Stephen Larigaudelle Dubuisson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 14th President of Georgetown College | |
| In office 1825–1826 | |
| Preceded by | Benedict Joseph Fenwick |
| Succeeded by | William Feiner |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Étienne de La Rigaudelle du Buisson (1786-10-21)21 October 1786 |
| Died | 14 August 1864(1864-08-14) (aged 77) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 7 August 1821 by Ambrose Maréchal |
Stephen Larigaudelle DubuissonSJ (bornÉtienne de La Rigaudelle du Buisson; 21 October 1786 – 14 August 1864) was a FrenchCatholic priest andJesuit missionary to the United States.
Born to a wealthy family inSaint-Domingue, Dubuisson fled theHaitian Revolution for France, where he entered thecivil service and rose to senior positions inNapoleon's imperial court. In 1815, he decided to enter theSociety of Jesus and sailed for the United States. He engaged in pastoral work inMaryland andWashington, D.C., before becoming thepresident ofGeorgetown College in 1825. An austere personality, his leadership of the school was not successful. He suffered anervous breakdown and was sent to recover inRome in 1826, where he metJan Roothaan, theJesuit Superior General. Upon returning to the United States, he acted as a close confidant of Roothaan.
Dubuisson spent the next two decades engaged in pastoral work in Maryland,Virginia, andPhiladelphia. He also traveled Europe, fundraising for the American Jesuits among theroyalty andnobility. In 1841, he permanently returned to France and spent his later years aschaplain to the family andmanor of DukeMathieu de Montmorency inBorgo San Dalmazzo, and then as a parish priest inToulouse.
Étienne de La Rigaudelle du Buisson was born on 21 October 1786, in the town ofSaint-Marc in the FrenchCaribbean colony ofSaint-Domingue, where the La Rigaudelle du Buisson family owned twoplantations that producedcotton andindigo dye. His mother was Marie-Elizabeth-Louise Poirer, who was born inFort-Dauphin. His father, Anne-Joseph-Sylvestre de La Rigaudelle du Buisson, was born in Saint-Marc in 1748, at the family's home in the center of Saint-Marc. His family was wealthy and enjoyed the high social status of thegrand-blancs;[1] it also had connections to theFrench minor nobility.[2]
Du Duisson was the second son of his parents and was reared by one of the family'shouse slaves, who acted as hiswet nurse.[2] Étienne was named after hisgodfather, François-Étienne Théard, the French lieutenant governor of Saint-Marc.[3] His mother died in December 1791, and his father married Adélaïde-Marie Favereau ofSaint-Nicolas in May of that year. Their marriage produced several daughters.[4]
In light of the impendingHaitian Revolution, du Buisson's father sent him (at the age of five) and his brothers, Noël-Marie and Joseph, toNantes, France, sometime between March and May 1791. It would be many years before du Buisson would see his father again, who remained in Saint Domingue; he would never see his mother again.[4] Though they were escaping impending violence in Saint-Domingue, the brothers soon encountered a very different kind in France. Arriving in the midst of theFrench Revolution, the boys survived theReign of Terror,[2] and the massacres of theWar in the Vendée, including the occupation of Nantes by theCatholic and Royal Armies in 1792.[5]
Du Buisson never received a formal education in his youth, a fact that he lamented later in life.[6] Nonetheless, he likely studied in secret under the tutelage of anon-juror priest who had not sworn allegiance to theCivil Constitution of the Clergy. In addition, du Buisson studied literature and poetry on his own, and came to be fluent in English by the age of 15.[7] He would eventually come to speak seven languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish,Latin, andAncient Greek, and have a working knowledge of Hebrew.[6]
Du Buisson received some education at amilitary school inParis,[8] and in 1804 or 1805, du Buisson sat for and passed theagrégation (theFrench civil service exam) at the Congrégation de la Sainte-Vierge in Nantes. One of his assignments was in thereceiver general's office of theFrench Army, where he was stationed in Germany during theNapoleonic Wars and worked in theArmy of the Rhine from May 1809 to March 1810. He was then assigned to occupiedVienna from 1811 to 1814, first as assistant cashier of the special crown land and then as assistant cashier of the crown treasury.[2]
Du Buisson then returned to France, where he resided in an apartment in the royalTuileries Palace in Paris, serving as the cashier-comptroller of the crown from December 1814 to June 1815. During this time, he befriended Baron François Roullet de La Bouillerie, a member of theConseil d'État and theintendant of the treasury of thecivil list.[2] Du Buisson retained his employment in the civil service through theabdication of Napoleon and the restoration ofLouis XVIII asKing of France, which allowed him to support his family members. During this time, he would pay visits to the sick in Parisian hospitals alongside young nobles, including ViscountMathieu de Montmorency and Count Alexis de Noailles. He also undertook independent study and learned to play theviolin.[9]
When du Buisson first expressed his desire to enter religious life at the age of 29, his family was staunchly opposed. Nonetheless, he decided to enter theSociety of Jesus, whosesuppression by the pope had been recently lifted.[9] Unbeknownst to his family, Dubisson set sail for the United States with theSulpician priestSimon Bruté, whose order was active in North America.[10]
He arrived inNew York City on 21 November 1815 and then traveled south toGeorgetown College inWashington, D.C., arriving on 1 December. From there, he proceeded to the Jesuit novitiate atWhite Marsh Manor inPrince George's County, Maryland,[10] entering the Jesuit order 15 December 1815.[11] At this time, he also begananglicizing his name as Stephen Larigaudelle Dubuisson.[10]
Before long, Dubuisson returned to Georgetown for his religious studies. Dubuisson found himself in the midst of tensions between the Anglo-American Jesuits, who adopted republicanism and American culture, and their Continental European counterparts who were more traditional and austere. For this reason, he was disliked by his Anglo-American peers, despite being considered refined; likewise, Dubuisson regarded them as irreverent.[10]
In 1816, he was appointedprefect by the president of the college,Giovanni Grassi; his appointment was renewed again for the 1817–1818 academic year under Grassi's successor,Anthony Kohlmann. In this role, Kohlmann charged him with enforcing stricter discipline among the students. The students were so incensed by this that in 1818 they plotted to ambush Dubuisson and kill him withpenknives and stones.[10] Kohlmann discovered the plot moments before it was to be carried out, causing a revolt during supper. Between six and eight students were expelled as a result.[12]
While prefect, Dubisson continued his study of Latin, English,logic, andmetaphysics. He professed his firstvows on 26 December 1817, and was made the director of the Jesuitscholastics. That year, he began his four-year course oftheology at the Washington Seminary (later known asGonzaga College High School),[12] and on 7 August 1821, wasordained apriest at Georgetown College by theArchbishop of Baltimore,Ambrose Maréchal.[11]
Following his ordination, Dubuisson began his pastoral work, first atSt. Patrick's Church,[12] where he was made an assistant toWilliam Matthews.[11] During this time, he was involved in what some considered to be themiraculous cure of Ann Mattingly, an ill Washingtonian. He presented a sworn public statement of his account of the events and purported miracle,[11] and published a pamphlet, whose French language version was circulated around Europe.[13] Dubuisson also developed a reputation as an eloquent preacher among Washington'shigh society.[12]
On 9 September 1825, Dubuisson was appointed to succeedBenedict Joseph Fenwick as thepresident of Georgetown College, despite the fact that he not only considered himself unsuited for administration but desired to leave Georgetown altogether.[14] Concurrent with his presidency, Dubuisson served as thepastor ofHoly Trinity Church inGeorgetown.[15] His reputation as a severe disciplinarian resulted in declining student enrollment, and he soon requested that theJesuit Superior General,Luigi Fortis, relieve him of the office.[12] During his short tenure, he experienced what one historian described as anervous breakdown.[12] While in the infirmary, Dubuisson reportedhearing a voice that told him to draw strength from theSacred Heart. After just seven months, in April 1826, Fortis allowed Dubuisson to resign as president, and namedWilliam Feiner as his successor.[16]
Recognizing that Dubuisson was experiencing acrisis of faith, the Jesuitmission superior,Francis Dzierozynski, sent him toRome at his own expense and without the permission of the Superior General in the hope that he could resolve his doubts there.[17] As a pretext for his departure, Dzierozynski charged him with visiting various French cities to raise money to finance the return voyage of a group of Maryland Jesuits who had gone to Europe,[18] and he resided inMarseille for a time.[12] This fundraising effort was not successful.[18]
Dubuisson settled in Rome on 1 November 1826, to begin histertianship. For the next year, he would also serve as an advisor to the Superior General on American affairs, before being sent to theUniversity of Turin.[19] Dubuisson became proficient in Italian and enjoyed the religious life inTurin.[20] WhenJan Roothaan succeeded Fortis as Superior General, he called Dubuisson to Rome,[21] where Dubuisson professed hisfinal vows in 1829, becoming a full member of the Jesuit order.[12]
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In August 1829, Roothaan sent Dubuisson back to the United States with the responsibility of keeping him informed about the affairs of the Jesuits' Maryland mission.[22] During his travels through Europe on the way to America, he was successful in raising funds for the Maryland Jesuits among wealthy French andItalian nobles.[23] On 23 October, Dubuisson departedLe Havre, France for New York City,[24] from where he traveled toFrederick, Maryland. Soon thereafter, the Archbishop of Baltimore,James Whitfield, assigned him toNewtown Manor, from where he would oversee all the Jesuitparishes inSt. Mary's County.[25]
Dubuisson's assignment to rural Maryland did not last long, as by the following year, he again returned to Georgetown as the prefect of studies.[26] He also taught French there,[27] and became the de facto confessor of the nuns of theGeorgetown Visitation Monastery and of the students at their school, theGeorgetown Visitation Academy.[28] With the arrival ofPeter Kenney asvisitor to the Maryland mission in 1830, Roothaan appointed Dubuisson as one of Kenney's fourconsultors.[29] As the Jesuits debated whether to sell their farms in Maryland, which would significantly change the character of the order in the United States, Dubuisson argued against such a decision, believing landownership afforded them security in the event of economic disaster.[30]
Dubuisson's position was also motivated by the fact that the farms were worked by slaves owned by the Jesuits. He believed that while the institution ofslavery was not itself immoral, the Jesuits had an obligation not to sell their slaves to immoral slaveowners who would abuse them or deprive them of food, clothing, some degree of education, and the right to marry. He viewedabolitionism as dangerously idealistic and capable of producing a Reign of Terror similar to the one he lived through in France, while also ultimately harming the freed slaves.[31] However, he would later oppose on moral grounds the Maryland Jesuits'sale of their slaves in 1838.[32] Dubuisson also praised theracially integrated Masses he observed in parts of Maryland, where blacks and whites received theEucharist and sang in the choiron equal status.[33]
Despite his experience in academia, Dubuisson's primary talents were in pastoral work.[27] Therefore, soon after arriving, Kenney sent Dubuisson back to Frederick, where he assistedJohn McElroy in runningSt. John's Literary Institution and in his pastoral work.[28] This transfer was due in part to the fact that Kenney believed it improper for a Jesuit, especially a young one, to be the confessor of nuns and female students, as it created opportunity for sexual impropriety.[34] His pastoral work took ranged from St. Patrick's Church in Washington to St. Francis Xavier Church on the rural Newtown Manor. As such, he ministered to a wide diversity of parishioners, including prominent, established Maryland families, white immigrants who fled Haiti, black slaves, andProtestant converts.[27]
Over time, Dubuisson became a close confidant of Kenney,[34] and the visitor eventually sent Dubuisson toPhiladelphia in 1831, where he was to organize the return of the Jesuits toOld St. Joseph's Church.[35] In August of that year, Dubuisson was transferred back to Georgetown, once again becoming the pastor of Holy Trinity Church,[35] where he replaced John Van Lommel.[15] There, he revived the parochial school'sSodality of Our Lady. The parochial school had long suffered from sporadic funding, which forced it to intermittently close. Dubuisson secured a grant fromCongress and raised additional funds, which put the school on stable financial footing.[35] In 1831, Dubuisson also was madesocius[a] to the superior of the Jesuits' Maryland mission, and continued associus to Peter Kenney, when he took over leadership of the mission as visitor.[37]
In February 1833, Dubuisson returned to Philadelphia as a priest at Old St. Joseph's Church, newly returned to Jesuit control;[38] he became the pastor of the church in April of that year.[39] He was succeeded at Holy Trinity Church by James F. M. Lucas.[15] While assigned to St. Joseph's, Dubuisson also made a trip toSilver Lake, as the Catholics ofnortheastern Pennsylvania had few priests.[40] During this time, with the support of Archbishop Whitfield of Baltimore, Dubuisson was nominated for several bishoprics. His name was first proposed to become theBishop of Cincinnati, and then as theArchbishop of New Orleans;John England, theBishop of Charleston then sought to convince him to become theArchbishop of Saint-Domingue or a missionary toLiberia.[41][39] However, Dubuisson desired to remain a pastor, and appealed directly toPope Gregory XVI.[42]
Dubuisson returned to Maryland in 1835, for the Jesuits' provincial congregation, where he was elected as the Maryland province's delegate to a meeting ofprocurators from every Jesuit province in the world,[43] the first such delegate from North America to attend a procurators' meeting. In anticipation of the congregation, he prepared a report on the state of affairs of the Maryland province, which he would present to the Superior General upon his arrival in Rome.[44] After a long journey through Europe, he arrived in Rome on 23 November 1835.[45]
After the congregation, Dubuisson traveled extensively throughout Europe, paying frequent visits to theroyal courts of Vienna,Munich,Milan, Turin,Lyon, and Paris, and became well acquainted with many of the royalty and nobility. To this end, he was the first of the American Jesuits sent to Europe to succeed in raising a substantial amount of money, and improved the European perception of the American Jesuits.[46]
In 1837, Dubuisson returned to the United States. Theprovincial superior,William McSherry, assigned him as the acting pastor ofSt. Mary's Church inAlexandria, Virginia, where he was to repair the divisions among parishioners that persisted from an attemptedschism 20 years earlier.[47] On 8 July 1837, McSherry made his appointment permanent, replacing John Smith, who McSherry considered to have poorly managed the parish.[48] In addition to his pastoral duties, Dubuisson taught French at St. Mary'sparochial school, three-quarters of whose students were Protestant, and heldcatechism classes for both the church's white and black parishioners.[42] He was successful in reducing the church's debt that had accrued under Smith.[49] He also returned to his position as confessor to the Georgetown Visitation Monastery. During his pastorate, he made trips to the small churches of rural St. Mary's County, Maryland.[42] From 1837 to 1839, Dubuisson was also theprincipal ofSt. John's Academy in Alexandria,[50] the only Catholic military school in the United States at the time.[51]
In 1838, Dubuisson contracted a severe case oflaryngitis, which physicians in Washington and Philadelphia were unable to treat. Therefore, Dubuisson once again sailed for France,[52] ending his tenure at St. Mary's on 1 January 1841.[48] The French physicians recommended that a change of climate might improve his symptoms, and Dubuisson left for Rome later that year. His condition, however, would develop intolaryngeal dystonia and remained with him for the rest of his life.[53]
In Rome, Dubuisson once again represented the Maryland province at the Jesuit procurators' meeting of 1841.[53] After the meeting, he took up residence in Marseille, France.[54] During this time, he sought the help of theNorman physician andTrappist monkPierre Jean Corneille Debreyne [fr].[55] On 17 November 1842, Dubuisson arrived at themanor of his longtime friend, Duke Mathieu de Montmorency, inBorgo San Dalmazzo, where he became thechaplain to the ducal family and manor.[56] During the1848 revolutions that swept Europe, the Jesuits were expelled fromNorthern Italy. Despite persecution of the Jesuits, Dubuisson was able to remain due to the intervention of the Americanchargé d'affaires in Turin; therefore, he was likely the last remaining Jesuit in Northern Italy.[57]
With the death of Duke Mathieu in 1851,[58] Dubuisson became the de facto interim mayor of the Montmorency manor.[59] In November 1852, Roothaan granted Dubuisson's request to rejoin a Jesuit community, and transferred him to the Jesuit province ofToulouse,[60] where he became a parish priest.[61] In October 1861, Dubuisson moved to the Jesuit retirement home inPau, Basses-Pyrénées,[62] where he died on 14 August 1864.[63]
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | 14thPresident of Georgetown College 1825–1826 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by John Smith | 2nd Principal ofSt. John's Academy 1837–1839 | Succeeded by John H. Kellenberger |
| Catholic Church titles | ||
| Preceded by Theodore M. DeTheux | 4th Pastor ofHoly Trinity Church 1825–1826 | Succeeded by John Smith |
| Preceded by John Van Lommel | 7th Pastor ofHoly Trinity Church 1831–1833 | Succeeded by James F. M. Lucas |
| Preceded by – | Pastor ofOld St. Joseph's Church 1833–1835 | Succeeded by – |
| Preceded by John Smith | Pastor ofSt. Mary's Church 1837–1841 | Succeeded by – |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
