Jogues, Isaac

Jogues, Isaac (Saint Isaac Jogues) (ēzäk` zhôg), 1607–46, French Jesuit missionary and martyr in the New World; one of the Jesuit Martyrs of North America. He arrived in Quebec in 1636 and immediately was sent to Christianize the Huron on Georgian Bay. In 1641 he journeyed N to Sault Ste Marie, which he named. On his return from a journey to Quebec in 1642, the party was captured by the Iroquois; several were killed, and the rest were subjected to cruel tortures. Jogues was held captive until July, 1643, when he was ransomed by the Dutch and brought to New Amsterdam; from there he embarked for France. Later he returned to Canada. In Apr., 1646, he was sent among the Mohawks as an ambassador of peace. He discovered Lake George, which he named Lac du St. Sacrement. In May, 1646, he returned to Quebec to make plans for establishing a mission among the Mohawks. On his return, accompanied by Father Jean Lalande, he was met by a hostile band of Mohawks near the present Auriesville, N.Y., where both priests were murdered. Feast: Sept. 26 or (among the Jesuits) Mar. 16.

Bibliography

See G. D. Kittler, Saint in the Wilderness (1964).

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Jogues, Isaac (1607–46) Catholic missionary, saint; born in Orléans, France. A Jesuit priest sent to North America in 1636, he worked among the Huron Indians, journeying as far west as Sault Ste. Marie (now in Michigan). In 1642 he and his companions were captured by Iroquois; he was tortured, enslaved, and held captive at Ossernenon (now Auriesville, N.Y.), where he eventually escaped, reaching New Amsterdam with aid from the Dutch. Following a period in France, he returned to North America (1644); in 1646 he was captured by Mohawks near Ossernenon and murdered soon afterward. A National Shrine to the North American Martyrs was later erected at Auriesville. Jogues and seven other martyred missionaries to the Indians were canonized by the church in 1930.