On this feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, a great community feast for us, we offer you some thoughts about our devotion to the Cross.
Our devotion to the Cross comes from our Youvillian roots, where the cross constantly traversed the life of St. Marguerite d’Youville, from her infancy to her death. Among others, let us highlight the fire of the LeVerrier House, the arrest by the government agent Bigot, the fire at the General Hospital. However, the crosses in Marguerite’s life always led to a grace: the first fire prompted Marguerite and her companions to a total gift in the “Primitive Covenant”; the arrest by Bigot led to the approbation of the community through the “Letters Patent”; the second fire called her to the gift of abandonment to the Father in its inscrutability. On the other hand, we cannot forget the sign that marked the Youvillian family’s trust in the glorious Cross: the luminous Cross which appeared in the sky upon the death of Mother d’Youville.
This same devotion continued in Bytown.
On February 12, 1845, Bishop Bourget of Montreal said to the Sisters who were leaving Montreal for Bytown:
“Daughters of the Cross, do not become discouraged with the great difficulties that will challenge your undertaking. When all will appear hopeless, believe deeply that God will come to your help. Allow this truth to be deeply engrained in you: we can do anything with God. Herein lies the secret of success in great affairs.”
What a beautiful missionary send-off, filled with the spirit of the glorious Cross!
No sooner had the sisters arrived in Bytown on February 20. 1845, the very first gift the small community received was a cast iron cross for the bell tower of the convent, gift of Mr. Thomas Brulé, master blacksmith.
In response to a letter from Mother Bruyère which informed him of the work accomplished in the first weeks at Bytown, Bishop Bourget would write on March 28, 1845:
“Prepare yourselves for battle, and believe that your successes will always be bought at the price of your suffering. Your experience will allow you to know this truth first hand, that the heavier the crosses, the more precious the graces they prepare. Everything comes down from the tree of life planted in the midst of your little Community …”
The cross on our Community seal inspired Bishop Duhamel to choose, for us, the name Grey Nuns of the Cross. Here is what he wrote to the Sisters on March 7, 1882, from Rome:
“My dear daughters, … In order to obtain that your constitutions be considered, I had to consent to a change in your name … Do not be frightened, my Daughters, you are and you remain “Sisters of Charity”, you are and you remain “Grey Nuns”, and you will also have a new name. I did not have to torture myself to find the name which you shall bear in the
future. I opened the book of your Holy Rule and, seeing the coat of arms of your Congregation, I had an inspiration: The cross is in your coat of arms as it is on your bosom; the cross is also in my own coat of arms … Can you guess which name I chose? Here it is: Sisters of Charity also know as Grey Nuns of the Cross. Is it not a beautiful name? It was approved by the Propagation. “Grey Nuns of the Cross” will mean that you are “grises”, that is, inebriated with the cross; it means that you love the cross, that you bear it with courage, that you are attached to it until death …”