Joseph-Norbert Provencher (February 12, 1787 – June 7, 1853) was a Canadian

clergyman Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

and

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

and one of the founders of the modern province of

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

. He was the first Bishop of Saint Boniface and was an important figure in the history of the

Franco-Manitoban Franco-Manitobans (french: Franco-Manitobains) are French Canadians or Canadian francophones living in the province of Manitoba. According to the 2016 Canadian Census, 40,975 residents of the province stated that French was their mother tongue. In ...

community.

Life

Provencher was born in Nicolet, Quebec, in 1787 to Jean-Baptiste and Élisabeth Proulx Provencher. His parents were farmers. Provencher was educated at the Nicolet College Classique and the Quebec Seminary.Goldsborough, Gordon. "Memorable Manitobans: Joseph Norbert Provencher (1787–1853)", Manitoba Historical Society, March 22, 2011
/ref> He was ordained a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1811. For several years he served as curate in various parishes. In 1818 he and two other priests were sent by Joseph-Octave Plessis, Bishop of Quebec, to open a mission on the Red River in present-day Manitoba, where the majority of settlers were Irish and Scottish Catholics. He was tasked with converting the scattered Indian nations and to care for the "delinquent Christians, who have adopted there the customs of the Indians.” Lemieux, Lucien. "Provencher, Joseph-Norbert", ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography'', vol. 8, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003
/ref> At the time, Provencher did not speak English. They arrived at

Fort Douglas Camp Douglas was established in October 1862, during the American Civil War, as a small military garrison about three miles east of Salt Lake City, Utah, to protect the overland mail route and telegraph lines along the Central Overland Route. In ...

in mid-July.

Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

, a main share-holder in the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...

gave the missionaries land on the east bank of the Red River. They immediately set to work to build a house before winter. Part of the building served as a chapel, which Provencher dedicated to famous missionary,

Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant ...

. The mission at

was highly successful; he baptized many of the local

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

and

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

residents as well as many European settlers. In 1819, Provencher was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Quebec with the titular title of Bishop of Juliopolis, and vicar general for the northwest. He was consecrated at

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

in 1822. He returned to St. Boniface and built the school which is now known as the

Université de Saint-Boniface The Université de Saint-Boniface (USB) is a French-language public university located in the Saint Boniface neighbourhood of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. An affiliated institution of the University of Manitoba, the university offers general and sp ...

, and in 1832 Saint-Boniface Cathedral. In 1838, he founded a school to teach the weaving of wool provided by sheep brought into the colony. The Canadian settlers resisted his efforts to regularize concubinage with Indian and Metis women as they preferred the "“this liberty of being able to get rid of their wives.” In 1844, Provencher was appointed head of the newly formed Vicariate Apostolic of James Bay; the Vicariate was elevated to the Diocese of Northwest in 1847 and he was appointed its first bishop. It was renamed the Diocese of Saint Boniface in 1851. In 1843 Provencher went to Europe to recruit some religious men and women. In 1846, Despite the misgivings of the superior in Canada,

Eugène de Mazenod Eugène de Mazenod (born Charles-Joseph-Eugène de Mazenod; 1 August 1782 – 21 May 1861) was a French aristocrat and Catholic priest. When he was eight years old, Mazenod's family fled the French Revolution, leaving their considerable wea ...

, Bishop of Marseille and founder of the

Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded on January 25, 1816, by Eugène de Mazenod, a French priest born in Aix-en-Provence in the south of France on August 1, ...

dispatched two priests to the vicariate. In 1850,

Alexandre-Antonin Taché Alexandre-Antonin Taché, O.M.I., (23 July 1823 – 22 June 1894) was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest, missionary of the Oblate order, author, and the first Archbishop of Saint Boniface in Manitoba, Canada. Early life Alexandre-Antonin ...

O.M.I. was named coadjutor bishop to Bishop Provencher. He established Indian missions at Lac Sainte-Anne not far from Fort Edmonton, and Saint-Jean Baptiste in

Île-à-la-Crosse Île-à-la-Crosse, or ''Sakitawak'' ( Cree name: sâkitawâhk ᓵᑭᑕᐚᕽ), is a northern village in Division No. 18, northwestern Saskatchewan, and was the site of historic trading posts first established in 1778. Île-à-la-Crosse is th ...

."Religious History of St. John Baptiste Parish", Île-à-la-Crosse
/ref> He brought the Grey Nuns to the Canadian Northwest. In 1860 three Grey Nuns arrived Saint-Jean Baptiste, and founded a school and a hospital. J.A.N. Provencher was dismissed on corruption charges stemming from distribution of inferior or useless farming implements to Indian reserves. (Carter, "St. Peter's," p. 49; Carter, Lost Harvests, p.63; Titley,"Unsteady Debut: J.A.N. Provencher and the Beginning of Indian Administration in Manitoba.) Provencher stood six feet four inches, and had a noble bearing. He is described as "moral, humble, tenacious, and devout."Mullens, James G., "Prevencher, Joseph-Norbert (1783–1853)", ''Encyclopedia of the Great Plains'', University of Nebraska-Lincoln
/ref> Bishop Provencher died at Saint Boniface, Manitoba, on June 7, 1853, at the age of 66."Provencher, Bishop Joseph Norbert", OMI World
/ref>Geary, Aidan. "On its 200th anniversary, a glimpse at the birth of the Roman Catholic Church in Manitoba", CBC, July 15, 2018
/ref> He is commemorated by Provencher Boulevard in Winnipeg and the Provencher Monument in the St. Boniface Cathedral Cemetery. His papers are in the Archives of the Archdiocese of Quebec, and the Archives of Manitoba.

References

Sources

*
Manitoba Historical Society article

{{DEFAULTSORT:Provencher, Norbert 1787 births 1853 deaths 19th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Canada Franco-Manitoban people Roman Catholic bishops of Saint Boniface Burials at Saint Boniface Cathedral

Life

See also

References

Sources