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Vol: 32, No.2
February, 2010
FOUNDER OF MONTREAL’S ST JOSEPH ORATORY HEADED FOR SAINTHOOD
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Pope Benedict XVI formally recognized the miracle needed for the canonization of Blessed Andre Bessette, a brother of the Congregation of Holy Cross and founder of St Joseph Oratory of Mount Royal in Montreal.
Known for his intense piety, famed for miraculous cures and praised for his dedication to seeing a shrine built on Mount Royal to honour St Joseph, Blessed Andre is set to be the Holy Cross Brothers’ first saint. While Pope Benedict issued a decree Dec. 19 putting Blessed Andre on the track toward sainthood, no date has yet been announced for Blessed Andre’s canonization ceremony.
Born Alfred Bessette on Aug. 9, 1845, in Saint-Gregoire d’Iberville, Quebec, he was one of 12 children and suffered from a chronic stomach ailment that kept him out of school and often without work. A few years after his father’s death, his mother died, but their piety and trust in God had deeply influenced Blessed Andre. When he reached the age of 18, he set out for New England in search of employment. He spent four years working in cotton mills and farms in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In 1867 he returned to Canada and sought the help of his childhood parish priest, Father Andre Provencal. The priest encouraged the young man to pursue his desire to enter into religious life.
Blessed Andre’s special affection for St Joseph inspired him to build a church in his honour. Using the small sums he received cutting students’ hair, as well as donations, the brother was able to build a modest structure in 1904, which he continued to expand as more funding became available. Blessed Andre was named the oratory’s custodian in 1909 as hundreds and then thousands of pilgrims made their way to Mount Royal to meet Blessed Andre and pray to St Joseph. The huge numbers of pilgrims flocking to the site compelled the archdiocese to turn the sanctuary into a minor basilica, which was completed in 1966 — almost 30 years after Blessed Andre’s death.
Blessed Andre died on Jan. 6, 1937, at the age of 91. Between his death and burial, more than 1 million people came to pay tribute to him. In May 1982, he was beatified by Pope John Paul II.
