René Goupil

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This article is about 17th century Jesuit missionary. For the original 5th century Saint-René, see Saint Renatus.
Saint René Goupil, S.J.

North American Martyrs
Religious and martyr
Born May 15, 1608
Saint-Martin-du-Bois, Anjou, Kingdom of France
Died September 29, 1642(1642-09-29) (aged 34)
Ossernenon, New France
Honored in Roman Catholic Church
(Canada and the United States)
Beatified June 21, 1925, Rome, Italy, by Pope Pius XI
Canonized June 29, 1930, Vatican City by Pope Pius XI
Major shrine National Shrine of the North American Martyrs, Auriesville, New York, United States
Feast 26 September (Canada), 19 October (United States)
Patronage anesthetists, anesthesiologists

René Goupil, S.J. (15 May 1608 – 29 September 1642), was a French Jesuit lay missionary, who became a lay brother of the Society of Jesus shortly before his death. He was the first of the North American Martyrs of the Roman Catholic Church to receive the crown of martyrdom and the first canonized Catholic martyr in North America.

Life

Goupil was baptized in St-Martin-du-Bois, near Angers, in the ancient Province of Anjou, on 15 May 1608. He was a surgeon in Orléans before entering the novitiate of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) in Paris on 16 March 1639.[1] He had to leave the novitiate due to deafness.[1]

Goupil volunteered to serve as a lay missionary working to assist the Jesuit Fathers. In 1640 he arrived in New France.[1] From 1640 to 1642, he served at the Saint-Joseph de Sillery Mission, near Quebec.[1]

In 1642 Goupil travelled to the Huron missions with about forty other persons, including several Huron chiefs and Jesuit Father Isaac Jogues.[1] They were captured by the Iroquois, taken to Iroquois territory at Ossernenon (Auriesville, New York), and tortured. After teaching the native children the sign of the cross, Goupil was killed 29 September 1642 by several blows to the head with a tomahawk. Before being martyred, he had professed religious vows as a Jesuit lay brother before Fr. Jogues.[1]

Veneration

Goupil is venerated as the first Jesuit martyr in Canada and one of three United States martyrs. He was canonized on 29 June 1930 by Pope Pius XI along with the seven other Canadian Martyrs or "North American Martyrs". He is the patron saint of anesthetists.

At Fordham University's Rose Hill Campus in the Bronx, New York, a freshman dormitory—Martyrs' Court—has three sections, which are named for the three US martyr-saints: René Goupil, Isaac Jogues, and John LaLande.[2] Goupil is also honored at the Catholic youth camp Camp Ondessonk, where a unit is named after him. Camp Ondessonk recognizes the North American Martyrs and their Native American friends.

See also

  • Jesuit missions in North Canada
  • Sainte-Marie among the Hurons
  • List of U.S. saints
  • Roman Catholicism in the United States#American Catholic Servants of God, Venerables, Beatified, and Saints
  • Christian martyrs

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 René Goupil. Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online. University of Toronto/Université Laval. Retrieved 2011-10-26.
  2. ↑ "Martyrs' Court". Fordham University. Retrieved 2011-10-27. 

External links

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