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Views from the Choir Loft

Jesuit Martyrs of North America by John A. O’Brien

Corpus Christi Watershed · November 6, 2013

223 Martyrs HE FOLLOWING BOOK has been made available for free download courtesy of the Jean de Lalande Library. If you appreciate these efforts, please consider making a donation by using the link at the top of the page.

      * *  Free PDF Download • 321 pages

      * *  Purchase this book • Softcover, Large Print   ($14.82)

Of all the books that have been written about the Eight Jesuit Martyrs of North America, Fr. John A. O’Brien’s opus is perhaps the best … and most concise. For this reason, Watershed has gone to great effort to provide this PDF scan which we offer free of charge.

HE FIRST MARTYRS OF NORTH AMERICA by Father John A. O’Brien. In this volume is told the inspiring story of eight humble and faithful men — the eight commonly known as the Jesuit martyrs of North America. They were the first individuals on this continent to be canonized as saints by the Catholic Church. The willingness with which these men ventured into the wilderness lived and labored among the Indians under the most revolting and painful conditions, and gladly, almost exultantly, suffered torture and death, can hardly be matched by any other enterprise in history. Their letters and records — simply related and carefully noted in spite of all hardships and weariness — contribute so splendidly to the greater knowledge of the life, the customs and the languages of the Indians, that they are equally remarkable. Here is the account of Father Isaac Jogues, who was the first priest to enter what is now New York State, and of his two lay assistants, Rene Goupil and Jean de Lalande; of Father Jean de Brebeuf, who was among the first missionaries to accompany the Huron party into Huronia, and among the last to leave; of Father Gabriel Lalemant, who though the smallest and most delicate in health of all the Jesuit missionaries, still won in six months by iron will and unwavering determination, a martyr’s end; of Fathers Antoine Daniel, and Charles Garnier, who were murdered by the Iroquois; and of Father Noël Chabanel who lost his life to one treacherous Huron, but whose memory lives on as the last of the eight who gave their lives in the missions of the New World. Peppered throughout with excerpts from correspondence and notes made by these and other missionaries, THE FIRST MARTYRS OF NORTH AMERICA is a propelling story of heroic endurance and magnificant achievement: a brilliant, important chapter in the history of America.   Softcover. 321 pages. Large Print.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Last Updated: January 13, 2020

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Quick Thoughts

    Hymn by Cardinal Newman
    During the season of Septuagesima, we will be using this hymn by Cardinal Newman, which employs both Latin and English. (Readers probably know that Cardinal Newman was one of the world's experts when it comes to Lingua Latina.) The final verse contains a beautiful soprano descant. Father Louis Bouyer—famous theologian, close friend of Pope Paul VI, and architect of post-conciliar reforms—wrote thus vis-à-vis the elimination of Septuagesima: “I prefer to say nothing, or very little, about the new calendar, the handiwork of a trio of maniacs who suppressed (with no good reason) Septuagesima and the Octave of Pentecost and who scattered three quarters of the Saints higgledy-piddledy, all based on notions of their own devising!”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Introit • Candlemas (2 February)
    “Candlemas” • Our choir sang on February 2nd, and here's a live recording of the beautiful INTROIT: Suscépimus Deus. We had very little time to rehearse, but I think it has some very nice moments. I promise that by the 8th Sunday after Pentecost it will be perfect! (That Introit is repeated on the 8th Sunday after Pentecost.) We still need to improve, but we're definitely on the right track!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Simplified Antiphons • “Candlemas”
    Anyone who desires simplified antiphons (“psalm tone versions”) for 2 February, the Feast of the Purification—which is also known as “Candlemas” or the Feast of the Presentation—may freely download them. The texts of the antiphons are quite beautiful. From “Lumen Ad Revelatiónem Géntium” you can hear a live excerpt (Mp3). I'm not a fan of chant in octaves, but we had such limited time to rehearse, it seemed the best choice. After all, everyone should have an opportunity to learn “Lumen Ad Revelatiónem Géntium,” which summarizes Candlemas.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Nothing should be allowed that is unworthy of divine worship, nothing that is obviously profane or unfit to express the inner, sacred power of prayer. Nothing odd or unusual is allowable, since such things, far from fostering devotion in the praying community, rather shock and upset it—and impede the proper and rightful cultivation of a devotion faithful to tradition.

— Pope Paul VI • 10/13/1966

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