The founder of the Petites sœurs de la Sainte-Famille de Sherbrooke was canonized on Sunday by Pope Francis at a mass in Saint Peter’s Square in Vatican City.
This means Quebec-born Marie-Léonie Paradis is now recognized as a saint by the Catholic Church.
During the ceremony, the pontiff, in the presence of bishops, priests, nuns and dignitaries, canonized 14 new saints, according to a Vatican press release.
In addition to Marie-Léonie Paradis, the Pope canonized eleven martyrs of Damascus, Italian missionary Joseph Allamano and the founder of a religious community, Italian Hélène Guerra.
The Pope spoke of the journeys the new saints took, emphasizing that “they did not nourish in themselves worldly desires and cravings for power, but, on the contrary, made themselves servants of their brothers and sisters, creative in doing good, firm in the face of difficulties, generous to the end.”
Paradis founded the religious congregation of the Petites sœurs de la Sainte-Famille de Sherbrooke in 1880.
Today, it has some 250 sisters across Canada, the United States, Honduras and Italy.
She is the third Quebec woman to be canonized, after Marguerite D’Youville and Marie de l’Incarnation.
She was previously beatified by Pope John Paul II during his visit to Canada in 1984.
— This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Oct. 21, 2024.