucharist, Confirmation).

One should mention here two creations that were related to the sacraments: the diocesan catechumenate, established in 1968, for adults who ask to be admitted to the faith and Baptism and who are welcomed, initiated and accompanied by committed believers; and the Family Life Office, started in 1980 after three years of preparation. In true priests/laypeople cooperation, this Office works to rejuvenate Christian marriage through a threefold action (marriage preparation, pastoral animation for married couples and their families, and support for households that are going through specific difficulties).

Archbishop Grégoire always showed attentive concern for his brother priests. He multiplied initiatives for their support and sense of worth; they include various forms of vocational upgrading, internships in Rome that have benefitted over 264 priests in the past 24 years, internships in Pierrefonds for priests from Quebec dioceses, and the opening of the Ignace Bourget residence, which since 1981 has housed retired priests (whether independent or sick) and convalescent priests, with excellent care for the 50 priests who live there. At the other end, there is the Oeuvre des vocations, whose action, more necessary than ever, proposes to young men a commitment to the Church through the priesthood.

This return to our roots, proposed by the Second Vatican Council, was welcomed by the Archbishop. He ordained the first permanent deacon in 1976. In 1990, there were 57 (90 in 2000). Reporting to the bishop, deacons exercise ministries in liturgy, preacing, witness, and charitable service. Archbishop Grégoire took care of their training and spiritual growth with the guidance he gave them. Today, they are new and precious workers in the Lord’s vineyard.

Archbishop Grégoire strove to give an ever-greater role to laypeople and religious men and women in the Church by giving them pastoral mandates that certified their Church involvement in pastoral care in parishes, hospitals, and schools. In diocesan services, in action movements and in spiritual groups, they have meaningful responsibilities and bring a rich contribution to Church life.

The Archbishop’s statements in the evolving area of education are well-known. He largely contributed to the expression of Quebec bishops’ open-minded positions that were respectful of the population’s cultual and cultural diversity. At the same time, he insisted on the religious dimension as an essential component of the complete formation of youth and on the benefits of pastoral care in schools, which are appreciated by school communities.

The destitute, the lonely, immigrants, and the homeless were always foremost in his social concerns. In 1969, he created La Maison du Père for the homeless, which has rendered countless services to our Montreal community. The Archbishop also issued high-profile statements during the October 1970 crisis, during the hospital and school labour disputes in 1976, and during the hospital strike in 1979. He generously welcomed the Ugandan refugees in 1979 and the Southeast Asian refugees who attracted great generosity from Church members, with 200 committees created and 2,000 people received.

We must also mention his steadfast support of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, the reactivation of the press service, the reactivation of the Comité de construction et d’art sacré, as well as the activity of the missionary pastoral service and the diocesan committee on the status of women in the Church of Montreal.

All this commitment and generous service to the Church in Montreal deserved a rest that had even become mandatory. On his seventy-fifth birthday in 1986, Bishop Gregory presented his resignation to the Holy Father and awaited a response. It took a long time to come, but in the spring of 1988 he was made a cardinal on June 28, 1988. Everyone understood that John Paul II was recognizing his merits. Docile, the Archbishop went to Rome with his immediate collaborators.

The stages of the consistory were for him a prayer, a long prayer, a joyful “celebration” interspersed with friendly encounters. The faithful of Montreal rejoiced and held a great celebration in his honour the following autumn.

Life and work resumed. Cardinal Grégoire was obedient, but firm as well. In early 1990, he renewed his request to Rome: “I do not see myself as Archbishop of Montreal at age 80.” This time, the answer came more promptly. On March 17, 1990, Pope John Paul II authorized his retirement.

    The man, the pastor, the cardinal-archbishop

1968-1990. A twenty-two-year episcopate filled “to the brim.” From what resources did this pastor draw to come through such a tumultuous period of history, one said to have experienced the greatest cultural crisis of the Western world, at the very least? The breakup of groups and structures, the stirring of new ideas, identity crises, rejection of the past, emptiness before the future, and here at home in particular, religious ignorance, spiritual dryness, pervasive materialism. Alongside the undeniable wonders of science and technology, an atrophied soul. Someone here observed: “We have made every journey, but the inner journey has not moved.”

Cardinal Grégoire met all these obstacles with the human and Christian qualities that make for authentically living people: an unshakeable faith able to move mountains, trust in God and in humanity because of God, self-effacement before the Lord and simplicity, the will to hope and serenity, love of the Church, a sense of communion, the ability to share his task, kindness, gratitude.

This last word deserves attention, because it reveals the sound of a soul and it inspired the last words the Cardinal spoke publicly at the cathedral, his episcopate completed, at the Chrism Mass of April 11, 1990.

He summed up all the thanks he had never ceased to offer to those who had the good fortune of working with him. In a well-inspired image, he said: “When a conductor has finished leading a symphony, he bows to the audience and then has all the musicians stand who, in unity and harmony, collaborated in performing the work. Often the whole hall then rises and applauds. I would like to have all the collaborators who accompanied me in accomplishing my task stand, so that your applause may convey to them the thanks I owe them.”

Cardinal Paul Grégoire lived a brief three-year retirement, visited by illness. He died at Hôpital Notre-Dame in Montreal on October 30, 1994, at the age of 82. His funeral at the Cathedral-Basilica was held with both simplicity and grandeur, in the image of the man and the deliberately discreet priest, and of the eminent archbishop he was through the length of his episcopate and the great diversity of his pastoral initiatives.

Upon his return from a year of social pastoral studies at the Catholic Faculties in Lille, France, he held the position of diocesan chaplain for the Jeunesse indépendante catholique féminine and the Christian Workers’ Movement (1965-1967). From 1967 to 1974, he was in charge of various functions at the Office du Clergé. In 1974, he became director of the Parish Pastoral Office and then, in 1977, procurator of the diocese. In 1981, Archbishop Paul Grégoire of Montreal entrusted him with the mandate of Vicar General of the Diocese and General Coordinator of Pastoral Care.

On April 15, 1982, Pope John Paul II appointed him Bishop of Suas and Auxiliary Bishop of Montreal. He received his episcopal ordination from Msgr. Paul Grégoire on June 29, 1982. During the Holy Father’s visit in 1984, he was delegate of the Bishops of Quebec to the Provincial Government and also coordinated the visit to the Diocese of Montreal. On March 17, 1990, Pope John Paul II appointed him Archbishop of the Diocese of Montreal.

In August 1993, he went to Denver, Colorado, to participate in the 8th World Youth Day, where he was invited to offer catechesis to French-speaking youth. In October 1994, he went to Rome to participate in the Synod of Bishops on Consecrated Life. On October 30, 1994, His Holiness Pope John Paul II announced his appointment as Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church. In Rome, on 26 November, he was introduced to the College of Cardinals. On December 12, 1994, the Holy Father appointed him a member of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications and a member of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

On June 6, 1995, McGill University in Montreal awarded him an honorary doctorate in Theology. In October 1995, he was elected Vice-President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. From 1996 to 2006, he was a member of the Prefecture of Economic Affairs of the Holy See.

In August 1997, during the 12th World Youth Day in Paris, the Cardinal was invited to give catechesis to young Francophones. A few months later, in October 1997, he was elected President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, a position he held until 1999. That same year, he participated in the Special Assembly for America of the Synod of Bishops. At the request of the Holy Father, he acts as President of the Commission for the final message. He actively participated in the World Youth Days in Rome (2000), Toronto (2002), and Cologne (2005). Each time, he was invited to deliver two catecheses to young Francophones.

In June 2007, Concordia University of Montreal awarded him an honorary doctorate in law to recognize his work as a pastor and his support for religious, spiritual and philanthropic works. In May 2009, he was named a member of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

In June 2011, having reached the age of seventy-five, Cardinal Turcotte submitted his resignation to Pope Benedict XVI. This was accepted in March 2012 with the appointment of a new Archbishop, Msgr. Christian Lépine. From then on, he became Archbishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Montreal.

The following year, in 2013, Cardinal Turcotte participated in the Conclave which lead to the election of Pope Francis.

Having suffered for several months from serious complications related to diabetes, he was placed in a palliative care unit on March 24, 2015. On April 8, 2015, the Cardinal went to join the Master he had served all those years.

Very close to community organizations, the Cardinal sponsored several of them in addition to presiding over a blood drive that takes place each year on Good Friday. Several events marked his episcopate, notably the canonization of Brother André in 2010. A recognized communicator, he has generously collaborated with the media and chaired annual collections supported by bold advertising concepts.

Mr. de Maisonneuve invited Marguerite to come with him to Canada to teach in the new town founded under the name of Ville-Marie. After her arrival in 1653, aged 33, she began the construction of the Notre-Dame de Bon-Secours chapel, inspired by the Virgin Mary who had told her, “Go, I will not abandon you.”

The Christian education of children began only four years later. In the meantime, she devoted herself to social work with young families and the filles du roi who had come to Canada to marry settlers. She visited the sick, buried the dead, consoled the afflicted and taught catechism to the settlers. She was called “the Mother of the colony.”

On a trip to France, Marguerite brought back with her three school teachers and three fellow nuns of from her community. She opened small schools all over the shores of New France. In 1658, with her companions, she founded the Congregation of Notre-Dame of Montréal. The religious congregation was approved by the Church in 1698. Marguerite Bourgeoys pronounced her vows when she was 78 years old. She died at age 80 on January 12, 1700.

Marguerite Bourgeoys was declared Venerable in 1878, was beatified by Pius XII on November 12, 1950, and was finally canonized by John Paul II on October 31, 1982. The liturgical feast of Saint Marguerite Bourgeoys is January 12.

The charism of visitation

Marguerite Bourgeoys was attracted to the life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, especially by two events reported in the gospels: first, Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth who was pregnant, then her presence among the apostles on Pentecost Day. Visiting, going out to meet others, listening to them, welcoming them—such is the charism Marguerite Bourgeoys handed down to the religious of the Congregation of Notre-Dame. Mary has become a model of involvement characterized by visitation, compassion and solidarity with the impoverished, the excluded or the oppressed.

Patronal feast of the Visitation

The Congregation of Notre-Dame was the first female religious community established in Ville-Marie, which in 1836 became the Diocese of Montreal. This is why the patronal feast day of the Diocese of Montreal is the Visitation, celebrated on May 31. The diocesan faith education project, “Proposing Jesus Christ today,” also reminded us at the outset that the first evangelization mission of the New Testament, done by Mary, was an encounter, a Visitation.

Interesting links:

Congrégation de Notre-Dame 
Marguerite-Bourgeoys Museum/Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel 

Marguerite opened a small business, not only to provide for her children but also to help the poor who came her way. Inspired by her work, three ladies joined her. So it happened that on December 31, 1737, they consecrated themselves to the service of the poor, in whom they saw Jesus Christ. This decisive moment is considered as the founding of the Sisters of Charity of Montreal.

As soon as their society was established, the public persecuted them, believing that they were continuing François d’Youville’s spirits trafficking—hence the name “Grey” Nuns (meaning “drunken”), given to ridicule them. One trial came after another during the following years: fire, disease, extreme poverty . . .

Marguerite d’Youville settled with her companions at the Charon Brothers’ General Hospital. She became the manager of this shelter for “fallen girls,” seniors, sick and derelict people, men and women. When the authorities wanted to suppress this work to merge it with the Quebec City General Hospital, people recognized and defended Mother d’Youville’s work. The General Hospital stayed in Montreal.

Marguerite d’Youville died on December 23, 1771. She is remembered as a woman of exceptional courage, boldness, faith, and love of Jesus Christ and the poor. Her cause for canonization was introduced in Rome in 1890. On May 3, 1959, Pope John XXIII declared her Blessed and gave her the title of Mother of universal charity. On December 9, 1990, Pope John Paul II canonized the first Canadian-born saint.

Her remains rest in her birthplace, Varennes, in the Basilica of Sainte-Anne, beside the sanctuary dedicated to Saint Marguerite d’Youville.

Sources: Capsules “Si Marguerite d’Youville nous était racontée”, written by Sister Nicole Fournier, SGM.
 

Interesting links: 
 

Soeurs de la Charité de Montréal (Soeurs Grises)

Because of his state of health and lack of education, the religious authorities were reluctant to accept him into the Congregation. But the new master of novices intervened, saying, “If this young man becomes unable to work, he at least will be able to pray well.”

Alfred Bessette made his perpetual profession at age 28, on February 2, 1874. He took the name of Brother André as a tribute to Fr. Provençal. He was given the role of porter, which he kept until 1909. But he performed many other tasks, such as sweeping, maintaining the lamps, visiting the sick and doing errands, like “a jack of all trades,” as he modestly said.

Sometimes, visitors entrusted their diseases to Brother André’s prayers. Others invited him to their homes. He prayed with them, gave them a medal of Saint Joseph, suggested that they rub themselves with a few drops of the olive oil that was burning before the statue of the saint in the college chapel. During long hours every day, he briefly listened to people’s misfortunes, and everyone had faith and trust when leaving. Curiously, many said later that they were cured or felt better.

The number of visitors kept increasing, and contagion was feared. The direction asked Brother André to go across the street and stand at the tramway (public transit) stop, in the shelter facing the college. He brought the visitors to pray before a statue of Saint Joseph that was in a niche on Mount Royal.

Then, he planned to build an oratory to honour Saint Joseph. He obtained the authorization, provided that he could get funding. The first sanctuary dedicated to Saint Joseph was inaugurated on October 16, 1904. It was enlarged four times because pilgrims were coming in by the thousands year after year.

Brother André’s reputation for holiness spread throughout the world. He steadfastly denied it, giving all credit to God who heals through Saint Joseph’s intercession. He died on January 6, 1937, aged 91. For a week, despite the harsh weather, almost a million people filed past his remains. As early as 1941, many efforts were made to have him recognized as a saint. He was finally canonized on October 17, 2010.

Interesting links:

Saint Joseph’s Oratory

The young widow sold part of her estate to provide for the needs of the poor through almsgiving and works of charity. She opened a first shelter on Saint-Laurent Street, where she welcomed around 15 people over age 60. In 1831, she established a second one on Saint-Philippe Street. Then she created a society of nine ladies auxiliary, later known as the Ladies of Charity.

The cholera outbreak of 1832-1834 brought them many invalid women. The work expanded during the rebellion of 1837. Émilie hastened to visit the numerous political prisoners to console them. On September 18, 1841, the legislature granted civil incorporation to the institute under the name “Corporation de l’Asile des femmes âgées et infirmes de Montréal” (Corporation of the shelter for elderly and invalid women of Montreal).

Just at that time, seven young women asked to be consecrated to the service of the poor and the invalid. The investiture took place on March 25, 1843. When a novice left four months later, Émilie took her place. Bishop Bourget asked her, before admitting her, to visit the convents of Saint Vincent de Paul in the United States to obtain their constitutions and to observe this community’s way of life.

She then made her profession on March 29, 1844. The document canonically erecting the institution of the Sisters of Charity of Providence was read on that occasion. The next day, Sister Gamelin was elected Superior.

The charitable work of the young community expanded quickly through Montreal, as the needs were pressing. Mother Gamelin opened hospices, houses for the mentally ill, the deaf and mute, the orphans, elderly priests, the infirm, and even schools. The nuns also visited poor and sick people at home, and even prisoners.

Also, Irish immigration (1847-1848) brought to Montreal some 6,000 people, many of whom died of typhus. In 1849, cholera raged in the city, and, with the approval of Mayor Raymond Fabre, the Superior opened the Hôpital Saint-Camille for a few months.

Mother Gamelin died in the Asile de la Providence, a victim of cholera, aged 51, on September 23, 1851.

Since May 2000, her statue has stood at the Berri-UQAM metro station, on the square that bears her name, as a tribute to her great work of charity in Montreal.

Émilie Gamelin was beatified on October 7, 2001.

Sisters of Providence/Museum of the Sisters of Providence

Esther felt that education had to be a collective undertaking. She quickly recruited teaching women who led her to found a community dedicated to teaching. The community was called Sisters of Saint Anne. As religious and superior of her community, she assumed the name of Mother Marie-Anne.

Mother Marie-Anne conceived an innovative project: to open mixed schools to remedy the pitiful situation of rural schools at that time. But resistance came from the Church. She was told that “the community could teach children of both sexes only to the age of 10.”

She wrote to Ignace Bourget, Bishop of Montreal, to tell him that she “regarded herself as having failed, because it was the poor who had appealed to her zeal and charity.”

However, despite the interdict, the Sisters of Saint Anne always taught mixed classes at all levels of education.

Afterwards, Mother Marie-Anne faced grave problems. The very next year, as a result of difficulties with a young priest who had become chaplain of the convent, Mother Marie-Anne obeyed Bishop Bourget’s instruction and agreed to resign as superior. She then became directress at the Sainte-Geneviève boarding school. But four years later, she was cast aside a second time.

Mother Marie-Anne, as she expressed it, was reduced to “zero”, to such a point that her name was not on the list of the sisters and their positions. In 1859, in the Saint-Jacques convent, in the Joliette area, she was named sacristan. For 30 years, she stayed in the shadows doing manual tasks according to the community’s needs until she died in 1890.

Because of stubborn prejudice, she remained in the shadows long after her death. Thanks to a series of talks given by a chaplain who had interrogated witnesses of her life, enthusiasm rose for Mother Marie-Anne.

In 1950, at the centennial of the founding of the congregation, the official process began to have her holiness recognized. She was proclaimed Venerable in 1991 and Blessed on April 29, 2001, by Pope John Paul II.

The Sisters of Saint Anne and their associates continue Mother Marie-Anne’s mission by seeking to be a prophetic presence in solidarity and commitment to justice for women, youth, the impoverished, and the marginalized.

Congregation of Sisters of Saint Anne

At age 20, she became housekeeper in the Beloeil presbytery, where her brother Théophile was parish priest. She was the hostess there for 12 years, until 1843. She welcomed resting priests, became involved in the parish, visited the destitute, supported families in difficulty, taught catechism to children and organized liturgical celebrations, like a pastoral worker ahead of time. However, this stay in Beloeil made her aware of the poor level of religious instruction and the lack of schools, particularly for girls in rural areas.

Answering God’s call expressed by the voice of her bishop, Ignace Bourget of Montreal, she travelled to Longueuil to found a new religious community with two companions. The community was called Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary.

Initiation into religious life and starting a new education project in parishes brought many challenges. The pioneer women faced opposition, criticism, lack of understanding. But their love for young people, deep faith and sense of justice gave them the strength and courage needed to bring to fulfilment the founding of the community.
 
They needed to recruit candidates to religious life who would then start schools in rural areas. Under the name Mother Marie-Rose, Eulalie recruited talented women and provided them with excellent pedagogical preparation with the assistance of the Brothers of the Christian Schools.

The Oblates of Mary Immaculate also contributed by helping them to foster the development of each person’s gifts. During the lifetime of the foundress, the convents in Longueuil, Beloeil, Saint-Lin, and Saint-Timothée were established.

The spirituality of the new community was inspired by the motto of the Oblates, “Evangelize the poor.” Fidelity to the Gospel, sustained by St. Ignatius of Loyola’s method of prayer and devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, flows from the spiritual heritage left by Mother Marie-Rose, whose motto was “Jesus and Mary, my strength and my glory.” She died on her birthday, October 6, 1849, at the age of 38.

Even today, the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary continue this indispensable education work, always remembering to give priority to the destitute. Several new services have been developed in the areas of parish pastoral care, faith education, accompaniment of persons, welcoming of different cultures, health care and community services. They are also committed to justice and peace by cooperating with various organizations, including Development and Peace.

Mother Marie-Rose was beatified by Pope John Paul II on May 23, 1982. The Church recognized her as an apostolic woman, a forerunner of new times.

Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary