Saint Marguerite d'Youville

Life story

Marie-Marguerite Dufrost de Lajemmerais was born on 15 October 1701 in Varennes, in New France (modern Canada). Her father died when she was young, and the family fell into hardship. On 12 August 1722 she married François d'Youville at Notre-Dame in Montreal. The marriage was not a happy one, and he died in 1730, leaving her a widow with debts and small children. She had six children, of whom only two lived to adulthood.

In 1737, with three other women, she formed a household association to care for the poor of Montreal. The group met with gossip and opposition inside the city. The group gradually took on the character of a religious community. In 1747 she was put in charge of the General Hospital of Montreal, which was then in decline, and in 1753 royal letters patent confirmed her as its director. She took in the sick, the elderly, abandoned children and other poor people. A fire destroyed the hospital in 1765, and she and her sisters rebuilt it.

She died on 23 December 1771 in Montreal at the age of 70. Her community later became known as the Grey Nuns and opened houses across North America. Pope John XXIII beatified her on 3 May 1959, and Pope John Paul II canonised her on 9 December 1990. She was the first Canadian-born person to be canonised by the Catholic Church. Her feast day is 16 October.

Works and witness

• Widowed in 1730; raised her children and paid her husband's debts
• Founded a charitable association for the poor of Montreal in 1737
• Ran the General Hospital of Montreal from 1747
• Rebuilt the hospital after the fire of 1765
• Canonised on 9 December 1990

Saints from the same country

Saint André Bessette, Saint Marie of the Incarnation, Saint Émilie Gamelin, Blessed Dina Bélanger

References

• Dictionary of Canadian Biography, entry on Marie-Marguerite d'Youville
• Martyrologium Romanum (16 October)
• Dicastery for the Causes of Saints: canonisation records, 9 December 1990

Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.