A Devotion to French Roots

It was in 1636 in La Flèche, France, that two laypersons, Jérôme Le Royer de La Dauversière and Marie de la Ferre, founded the community of the Religious Hospitallers of Saint Joseph to care for the sick at the Hôtel-Dieu. The new community was dedicated to the Holy Family under the name and special protection of Saint Joseph, a devotion particularly significant to Jérôme Le Royer. In 1671, they adopted cloistered life and solemn vows, becoming “nuns.”

This devotion to Saint Joseph accompanied Jeanne Mance, Paul de Chomedey de Maisonneuve, and the first settlers in Ville-Marie. The celebration of the first feast of Saint Joseph in Ville-Marie on March 19, 1643, was a day of joy. Jeanne Mance would have the final act of her administrative life and her testament sealed with a seal bearing the image of Saint Joseph.

On July 2, 1659, three Religious Hospitallers of Saint Joseph from La Flèche—Judith Moreau de Brésoles, Catherine Macé, and Marie Maillet—were at the port of La Rochelle receiving the final blessing from Jérôme Le Royer before their departure for Canada. They would be the ones to pass on to generations of Canadian Hospitallers the spirit of the Congregation, characterized by devotion to their glorious Father, Saint Joseph.

Marie Morin, the first Canadian vocation born in Quebec on the feast day of Saint Joseph in 1649, professed under the patronage of this great Saint in 1665. The Annals she wrote about the early years of Ville-Marie provide numerous examples of the protection of this benevolent Father.

A Saint for the Hospital

Thus, our Hôtel-Dieu de Montréal emerges as a center radiating devotion to Saint Joseph. Since its inception, there has always been a room dedicated to Saint Joseph, the men’s ward. Bishop Ignace Bourget, the second Bishop of Montreal, affirmed in a letter written from Paris on September 8, 1855, that it was during the four years he spent with Bishop Jean-Jacques Lartigue at the Hôtel-Dieu that he felt the first sparks of devotion to Saint Joseph kindling imperceptibly in his heart.

“Now,” wrote Bishop Bourget, “everything makes it a very legitimate duty for you to devote yourselves particularly to the extension of this sweet and lovable devotion. Your first Mothers passed through the harsh trials – recorded in your chronicles – to be its apostles. Your older sisters were its happy heirs and faithful guardians.” Our annals record significant healings of patients, obtained through Saint Joseph’s intercession.

The protection of Saint Joseph was granted in a special way in 1860 during the construction of the new Hôtel-Dieu, where the work progressed astonishingly quickly and visible favors were evident even on a material level.

“By means of your large hospital and your beautiful church,” Bishop Bourget wrote from Rome on May 17, 1882, “you now have at your disposal more ease to spread the devotion to Saint Joseph. Do not cease to speak of it to your dear patients…”

Following the Jubilee year dedicated to the saintly Patriarch by Benedict XV in 1920, a ten-foot statue of Saint Joseph was placed on the hospital’s roof in 1924.

On March 19, 1942, the tercentenary year of Montreal, a procession was organized throughout the hospital with an ancient statue of Saint Joseph. Hymns and chants were sung along the entire route, and the Seven Sorrows and Joys of Saint Joseph were recited. In the Hôtel-Dieu of 1942, just as in the tiny hospital of 1645, Saint Joseph occupies his rightful place: that of the “master of the house.”

Saint Joseph, a Faithful Companion in the 21st Century

Even though the expression of their devotion varies, the Religious Hospitallers continue to honor Saint Joseph. Each Wednesday is marked as a day dedicated to him with special prayers. Traditional devotions are upheld. The feast of Saint Joseph on March 19, patron of the congregation, is celebrated in a special manner. On this occasion, seven weekly pilgrimages lead to various locations in the house where Saint Joseph’s image is found.

Current devotion takes forms adapted to community life: a novena in the chapel, intercessory prayer, or singing to Saint Joseph on the first Wednesday of the month at Vespers.

Our projects, both material and spiritual, are entrusted to him. And always, he responds to our trust. We express our deep gratitude to our predecessors who preserved and passed on to us the torch of this strong devotion.

Sr. Nicole Bussières, rhsj
June 20, 2024

Based on the article: “Devotion to Saint Joseph: Precious Pearl of Our Community Heritage,” by Sr. Thérèse Payer, RHSJ. 1980.