Marie de l'Incarnation (1599–1672)

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Marie de l'Incarnation (1599–1672)

French educator and founder of the Ursuline Order in New France (Canada) . Name variations: Marie de L'Incarnation; Mary of the Incarnation; Marie Guyard or Marie Guyart. Born Marie Guyard or Guyart on October 28, 1599, at Tours, France; died on April 30, 1672, in Quebec City, New France (Quebec, Canada); third child of Florent Guyart (a master baker) and Jeanne Michelet; educated at elementary religious school in Tours; married Claude Martin, in 1617; children: Claude (b. 1619).

Champlain founded Quebec City, the first French settlement in New France (1608); first members of the Jesuit Order arrived in New France (1625); war between French settlers and the Iroquois nation (1642–67); Roman Catholic Bishopric established in New France (1674).

Selected writings:

Relation Autobiographique (1633); Lettres de Conscience (1625–34); Exclamations et Élévations (1625–38); Exposition du Cantique des Cantiques (1631–37); École Sainte: Explication des Mystères de la Foi (1633–35); Relation Autobiographique (1654); Mémoire Complémentaire (1656).

On the 24th of March 1620, Marie Guyart underwent a remarkable mystical experience in the middle of a busy street in Tours, France. As she later described the event, an irresistible force seemed to descend upon her, and she saw herself immersed in the blood of Christ. The eye of her spirit was miraculously opened and all her faults and imperfections were suddenly revealed with "a clearness more certain than any certitude." This revelation, the culmination of a series of events, convinced Guyart to abandon her secular life and enter holy orders. In turn, that decision eventually came to have a profound effect on the development of religious life and civil society in the colony of New France (modern-day Quebec, Canada).

Marie was born on October 28, 1599, in Tours, then one of the most important commercial centers in west-central France. Her father Florent came from a humble background but, thanks to hard work and his own skill, had risen to a prominent position in the local guild of master bakers. By contrast, Marie's mother Jeanne was descended from one of the leading noble families in the area—the Babou De La Bourdaisières—who for many years had held influential positions in both the church and government service. Despite the marked contrast in social origin (then an important consideration), Florent and Jeanne were devoted to each other and enjoyed a happy marriage.

Both parents were deeply religious and were determined to provide all their seven children with a sound education based on Christian principles. From an early age, therefore, Marie and her siblings attended one of the small religious schools in Tours. Nothing of detail is known about the subjects studied, though it may be safely assumed that she received a fundamental grounding in reading, writing, mathematics, and the Bible.

What is definitely known, however, is that, even at this early stage in her life, Marie enjoyed her own deep and committed religious faith. Later, she would recall how, as a youngster, she would spend hours telling "personal matters" to God and how often she would repeat the sermons that she had memorized from church. One of Marie's earliest recollections concerned what she believed was her first mystical experience.

God, she said, had come to her in a dream and had asked her if she wanted to be His. Her immediate answer was "yes!"

When Marie was 14, she asked her parents' permission to enter holy orders in order to become a nun. The Guyarts recognized the depth of their daughter's religious convictions but, probably for economic reasons, preferred that she marry. Shortly after, a marriage contract was formalized between Marie and a young silk worker, Claude Martin, who was also a native of Tours. Their marriage took place early in 1617, but it became clear almost immediately that the union was not a happy one. Marie had to cope with a mother-in-law who appears to have been extremely jealous of the intrusion in her son's life. This, coupled with a number of financial difficulties which eventually resulted in Claude's bankruptcy, set the final seal on their relationship. The only bright event of this period was the birth of a son, also named Claude, in April 1619.

Six months after Claude's birth, Marie's husband suddenly died. In these circumstances, the young 19-year-old widow had no option but to return to her father's house with her infant son. There she was strongly urged to remarry in order to secure her own personal and financial well-being. Although aware of this need, Marie was still strongly drawn to the religious life. As a result, she entered a period of seclusion in which she spent most of her time engrossed in the Bible or communing and conversing with God. It was in this frame of mind that Marie received her most powerful mystical revelation in the street in Tours in March 1620.

[S]he was eminently endowed with all the virtues, especially with the gift of such lofty prayer and with so perfect a union with God.
—Bishop Laval

Although Marie was now more determined than ever to follow a religious life, this was not immediately possible. Despite her late husband's lack of financial acumen, Marie herself had such a good head for commerce that one of her sisters, who was married to a moderately successful carrier, asked her to come and live with them and assist in running their business. Not long after, Marie assumed sole responsibility for an increasingly successful and profitable operation.

These earthly concerns did not distract Marie from her deep commitment to God, as witnessed by her adoption of a personal vow of poverty, chastity and obedience. Finally, in late 1625, Marie entered into holy orders. Her son Claude, then eight, was entrusted to the care of her sister and Marie formally joined the novitiate of the Ursuline order of nuns in Tours. In 1633, she took her final vows and adopted a new name—Marie de l'Incarnation—a name also taken by the Carmelite Barbe Acarie a few years earlier.

Although Marie was soon appointed assistant mistress of novices and instructor of Christian doctrine in the convent, she was still not fully satisfied in her vocation. Convinced that God had another, more important task for her, she dreamed that she had been commanded to travel to a new land across the seas. At first, Marie was confused at what this command meant, but God soon made His purpose clear. As she later recounted, God told her: "It was Canada that I showed you; you must go there to build a house for Jesus and Mary."

This was indeed a daunting task. The original colony of New France (centered around modern-day Quebec City) was a small, remote community where, with the exception of a few hardy Jesuit missionaries, there was no organized religious presence. Fortunately, Marie was introduced to Mme De Chauvigny de la Peltrie , a noblewoman of Tours eager to support evangelization missions among the native children of New France. She provided sufficient financial support to permit Marie and two other Ursuline nuns (Marie de Saint-Joseph and Cécile de Sainte-Croix ) to set sail on the May 4, 1639, for the colony. After a hazardous and dangerous journey (during which their ship was almost crushed by an iceberg), they reached Quebec a few months later.

The problems of running a new religious foundation in a young colony made many demands on Marie. In this situation, her previous business experience proved invaluable in dealing with the local French settlers. By 1642, she had raised enough funds to allow her and her sisters to build an impressive convent (although it was destroyed by fire three years later). Local merchants recognized her business sense and often came to her for advice in their own dealings. Similarly, local representatives of the French state (including the governor of the colony) came to consult her on political matters. In 1646, with the help of Jesuit brothers, Marie helped draw up the first constitution for the colony of New France. She also found time to become fluent in several native languages and eventually wrote the first French-Algonquin and French-Iroquois dictionaries as well as a catechism in Iroquois that was extensively used by Jesuit missionaries.

The principal purpose of Marie de l'Incarnation's mission, however, had always been educational. To this end, she began by establishing a small boarding school to instruct the daughters of the local French settlers in godliness and morality. Although this school gradually expanded in size over the years, Marie was also deeply interested in providing similar opportunities to native children. This latter task was complicated by the official French government policy of assimilation, whereby native customs and ways of life were to be subordinated to those of the French. Quickly recognizing how disruptive and disastrous such a policy was for the native population, Marie unsuccessfully attempted to resist its implementation.

Not all natives were willing to accept the situation. In particular, the Iroquois (with the active assistance and encouragement of the British) vigorously resisted French incursions on their territory and way of life. Throughout this period, they launched a series of punishing raids on the settlements in New France, burning farms and killing settlers. In 1660, the Iroquois besieged Marie's convent.

Her problems were not confined to native raids. In 1659, Bishop François De Laval, who had recently been appointed to take charge of religious affairs in the colony, paid his first episcopal visit to the Ursulines. During his stay, he announced that he intended to bring about a significant number of changes to the constitution that Marie and the Jesuit brothers had drawn up a few years previously. Marie, whose knowledge and insight into the political and economic reality of life in New France was second to none, strongly protested the bishop's proposed changes. Shortly after, she wrote to Laval on behalf of all local settlers stating that "the matter has been thoroughly considered and our mind is fully made up: we will not accept it, unless we are pushed to the limits of obedience." Marie's determination so impressed Laval that he relented and agreed to make only a smaller number of largely cosmetic changes to the constitution.

Throughout these years, Marie de l'Incarnation maintained an extensive correspondence with other members of the Ursuline order, Jesuits, entrepreneurs, government officials, and friends. It has been estimated that she wrote over 13,000 letters, a number that is prestigious by any gauge but especially when given the conditions and remoteness of her place of residence. Few of the original letters still exist but it is known from other sources that they covered a wide range of topics. Although primarily religious in orientation, they also frequently contained Marie's insights into the economic and political conditions as well as her observations on the natural environment of New France.

Perhaps Marie's most enduring legacy, however, was the series of religious tracts she wrote both before and after her arrival in the New World. These leaflets represent the most fundamental expression of the nature of her relationship with, and understanding of, God. Among the most significant of these can be counted her Exclamations et Élévations written between 1625 and 1638. Now largely lost, this work apparently consisted of a series of epithalamia or "lover's complaints" which Marie wrote, as she explained, to "dissipate the fervour of the spirit." They were intended to express her profound emotional attachment to God, that "infinitely adorable, ineffable, incomprehensible unity."

Similarly, the École Sainte: Explication des Mystères de la Foi (1633–35) subsequently came to be considered, by the distinguished Jesuit theologian Father Pierre Charlevoix, as one of the best and most important catechisms ever written in the French language. Finally, in 1654, Marie composed her Relation Autobiographique, an open and honest account of her life and the principal spiritual influences upon it. This work (not to be confused with a similarly titled book previously produced by Marie while in Tours in 1633) is profoundly mystical and its full religious significance has not, perhaps, been fully understood or appreciated even today.

The combination of hard work, harsh conditions, and the prolonged penances which she imposed on herself eventually took a toll on Marie's health. Her sight gradually failed, her appetite faded, and she could no longer kneel to pray. Not surprisingly, for so deeply religious a person, her faith became ever stronger as her predicaments grew with the passing years. Marie rejoiced in the thought that she would soon be with the Savior whom she had adored for so long.

Shortly before her death on April 30, 1672, Marie de l'Incarnation sent a last message to her son Claude. The latter had followed his mother into the church as a member of the Benedictine order of monks. In 1652, Claude was appointed superior of the abbey of Saint-Maur and in 1668 received further recognition by his elevation to the post of assistant to the superior-general of the order. Marie had never forgotten the boy she had left behind so many years before and wrote a friend to inform her son "that I am carrying him with me in my heart."

Immediately following her death, Marie became venerated and a number of personal objects that she had used throughout her life came to be considered as relics by many French settlers and members of the local native community. In the middle of the 18th century, this practice was brought to the attention of the pope, but further action to formally recognize Marie's status was delayed by the Treaty of Paris (which ceded the French territories in Canada to the British crown). It was not until 1867 that the then bishop of Quebec, Charles-François Baillargeon, initiated proceedings to officially recognize Marie as one of the venerated of the Church. Eventually, in 1911, the Papal See issued a decree which evidenced the "heroic virtues" of Marie de l'Incarnation.