ONDAY in the Extraordinary Form is the feast of the EIGHT JESUIT MARTYRS OF NORTH AMERICA. 1 I humbly suggest that all who live in the USA consider going to Mass on their feast day and begging their intercession.
Consider a few words about St. Charles Garnier:
ATHER FRANCIS BRESSANI relates that Garnier thought nothing of walking thirty or forty miles on the hottest summer day to baptize some dying Indian, when the woods were infested with Iroquois. On such errands he would sometimes pass the night alone in the forest in the dead of winter, reclining on pine branches. The Relations depict him carrying sick people on his back—and he was not the strongest of men—for distances of up to six miles in order to gain the opportunity of baptizing them. Far from dreading an encounter with the Iroquois, “he often told us,” says Father Ragueneau, “that he would be quite content to fall into the hands of the Iroquois and remain their prisoner if, while they were torturing him, he at least had a chance of instructing them as long as his torments lasted.”
Many people know about St. Isaac Jogues—which is wonderful—but I feel they should also learn about his companions.
The Propers are not easy to find, because the Eight Jesuit Martyrs of North American Martyrs were canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1930. 2
INTROIT : Hi sunt qui venerunt
GRADUAL AND ALLELUIA : Anima nostra + Sicut abundant
OFFERTORY : Tamquam aurum
COMMUNION : Magnificabitur Christus
ADDITIONAL : Readings, Propers, and Prayers in Latin & English
NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:
1 This feast day in the Ordinary Form occurs on 19 October (in the USA) but in Canada it remains 26 September—just as in the Extraordinary Form. If God grants my prayer and restores my health, I would very much like to spend my life spreading information about these martyrs. You can get a fantastic overview by downloading this book (321 pages).
2 I believe they were beatified by Pope St. Pius X.
