Iris "Frere Andre"
Hybridizer by M. Elaine Bessette, R., 1996
Blossoming: late May, early June




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Blogue O saint joseph


Review St. Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal
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Montreal, Quebec, Canada




Blog on brother André









A Message from the Rector 
Saint Joseph, Saint Brother André
and the Year of Faith
click here 


Exhibition :
Drawn by the Spirit


The reliquary of Saint Brother's André 

Saint Brother André's reliquary in your parish.
Information, click here


Music at the Oratory


The Chapel of Brother André





The Chapel of Brother André
Photo: Nathalie Dumas


In July 1904, Saint Brother André, his confrère and carpenter Brother Abundius Piché, and some lay friends began erecting the first chapel on the slopes of Mount Royal right across the street from College Notre-Dame. The finished chapel was blessed on the 19th of October of that year, and provided the faithful with an oratory dedicated to Saint Joseph.

The simple building measured a mere 4.5 metres (15 feet) by 5.5 metres (18 feet). Two over-sized walnut doors occupied almost the entire façade and opened up for Masses, so people kneeling on the grass outside the chapel could see the altar. A portable communion rail was set up so worshippers could receive Holy Communion.
 
It soon became clear that more space was needed.
 
Once Saint Brother André’s renown grew and word of miraculous healing spread abroad, throngs of pilgrims began to flock to the site. In 1908, the chapel was enlarged for the first time and a stove was added so it could be used year-round. The nave was again enlarged in 1910, at which time a steeple and a room for Brother André were also added. This is the chapel that stands today.
 
Chapel's blessing in 1904
Photo: Les Archives de l'Oratoire Saint-Joseph
 
 
The Interior
The chapel interior is furnished with a wooden altar in front of an antique-style carved reredos, sculpted by Brother Abundius during the winter of 1906. Natural sunlight from a thin clerestory highlights the altar and the pressed tin walls and ceiling. The painted plaster statues were done by the artist T. Carli. Crutches, canes, and plaques are attached to the wall as testaments to the graces and healing pilgrims received as a result of their visits to Saint Brother André.

The Altar
Photo: Nathalie Dumas
 
 
Brother André's Room

In a loft above the entrance in a kind of gallery is a little room where Saint Brother André lived. The room and its original furnishings are remarkably simple: a bed, a small table with two chairs, a basin, a wardrobe and a little gas stove. Sometimes Saint Brother André would squeezed in an extra cot to accomodate a sick person or an overnight pilgrim. Thanks to an interior window Saint Brother André could look straight down a few feet to the altar and his beloved Saint Joseph. The simple and austere arrangement gives the viewer a feel for the lifestyle and spirit of poverty that motivated the founder of the Oratory.

Photo: Paul Simon