Késsinnimek - Roots - Racines

Chapter X "After a Three Year Stay"

After a three year stay in the mission of Saint Peter in Kahanwaké, Father Jean Pierron was assigned to another mission ... the one at La Prairie on the banks of the Saint Lawrence river and under the name of Saint Francis-Xavier.

Father Françoois-Boniface succeeded him with the same zeal and the same success.

Numerous converts, feeling the need to live more freely as Christians away from a pagan surroundings dangerous to their new fervor, asked the missionary to help them to set up near the ardent Christians of La Prairie. The priest voluntarily agreed to their wishes and led them himself to Saint Francis-Xavier mission, where they were cordially welcomed as willing exiles.

Their departure flamed the anger of Tekakwitha's uncle.

Fanatically bound to the morals and customs of his nation, the Elder was already strongly opposed to the numerous conversions happening around him. But, this time, this was too much! The reserve of warriors and suppliers of the village were being reduced by permitting this exodus of young people, strong and courageous men, for a distant place, chief of brothers who became indifferent to the lot of their parents and friends of Kahnawaké.

Tekakwitha felt once more the backlash of the old man's furor, a feeling also shared by the quick-tempered aunts!

There were all sorts of new pretexts to berate the poor child. She was given laborious jobs. The least of her actions were critized as "Failure as an Iroquois, this Algonquin good only to mumble useless words to her Great Spirit".

To all of this, she never ceased to answer with the most gracious words and in the most lovable conduct.

An unforseen event would meanwhile put her on her way from now on most certainly toward the realization of her great desire: to be baptized!

She hurt herself, one day, while working outdoors, a painful wound in her foot. As the missionnary Priest (Ed: Jacques de Lamberville, s.j., 1675) always came to visit the sick, he came to see Tekakwitha, forced to stay in her longhouse. Upon seeing him enter, the young girl cried joyously. Without any apparent notice around her of the two or three neighbors who came to take care of and amuse her, she opened her soul to the missionary. And this became a page out of the "Golden Legend" which he believed that he had heard from this angelic child. He knew the entire life of Tekakwitha, her heroic viture, her hope, her sufferings, her fears. He understood that this daughter of the forest was a privileged soul of heaven and maybe already a soul of great sanctity.

The missionary encouraged her to pray and assured her that she would soon be baptized. However, he kept thinking of the probable rage of the terrible uncle.

--Are you not a bit afraid of your family? he asked. Will you have the strength to persevere if you become a Christian despite them!...

--I know all that, Father, Tekakwitha answered firmly. But do not fear, my resolution is firm, nothing will be able to make me rescind it even if I have to go elsewhere to find the grace which I long for.

This words astounded the missionary. Maybe, in effect, this would be possible - with God's help - and necessary ...

--Finally, concluded the Priest, let us pray well, continue to be instructed and, if God wants it, your family will put forth no obstacle to your baptism. If not ... heaven will assist you to find elsewhere the grace which you are so well seekingI

Completely comforted by these good words, Tekakwitha continued her work courageously, with candid hope.

God did not elude her waiting. He allowed a sudden reversal of opinion and mood with her capricious parents, thanks to the arrival, at the mission, of a renowned person KRYN, surnamed the Great Mohawk, sincere and zealous convert who, after greeting his friends at Kahnawaké, began to preach here like he did elsewhere, because he was so happy to be a Christian. He enjoyed an extraordinary reputation of bravery and intelligence ... He maintained a long and very cordial friendship with Tekakwitha's uncle and with Aigle, one of his best and oldest friends. Someone spoke to him about the young niece of his host ... and of her terrible situation, ... he asked for the honor of being the godfather of the future baptized person. No one dare to contradict such a person, and it was thus, in a very unforseen way, that Tekakwitha could freely enter into the Catholic Church.

Chapter XI "Easter Joy"

Dawn filled the green forest with pastel rays. This Easter morning was warm and softly luminous. At the rising of the sun, the little chapel was filled with converts. Many were required to stay outside, so large was the crowd of converts and the simply curious. The entrance was open, and all were able to admire the rich and colorful decorations of the chapel. The missionary (Ed: Jacques de Lambert, s.j.) had arranged for this double ceremony to be a splendor. Tiny fir trees and candle light adorned the altar. The faithful had decorated the walls with the richest animal pelts which they had: pelts from the beaver, bears, wildcats, silver foxes. The women, attached to their jewelry, had nevertheless lent gracefully their necklaces, their bracelets, their feathers and other ornaments for their hair.

Tekakwitha, with her usual docility, had allowed herself to be clothed beautifully in the manner of the young girls of the missions. She was charming in the Indian manner. But her soul was elsewhere, far away, so high, that she was not aware of the beauty of her attire: covered with richly dyed cloth, a dress adorned with multicolored wooden and porcelain perles, brocaded mitasse (a sort of gaiters), "enriched with porcupine quill designs, with brillant colors".

She was looked upon with admiration and respect. Something divine emanated from her frail body. She was radiating with joy and her happiness was mysteriously being transmitted to those in attendance. It was an unforgetable hour. Tekakwitha received the name of Kateri, which means, in our language, Catherine. She was twenty years old, and it was the 18 April in the year of 1676. (Ed: Eastern Sunday)

Chapter XII "The Departure"

From that moment on, the life of the new Christian was one of marvelous sanctity. Most admired her without question. Unfortunately, something would happen to trouble the family peace... Renard (Fox) just returned from a long expedition, a diplomatic expediton for sure, for the rejected lover rekindled hopefully his relationship as a good neighbor with the family of his ex-fiancée, to the great fear of the latter.

The uncle and his sisters took up the cause of marriage before her. They complained bitterly that they were dealing with hardheaded and egotistical children... Because the young girl never answered, they would get mad. The bad mood of the entourage darken the sky of the poor Kateri! They made her life so terrible in the longhouse that her frail constitution was greatly shaken. "When she will be so discouraged with her life as a useless and ill-treated young girl, she will easily give up", the elderly parents were saying with an incredible tenacity.

A final providential event happened to free forever Tekakwitha from her life of perpetual persecution.

Another of these converts who became volunteer apostles among their brothers who remained pagans, Louis, surnamed Cendre-Chaude (Hot Ashes) because of his lively mood and of his ardent zeal in the service of God, Louis, having come himself also from La Prairie, to preach by word and example, became the instrument through which God was to deliver Kateri and bring her where she would forever live in peace!

One of Tekwkaitha's relatives, Pied-Léger (Lightfoot), and another Christian passenger named the Huron, accompanied Cendre-Chaude.

The missionary, having been witness to a very nasty act surpassing all reason on the part of Kateri's aunts, resolved to assist her in her flight, with the help of Cendre-Chaude. In order not to arouse suspicion on the part of the parents of the young Iroquois, he spoke secretly and at length with Aigle, who used to visit him from time to time since Kryn's stay at Kahnawaké. Upon hearing about Renard, a lightning bolt of hate showed itself in Aigle's eyes.

--My brother Cendre-Chaude will arrange for Tekakwitha to leave, he said firmly. I have spoken!

The missionary understood that this would happen without dealy!

Some time later, one night, while thick clouds covered the banks of the singing Mohawk river, a canoe quietly launched flowed noiselessly under the cover of branches. An Indian, lowering his tall stature, rowed with the greatest precaution. Having arrived at a distination that was absolutely deserted and plunged into a profound darkness, he imitated the cry of a night bird. At this signal planned beforehand, three persons silently approached and took their place in the canoe. It was Huron, Pied-Léger and Tekakwitha fleeing toward La Prairie.

--Hot Ashes, stay there, explained Aigle in a low voice - for it was he who was coming by canoe. - He would have them beleive that his companions were leaving for other missions without a doubt. They will search for Kateri, for she had already fled. But I will make them search far away!...

Aigle was smiling.

Meanwhile, while awaiting the vibrant farewell of recognition and of joy of the young girl, he felt for the first time in his life a strange pang of anguish. He stiffened and with a strong and brief word, he commanded:

--Go quickly! I will watch here.

And leaning against a tree, he remained thus with his arms crossed, until he was able to hear the least rowing sound brushing on the calm waters. He dreamed of his strange role of watcher in the night, while, because of his care, the one person in the word that he ever loved was going far away, forever.

Three or four days later ², the lily of the Mohawks had been transplanted on the Laurentien shore where it would blossom freely and lavish upon our Canada the perfume and the grace of its angelic vertu.

Ed: End of the First Part

To be continued ...

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(1) Juliette Lavergne, La Vie gracieuse de Catherine Tekakwitha, Editions Fides, Montréal, 1952, pp. 31-55.
Permission has been requested from Fides via email.
(2)It probably took longer to cover the 200 miles both by sea and by foot, from today's Fonda NY to the south bank of the Saint Lawrence River, in Québec.
Permission to use this work was requested from Fides in an email dated 22 Jan 2005. Response dated 31 January 2005 indicated that the contract for that era needs to be searched.

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Created 1 Feb 2003