Vigils Reading – North American Martyrs

The North American Martyrs,

from Butler’s Lives of the Saints.^[1]

On March 16, 1649, the Iroquois attacked the village at which Brebeuf and Lalemant were stationed.  The torture of these two missionaries was as atrocious as anything recorded in history.  At the height of the torments Father Lalemant raised his eyes to Heaven and invoked God’s aid, whilst Father de Brebeuf set his face like a rock as though insensible to the pain.  Then, like one recovering consciousness, he preached to his persecutors and to the Christian captives until the savages gagged his mouth, cut off his nose, tore off his lips, and then, in derision of baptism, deluged him and his companion martyrs with boiling water.  Finally, large pieces of flesh were cut out of the bodies of both the priests and roasted by the Indians, who tore out their hearts before their death by means of an opening above the breast, feasting on them and their blood, which they drank while it was still warm.

Before the end of the year 1649 the Iroquois had penetrated as far as the Tobacco nation, where Father Garnier had founded a mission in 1641 and where the Jesuits now had two stations.  The inhabitants of the village of Saint-Jean hearing that the enemy was approaching, sent out their men to meet the attackers, who, however, took a roundabout way and arrived at the gates unexpectedly.  An orgy of incredible cruelty followed, in the midst of which Garnier, the only priest in the mission, hastened from place to place, giving absolution to the Christians and baptizing the children and catechumens, totally unmindful of his own fate.  While thus employed he was shot down by the musket of an Iroquois.  He strove to reach a dying man whom he thought he could help, but after three attempts he collapsed, and subsequently received his death-blow from a hatchet which penetrated to the brain.

Father Noel Chabanel, the missionary companion of Garnier, was immediately recalled.  He had started on his way back with some Christian Hurons when they heard the cries of the Iroquois returning from Saint-Jean.  The father urged his followers to escape, but was too much exhausted to keep up with them.  His fate was long uncertain, but a Huron apostate eventually admitted having killed the holy man out of hatred of the Christian faith.

These martyrs of North America, SS John de Brebeuf, Isaac Jogues, Anthony Daniel, Gabrial Lalemant, Charles Garnier, Noel Chabanel, Rene Goupil and John Lalande, were canonized in 1930.

     ^[1]Butler’s Lives of the Saints, ed. Michael Walsh, Harpers San Francisco, 1985, p.136-137.