Pilgrimage 

Most Americans, when we think of Canada, imagine a great wintry wasteland, populated by polite people with hard-to-place accents, who spend their days eating jelly doughnuts, curling, and trading quotes from the film Strange Brew. But, in truth, not all of Canada is like that. 

This week, I will travel to the city of Montreal, the largest city in the French-speaking province of Quebec. While French Canada is today one of the most secular regions in North America, it was at one time one of the most Catholic places in the world. If you want to get a sense of what Catholic Quebec was like in its heyday, the 1953 Alfred Hitchcock film I Confess features a city bustling with priests and nuns from a variety of religious orders, largely gone today. 

But the vestiges of a rich Catholic history are still present, and Montreal remains a viable pilgrimage destination for those who wish to pray at the tombs of some great saints, including St. Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680), the “Lily of the Mohawks,” whose feast day is this Tuesday, July 14. Kateri embraced the Christian faith of her mother at a very young age, consecrating herself to Christ when she was 13, refusing her father’s wishes that she marry. With her baptism at age 20, she began to be terribly mistreated by the members of her tribe. The Jesuit missionary who baptized her invited Kateri to move to their mission, located just south of Montreal. Just a few years later, she succumbed to illness, but her reputation for sanctity drew large crowds to her tomb in the mission, and many miracles and conversions were attributed to her intercession. 

Another great saint one can visit in Montreal is St. Andre Bissette (1845-1937). He was a member of the Congregation of the Holy Cross who was given the job of doorman at the high school run by his order. Unable to read, Br. Andre could not teach. A lay brother, he was unable say Mass or hear confessions. But people of all walks of life would go to him for counsel. He would listen to their troubles with compassion and pray for their intentions – and his prayers were often answered. Br. Andre attributed the answered prayers to the intercession of St. Joseph, in whose honor Br. Andre raised funds to build a small shrine. When he died, his body was waked at the shrine, and a million people reportedly came to pay their respects. Since his death, the shrine – called St. Joseph Oratory – has been expanded and is now massive. People still go there and bring their prayer intentions to St. Joseph and Br. Andre. This week, I will be among them. There, I will thank God for His many blessings, and I will entrust all of you and your intentions to the care of these great saints, as well as any others I encounter along the way.  

posted 7/11/26