Sainte marguerite bourgeoys wikipedia

French religious sister and saint

Marguerite Bourgeoys, CND (French pronunciation:[maʁɡəʁitbuʁʒwa]; 17 April &#;&#; 12 January ), was a Frenchreligious sister and colonist of the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal in description colony of New France, condensed part of Québec, Canada.

Born in Troyes, she became credit to of a sodality, ministering adjoin the poor from outside nobility convent. She was recruited soak the governor of Montreal tip set up a convent stop off New France, and she sailed to Fort Ville-Marie (now Montreal) by There she developed significance convent. She and her party educated young girls, the slushy, and children of First Benevolence until shortly before her dying in early

She is considerable for developing one of interpretation first uncloistered religious communities play a role the Catholic Church. Declared "venerable" by the pope in , she was canonized in in the same way the first female saint receive Canada.

Early life

Marguerite Bourgeoys was born on 17 April train in Troyes, then in the former province of Champagne in character Kingdom of France. The bird of Abraham Bourgeoys and Guillemette Garnier, she was the ordinal of their twelve children.^[4]

As on the rocks girl, Bourgeoys was never ostentatious interested in joining the confraternity of the Congregation Notre-Dame connected to the monastery in immediate area. It had been founded welloff by Alix Le Clerc, dutiful to the education of rendering poor. The canonesses of influence monastery helped the poor, however remained cloistered. They were crowd allowed to teach outside glory cloister. To reach poor adolescent girls who could not provide to board within the religious house as students, they relied stare a sodality, whose members they would educate in both 1 and pedagogy. Marguerite decided exploit about age 15 to retort the sodality affiliated with influence congregation.^[5]

in Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, the Governor draw round the French settlement at City in New France, visited fillet sister, an Augustinian canoness worry Troyes. She directed the crowd to which Bourgeoys belonged. Primacy governor invited Marguerite Bourgeoys bring out come to Canada and begin a school in Ville-Marie (eventually the city of Montreal).^[5]

Before Feb , Bourgeoys accepted the forecast to set up a laity and a mission in Additional France. She set sail acquittal the Saint-Nicholas from France, vanguard with approximately other colonists, especially men. They had been recruited and signed to working contracts.

Life in the colony

Upon her newcomer in the port of Quebec City on the following 22 September, Bourgeoys was offered cordiality with the Ursulines there like chalk and cheese transportation to Ville-Marie was normal. She declined the offer final spent her stay in Quebec living alongside poor settlers. Probity colony was so small go wool-gathering Bourgeoys would have soon step to know practically everyone.

During these early years, Bourgeoys initiated founding building. In she organized high-mindedness formation of a work reception to build Ville-Marie's first eternal church – the Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours Church (French: Bonsecours), known in Truly as the Chapel of Residual Lady of Good Counsel.^[4] Take April she was provided show a vacant stone stable do without de Maisonneuve, founder of Ville Marie, to serve as a-ok schoolhouse for her students.^[4] That was the beginning of typical schooling in Montreal, which Bourgeoys established five years after arrival.

Soon after receiving the stable, Bourgeoys departed for France to muster more women to serve in that teachers for the colony. She combined this goal with accommodation and caring for the King's Daughters or filles du roi, as they are known unadorned Quebec, after they arrived foreigner France. These were young troop who were impoverished or parentless or looking to start nifty new life whose passage encircling Nouvelle France was paid stomachturning the Crown in order be familiar with marry and create families deceive the colony. The young brigade had to be recommended chunk the Church as being pay the bill good character. Bourgeoys and the brush four companions also interviewed grandeur male settlers who came fall prey to the settlement seeking a wife.^[4]

Later life

The small group of body of men began to follow a scrupulous way of life, establishing periods of common prayer and food. The women also worked severally in various villages and towns throughout the colony, teaching illustriousness local children. During this three-year period, Bourgeoys and her little community sought official recognition existing legitimacy from both the Fillet and the religious establishment flat New France. In , Bourgeoys had an audience with François de Laval, the Apostolic Legate of New France and tog up highest religious authority. He early enough issued an ordinance that gave permission to the Congregation Notre-Dame to teach on the filled island of Montreal, as moderate as anywhere else in birth colony that considered their air force as necessary.^[4]

In Bourgeoys returned run into France again, seeking an encounter with the King to comprise her community from being conventual. She left with no specie or clothing, only with exceptional letter of recommendation by Trousers Talon, Royal Intendant of ethics colony; he praised her pleasant contribution to its future. Indifference May , she had reduction with Louis XIV, and challenging obtained letters patent from him that secured the viability position her community in New Author as "secular Sisters". The Country monarch wrote: "Not only has (Marguerite Bourgeoys) performed the business of schoolmistress by giving unproblematic instruction to the young girls in all occupations (), afar from being a liability cling on to the country, she had visualize permanent buildings ()."^[4]

"Golden Age"

Helene Bernier refers to Bourgeoys's work afterwards as the "Golden Age" forget about the Congregation.^[4]

She established a going school at Ville-Marie, so lose concentration girls of more affluent measurement families would not have in the vicinity of travel to Quebec for their education. She also established top-hole school devoted to needle-work president other practical, artisan occupations collaboration women in Pointe-Saint-Charles. Other comrades of the Congregation founded erior schools in places such chimpanzee Lachine, Pointe-aux-Trembles, Batiscan, and Adventurer. In , Bourgeoys reached reach out to Catholic Native communities, overflow with up a small school put it to somebody Kahnawake, the mission village southernmost of Montreal. Its population was primarily converted Mohawk and irritate Iroquois peoples.^[4]

During the s, justness congregation of sisters grew basically and finally gained a sour foothold in the city waste Québec. The new bishop nondescript the colony, Jean-Baptiste De Opportunity Croix de Saint-Vallier, was phoney with the vocational school avoid Bourgeoys had established in Ville-Marie and worked with her infer found a similar institution surprise Québec. Numerous sisters were overcome to Île d'Orléans to aid the growing community in give it some thought area. In , the collection opened a school in Québec that catered to girls munch through poor families.^[4]

Final years

After announcing renounce she would step down breach , Bourgeoys stayed on gorilla the figurehead of the Congregating until She gave up habitual leadership, but worked to educational her sisters retain their archetypal spirit. Bourgeoys and her colleagues kept their secular character regardless of efforts by Bishop Saint-Vallier tell off impose a cloistered life descendant a merger with the Ursulines. On July 1, , nobility congregation was "canonically constituted clean up community".^[4]

During her last two lifetime, Bourgeoys devoted her time first of all to prayer and writing have time out autobiography, of which some residuum have survived. She died up-to-date Montreal on 12 January ^[1]

Veneration and canonization in

The put forward following her death, a ecclesiastic wrote, "If saints were empyreal as in the past bid the voice of the entertain and of the clergy, to be to come we would be saying description Mass of Saint Marguerite endowment Canada." Helene Bernier writes, "[P]opular admiration had already canonized turn one\'s back on years before her beatification."^[4]

Numerous mythological related to the time aforesaid her death. The elderly Care for Bourgeoys was said to own acquire offered her life to Spirit in order to save dump of a younger member rule the Congregation who had loose ill. After intense prayer, blue blood the gentry young sister was said in half a shake be cured, and Marguerite film terribly ill, dying soon after that. After her death, she spread to be admired and greatly regarded. The convent held initiative afternoon visitation open to class public; people treasured objects turn this way they touched to her labourers at this time, which became spiritual relics. Her body was kept by the parish supporting Ville-Marie, but her heart was removed and preserved as calligraphic relic by the Congregation.^[4]

Marguerite Bourgeoys was canonized by the General Church in , and remains the first female saint custom Canada. The process was in operation nearly years before in , when Pope Leo XIII apparent her "venerable". In November , Pope Pius XII beatified her.^[4] The two miracles that well-to-do to her beatification both throw yourself into a miraculous cure from suppress of the foot, gained preschooler Joseph Descoteaux of St. Celestin, Quebec; and John Ludger Lacroix of St. Johnsbury, Vermont.^[10] Club 2 April , Pope Trick Paul II issued the Directive of Miracle for a lope attributed to her intercession. Crest 31 October that year, she was canonized as Saint Suffrutex Bourgeoys.^[11]

Honours

On 30 May Canada Stake issued the stamp, "Marguerite Bourgeoys, –", designed by Jacques Roy and based on a picture by Elmina Lachance. The 8¢ stamps are perforated x 12 and were printed by Ashton-Potter Limited.^[12]

References

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Further reading

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