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Vatican II Springtime Update! First Ursuline House in North America abandoned by last sisters In 1608, after decades of tentative exploration, in the name of the not very Catholic Henry IV, King of France, Pierre Dugas, Sieur de Mons, and Samuel de Champlain founded the City of Québec on a hillside overlooking the Saint Lawrence River. The first years were extremely harsh, but in order for the colonization to advance, Catholic missions were always indispensible: and more than Catholic missions, Catholic sisters who could be a beacon for new families and, hopefully, help educate the girls born in this...

The Ursulines, who had been educating the young women of New Orleans since 1727, had a teacher shortage in 1810 and solicited the help of the French Ursulines. Mother St. Michel Gensoul responded to their pleas, arriving from France in 1810 with several postulants and a near-life-size statue of Mary holding the baby Jesus. This statue, commissioned by Mother St. Michel, depicts Mary and the baby Jesus with delicately painted features and curly brown hair and both wearing crowns. Mary has a rich gold garment and a short veil, while baby Jesus, suitably draped, wears little more than his crown....