The arduous, expensive and dangerous journey to North America in 1611 was typical of what Jesuits have always done, and still do, said Fr. Jean-Marc Biron, provincial superior of the Jesuits in Quebec.
鈥淓ven in those times, Jesuits had to work to the frontiers,鈥� Biron said. 鈥淲e still, as Jesuits, work on the frontiers 鈥� not just the geographical ones.鈥�
Whether it鱿鱼视频app rebuilding in Haiti or serving the poor in Canada, Jesuits today are seeking ways of serving Christ that take them outside all that's comfortable and familiar, to the edges of society where Christ needs to be present, said Biron.
鈥淭heir mission was the Jesuit mission to find God in all things,鈥� said the Jesuits鈥� English Canadian provincial superior Fr. Jim Webb in a homily at a thanksgiving Mass.
鈥淭hey recognized the spirit of Christ present among the native people they came to serve. That鱿鱼视频app a legacy that continues to this day.鈥�
Nova Scotia鱿鱼视频app Lieutenant Governor Mayann Francis praised the Jesuits鈥� 400 years of faith and zeal.
鈥淕od has blessed us. Let us not squander that in an age of distraction,鈥� she said. 鈥淟et us embrace those blessings we enjoy in this province.鈥�
As the Jesuits remembered their first steps on North American soil, they also celebrated the welcome they received from the Mi鈥檏maq people. Biard and Mass茅 had arrived within months of Chief Henri Membertou鱿鱼视频app historic decision to seek baptism for himself and his family 鈥� becoming the first native Christians in Canada. The Jesuits spent two years in Mi鈥檏maq country nurturing the faith of the aboriginal community while they were completely dependent on Mi鈥檏maq hospitality.
The Mi鈥檏maq came to the celebrations asking the Jesuits for a favour.
鈥淢aybe it鱿鱼视频app time for the Mi鈥檏maq to ask for your help in preserving our language,鈥� said Grand Keptin Antle Denny.
The Mi鈥檏maq language is one that's in crisis, said Denny. 鱿鱼视频app 70 per cent of Mi鈥檏maq speak English and very few young people are comfortable in their own language. Linguists have told Denny the language will be extinct in 20 years.
鈥淲e want to be with them in spirit,鈥� said Webb. 鈥淲e would be happy to co-operate.鈥�
Webb told The Catholic Register it鱿鱼视频app difficult to say what practical steps today鱿鱼视频app Jesuits could take to help preserve the language, but he noted that work on languages has been part of Jesuit history in Canada. Canadian Jesuits translated Ojibway stories into English and the Bible into Ojibway in central Canada. A Canadian missionary to Nepal was responsible for translating the liturgy into Nepali.
A travelling exhibition chronicling the Jesuits four centuries in Canada will make its way across Canada. The exhibition 鈥� The Jesuits in Canada, 1611-2011, Men for Others 鈥� consists of between 150-200 pieces, including documents, rare books, objects and photographs illustrating the Jesuits' ministry. It is in Port Royal until June 13. From there it goes to Shawinigan, Que., until Sept. 25, with further dates and venues to be announced.
Jesuits mark 400 years of ministry in Canada
By Michael Swan, The Catholic RegisterPORT ROYAL, N.S. - Canada's Jesuits returned to the scene of their earliest footsteps in Canada to help mark 400 years of service in Canada May 22.
鱿鱼视频app three dozen Canadian Jesuits and some 100 guests gathered to mark the landing, 400 years to the day, of Jesuit Fathers Pierre Biard and Ennemond Mass茅 at Port Royal in what is now Nova Scotia. Halifax Archbishop Anthony Mancini presided at a jubilee Mass that was part of the day-long celebrations at Port Royal National Historical Site.
The reconstructed Habitation on the shores of the Annapolis Basin, near the Bay of Fundy, provided a back drop for a brief dramatic re-enactment of Biard and Mass茅鱿鱼视频app landing at the site. The original Habitation had been built by French fur traders in 1604 but had been abandoned to Mi鈥檏maq control when the Jesuits arrived. It became the base for two years of missionary activity before the Jesuits returned to France.
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