St. Andre Bessette

Feastday: January 6
Beatified: Pope John Paul II
Canonized: October 17, 2010, Saint Peter's Square, Rome, by Pope Benedict XVI

When Alfred Bessette came to the Holy Cross Brothers in 1870, he carried with him a note from his pastor saying, "I am sending you a saint." The Brothers found that difficult to believe. Chronic stomach pains had made it impossible for Alfred to hold a job very long and since he was a boy he had wandered from shop to shop, farm to farm, in his native Canada and in the United States, staying only until his employers found out how little work he could do. The Holy Cross Brothers were teachers and, at 25, Alfred still did not know how to read and write. It seemed as if Alfred approached the religious order out of desperation, not vocation.

Alfred was desperate, but he was also prayerful and deeply devoted to God and Saint Joseph. He may have had no place left to go, but he believed that was because this was the place he felt he should have been all along.

The Holy Cross Brothers took him into the novitiate but soon found out what others had learned -- as hard as Alfred, now Brother Andre, wanted to work, he simply wasn't strong enough. They asked him to leave the order, but Andre, out of desperation again, appealed to a visiting bishop who promised him that Andre would stay and take his vows.

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After his vows, Brother Andre was sent to Notre Dame College in Montreal (a school for boys age seven to twelve) as a porter. There his responsibilities were to answer the door, to welcome guests, find the people they were visiting, wake up those in the school, and deliver mail. Brother Andre joked later, "At the end of my novitiate, my superiors showed me the door, and I stayed there for forty years."

In 1904, he surprised the Archbishop of Montreal if he could, by requesting permission to, build a chapel to Saint Joseph on the mountain near the college. The Archbishop refused to go into debt and would only give permission for Brother Andre to build what he had money for. What money did Brother Andre have? Nickels he had collected as donations for Saint Joseph from haircuts he gave the boys. Nickels and dimes from a small dish he had kept in a picnic shelter on top of the mountain near a statue of St. Joseph with a sign "Donations for St. Joseph." He had collected this change for years but he still had only a few hundred dollars. Who would start a chapel now with so little funding?

Andre took his few hundred dollars and built what he could ... a small wood shelter only fifteen feet by eighteen feet. He kept collecting money and went back three years later to request more building. The wary Archbishop asked him, "Are you having visions of Saint Joseph telling you to build a church for him?"

Brother Andre reassured him. "I have only my great devotion to St. Joseph to guide me."

The Archbishop granted him permission to keep building as long as he didn't go into debt. He started by adding a roof so that all the people who were coming to hear Mass at the shrine wouldn't have to stand out in the rain and the wind. Then came walls, heating, a paved road up the mountain, a shelter for pilgrims, and finally a place where Brother Andre and others could live and take care of the shrine -- and the pilgrims who came - full-time. Through kindness, caring, and devotion, Brother Andre helped many souls experience healing and renewal on the mountaintop. There were even cases of physical healing. But for everything, Brother Andre thanked St. Joseph.

Despite financial troubles, Brother Andre never lost faith or devotion. He had started to build a basilica on the mountain but the Depression had interfered. At ninety-years old he told his co-workers to place a statue of St. Joseph in the unfinished, unroofed basilica. He was so ill he had to be carried up the mountain to see the statue in its new home. Brother Andre died soon after on January 6, and didn't live to see the work on the basilica completed. But in Brother Andre's mind it never would be completed because he always saw more ways to express his devotion and to heal others. As long as he lived, the man who had trouble keeping work for himself, would never have stopped working for God.

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On December 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI promulgated a decree recognizing a second miracle at Blessed André's intercession and on October 17, 2010, Pope Benedict XVI formally declared sainthood for Blessed Andre.

In His Footsteps:

Brother Andre didn't mind starting small.

Think of some service you have longed to perform for God and God's people, but that you thought was too overwhelming for you. What small bit can you do in this service? If you can't afford to give a lot of money to a cause, just give a little. If you can't afford hours a week in volunteering, try an hour a month on a small task. It is amazing how those small steps can lead you up the mountain as they did for Brother Andre.

Prayer:

Blessed Brother Andre, your devotion to Saint Joseph is an inspiration to us. You gave your life selflessly to bring the message of his life to others. Pray that we may learn from Saint Joseph, and from you, what it is like to care for Jesus and do his work in the world. Amen

Canadian Catholic brother and saint

André Bessette, C.S.C. (9 August 1845 – 6 January 1937), more commonly known as Brother André (French: Frère André), and since his canonization as Saint André of Montreal, was a lay brother of the Congregation of Holy Cross and a significant figure of the Roman Catholic Church among French-Canadians, credited with thousands of reported miraculous oil healings associated with his pious devotion to Saint Joseph.

Bessette was declared venerable in 1978 and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1982. Pope Benedict XVI approved the decree of sainthood for Blessed André on 19 February 2010, with the formal canonization taking place on 17 October 2010. He is the first Canadian living after Confederation to be canonized.

Early life

He was born Alfred Bessette in Mont-Saint-Grégoire, Canada East (Québec), a small town situated 40 kilometres (25 mi) southeast of Montreal. His father, Isaac Bessette, was a carpenter and lumberman, while his mother, Clothilde Foisy Bessette, saw to the education of the children. Alfred was the eighth of 12 children, four of whom died in infancy. At birth, Alfred was so frail that the curé baptized him "conditionally" in an emergency ritual the following day. In 1849, with employment scarce and his family living in poverty, Alfred's father moved to Farnham, Quebec to work as a lumberman, but soon perished, having been tragically crushed by a falling tree. Alfred was nine years old, and his mother, at 40, remained with ten children in her care. Clothilde died of tuberculosis within three years, and Alfred became orphaned at the age of twelve.

According to Laurent Boucher, C.S.C., author of the book Brother André: the Miracle Man of Mount Royal, Alfred was placed under the care of Timothée and Rosalie Nadeau of Saint-Césaire, Quebec following his mother's death. While with the Nadeau family, Alfred attended catechetical lessons taught by his parish's pastor, Rev. André Provençal. It was during these lessons that Alfred developed his two lifelong devotions: Saint Joseph and the Passion of Christ. In June 1858, at age 12, Alfred was confirmed by Bishop Jean-Charles Prince of the Diocese of Saint-Hyacinthe. At 14, the Nadeau's began to send Alfred to school. However, Alfred was soon removed from school, having only learned to read and sign his name, both with difficulty. Timothée Nadeau intended to train Alfred as a laborer, seeing no need for an orphan to be educated. Alfred soon left the Nadeau's and was brought in by Louis Ouimet, the mayor of Saint-Césaire. While living with the Ouimet family, Alfred had a series of short-lived occupations, working as a farmer, tinsmith, blacksmith, wheelwright, cobbler, and baker, all of which Alfred was too physically weak to sustain. Searching for work, Alfred moved to Moosup, Connecticut at the age of 18, where he joined several of his relatives in work at textile mills across Connecticut and Rhode Island. Bessette returned to Canada in 1867 following the Canadian Confederation.

Call to devotion

Brother André (ca. 1920)

The pastor of his parish, the Rev. André Provençal, noticed the devotion and generosity of the young man. He decided to present Alfred to the Congregation of Holy Cross in Montreal, writing a note to the superior, "I'm sending you a saint." Although he was initially rejected by the order because of frail health, Archbishop Ignace Bourget of Montreal intervened on his behalf, and in 1872, Alfred was accepted, and entered the novitiate of the congregation, receiving the religious name of Brother André, by which he was known for the rest of his life. He made his final vows on February 2, 1874, at the age of 28.

André was given the task of porter at Collège Notre-Dame in Côte-des-Neiges, Quebec, with additional duties as sacristan, laundry worker and messenger. "When I joined this community, the superiors showed me the door, and I remained 40 years," he said.

His great confidence in Saint Joseph inspired him to recommend the saint's devotion to all those who were afflicted. On his many visits to the sick in their homes, he would rub the sick person lightly with oil taken from a lamp burning in the college chapel and recommend them in prayer to Saint Joseph. People claimed that they had been cured through the prayers of the good Brother and Saint Joseph, and they were grateful their prayers had been heard. Brother André steadfastly refused to take any credit for these cures. Bessette's desire to see Saint Joseph honoured led him in 1904 to launch a campaign to build a chapel for that purpose.

When an epidemic broke out at a nearby college, André volunteered to nurse. Not one person died. The trickle of sick people to his door became a flood. His superiors were uneasy; diocesan authorities were suspicious; doctors called him a quack. "I do not cure," he said again and again. "Saint Joseph cures." In the end he needed four secretaries to handle the 80,000 letters he received each year.

Stained Glass window with Andre Bessette at Stinson Remick Chapel at the University of Notre Dame

As tensions increased at the college with so many of the sick coming to see the porter, the school officials decided that Brother André could no longer continue with his ministry. He was permitted to receive the sick in the nearby tramway station rather than the college. As his reputation spread, Brother André became quite a controversial figure. There were many religious in the Congregation of Holy Cross, teachers and parents of students at the College who supported him but many others opposed him and even considered him dangerous to the well-being of the school's reputation because they regarded him as a charlatan. Others were concerned for the good health of the children, fearing the possibility of contagion in the school spread from diseases carried by the sick who frequented Brother André.

In 1924 construction of a basilica named Saint Joseph's Oratory began on the side of the mountain, near Bessette's chapel.

Death and path to canonization

Statue of André Bessette by Joseph-Émile Brunet on the grounds of Saint Joseph's Oratory in Montreal, QC, Canada

Bessette died in 1937, at the age of 91. A million people filed past his coffin.

The remains of Bessette lie in the church he helped build. His body lies in a tomb built below the Oratory's Main Chapel, except for his heart, which is preserved in a reliquary in the same Oratory. The heart was stolen in March 1973, but was recovered in December 1974 with the help of famous criminal lawyer Frank Shoofey .

Brother André was beatified by Pope John Paul II on May 23, 1982. The miracle cited in support of his beatification was the healing in 1958 of Giuseppe Carlo Audino, who suffered from cancer. St. Andre is commemorated in most of the world by an optional memorial on January 6. His memorial is celebrated in Canada on January 7.

On December 19, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI promulgated a decree recognizing a second miracle at Blessed André's intercession, and on October 17, 2010, formally declared sainthood for him. Blessed Brother André was the first saint of the Congregation of Holy Cross, the same religious order that founded the University of Notre Dame.

Legacy

Andre Hall houses the School of Humanities at St. Edward's University, a Holy Cross school, in Austin, Texas.

A Catholic high school in Markham, Ontario, St. Brother André Catholic High School, is named in his honour.

There is a high school built on Fanshawe Park Rd in northwest London, Ontario Canada called Saint Andre Bessette Secondary School.

A program to support student learning at Notre Dame College Prep in Niles, Illinois, is named after Saint Andre. Students in the program are known as St. Andre Scholars.

There is an elementary school, Brother André Catholic School, in Beacon Heights (a suburb of Ottawa), Ontario, Canada. Another elementary school in Brampton, Ontario is called St. Andre Bessette.

The French Catholic mission in York Region - North of Toronto - is named "Mission Catholique St-Frère-André". Services are held at the region's only French Catholic High School: ÉSC Renaissance.

A Roman Catholic church named St. Andre Bessette will be opening soon in Vaughan, Ontario. It is now under construction.

St. Andre Bessette Parish is located in Laconia, New Hampshire; a small New England city with strong French Canadian Heritage.

St. André Bessette Catholic Church is a bilingual church (Spanish, English) located in Ecorse, Michigan.

St André Bessette Catholic Church is located in Downtown Portland, Oregon. Its former name was Downtown Chapel.

St André Bessette Catholic Church is a church located in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

There is a Catholic high school called St. Andre Bessette Catholic High School in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, serving students in grades 9-12.

André House is a ministry to the homeless and poor populations of the Phoenix area.

Bibliography

• Joel Schorn, God's Doorkeepers: Padre Pio, Solanus Casey and André Bessette: Servant Publications, (September 30, 2006), ISBN 978-0-86716-699-6
• Laurent Boucher, c.s.c., Brother André: the miracle man of Mount Royal: Montreal, 1997, 329 p.
• Lafrenière, Bernard, c.s.c., Brother André. According to the Witnesses, Montreal, St. Joseph 's Oratory, 1997, 212 p.
• Henri-Paul Bergeron, Brother André, Apostle of Saint Joseph: Montreal 1958
• Katherine Burton, Brother André of Mount-Royal, USA: The Ave Maria press, 1942, 310 pages

Media

• Brother André still with us: Le Centre Saint-Pierre and Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount-Royal, 2004 (1 DVD - 62 minutes)
• The Greatness and Beauty of Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal: Montreal, Les Productions de la Montagne and Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal, 1995 (1 DVD, color, 26 minutes)
• By Jean-Claude Labrecque: Brother André: Montreal, Les Productions de la Montagne, 1987 (Movie, on 1 DVD, color, 88 minutes)
• God's Doorkeeper: St. André of Montreal, 2010
• Bible