The Jesuit RelationsToni Gonzales

Introduction: What are the Jesuit Relations?The Jesuit relations are

reports by French missionaries of the Society of Jesus, also known as Jesuits.

The reports consisted of news about colonization, epidemics, wars, and other events about the Indians of the Northwest.

The reports were sent anually to Paris where they were published from 1632 to 1673.

The Jesuits were sent in order to convert the Indians to Christianity.

The missionaries lived in native villages and learned their language.

These writings combine both a personal narrative and a ethnographic account of the custom beliefs of an unknown civilization.

The missionaries often had a different view of the Natives than did most Europeans.

They viewed the natives as “pagans” and also had sympathy for them and the way they were treated by colonists.

Introduction: History of the JesuitsThe Jesuits were part of a

religious order, called the society of Jesus.

Every Jesuit was educated and college teacher at some point in their life.

They gave spiritual advice to laypeople and the kings.

One of the main goals of the Jesuits were to convert heathens everywhere.

Thousands were baptized in India, Japan, and China.

In Brazil they denounced the slaughter of the Indians by conquering empires.

Jesuits were involved in expeditions from Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River in the late 16th century.

In the 1640’s many adult natives were converted.

The Jesuits returned to Quebec in 1632.

Two earlier expeditions to the Acadian Coast and Quebec were not successful .

Chapter 1:Montagnais Hunters of the Northern WoodlandsThey are tall, strong, athletic,

and people.They are sharp in mind only

lacking in education and instruction.

They are successful despite lacking what the European see as government.

There is not a word to describe anger in their language as it is not an emotion that Indians give into.

They are patient and go about their daily work in happiness.

They are more clever than the peasants that live in European villages.

Men and woman do not get into arguments about who does what in the home, they work together peacefully.

Chapter 1:Montagnais Hunters of the Northern WoodlandsA young French boy was

playing the drum and hit an approaching Indian in the head causing him to bleed.

In the case of injury, the Indians demanded a present from the French as their way to apologize for the boy’s wrongdoings.

The French ordered the young boy to be whipped and the Indians asked that he be pardoned since he was just a young boy and didn’t know what he was doing.

The French were still going to punish the boy .

An Indian threw a robe over the boy and asked to be whipped in his place, but the French would refuse to let the boy go without punishment.

Chapter 2:Jean de Brebeuf on the HuronsThey lived together in peace

and friendship and should be praised for their gentleness despite being savages.

They develop great friendships and help one another with sickness.

Everyone may state his opinion to the council and is capable of expressing themselves very well.

The relatives of a murdered person prosecute and demand restitution from the murderer in the form of sixty presents.

Sorcerers can be punished by death if caught in the act itself.

If a person is caught with something that belongs to you, you may take it back along with anything else you might feel as value.

Each village has one or several captains that deal with affairs of war or affairs of state.

Chapter 2:Jean de Brebeuf on the HuronsThe feast of the dead is the

ceremony that the Huron’s use to honor those relatives and loved ones that have died.

All the nations are invited preparations are made to transport bodies take from cemeteries to the designated area.

The bodies are taken from the tombs of in front of their relatives and left over skin and robes are thrown into the fire.

The bones are cleaned and placed into bags and wrapped again in fine robes.

Nations from all over bring their dead, wrapped in robes and put them on display for all to see.

At a certain time the relatives all hang their dead on poles that are built over a large pit that has been dug.

The pit is lined with robes and the bodies are then placed in it and the sleep and cook their meals at the graveside.

Chapter 7: Martyrs and MysticsFather Isaac Jogues and his

traveling companions are ambushed by the Iroquois.

The Father was beaten and stabbed for offering a fellow prisoner words of encouragement.

The Iroquois also tore out some of his teeth and fingernails.

As the Indians were dividing up their booty, Father Jogues baptized as many captives as he could.

The captives were placed on a stage and beaten, burned, and tortured again.

The captives were taken to different villages to be tortured and beaten by other clans.

After being taken back to the original village , Father Jogues had his finger cut off.

After many months of being held hostage Father Jogues was finally able to escape to a Dutch settlement.

Chapter 7:Martyrs and MysticsCatherine was a Mohawk

woman who lost both her mother and father when she was young.

She lived with her aunt and and uncle, were the chief authority of the village.

She had weakened eyesight due to having smallpox as a child.

She preferred to be alone and went about her daily chores without having to be told to do them.

She embraced Christianity after spending time with missionaries who came to her village.

She escaped to Jesuit community and called La Prairie de la Magdeline.

There, she made prayers, work, and spiritual conversation her main goals on life.

She took vow of her virginity to be the spouse of Jesus Christ.

Catherine adopted different ways of self flagellation by rolling on a bed of thorns or burning her feet.

Chapter 8:Exploring the MissisippiAfter leaving Green Bay

and the Wild Rice People, Father Marquette and Louis Jofliet reach the “Fire Nation.”

The village of Maskoutens is made up of three nations: Miamis, Maskoutens, and Kickapoos.

The village had cross erected in the middle town and is decorated with offerings from the Natives.

Two guides were given to the travelers to help them on their journey.

The travelers went by canoe down the Meskousing River , also known as Wisconsin.

Fertile lands, woods, and prairies, were seen on the banks of the river.

There were many different types of trees such as oak and walnut.

Chapter 8: Exploring the Mississippi The Mississippi current

flows gently southward.The are mountains on the

right and left plains of it.The main game is wild

turkey or wild cattle.The cattle are larger than

their domestic cattle and will feed many people.

Their hides are used by Indians for robes.

They traveled for a long time without seeing anything, but animals and birds.

After leaving two people to guard the canoes, Father Marquette went off to explore.

A large village was discovered near the banks of the river.

They shouted to make themselves known and four old men were sent to speak to them.