(Stock Photo – Canva)
By Patricia Schiissler
The day in downtown Montreal began with the sun shining; the air was hot and humid. The Myriam sisters in Regina cautioned me about the lengthy trek involved in planning a visit to St. Joseph’s Oratory. They advised my husband and me that it would be wise to call for a taxi cab. The walk would be uphill and very difficult to manoeuvre through the streets, with few places to stop and rest. There wasn’t much opportunity to seek shade or find a spot for bathroom use. We began the ascent with a short walk and then a break for a small breakfast before we began the gradual climbing, not following the helpful advice that would have been beneficial.
Time passed as we climbed further and further upward. By this time, our feet were aching; we were sweating; we were questioning whether we had made a terrible mistake. After realizing we were halfway there, turning around wasn’t a great option. Was it worth all the exertion and struggle just to visit a large church and wind up at a place where a real saint was buried? Who was this saint, and what had he done to become recognized?
Originally known as Brother Andre and later canonized as Saint Andre of Montreal, he is credited with thousands of reported miraculous oil healings in union with his devotion to Saint Joseph. It is very special that he is one of only 14 Canadian Saints. Buried in Saint Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, he is the first Canadian living after Confederation to be canonized.
Andre Bessette was a porter at College Notre-Dame in Cote-des-Neiges, Quebec. He was also a sacristan, laundry worker, and messenger. Andre would visit sick people, rub the person lightly with oil taken from a lamp burning in the college chapel, and recommend them in prayer to St. Joseph. People kept telling how they had been cured, but Brother Andre wouldn’t take credit. He gave all the credit to Saint Joseph. When an epidemic broke out at a nearby college, Andre offered to help care for the afflicted. Not one person died. Near the end of his life, he needed four secretaries to handle all the letters he received each year.
Surprisingly, after climbing uphill to reach the Oratory, I was shocked to discover that a staircase awaited my drained energy reserves. A staircase leading from the street to the base of the basilica contains two parallel flights of 283 concrete steps separated by a central flight of 99 wooden steps for people who wish to climb on their knees. Once again, I was tempted to turn around and head back to our hotel!
What does this have to do with me? Why the attraction? The mysterious desire to pay a call to a saint I never really knew anything about was contagious. Something pushed me forward that morning, and there was no stopping or turning back. Upon arrival, I knew this sojourn was prompted and intended for my spiritual growth. Words can never explain the intense feelings experienced in this type of situation. An unusual calm and sense of tranquility possessed me as I witnessed the stand-alone depiction of Saint Brother Andre. He felt lifelike as he greeted me at the door of the monstrous basilica. St. Joseph’s Oratory itself is Canada’s largest church, with one of the largest church domes in the world.
This didn’t impress me as much as the small, fenced-off space where Saint Andre had resided in his earthly life. It was very Spartan amidst all the splendour of the interior. Earlier, I had witnessed a large room housing the crutches of the many people he was noted for healing and curing. Most of all, I could feel his presence when we stopped to pray in front of a vault housing his heart. It was a silent, holy place that brought tears to my eyes. The spiritual domination overflowed my body. I was transported to another place. God was there just as he had been the whole time that Saint Brother Andre was alive and working his miracles through St. Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, our Lord.
Patricia Schiissler, B.Ed., (nee Hanowski) as a lifelong Roman Catholic, was born, baptized, and received her sacraments at St. Henry’s parish in Melville, Saskatchewan. She began her education in a country, one room school (Wymer) from grades one to four. Education then began at St. Henry’s elementary school, grades five to eight and grades nine to twelve in St. Henry’s high school. Pat worked in the University of Regina library and meanwhile married Terry Schiissler in 1973 (BA, Notre Dame, Wilcox). They have 2 children. She retired from teaching at Regina Catholic Schools after 28 years. Pat studied the Understanding Our Faith series from 1997 to 2002. She then took the Lay Formation Program and was commissioned in 2018. Faith interests and accomplishments include Eucharistic ministry, Proclaimer, RCIA sponsor, Bible study facilitator, Chair, Spiritual Education, Lay Liturgy presider, Synod representative, etc. Pat became an author after retiring from teaching. She wrote and self-published, “God in my Life: How God speaks to me”. For the following two and a half years, she promoted the book while speaking to large numbers of people. There were over 25 evangelizing events across Western Canada. The experience was so meaningful that Pat decided to write and publish her second book,” God for all People: Some Fact, Some Fiction”. It is based on her faith journey relating to stories mainly strangers shared with her. Pat’s website is www.patriciaschiissler.com.
