Category Archives: WRITINGS

Eugene had sent the two missionaries to evangelize the indigenous tribes and was proud of their zeal and courage. He wrote to the Bishop of Montreal: I have received news from Red River. Fathers Aubert and Taché have written to … Continue reading →

Father Aubert and Taché were the pioneer Oblates in this part of Canada, some 2000 miles away from the nearest Oblate community, with letters taking over two months to reach their destination. For this reason the small community of two … Continue reading →

With Canadian men becoming Missionary Oblates, Eugene was not able to get to know them. Despite this, he regarded them as his sons in exactly the same manner as the Oblates he knew in France. His letters show his strong … Continue reading →

Eugene spoke often of the “enemy” as the power of darkness who prevented people from coming to the light of salvation given by Jesus Christ. He followed the Gospel understanding of the world as being in the power of the … Continue reading →

“Accompanied by two Grey Nuns of Montreal, Fr Pierre Aubert and scholastic brother Alexandre Taché set out from Lachine, on June 25, 1845; they traveled 1800 miles by way of lakes and rivers, in a boat with a crew of … Continue reading →

Fr. Guigues, receiving the instruction from Eugene to send two Oblates to the new mission, responded: “I consider this foundation imprudent and consequently contrary to God’s will. We are two thousand miles from Red River; . . . communication is … Continue reading →

Bishop Provencher had been entrusted with the Vicariate of Red River (later known as St Boniface) which extended from the Rocky Mountains to the provinces of Upper and Lower Canada, and from the United States to the Arctic Ocean; and … Continue reading →

In the previous entries I have gone into a fair amount of detail on the question of the nomination of Bruno Guigues as the first bishop of Bytown, later known as Ottawa. I did this, firstly, because it opens an … Continue reading →

One of the beautiful spiritual practices of Eugene was the way in which he united himself with the members of his missionary family in the Eucharistic presence of Jesus. In this way he experienced a unity with each of them, … Continue reading →

Eugene concluded the correspondence on the contentious issue of the appointment of Fr. Guigues to establish a diocese in Bytown with fatherly words of encouragement. He begins by recalling how he had known him since his childhood: [The Church and … Continue reading →