Saint Louis de Montfort and the Calvary at Pontchateau

Miracle of the Shrine of Calvary in Pontchâteau

In 1709, St. Louis went to a little town called Pontchâteau, between Nantes and Redon.  

Louis de Montfort  had always wanted to build a Calvary, in honor of Our Lord Jesus, Mother Mary and the other members of His Passion.

After giving a mission in this town, he received an inspiration from the Holy Spirit. 

He shared his plan with the people at the mission who became very enthused.  They chose a spot, a distance from the town and began to dig.  In short order, it was determined this was not the right spot.  So he brought everyone into the Chapel to pray for guidance from Our Lady.

When they went back outside, they saw two white doves come down out of the sky, and settle on the mound which had already been dug out. 

The doves took dirt into their mouths, and flew off. 

They did this quite a few times. 

Louis Marie prayed all the while this was happening. 

Eventually he realized that the doves were trying to bring them to a place.  Louis Marie and the workers followed the doves to where they landed, some distance from where they had been. 

There they found a “hive-shaped” mound, on the highest point of the area.  From this vantage point, a Calvary could be built and the crosses seen from miles around.  They began to work.

Little by little, old-timers from the town came to the site. 

They shared a story which had happened some thirty six years before, whose meaning they had never been able to figure out. 

The people testified that they had seen crosses coming down from the sky, during the daytime with banners flying from them. 

The crosses hovered over this spot and stayed there for a time.  Then there were very loud noises which frightened animals for miles around.  This was followed by singing, Angelic singing, as if floating down from Heaven to earth. 

They said the date this happened was January 31, 1673, the day St. Louis de Montfort was born.

At first, just the people of Pontchâteau took part in the project.  But soon people from all over the district came with tools, ready to build Calvary.  Statues of all the participants of the Passion, Our Lord Jesus, Our Lady of Sorrows, St. John the beloved, and St. Mary Magdalene were carved at the same time the mountain was being built. 

The statues were placed in the grotto which had been formed by the digging, for safekeeping.  Every evening, after the workers were finished digging, they went down to the grotto and prayed to Our Lord Jesus and the other members of the Passion.

The main tree for Calvary was cut from a neighboring village. 

It took twenty-four oxen to bring it to the mountain.  The trees of the two thieves were placed on either side of it, one on the right and one on the left.  One hundred and fifty fir trees were planted for the Hail Marys, and fifteen cypresses for the Our Fathers.  It was a most beautiful tribute to our Heavenly Family.

But as had plagued Louis all his life, the powers of evil were ready to destroy what had been built in honor of God.  There was a war with England going on.  Word got out that all this digging was going on. 

Those who hated the Church and especially St. Louis Marie de Montfort complained to the authorities: Le Calvaire (The Calvary) was in Brittany, which was right across the English Channel from England; if the English should attack, the Calvary would make a perfect fort to use against the French. 

The project had taken over a year.  The solemn blessing was to take place on September 14, 1710, Feast of the Triumph of the Cross.  A few days before the blessing, the Bishop was pressured by a small group of very vocal, special interests with an agenda, and orders were given to Fr. Louis Marie and the people of Pontchâteau to tear down the monument built to Our Lord Jesus.

The words of Pope Clement XI came rushing back into the mind of this heartbroken priest, “And always be obedient to the Bishop of the diocese.” 

The people of Pontchâteau and the surrounding villages tore down Le Calvaire (Calvary), the Shrine to the Crucifixion of Our Lord Jesus.  Louis de Montfort was to learn again, God Alone! 

Strangely enough, however, that’s not the end of the story.  Le Calvaire was rebuilt again in 1747. 

Then the crosses had to be replaced again in 1774, after they had collapsed.  And then again they were replaced in 1785. 

The Reign of Terror which spread throughout France tore down the crosses once again.  But, the Church will never stay down, and after the French Revolution a new Calvary was built on the same site.  Bronze crosses were erected in 1854, the same year that the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception was proclaimed.  Pilgrimages began in 1873.

Le Calvaire cannot be wiped from this countryside, no more than His Death and Resurrection.  The crosses loom high in the sky, a testimony of love and hope for the world.

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