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By Fannie Dionne
“Among the members of the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, both those who are still alive and those who have already passed on to God, there are special men, at special moments in history, endowed with special passions and abilities, who serve our Lord and his people in an extraordinary way. I believe that, among those of the last century, Fr. Jacques Monet, SJ, is one such Jesuit.”
– Fr. Michael Knox, SJ
Fr. Jacques Monet, SJ, had a profound impact on Canadian history through his research, but even more so on the lives of many people — friends, Jesuits, researchers — who knew him until his death at the age of 94 in 2024.
He lived his long Jesuit life to the fullest, as he expressed in an interview: “It is the most exciting vocation I can imagine, and I have never known a single moment of boredom in my life.” His vocation unfolded in his academic career, his Jesuit life and his work as a transmitter of knowledge.
Silent Consultant to the Constitution
Jacques Monet entered the Jesuit novitiate in 1949, after studying at Loyola College in Montreal. His interest in history led him to pursue a doctorate at University of Toronto, then to devote much of his career to academia, as a professor and administrator at the University of Ottawa, Regis College and the University of Sudbury.
His specialization in Canadian history and constitutional history quickly made him a leading figure in his field. According to Fr. Michael Knox, SJ, his numerous works helped Canadians to see their history and the emergence of their identity in a new light.
Fr. Monet’s research went beyond the academic sphere and had a concrete impact on the country’s public memory and political decisions. He served as historian to two Governors General, commented on the visit of Queen Elizabeth II (whom he met), and sat on the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. But even more than that, according to Fr. Knox, Fr. Monet was one of the “silent consultants” of the current Canadian parliamentary system, having advised the government during the repatriation of the Constitution under Pierre Elliott Trudeau.
Relationships as a Vocation
Fr. Monet was not focused solely on the production of knowledge, however. His service was lived first and foremost in relationship with others and in sharing his passion, whether teaching young Jesuits at the novitiate or Regis College, or accompanying other confreres in the development of their own vocations.
Fr. Knox cites himself as an example. For some Jesuits, the long Ignatian formation is seen as a stage to be completed; Fr. Monet, on the contrary, showed him how university life and the study of history are part of the Jesuit vocation. “Studies are not just a means to an end,” Fr. Monet taught him. “They are an integral part of how we act.” Thanks to him, the young Jesuit understood that the study of history was not just a job but a way of looking at the world and living his priesthood.
Fr. Monet provided this kind of accompaniment during moments of sharing with his colleagues or friends, encounters that were central to the historian’s life. A great storyteller, Fr. Monet also knew how to listen and be present with others, Fr. Knox points out. “I remember several occasions when Jacques literally dropped everything he was doing to accompany a Jesuit who needed him. I think that’s where many comments about his great generosity come from.”
“Jacques literally dropped everything he was doing to accompany a Jesuit who needed him.” –Michael Knox, SJ
Transmission of History
The final stage of Fr. Monet’s life brought together his expertise as a historian and his generosity. He was one of the key figures in the merger of the Jesuit archives in Canada and their relocation to Montreal in 2009, sorting and moving boxes himself while ensuring the professionalization of the archives by hiring lay specialists.
After working as an archivist, he became a Jesuit historian, providing his colleagues with context for historical documents and offering support to researchers visiting the archives. “Many researchers still talk to me today about their interactions with Fr. Monet,” says François Dansereau, director of the Jesuit Archives in Canada.
Fr. Knox smiles as he recounts how, after spending time with researchers, the elderly historian often worked late into the evening and more than once set off the archives’ alarm system when leaving at night.
For Fr. Jacques Monet, Jesuit life was a rich intellectual and spiritual adventure. With humour and humility, he served his country, his fellow Jesuits, his fellow researchers and all those he accompanied with unwavering joy.
