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By Erik Sorensen, SJ
Recently, the Jesuit Province of Canada received the news from Rome that our request to have St. Jean de Brébeuf, Isaac Jogues and their companions named as the patron saints of our province had been approved.
As I have been sharing this news with various people, many of them have been surprised; many of them were under the assumption that these saints were already patrons of our Jesuit province. However, when the new Jesuit province of Canada was formed in 2018, no patron saints were named for the new province.
After six years of the new province’s existence, the provincial, with his consultors, decided to petition Rome to have the Canadian Martyrs named as the patrons of our province. Being a part of the process of submitting this request, I hope to share some of my thoughts on the relevance of St. Jean de Brébeuf and his companions to our Jesuit presence in Canada today.
By naming the Canadian Martyrs as our patron saints, we are also reminding ourselves, as Jesuits and partners, of our apostolic priorities.
The Role of Saints as Intercessors and Companions
Choosing the Canadian Martyrs as the patrons of our province reminds us of our Jesuit history in this land, which has spanned over 400 years. Our patron saints are Jesuits who came to know both this land, now called Canada, and its diverse peoples. These Jesuits would offer up their lives as martyrs here out of love for Christ and love for the people with whom they were ministering.
As patron saints, we can turn to them in a special way and ask for their continued intercession and support for our current ministry. In Lumen Gentium, the Second Vatican Council reminds us that “It is supremely fitting, therefore, that we love those friends and coheirs of Jesus Christ, who are also our brothers and extraordinary benefactors, that we render due thanks to God for them and ‘suppliantly invoke them and have recourse to their prayers, their power and help in obtaining benefits from God through His Son, Jesus Christ, who is our Redeemer and Saviour.’” (LG #50)
These Jesuits who are now rejoicing with God continue to be companions for us on our pilgrimage. Our bonds with those who have gone before us are not severed at death. The saints in heaven continue to walk with us in a real way. They share in all of our hopes, joys, and struggles. They are part of our wide diversity of partners in mission.
Walking with the Marginalized: A Jesuit Priority
By naming the Canadian Martyrs as our patron saints, we are also reminding ourselves, as Jesuits and partners, of our apostolic priorities. Our apostolic planning document, Pilgrims Together, and the Universal Apostolic Preferences of the Society of Jesus both speak of the priority of walking together with the marginalized.
In the context of our Jesuit province, one of these marginalized groups with whom we are called to walk is the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island. St Jean de Brébeuf and the other Canadian Martyrs took some of the first steps on this journey.
Acknowledging the Complex Legacy of Colonialism
As we look back on this pilgrimage, inaugurated by St Jean de Brébeuf and his companions, we are very conscious of both the negative and positive aspects of this journey. For example, we cannot separate the Canadian Martyrs and their ministry with the Indigenous Peoples from the broader colonial project of their era. A colonial project that continues to leave scars on the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island to this day. We see this complex history with more clarity now, in hindsight.
Because of the clarity of their vision, which they now enjoy, and what we can assume is a desire to transform their legacy into a redemptive one, the Canadian Martyrs make excellent intercessors for our ongoing journey of reconciliation.
However, we can trust that Jean de Brébeuf and his companions who enjoy God’s beatific vision see these complexities of our current age even more clearly than we do today. Along these lines, the theologian Jeremy Bergen, in his book Ecclesial Repentance, reminds us that “Jesus Christ and all saints are joined together in the mire of present scandal and in prayerful anticipation of healing.” Because of the clarity of their vision, which they now enjoy, and what we can assume is a desire to transform their legacy into a redemptive one, the Canadian Martyrs make excellent intercessors for our ongoing journey of reconciliation.
Christ-Centered Ministry
As our patron saints, the Canadian Martyrs offer us an example of placing Christ at the centre of our lives. Their various writings, including their many letters, attest to this love of Christ that animated their care and concern for the peoples whom they ministered to. Regardless of which area we find ourselves ministering, the example of the Canadian Martyrs can offer us an example of the kenosis, the self-giving, that makes our ministry centred on Jesus. Their example invites us to embrace our various ministries in prophetic ways. The martyrs knew where this type of prophetic love would lead. They knew that this love cost them their lives. St. Isaac Jogues famously wrote, “ibo et non redibo,” I go, and I shall not return.
The naming of St. Jean de Brébeuf, Isaac Jogues, and their companion as the patrons of the Jesuit Province of Canada is an opportunity to reflect on our commitment to engage in prophetic outreach to the margins. I invite you to join me in asking our saintly companions on this journey to intercede on our behalf that we have the strength and courage to give more fully of ourselves in the love and service of Jesus in and through those most in need.
