Cause for Beatification and Canonization
What is the status of the Cause of Mother Julienne of the Rosary?
Canon Ettore Capra, Postulator
On February 7, 2010, at Notre-Dame Cathedral and Basilica in Quebec City, the diocesan phase of the Cause for the Beatification and Canonization of the Servant of God Mother Julienne du Rosaire was concluded under the presidency of Cardinal Marc Ouellet, then Archbishop of Quebec. The Cause thus entered a new phase, known as the "Roman" phase, under the direct responsibility of the Vatican's Dicastery of the Causes of Saints. Here is the latest news on this second phase, plus a few items of interest.
Since December 9, 2022, Canon Ettore Capra, an Italian diocesan priest, has been the new Postulator of the Cause, the legal representative of our Congregation to the Dicastery of the Causes of Saints. The Postulator promotes the Cause and ensures it proceeds smoothly. As he must reside in Rome, he is assisted by a vice-postulator residing in the diocese where the Cause was introduced. Following Sister Françoise Guillot (2004-2017), and then Sister Murielle Bérubé (2018-2023), Sister Francine Bigaouette has been carrying out this task since March 7, 2023.
On December 20, 2022, Father Szczepan Praśkiewicz, o.c.d., received, as Relator, the first copy of the newly printed Positio written under his direction by Sister Francine Bigaouette. You are probably wondering what a Positio is. In the context of a cause for beatification or canonization, it is a document - usually voluminous - that presents a synthesis of the evidence gathered, during the diocesan investigation, on the life, the Christian virtues, and the reputation for holiness of a Servant of God.
The next step in the process of the Cause will be the examination of the Positio by a group of theological consultants, and then by the Cardinals and Bishops who are members of the Dicastery of the Causes of Saints. In the light of the Positio, these examiners will have to discern whether the Servant of God Mother Julienne du Rosaire lived, in a highly exemplary way, the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity, as well as other virtues such as, for example, justice, fortitude and humility. If their judgment, expressed by vote, is favorable (which presupposes a qualified majority), it will then be submitted to the Pope for promulgation of the Decree on the Heroic virtues of the Servant of God. She would then be declared Venerable.
Father Szczepan Praśkiewicz, o.c.d, Relator
The importance of reporting favors having been requested and, more specifically, favors obtained
Sister Francine Bigaouette, o.p., Vice-Postulator, showing the Positio
Even though the Positio is finished, we must continue to collect requests for favors and, more specifically, favors obtained through the intercession of Mother Julienne du Rosaire, as they demonstrate people's confidence in the power of her prayer and her reputation for holiness. You are therefore invited to let us know of any requests you make to her, and of favors obtained through her intercession, by using one of the digitalized contact forms you find below, or by sending us the completed form.
These favors can be of a material or spiritual nature: obtaining a job, a return to health, successful surgery, resolution of a difficult situation, reconciliation, conversion, etc.
You can also visit the tomb of the Servant of God in our convent and write in the book the favors you wish to ask the Lord through her intercession. A warm welcome to all!
The importance of reporting any miracles obtained through the intercession of Mother Julienne du Rosaire
For a Servant of God to be beatified, a miracle is necessary. This constitutes God's seal on the human discernment that led to the recognition of the heroicity of his or her virtues. We therefore urge you to inform us of any favors obtained through the intercession of Mother Julienne du Rosaire, which might, after investigation by the Dicastery of the Causes of Saints, be recognized as a miracle (cures or other events inexplicable by science).
I would like to draw your attention to a very important point: for a miracle to be recognized as having been obtained through the intercession of Mother Julienne du Rosaire, no other Servant of God, Venerable, Blessed or Saint must have been invoked (with the exception, of course, of the Virgin Mary, Mother of us all). It is therefore very important that you respect this, and that you explain this to the people who are praying with you for a miracle through Mother Julienne's intercession.
Please report any requests for favors or favors obtained to :
Sister Francine Bigaouette, o.p.
The Dominican Missionary Sisters Adorers
131, rue des Dominicaines
Québec QC Canada G1E 6S8
Tél. : (418) 661-9221
History of the Cause
The first condition: the reputation of holiness
For a cause of beatification and canonization to be introduced into the Church, there is an absolutely fundamental condition: that the person have a "reputation of holiness.
In the case of Mother Julienne of the Rosary, this reputation of holiness had already been acquired during her lifetime in the eyes of those who knew her. After her death on January 6, 1995, an uninterrupted crowd passed in front of her body. At her funeral, on January 10, a hundred priests were present and two thousand people filled the church of La Nativité-de-Notre-Dame de Beauport; other people who came to attend were obliged to stay outside in the freezing cold. Very soon, one started reading in the newspapers and in letters: "we give thanks to Mother Julienne of the Rosary for the favors obtained" or other similar formulas. And her reputation of sanctity lives on.
The First Steps
Encouragement from the Archbishop of Quebec City
Very early, the Archbishop of Quebec, Archbishop Maurice Couture, r.s.v., encouraged the Prioress General of the time to go forward with the steps taken for a theological appreciation of the teachings of Mother Julienne of the Rosary and the spreading of her message. He also asked that the testimonies of elderly or sick people who knew her be collected without delay; this, he said, will be an important documentation for the history of the Congregation and, later, for a possible opening of her cause.
In response to repeated requests, with the Archbishop's approval, a prayer to ask for favors from the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, through the intercession of Mother Julienne of the Rosary, was published in November 1996.
Request to the diocesan bishop to introduce the cause for the beatification and canonization of Mother Julienne of the Rosary.
According to Canon Law, a cause can only be opened five years after the death of a person enjoying a reputation of holiness. In 2001, after this period had elapsed, the Dominican Missionary Adorers took steps to ask the Archbishop of Quebec permission to introduce the cause for the beatification and canonization of Mother Julienne of the Rosary. To this end, on December 22, 2001, the Postulator General of the Dominican Order, Father Innoncenzo Venchi, o.p., presented a first petition. However, because of the Holy Father's acceptance of Archbishop Couture's resignation as Archbishop of Quebec, it became necessary to wait for his successor to arrive before moving forward.
It was therefore Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the new Archbishop of Quebec, who would receive the second Supplication requesting the official opening of the cause of Mother Julienne of the Rosary, presented November 1, 2004, by Brother Vito Tómas Gómez García, o.p., the new Postulator of the Order. The following day, November 2, Cardinal Ouellet issued the Decree opening the Canonical Inquiry and Research into the writings of the one who could henceforth be called a "Servant of God.
Work to collect all necessary materials
From the end of 2004 to the end of 2007, the Vice-Postulator, Sister Françoise Guillot, o.p., together with the Episcopal delegate, Monsignor Jean Pelletier, p.h., diligently pursued the necessary work for this stage. On January 16, 2008, the reports of the theological censors and the summary of the report of the Historical Commission were given to Cardinal Ouellet. On the following March 31, Cardinal Ouellet sent a report and a brief notice on the life of Mother Julienne of the Rosary and on the importance of her cause, to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints requesting authorization to open the Diocesan Inquiry.
Source: Daniel Abel
Diocesan Survey
The positive response from Rome and the opening of the Diocesan Inquiry
On June 16, 2008, at the end of the Eucharistic celebration on the first day of the International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City, Cardinal Ouellet publicly announced the contents of a reply received from Rome the evening before: authorization was granted to open the Diocesan Inquiry for the Beatification and Canonization of Mother Julienne of the Rosary. Surprise! Jubilation in the crowd gathered there!
On September 14, the Opening Session was held at the Nativité-de-Notre-Dame Church in Beauport, Quebec. The following day and until the end of December, the Diocesan Tribunal, presided over by Monsignor Jean Pelletier, heard the persons chosen to testify.
The work continued with great intensity during the following year and a half, so that it became possible for the Archbishop of Quebec, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, to preside over the Closing Session on February 7, 2010, at the Notre-Dame Cathedral (Basilica) in Quebec City.
During the ceremony, he sealed the boxes containing all the acts of the Diocesan Inquiry and mandated Sister Françoise Guillot to see that they were sent to Rome. That was done in April 2010. From then on, the cause of Mother Julienne of the Rosary entered its Roman phase. The Congregation for the Causes of Saints issued the Decree of Validity on March 3, 2012.
Source: Daniel Abel