SAINT PIERRE AND MIQUELON, APOSTOLIC PREFECTURE OF THE ISLANDS OF. - It comprises a small group of islands belonging to France, located south of Newfoundland.

From the beginning of the 17th century these Islands were a fishing center, visited especially by the French. The fishermen built a chapel at St-Pierre in 1689 and another at M. The wars between France and England made the inhabitants acquainted with the horrors of various invasions and deportations on the part of the English Protestants. Religious assistance was ensured by secular or regular priests, especially by the chaplains of the "King's Boat" during the fishing season.

At the pontifical audience of 26 May 1763 the Holy See granted to the King of France four apostolic prefectures of the secular clergy for the islands of S. Domingo, Martinique, Cayenne, S. P. and M. The first apostolic prefect (who reached the see) for S. P. and M. was Julien Becquet, who together with the vice-prefect G. B. Paradis was appointed in 1767 (pontifical audience of 3 May) chaplain general of the French Colonies and vicar general of Québec. Subsequently the Society of the Holy Spirit ensured the ministry in the prefecture with students of the Seminary of the Holy Spirit until 1793, and again from 1816 onward after the Treaty of Paris (1814) had restored the Islands to France. The mission was restored by the apostolic prefect M. Ollivier, appointed on 13 June 1818. By a letter of 4 March 1912 to the superior general of the Spiritans, Propaganda entrusted the prefecture once more to the care of the same.

The area of the Islands is 241 sq km, with 4354 inhabitants, of whom 4350 are Catholics. Missionaries 6, brothers 2, sisters 34, elementary schools 4, secondary schools 3. Primary stations 3, secondary 1, churches 3, chapels 1.

Bibliography2 works

BIBL.: anon., Chronique des Missions confiées à la Congrégation du St-Esprit. Aperçu histor. et exercice 1930-31, Paris 1932, pp. 18-20; GM, pp. 285-86.

Saverio Paventi

@incollection{ec10_san_pietro_e_miquelon_prefettu, author = {Paventi, Saverio}, title = {San Pietro e Miquelon, prefettura apostolica delle isole di}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {X}, pages = {1805--1806}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1953}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/san-pietro-e-miquelon-prefettura-apostolica-delle-isole-di} }

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Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Apostolic Prefecture of the Islands of

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