Noël Chabanel (February 2, 1613 – December 8, 1649) was a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

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 ...

Sainte-Marie among the Hurons Sainte-Marie among the Hurons (french: Sainte-Marie-au-pays-des-Hurons) was a French Jesuit settlement in Wendake, the land of the Wendat, near modern Midland, Ontario, from 1639 to 1649. It was the first European settlement in what is now the ...

, and one of the Canadian Martyrs.

Biography

Chabanel entered the Jesuit novitiate at

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

at the age of seventeen, and was a professor of

rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate parti ...

at several Jesuit colleges. He was highly esteemed for virtue and learning. In 1643, he was sent to

New France New France (french: Nouvelle-France) was the area colonized by France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Great Britain and Spai ...

along with Fathers Leonard Garreau and Gabriel Druillettes. Although he studied the

Algonquin language Algonquin (also spelled Algonkin; in Algonquin: or ) is either a distinct Algonquian language closely related to the Ojibwe language or a particularly divergent Ojibwe dialect. It is spoken, alongside French and to some extent English, by th ...

for a time, he never made much headway. He was appointed to the mission at Sainte-Marie."Noél Chabanel", Jesuits
/ref> In his apostolic labours he was the companion of Fr. Charles Garnier. As he felt a strong repugnance to the life and habits of the

Huron Huron may refer to: People * Wyandot people (or Wendat), indigenous to North America * Wyandot language, spoken by them * Huron-Wendat Nation, a Huron-Wendat First Nation with a community in Wendake, Quebec * Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi ...

, and feared it might result in him withdrawing from the work, he bound himself by vow never to leave the mission except under obedience. Chabanel was sent to assist

Jean de Brébeuf Jean de Brébeuf () (25 March 1593 16 March 1649) was a French Jesuit missionary who travelled to New France (Canada) in 1625. There he worked primarily with the Huron (Wyandot people) for the rest of his life, except for a few years in Franc ...

at the mission of Saint Louis (near the present day hamlet of

Victoria Harbour Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbour in Hong Kong separating Hong Kong Island in the south from the Kowloon Peninsula to the north. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on South China Sea were instrumental i ...

), but was replaced by in February 1649 by

Gabriel Lalemant Gabriel Lalemant (3 October 1610 – 17 March 1649) was a French Jesuit missionary in New France beginning in 1646. Caught up in warfare between the Huron and nations of the Iroquois Confederacy, he was killed in St. Ignace by Mohawk warriors ...

. Chabanel was sent to help Charles Garnier among the

Petun The Petun (from french: pétun), also known as the Tobacco people or Tionontati ("People Among the Hills/Mountains"), were an indigenous Iroquoian people of the woodlands of eastern North America. Their last known traditional homeland was sout ...

. One month later, Brébeuf and Lalemant were captured in an Iroquois raid on the St. Louis mission and taken to the nearby mission off St. Ignace where they were killed.Campbell, T.J., ''Pioneer priests of North America, 1642-1710'', Vol. 2, Fordham University Press, 1910, p. 367
/ref> After the deaths of Brébeuf and Lalement, the Jesuits decided to abandon

and burned the mission rather than risk it being desecrated or taken over by Iroquois. In early December 1649, Chabanel was directed to go to St. Joseph Island. Chabanel was martyred on December 8, 1649, by what is described as a "renegade" Huron. There was a strong presumption that he was killed by the man who offered to carry him across. Father Paul Ragueneau, Provincial Superior, noted that Honarreennha was known to have believed and spread a false rumor that the French had betrayed the Huron and made a secret treaty with the Iroquois; and later admitted killing Chabanel.

Veneration

Noël Chabanel was canonized by

Pope Pius XI Pope Pius XI ( it, Pio XI), born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti (; 31 May 1857 – 10 February 1939), was head of the Catholic Church from 6 February 1922 to his death in February 1939. He was the first sovereign of Vatican City fro ...

on 29 June 1930.

References

Jesuit saints 1613 births 1649 deaths Jesuit martyrs Roman Catholic missionaries in Canada Canadian Roman Catholic saints French Roman Catholic saints Jesuit missionaries in New France French Roman Catholic missionaries 17th-century French Jesuits 17th-century Roman Catholic martyrs 17th-century Christian saints {{Canada-clergy-stub