Decorating the votive chapel

 

For the 2025 Novena to Saint Joseph, we continue our little story of the votive chapel.

Too fast a start

Work is progressing well at the beginning of 1949. There is even hope of inaugurating the new space for the Easter celebration. For the religious of Sainte-Croix, the time has come to think about the statue of Saint Joseph they wish to install in the chapel. They toy with the idea of reproducing the statue from the main altar of the crypt. This would create a distinctive image of Saint Joseph for the Oratory, almost like a trademark. They also consider a statue of Saint Joseph, the hope of the sick (1). For a while, they even think about the statue blessed by Pope Pius IX, which dates back to the very beginning of the work, but it is quite small (2).

However, all these considerations are cut short when the inauguration date is set for August 9, 1949. Time is running out, and in the rush, they opt for a temporary statue of Saint Joseph. For the moment, the decoration remains unfinished, although it is possible to light the lanterns placed on raw wooden stands.

Blessing of the votive chapel with Bishop Joseph Charbonneau, August 9, 1949. Photographer unidentified. OSJ Archives.

A Renowned Decorator

In January 1950, Rector Émile Deguire, CSC., wrote a report to Provincial Superior Jules Poitras, C.S.C., explaining the urgency of releasing the funds needed to complete the decoration and furnishings of the votive chapel.

To convince him, Father Deguire emphasized that the furnishings (lamp posts, balustrade, candelabras, offering boxes, gates) had been designed by Mr. Émile Lemieux, associate of the well-known architect Ernest Cormier, and decorator at the Eaton’s department store for over 30 years. As for the furniture, it was entrusted to the care of the Fer Ornemental Workshops in Saint-Hyacinthe.

Workers from the Fer Ornemental Workshops are busy cleaning the offering boxes. Around 1950. Photographer unidentified. OSJ Archives.

Father Deguire insists that, according to general opinion, this furniture “will help restore a religious atmosphere to the chapel that will foster piety and a sense of beauty that will charm visitors [and that] we can count on a greater number of lamps and lanterns.” (3)

In the January 1950 magazine, an inspiring preview of the upcoming central motif is provided. The green light to complete the work seems to have been given in May 1950. Once again, Émile Lemieux is called upon for new tasks: illuminating the stained-glass windows, electrifying the lamps with grilles, etc.

An artistic representation of the central motif presented in the The ORATORY magazine in January 1950. Unidentified illustrator. OSJ Archives.

 

The workers of the Oratory are building the platform for the central motif. Around 1949. Unidentified photographer. OSJ Archives.

 

The central motif with the temporary statue, around 1951. Unidentified photographer. OSJ Archives.

And here it is!

In the end, it is the Montreal sculptor Joseph Guardo who is entrusted with the task of creating a 2.6-meter statue to be added to the central motif. Guardo will also create the eight panels depicting the patronage of Saint Joseph, placed above the lamp posts.

The statue of Saint Joseph, the true keystone of the votive chapel, is installed on December 5, 1952. This date is like a wink from Saint Joseph to the sanctuary: 35 years earlier, on December 5, 1917, the statue of Saint Joseph was installed in the crypt.