Blessed Father Frederic Janssoone, ofm. |
Holy Brother André And Good Fr. Frederic |
The Patron of the Regional Fraternity of Eastern Canada is Blessed Father Frederic Janssoone, ofm.
Frederic Janssoone was born in Ghyvelde, France, on the 19th of November, 1838. Father Frederic's first trip to Canada was in 1881. He came to Canada to raise funds for the Holy Land. During his eight month stay, much of his time was devoted to preaching and writing while he prepared for his mission to the Holy Land. After a time in the Holy Land, where he founded the Commissariate of the Holy Land, he returned to Canada to stay in 1881. Good Father Frederic, the first Franciscan to arrive in Canada for the third return of the Franciscans to this country, dedicated himself in a remarkable way for the Secular Franciscan Order, then known as the Third Order of Saint Francis. He was Spiritual Assistant of the Third Order and it was due to his dedication that the Fraternity of Warwick, Quebec, grew with 184 novices and 150 professed members and in 1897 it had attained the record number of 400. In 1890, the year of the return of the Franciscan Friars, there were 34 Parish Fraternities, 17 of which had been founded by Father Frederic, with a total of some 12,000 members. He published a "Manual of the Third Order which sold 5,000 copies. In 1889 he wrote a booklet under the title "The Third Order, Its Rule and Its Excellence". 10,000 copies sold quickly ay $3.00 per hundred, that is, three cents a copy. Blessed Father Frederic is well known for his work for the sanctuary at Cap de la Madeleine, near Trois Rivieres, Quebec, which he did much to establish and where miraculous events took place. When in Montreal, he lived in a small, humble room at St. Joseph's Friary. He died in Montreal on the 4th of August, 1916, and is buried in a tomb at the Church of Saint-Antoine. He was declared Blessed by Pope John Paul II on the 25th of September, 1988. More info can be obtained from: Centre Frederic-Janssoone, 890 Saint-Maurice Street, Trois-Rivieres, QC G9A 3P8 (819) 375-4004 / 378-4864 |
"I was convinced that he was a saint," Brother André said of Good Father Frederick, adding: "From the beginning of the work of St. Joseph's Oratory, he encouraged me a lot. He came to the Oratory several times. Before his Mass, he generally encouraged me a lot. » This statement by Brother André, delivered during the informative trial in the case for the beatification of Father Frederick, held in Trois-Rivières in 1927, clearly shows that Father Frederick's encouragement had been of great help to him in the difficulties of the founding of the Oratory. Brother André, doorman of Notre Dame College, had just installed a statuette of Saint Joseph and the parents of the students venerated it on days of visitation. This influx must have hindered discipline: the Director tried to obstruct it. And Brother André resorted to Father Frederick who predicted the successive disappearance of obstacles and that one day this little place would become a great sanctuary dedicated to the worship of St. Joseph. The beginnings were modest. In 1904, on Mount Royal, a small oratory dedicated to Saint Joseph opened. The event of November 19, 1904 was then considered a Day of exultation: in the chapel of the College of Our Lady, the blessing of a statue of St. Joseph, which is carried in procession to the new shrine, where Mass is celebrated and a way of the cross erected. When Brother André in his statement affirms that Father Frederick "came to the Oratory several times" he speaks of this little oratory of 1904. Brother André served Mass and did so with his grave piety, following the priest’s slightest gesture, visibly impressed by the mystery of the Eucharist.
United to Brother André through the most touching friendship, the Franciscan friar would recommend intentions to him, for he considered him a great friend of St. Joseph. Father Frederick's biographer, Father Romain Légaré, O.F.M. tells this amusing story: "One day, between these two holy souls, there was a struggle of humility worthy of a painter of Fioretti. Father Frederick arrives at St. Joseph's Oratory. "I come to ask Brother André how he manages to be so holy. |
Read Good Father Frederic's booklet Holy Land History
| good_father_frederic.pdf |