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Pierre-Jean De SmetCatholic priest, Jesuit missionary.
Date of Birth: 30.01.1801
Country:  Belgium |
Content:
- Pierre-Jean De Smet: A Jesuit Missionary in the American West
- Ordination and Work with the Potawatomi
- Missions in the Rocky Mountains
- Travels and Missionaries in the Northwest
- Later Years and Legacy
- Notable Interactions
Pierre-Jean De Smet: A Jesuit Missionary in the American West
Early Life and Journey to AmericaPierre-Jean De Smet was born in Dendermonde, Belgium. Driven by a desire to serve God, he joined the Society of Jesus, a Catholic religious order, in 1821. The same year, he set sail for the United States with a group of Belgian Jesuits.
Ordination and Work with the Potawatomi
In Baltimore, Maryland, De Smet became a novice and later traveled to Florissant, Missouri, with five other Belgian priests. On September 23, 1827, he was ordained a Catholic priest. In 1833, due to health issues, he returned to Belgium. However, his passion for missions led him back to the United States in 1837.
In 1838, the Catholic Church assigned De Smet to establish a mission among the Potawatomi Indians in Council Bluffs, Iowa. While there, he exhibited his artistic talents by creating a detailed map of the Missouri River Valley.
Missions in the Rocky Mountains
Bishop Joseph Rosati dispatched De Smet to the Rocky Mountains in 1840 in response to pleas from the Flathead and Nez Perce tribes for missionaries. He established the St. Mary's Mission in the Bitterroot Valley of present-day Montana.
Travels and Missionaries in the Northwest
In August 1846, De Smet embarked on an extensive journey spanning present-day Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. He founded several missions, collectively known as the Rocky Mountain Missions, and played a crucial role in reconciling warring tribes. Among the Native American groups he converted to Catholicism were the Cree, Flathead, Nez Perce, Cayuse, Coeur d'Alene, Ojibwe, Sioux, Blackfeet, and Kalispel.
Later Years and Legacy
After completing his missionary work in the Rocky Mountains, De Smet returned to St. Louis, Missouri. In his remaining years, he actively sought financial support for the missions. He traveled extensively in Europe, advocating for the Catholic Church's support of Christian missions to the Indians of the American West. Pierre-Jean De Smet passed away in St. Louis on May 23, 1873.
Notable Interactions
In 1840, De Smet encountered the Crow Indians for the first time. He earned their respect by lighting a pipe with a match, an extraordinary feat that led the Crow to believe he was a powerful white shaman.
When De Smet returned to the Crow in 1842, they greeted him with even greater reverence. A chief attributed all his victories over enemies to De Smet's influence. The chief carried the remaining matches from their previous encounter as a talisman, using them to invoke success in battle.
