The source of these documents.
The Catholic Church governed over the spiritual life of the entire population
of Nouvelle-France, without exception. Only Catholics were permitted to settle
in the colony, although Protestant merchants were tolerated as long as they
did not practice their religion. Religious orders oversaw the proper conduct
of the inhabitants and, in some instances, the civil authorities called on
them for their assistance. In difficult situations, civil and religious authorities
would sometimes present a united front.
The purpose of these documents.
The monitory letter reveals an important facet of the ever-present power of
the Catholic Church in the everyday lives of the citizens of Montréal. The
civil authorities, not having found the parties who were guilty of theft during
the fire, called on the clergy to impose moral and spiritual sanctions on
those who did not provide information in helping to solve these crimes.
As for the pastoral letter by the bishop of Québec, who was responsible for the spiritual life of all Canadians, the manner of dress, the hairstyle and the behaviour of women in public, particularly in churches, fell under his goodwill.
How to locate these documents.
The original bishop’s letter is preserved at the Archives du Séminaire de
Saint-Sulpice in Montréal, under serial number T93, no. 57B, “Monitoire de
Louis Normant du Faradon, p.s.s., supérieur.” The Archives du Séminaire de
Saint-Sulpice hold a phenomenal number of documents on the religious and seigneurial
history of the Island of Montréal from the 17th century.
A portion of the documents is on microfilm.
The pastoral letter by Monseigneur de Saint-Vallier on the dress code for women can be found at the National Archives of Canada under serial number MG18, H25, Collection Peter Robinson, no. 1, April 26, 1719.
The pastoral letter by Monseigneur de Laval admonishing extravagance and vanity in women was published in H. Têtu and C. O. Gagnon, Mandements, lettres pastorales et circulaires des évêques de Québec, Québec, A. Côté et cie, 1887, vol. 1, p. 106-108.