Our Prayer Intention for the month is that the Holy Spirit may inspire new Marist missionary vocations in answer to our prayers. It is customary that we pray for Marist vocations during the Novena from 20 April leading up to the feast of St Peter Chanel on 28 April.
We invite you to pray this novena using reflections inspired by the stained-glass windows of the main chapel at La Neylière. Created by Raphaël Lardeur, these windows depict the various stages of Mary’s life through the lens of Nazareth. This novena draws its inspiration from a booklet on Marist spirituality produced by Jean-Baptiste Frondas and the Maristes en Education team at La Verpillière. Each day, we will follow a specific theme represented by a different window to guide our journey with St. Peter Chanel.
Download the novena in English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Dutch.
St Peter Chanel (1803-1841)
As the first martyr of both the Society of Mary and Oceania, St. Peter Chanel was ordained in 1827 and quickly gained a reputation for his sincere holiness during his early years as a parish priest. After joining the Marists in 1831, he travelled to Rome with Fr. Colin to seek official approval for the Society before departing with the first group of Marist missionaries to Oceania.
His success there eventually sparked fear and jealousy in the local king, who ordered the missionaries’ deaths. On 28 April 1841, St. Peter was clubbed to death by a group of men. He was later canonized by Pope Pius XII on 12 June 1954, and his feast day is celebrated on the anniversary of his martyrdom, 28 April.
Following his death, a remarkable transformation occurred on the island. While Peter had struggled for years to win converts, the witness of his martyrdom achieved what his preaching alone could not; within a year of his passing, almost the entire population of Futuna, including the king’s own family and his executioners, sought baptism. Today, he is venerated as the Patron Saint of Oceania, and the site of his death has become a place of pilgrimage, symbolizing a legacy of peace that replaced a culture of fear.
