The Jesuit RelationsByMatthew McHollandHistory 140

***The Jesuit Relations*** The Jesuit Relations also known as “The Relations

des Jesuites de la Nouvelle-France,” are early ethnographic documents that talks about missions in New France.

The Jesuit Relations covers a period of 200 years. The works were written annually and appeared in print beginning in 1632.

The Jesuit Relations contains the reports, diaries, correspondence, communications of the Jesuits missionaries who lived among the native people of America starting in the 1600s.

***The Jesuit Relations***

The wealth information contained in this documents are of great importance, for they give account of events that provide insight of events into Native and European cultures.

The Jesuit relations also present a highly literate account of life in New France. The letters represent both a personal chronicle of firsthand experiences and impersonal, “encyclopedic catalogue of the customs and beliefs of some unfamiliar culture about life in New France, in particular the Native way of life.”

***The Jesuit Relations*** In 1632, the year of the first relation, the French

began to rebuild settlements along the St. Lawrence river.

During this decade the focus of the Jesuits missionary efforts was Huronia. Huronia was a region that was close to the east of the lake Huron.

Who were the Hurons? They were sedentary agriculturists who also served as intermediaries in the fur trade.

***The Jesuit Relations*** Although the French population in

Canada remained under four hundred, the Jesuit had amassed large landholdings and had sponsored the construction in Quebec of a college to educate the sons of French settlers, a hospital and even a convent.

***The Jesuit Relations*** By the 1630, the Jesuits had build five chapels

in the Huron country and they anticipated great spiritual success.

However, explanations for the relatively high number of Huron converts to Catholicism vary. According to the text, Hurons may have turned to the Jesuit’s religion when they began to suffer the effect of epidemic diseases.

***The Jesuit Relations*** In the early 1640s, tensions between the French

and their major enemy rose dramatically. The question is, who were the enemies? The enemies were the five Iroquois tribe.

The five nations were enduring population losses from disease and the economic challenge posed by the French, Dutch, and English fur-trading companies who sought alliances with rival Native American groups.

***The Jesuit Relations*** The attacks known as “mourning-wars,” were

intended not simply to spread death or destruction but to capture enemies.

During this time captives were either adopted into the clan or executed. By the 1650s, the Iroquois had forced the Jesuits to abandon their missions in Huronia and “sparked a massive migration of Indian refugee populations to the west.”

***The Jesuit Relations***

Father Isaac Jogues: His first encounter with the Mohawks occurred in 1642.

He was captured along with several Frenchmen and Huron coverts while traveling from the Huron country to Quebec.

The Mohawks kept Jogues and the others captives resisting ransom overtures.

***The Jesuit Relations*** Jogues was put to death, perhaps by

Bear clan members angry over an outbreak of sickness that they blamed on the Jesuits.

He is known to be a martyr who traveled and worked among the native population in North America.

***Conclusion*** I am glad that I had the opportunity to learn more about the

Jesuits because they certainly are important characters of our history. It is unbelievable that they were able to write so much about their experiences that they went through during their colonial time. It is amazing such a small community soon became a well-known clan all over the world. The most important thing that I learned and it is definitely going to stick around with me is that writing is essential. It is through writing that we learn about cultures that no longer exist. Because of the Jesuit’s writing, we can go back in time and learn about events that still affect our daily lives. Overall, reading different passages from the revelation helped me understand that there was a lot of conflict going on due to all the mixture of cultures of that time.