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Maps, plates, charts, etc.. may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely Included in one exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc.. peuvent &tre filmAs A des taux de reduction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul clichA. il est fllm6 A partir de Tangle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bes. en prenant le nombre d'images n^cessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mAthode. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 I^JJ- WAS'E®MA3s r^W/£WMM QS> pis %^xh\i^ i\t ^hmxMiax, To promote the Worship of the Blessed Virgin, in the Church of Our Lady of Victories, of the Lower Toim of Quebec. CHARLES FRANCIS BAILLARGEON, By the mercy of God, and the Grace of the Holy Apostolic See, Bishop of Tloa, Administrator of the Diocess of ftuebeo. To the Cleryy, Secular and lleynlar, and to all the Faithful, in the Diocess of Quebec, yrectincf, and Benediciiym in the Lord : We bless the Lord, Dearly beloved brethren, for the signal favour conferred oa U3 when he mercifully condescended to place the Cathedral and the Diocese of Quebec under the patronage of his most Holy jMother. Hence we deem it one of our most sacred obligations to stimulate and to preserve within your hearts a sincere devotion towards the Inmiaculate Virgin Mary, and a lively gratitude for the manifold bless- ings which our beloved country owe to her Mediation. We were filled with joy when lately we contemplated the zeal and generosity manifested by our fellow IwlJ i wr^ mtm ■■^^ C! ' } 'i ',*! 2 citizens in repairing and restoring the ancient clnirch of our Lndy of Victories that standing monument of the tender devotion of onr ancestors towards their august and powerful patroness. May the God of Mercies and source of every goou gift who inspired them with the holy thought, reward a hundredfold the offerings of their piety given for the restoration and decoration of the emple, in which for so many years past, we have honoured his blessed Mother. But the children of Mary, whose pious liberalities renewed and adorned her cherished Sanctuary, were anxious to enjoy the happiness of contemplating the mild and sweet image of their good mother, audit was in conformity with the desire of their filial affection, that the venerable Archbishop, on the 23rd October last, consented to bless, with solemn pomp, and to placo on the throne prepared for the occasion, the statue of the merciful Virgin, at whose feet the poor in their misery and the repentant sinner are ever sure to obtain protection, refuge, and succour ' Oh ! how great was the joy of the pious and worthy prelate, seeing the dense crowd of the faithful thronging round the altar of Mary, during the imposing and affecting ceremony ; how the paternal heart of the Pastor overflowed with consola- tion while thus beholding, in the midst of his dearly beloved fl<,ck, a spectacle of devotion towards the Most Holy Virgin worthy of the ages of faith, the happiest ages of the church ! ^ With what lively emotions did he not feel the full force and truth of the prophetic words which the humblest of the daughters of Israel uttered when having become the mother of God, she pronounced, under the mfluence of the extatic gratitude and love of her souI-Z^.ce mim ex hoc beatam me dtcent omnes gcnerationes. Behold henceforth all iK.tions shall cmII me blessed mid shall bless me. Quia fecit mihi magna ,,ui poles ed : Because the Most' High has looked down on the humility of his handmaid. Yes, she is justly entitled to all our blcssings-to all our confidence, the humble and holy Virgin, whom God himself has blessed amongst all women, and whom he has raised above all angels, by choosing her to be the mother of his divine Son ! What could he refuse to her, after having thus give.i to her, his only beloved Son? And could the divine Jesus reject the prayers of Mary, whom he loves as the mother who boro him in her womb, who suckled him witl. her milk %vho watched over his cradle, who nursed his infancy, who followed him in the : iiri 8 wearisome journeyings of his evangelical missions, who shared in the sufferings of his passion, and whose soul was transpierced with a sword of grief at the foot of the cross 7 Is it not through the mediation of Marj, that God has visited and redeemed his people ? Quia visitavU et fecit redcmptionem plebis sum. Is it not by her instrumentality that he gave a Saviour to the world ? Is it not from her virginial womb that he appointed his mercy should flow with so much exuberance over all manicind ? And having thus seen fit to give us once Jesus, through Mary, shall not this his established order subsist for ever ? For the gifts of God are without repentance. It is, and therefore ever will bo true, that having once received, through her, the universal principle of grace, we also receive, through her agency, its divers applications, according to the different exigencies of the Christian life. Her maternal charity having, to so great an extent contributed to our salvation in the mystery of the Incarnation, the universal principle of grace and Salvation, she must eternally contribute to it in all the operations of the same grace, which are nothing more than its results and consequences. Wherefore we see that the church, in her infancy, firmly convinced that Mary, owing to her credit with God, is truly the gate of heaven, put herself under her powerful protection, manifested the greatest confidence in her, and constantly invok- ed her as her patroness and advocate with Jesus. The primitive Christians and the faithful throughout all ages, who, from the bosom of the church had sucked in, with the faith and love of Jesus, the same sen- timents of devotion towards his holy mother, and of confidence in her protection, deemed it their bounden duty to celebrate her power and her glory by the nume- rous festivals instituted in her honour, vied with one another in their zeal, to erect altars, to consecrate temples, under the invocation of her name, and were never wearied in praying to her, as the Mother of Mercy, Mater misericorda, to inter- cede for them during life, and especially at the awful hour of death, Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis nunc et in hora mortis nostra. The Saints, from time immemorial, penetrated with filial love and the most tender devotion towards the blessed Virgin, gave the most constant proofs of zeal for Her service and perseverance in their suppUcations, that she would vouchsafe 1^ in 414 H Mi Monslrn te east to exert i„ their behalf, Her Mothcrlv influc.ce wi.h J.-.h tnalrem. In fine, all the Fathers and all (ho Cctors of t'lo Cu,,- ' Prom Ihi, momon,, ,|„ d„.„,;„„ ,„„.,^j^ ,^^ a. Q»Aco, af,„ the arrival of ,],c chiljrcn of S,. Fr.nci, i„ I6I5 """'"""' Church of the Lower Town whl.h . , ' ^"™"'" ''""'^ °f ^he while the cZ I '7''' 7«^n"^nee of a vow made bj the ladies of Quebec wh,le the CU, was be.eged by the English forces in 1690. To the espec al pro tcction of Mary, was attributed the defeat and hasty retreat of tlic enemy from before the small French army, composed almost entirely of recruits levied in the yet feeble colony. The remembrance of the deliverance of Quebec, was still fresh in the minds of all its inhabitants, when suddenly in 1711, intelligence was brought to them, that a hostile fleet of thirty-four vessels were coming up the river, for the purpose of besieging the City again. Prayerb and supplications were reiterated, many pious souls renewed the vow they had made twenty years before, and it is an historical fact, that a kind of judicial blindness seemed to confuse the councils and minds of the commanding officers ! for not only did a dense fog and a tempestuous hurri- cane prevent the fleet from sailing to any safe haven, and bafiled all the ingenuity of the mariners ; but in opposition to the advice of the pilot, who had made forty trips on the river and asserted that it was impossible to avoid its dangerous currents, when the fog shut out the view of the land, the admiral ventured to proceed, nor did he desist after being exposed to the greatest dangers, until he lost eight trans- ports and nine hundred soldiers, who all were wrecked on the sunken rocks of the North shore. If we may be allowed to discover no miracle in an event which proved so disas- trous to the mariners and so favorable to the City threatened with the horrors of a siege ; those who were under the awful expectation of such a cruel visitation and saw themselves relieved from the impending danger unexpectedly and against all hope, were undoubtedly fully authorized to attribute their deliverance to a super- natural intervention. Wherefore, to perpetuate the remembrance of so signal a de- liverance, it was resolved, with one voice, that the title of the Church where the supplications to Mary had been crowned with such a happy result, should be changed from Our Lady of Victory to the more appropriate appellation of Owr Lady of Victories, changing the singular number into the plural. From this period, the Church which reminds the faithful of this country, of the great favours obtained from God, by the intercession of the Holy Virgin, was always considered to be the chosen and privileged sanctuary where she takes delight in showering down more abundant favours on her children, and still continued to be visited by those who desired to obtain from God, through her intercession, some ! mmma m I'i ^, : j«l favour or .,«!,,! gr.„ Thc« ,he ,K,„r a,„l U.c .red,.! .eomcl ,„ l,.,. ;r,ta::;:tM::ri:„:;;" - "^- - " ""■" "'-- •<■ — ccnuiiy , lor all those ex volos were so inanv aiiil...nf:n n.onu„,cn,. of s,,„al favour., granted by Go.l wiU.i,. the walls of t'.e C 1^ through the intercsslon of Mary. ^ "'P'^' «„n.,°" '^'" '^^^'""' °''"''""'' ''^'^ ^'^'^^"' V-'-K'" P'-°'«'<-'t^-l "-1 preserved her tua^ .n a nuracu.ous .anuer, .he„ eouflagrations .ith the violeLe of a tt ed lie ? 7''n ""'""" "■''"' "" '"'^ "^^ "'^' ^'^"^"-'"g ^"'--"t had subsid- ed he Church or Our La,, of ViCories reappeared, entire and uninjured in -joy of the eu.zens, who had g.veu up all hopes of saving it fron. total destrue- We feel great pleasure, D. B. B, in reealiing to your memory these fa.ts whieh are not only glorious to the Mother of God, but serve also to show s C „f our o f.,,ers for the worship of the B. V. If, in these latter .n^sX^:;:!:^ b an ems to be somewhat obliterated from your udnds, it is our duty JZ2o and eall your attention to them, that your eonfulenee in the sweet and n.ere W V.rgn, ma, be renewed, and that you „,ay be indueed to in.pK.re He pr to es a hsh th re the throne of Iler mereies and to distribute Her favours. ' 1M.y would you not avail yourselves of the graees which She onlv wished to d ffuse abroad among Her children.' Why would you ne.leet so ea.; a n c.ns f paymg honor to Iler, and of securing Her powerful proteeUon ? Why w d -ou ane refuse or neglect your recpiests ? -g and st.mulatu.g the courage of the zealous n.issionaries, who, before thdr de- *-^./*^' partiire for tho countries of the Ilurona niul Iroquoii, which tiiey fertilized by their swent and their blood, entered into Iler Church to pny Ilcr their homage, to place their apostolic labors under Her powerful protection, that She constantly evinced Iler mercifid compassion, Iler tender goodness, and unbounded liberality. Bring then hither, as they did, the same feelings of lively faith, of unlimited confidence in her prayers, and of her tender love for Jesus, and the prodigies of her cliarity will be renewed in your regard, and the blessings of heaven will be showered down as copiously on you as they fell on them. For the power and the mercy of our God arc not exhausted, nor are the credit and eliariiy of his divine Mother abridged. Does not this idea seem to be suggested by the blessed Virgin herself, when she inspired her pious clients to place her image in the sanctuary of the church already renowned liy her favours ? Was it not moreover inculcated by the imposing solemnity of the inauguration of the noble statue of Mary — holy and affecting cere- mony which seemed to dedicate and consecrate over again her sanctuary, at the time when the August Head of the Church, by revealing to the Christian World, the glory of the Immaculate Conception, invited all the faithful to renewed and increased love and confidence towards her ? Ought you not to experience those sweet and soothing feelings, when entering into tiie church, you behold the bright imago of the blessed Mother, holding in her arms her divine son Jesus, the principle and audior of grace, who seems to declare that it is through her that he intends to bestow them, that her hands are filled with them, and that she is there to distribute them ? Yes, D. B. B., you may and ought to believe that this statue, the just tribute of your gratitude and veneration towards the blessed Virgin offers you a new pledge of her protection over yourselves and over your families. Placed in the shade of the formidable ramparts that crown and defend your city and country, her sweet and endearing features will be to all a gimrd and defence more secure and more durable than all fortifications. Come, then, all ye servants of Jesus, children of Mary, prostrate yourselves at the feet of the sweet image of your dear mother, come with love and confidence to tender you*" homage, and toimnl'ireher assistance. In this time-bororedsanctu- \i , ■ry as in her pnlaco, the Q„ccn of henven nnd cnrti, 1,„I,I, h., .. . ccuHc to protect you. and above all to shield yo« LJZ en f ' '""' "'" -;—-- l-nport..a t.el ^Z ^^ ^Z^r I .^^^^::;z:^::^^ ^^ ^-ch He, ... s. ., To ...at dangers are yo.. not eT L . ..r;;t^; ^'""^ ^"""^^^'^ ^"^• tcnptations that lie in wait for yonr innocene i t 'T"": """'"'^ ""' even in the .ar.et ph.ees. Oh:pro.trate ii:: e '^r^;:^;;: 7 '"''' ""' conjure the mother of pnrity, the guardian of innoeen e to v2 ""'"""' and to preserve them from the fatal contagion of si„ ' ' "" ^""' ^°"'^ Poor wanderers, unfortunate exiles, who are seeLing for a r,ew home . „, ■l,c «ilc,l »„. of Adam i„ ,l,i, vall.j, „f „.„. ' ^"" " '''^''°'"» •" ™™»l« And jtm nlso, mcmhcra of (lie TemniTiii.^n «,...: . . ,. . .1.. Co., .,„ ,o„ .„,„ of ,„o ,H., :;; : i:"'^;r,t!"''''-^ -^ • hm ,011 outer ilic cilv ? IIiivo voi, rnfl„ , I u ■* '^ " ""I"""' demon of i„,em,,e,anc he, JI ! J ' T ""T""" """"" """'' "" pericnce of your oivn fr.il,, „, Z ,1\- , ^°" ""' '-»"""'' ''^ ""■ «"»! ««■ L, iii,«,hfle„ of J„l'Z'l:l:r ''"'""' """" '" "" "•«""- 'ir and beseech Iler to str'cngti.cn yon, t„ .urrc.ul you wi.h Ilor protection, and to preserve you from Inp.sing into intcnipcrmu-e. Oh ! it is particularly for you, Mcnibcis of the Confrntcrnity of the Cross, that Mnry has preserved and hohis in reserve « tre.mure of lij^ht and of strength, „nd Her chanty invites you to co.ne and draw fn.n, Her stores with confidence. Oh what blessings and graces you forfeit, and to vhat dangers you are cxposcl, if you neglect Her amiable invitatior. ! Oh, what shan.e nn.l disgrace if you prove faithless to your te„,perance pledge ! What an ins.dt to the Mother of Jesus, whose thirst w.« slaked with gall ar.d vinegar to expiate onr exeesKes. if, i„ ,he face of Her Church in the presence of Her altars, at the fbct of Her image, and, as it were, under Her eyes, you betake yourselves ,o the debasing excesses of intempe- rance, and thus become a subject of scandal to the people of the town and coun- try Ah! we beseech you to «hnn so great a n.i.sfortune by putting yourselves under the safe keeping of Mary. Strangers, whoever you are, or whithersoever you come from, on your arrival in tins cty, remember you are entering into the demesnes of Mary, into a city of which She .8 the latroness, the Lady and the rrineess, that Sh^ resides and holds Her Court here, where she cheerfully receives all strangers and travellers, where she even umtcs them to come and be presented to Her-reflect uk, that she is a noble Lady that she ,s beneficent, charitable and powerful. Whatever be your fears or your hc^^es, your joys or your woes, your necessities of body or soul, your sufferings your afflictions or your te.nptations. She has the power and the will to relieve them' If you wdl but consent to visit Her and i.nplore Her assistance. Oh ! do not fail to go and salute Her on your arrival, in order to pay Her your homage, and to obtain Her protection, and also at your departure to solicit Her blessing. Citizens of Quebec, to you has been given the honour of having Mary for your Queen and your patroness : you have the happiness of being, in an especial man- ner, her clients and her children. She expects to receive from you signal proofs of your respect, your love, your devotedness, aud your homage ; you have also pecu- liar claims on her protection and succour. Your piety has erected in her honour the church of our Lady of Victories ; the construction of this sanctuary is indeed the work of your fathers, but its recent restoration and decoration, together with it, ir a 11 III J I ' 1 1 -.■^l«.mm»>tv 10 magnificent statue, are the i'ruits of your liberality and zeal for the glory of Mary. It is therefore incumbent on you. above all others, to honour her in this sanctuary. To you is given the privilege of j,. iicring the first fruits and choicest favours she wishes iL bestow on her children. On you, above all others, devolves the obligalioD of displaying your zeal and fervour in her behalf, by your visits to her temple, and your assiduity in paying to her the grateful tribute of your devotion. To you it should be a constant practice, never to ^lass before her Sanctuary, withoui, entering to visit her, and offer her your homage. To induce, as far as in us lies, you and all the faithful who occasionally visit Quebec, to honour, according to our expressed views and intentions, the Blessed Virgin, in her church of our Lady of Victories, in the Lower Town, after having invoked the holy name of God, we have declared, and do hereby decree, what follows : — 1. Li the name of the City and Diocese of Quebec, whose venerable Pastor we now represent, we dedicate and consecrate anew this Church to the Blessed Virgin, as an eternal monument of our giatitudc for her protection aud blessings, of our joy and of our nof.e, on the auspicious occasion of the publication of the solemn decree of the Immaculate Conception in this province. 2. It is our wish and desire, that this venerated Sanctuary be resorted, to as a place of pilgrimage, by all the faithful who may be anxious to obtrin any special favour through the intercession of Mary ; and we implore her, in our capacity of Pastor of Souls, to condescend to hearken to their vows and supplications. 3. "We re-establish, in the aforesaid Church, the Festival of our Lady of Victories, which will L ^ celebrated with the rite of a double-major festival, as hitherto, on the Sunday before the 22nd October ; its celebration will be duly announced both in this Church and the Cathedral, on the previous Sunday. 4. We appoint the fourth Sunday of each month for the solemn Benediction, hitherto observed on the 25th of each month. 5. For the greater convenience of citizens and pilgrims, we desire that a Low Mass be celebrated on Sundays, festivals and week days, at 7 o'clock in Summer, and between 7 and 8 in Winter. ; ! 11 6. We grant 40 days of indulgence to the faithful for every time they shall visit the Church and shall with contrition of heart recite three Hail Manfs accord- ing to our intentions which are : the propagation and preservation of our Holy Faith, throughout the Eccleoiastical Pro'Ince, and principally throughout this Diocese. 7. We designate the Church of our Lady of Victories, in the Lower Town, as the first among all churches after the Cathedral, wherein may be gained, on the four principal festivals of the Blessed Virgin, the plenary indulgences granted in behalf of the pious sodality of the immaculate Conception under the name of the Q-olden crown, which we hereby erect in all the parishes of this diocese, and we ex- hort the members of the Clergy, of the religious houses and all the faithful, to join themselves to the association, as an excellent means of imprinting in the hearts, and preserving among us the memory of the solemn publication of the dogmatical defi- nition of the Immaculate Conception of Mary ; and also, of honouring the blessed Mother of God in this glorious privilege, so dear to her heart, and thus to secure her powerful protection. In order that the Parish-Priests and Missionaries may be enabled to excite the fnithful intrusted in their care to enter this pious confraternity, we send, with the present letter, a sketch of the object, rules and advantages of the Society. This, our present Pastoral Letter, is to be read at the Prone of Mass in all the Churches and Chapels wherein is celebrated Divine Service, the first or second Sun- day after its reception. Given at the Archiepiscopal Palace of Quebec, under our signature, the Seal of the Diocese and the counter-signature of cur Secreiary, the first day of May, one thousand eight hundred and fifty-five. t C. F. BISHOP OF TLOA, Administrator. By his Lordship's command, Edmond Lanqevin, Ptrc, Secretary. n ii I'