The Americas
The Company of Mary Today
Today the Company of Mary is established on all the continents, and in about 30 different countries.
The Americas
Canada
The Montfort Missionaries first went to Canada in 1883, when it became very difficult, because of the new laws in France, to conduct a seminary in France. They settled some distance from Montreal, in a place which eventually became known as Montfort. From small beginnings, the group there grew into one of the largest Provinces of the Company of Mary, being designated a Province in 1947. The United States Province was split off from it in the 1950s. For some time they had a mission among the North American native people in Vancouver Island on the West coast. Today Canada is a Vice-Province of the Company of Mary, which continues to serve the people of Canada, particularly the French-speaking, through parish missions and retreats, special courses in Scripture, Mariology, etc. They conduct a Marian shrine, the Shrine of Mary, Queen of All Hearts, in Montreal, and have a flourishing Pastoral Centre in Drummondville. The Vice-Province supports a mission in the Diocese of Daru/Kiunga in Papua New Guinea.The United States of America
The United States Province of the Company of Mary was formed from the Canadian Province in the 1950s, though the first Montfort Missionaries arrived in Port Jefferson, NY, in 1903. It is mainly confined to the Eastern States. The Province has two retreat or pastoral centres, one at Bayshore, NY, and one at Litchfield, Ct, where there is also a Marian shrine, Lourdes in Litchfield. Another Marian shrine, Our Lady of the Island, is maintained at Eastport, Long Island, NY. The members of the Province carry forward the mission of the Congregation through preaching (a mission team gives parish missions), the conducting of retreats, the pastoral care of visitors to the shrines, work in a number of parishes, and publishing. The Province publishes the works of St Louis Marie de Montfort and other books related to Montfortian spirituality, through Montfort Publications at Bayshore, NY. The Province is responsible for a small mission in Nicaragua.
The American Province has its own website at http://www.montfortusa.org.
Haiti
The first move of the Company of Mary outside France was to Haiti, where they undertook a mission in 1871, as well as conducting a seminary for Haitian clergy in Pontchâteau, France. Today there are more than 50 Haitian Montfortians, who are assisted in their work in Haiti by a few missionaries from France and Canada. They have charge of a number of parishes in the Diocese of Port de Paix in the North-West of the country, and also work in Port-au-Prince and Gonaives dioceses. Apart from parish work, the members of the Province are involved in many initiatives, particularly to help the poor in Haiti. Some members of the Province are stationed in Nassau, Bahamas, particularly to minister to the many Haitian refugees in those islands. Some others are stationed in Guadaloupe.Nicaragua
The United States Province of the Company of Mary maintains a small mission in Nicaragua, running a parish at Santo Tomas. There are already a few Montfort Missionaries who were born in Nicaragua.Colombia
Colombia is the largest Province of the Company of Mary in South America. The mission was started by French and Dutch missionaries, of whom a handful remain in Colombia. The Province maintains a seminary in Bogotà, the capital. It is responsible for a number of parishes, and for a mission in the Vichada region of Colombia. It also runs a Marian Centre at Santafé de Bogotà.
The Province has its own website at http://www.montfortianos.org (in Spanish).Ecuador
Within the Company of Mary, Ecuador is a "Delegation" of the French Province. There are a handful of Spanish Montfort Missionaries in Ecuador, together with a French missionary; they engage in parish work there. They have their own website at http://www.misioneros-monfortanos.org/pasaje.php.Peru
The Montfort Missionaries are to be found in Lima and Huánuco. Today there are more than a dozen Peruvian members of the Congregation, together with Italian missionaries, and one French. They work mainly in parishes, but also maintain a novitiate. Recently (1 Jan 2002), the community of João Monlevade in Brazil, together with any new establishments in Brazil, were joined with the delegation in Peru to become the General Delegation of Peru-Brazil.
The General Delegation of Peru-Brazil has its own website at http://www.monfortianos.org.Brazil
The Dutch Province of the Company of Mary for many years maintained a small mission in São Paolo, Brazil. There is also a Formation community in João Monlevade. This community (as will any others which may be established in Brazil in the future) now belongs to the General Delegation of Peru-Brazil. So far, the congregation has just a handful of Brazilian members, but there is hope for others in the future.Argentina
Members of the French Province of the Company of Mary work in the mission of Argentina, where they staff the parish of Santa Cruz in Fiorito as their principal apostolate.
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