On March 16th, St. Mary’s Parish will be hosting a trip to St. Ignace II which is the site where Saints Brebeuf and Lalemant were martyred a few kilometers from Martyrs’ Shrine in Midland, Ontario on March 16, 1649!  We will be meeting other pilgrims there including staff and students from Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Academy in Barry’s Bay, Ontario.  Transportation, itinerary, and other details are still being finalized by St. Mary’s, but please call the office (705 324-4828) to sign up and reserve a spot for this amazing opportunity to visit such a holy and historic site where miracles are thought to have taken place!   

Jean de Brebeuf, born in Normandy, March 25, 1593. He mastered the Indian language and worked through all the district of Huronia. He founded Mission-outposts, converted thousands to the faith. Massive in body, strong yet gentle in character. He made a vow signed in his blood, never to refuse the offer of Martyrdom if asked to die for Christ. His visions of his future Martyrdom were fulfilled when captured March 16, 1649 and tortured for hours. He was martyred at the age of 56. Brebeuf is said to have the heart of a giant. He was known as the apostle of the Hurons. The Indians called him Echon.

Gabriel Lalemant, born in Paris, October 10, 1610. His ambition was to labor in the Missions and he asked to be sent to the Canadian Missions. In 1646, his repeated request to be sent to New France was granted. In Canada, he arrived in Huronia in September 1648 where in words of Scriptures, he was destined to complete a long time in a short space. He was sent to assist Brebeuf with whom he was captured and tortured for seventeen hours at the stake. Gabriel Lalemant died on March 17, 1649, at the age of 39.

Stakes found at St. Ignace II where Saints Brebeuf and Lalemant were tortured.