Saint André Bessette
Saint Andre Bessette, born in 1845, was a Canadian member of the Congregation of the Holy Cross. He first was appointed to be the doorman for a college run by the community. Later, he was found to have the gift of healing and many people came to him and were freed from their ailments. He attributed all cures to Saint Joseph. Saint André (and others in his community) had dreamt of building a chapel dedicated to Saint Joseph on the mountain outside their windows. After trying unsuccessfully to obtain land to build it, Saint André and some others buried Saint Joseph's medals in the ground and soon were able to purchase the land. The chapel opened in 1904. After 50 years, the magnificent Saint Joseph's Oratory on Mount Royal was complete and is a popular pilgrimage site to this day. Many, many miracles are attributed to Saint André and have occurred at the oratory. He died on January 6, 1937.
Feast day: Jan. 6
Patron of family caregivers.
Saint André, thank you for living your life in humble, practical service of others and of Christ. Please pray for us and for all family caregivers. Ask our Lord to be with them in a special way as they fulfill their calling to care for others, just as you did.
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