\n-\n
\nDearest Brother,\n
\n-\n
It’s been a little while since I received one of your letters. Please do not delay in sending me news of our Family; and above all, our Mother.\n
\n-\n
\nAs for me, I remain in good health, thanks to God, notwithstanding my heavy duties, which do not even give me time, so it is said, to breathe. Recently, I have suffered the loss of Signor De Andreis, our Superior, who was taken from us by an untimely death, at the age of only 42. You cannot imagine how much I have suffered from this tragic event. But not for him, he was a saint, who lived and died like one. The course of his apostolic life was short, especially in this country, but full of blessings. The Bishop, the Diocese, and our Congregation have lost a great support. He united the qualities that are most beautiful into a single person: extraordinary talents, eloquence, erudition, holiness, and virtue, all of which rendered him highly respected, not merely by Catholics, but by all who had the honor of knowing him, from every religion there is. His death made this evident. An extraordinary parade of people attended his funeral; everyone wept with grief. After the service in St. Louis, which is where he died, Monsignor Bishop kindly sent me his body, which was accompanied all the way to the Seminary by a good number of very distinguished people from the area... \n
"}]}],"thumbnail":{"@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/f96e51df-8cca-4a49-96b9-77e8763dfbc8/full/500,500/0/default.jpg","@type":"dctypes:Image","height":500,"width":500}},{"@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/4236af3d-18c7-49c6-b086-56902bad1971/canvas/_2","@type":"sc:Canvas","label":"CMC0565_02_015_001_p072","height":4783,"width":3751,"images":[{"@type":"oa:Annotation","motivation":"sc:painting","resource":{"@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/9cc5a87e-0903-4006-b61b-f701bb218008/full/full/0/default.jpg","@type":"dctypes:Image","format":"image/tif","service":{"@context":"http://iiif.io/api/image/2/context.json","@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/9cc5a87e-0903-4006-b61b-f701bb218008","profile":"http://iiif.io/api/image/2/level2.json","tiles":[{"width":2048,"scaleFactors":[1,2,4]}]},"height":4783,"width":3751},"on":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/4236af3d-18c7-49c6-b086-56902bad1971/canvas/_2","metadata":[{"label":"Translations","value":"…despite the 100 mile journey. It appears the Lord wishes to glorify his faithful service even further. A Woman renowned for her piety, who suffered for years with a stomach malady, approached his body as it lay exposed in a room and touched his feet, confident in her faith that God would free her from her pains through the intercession of this Holy Priest. And at that very instant, her pains ceased, and they have not returned. This consoles me, but at the same time serves as a reminder of the handicap caused by losing a man of such great merit. Moreover, before dying, he burdened me with a weight greater than my strength to bear, naming me Superior. I have written of it to our Vice General in Rome, requesting, by the most persuasive arguments, that he relieve me of this office. I hope my requests will be granted.\n\n-\n
\nI continue to reside in the Seminary among the woods of the Barrens, in true solitude. The good people who live there and make up our parish are the only people we see, on Sundays and the other days they attend church. On workdays, from morning to night, I am tasked with teaching Theology, Philosophy, the ecclesiastical chant and ceremonies, and overseeing the affairs of the house, both spiritual and temporal. Our family consists of 30 individuals. The hardest tasks are those concerning temporal matters, which you know I have never had any interest in but which, for the past two years, necessity has forced me to take charge of. I do it for the love of God. We are working hard; we need to clear the trees in order to till the soil; you have to put in a lot of thought for how you will feed and clothe a large family, which grows larger by the day; the nearest market for going to buy the things we need is 22 miles away, and often you can’t find things there, so you need to go to St. Louis, which is 100 miles away. At home we make all that…\n
"}]}],"thumbnail":{"@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/9cc5a87e-0903-4006-b61b-f701bb218008/full/500,500/0/default.jpg","@type":"dctypes:Image","height":500,"width":500}},{"@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/4236af3d-18c7-49c6-b086-56902bad1971/canvas/_3","@type":"sc:Canvas","label":"CMC0565_02_015_001_p073","height":4864,"width":3964,"images":[{"@type":"oa:Annotation","motivation":"sc:painting","resource":{"@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/4e01a4be-3500-4caf-b18b-ccd7266a90fc/full/full/0/default.jpg","@type":"dctypes:Image","format":"image/tif","service":{"@context":"http://iiif.io/api/image/2/context.json","@id":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/4e01a4be-3500-4caf-b18b-ccd7266a90fc","profile":"http://iiif.io/api/image/2/level2.json","tiles":[{"width":2048,"scaleFactors":[1,2,4]}]},"height":4864,"width":3964},"on":"https://iiif.quartexcollections.com/depaul/iiif/4236af3d-18c7-49c6-b086-56902bad1971/canvas/_3","metadata":[{"label":"Translations","value":"…we can. We have a tailor, a Brother who weaves, and he makes us homemade clothes, thread and wool, on the cheap, as they say, which we dye with tree bark, etc., etc. Certainly, one could buy clothes, but the expense is exorbitant, and beyond our means.\n\n-\n
\nAs for our spiritual ministries, there is nothing special there. From time to time, we have the consolation of seeing some priests ordained who have graduated from the Seminary, and we thank the Lord for this fruit that validates our humble labors. Our Catholics benefit enormously from the lessons they are given. The sacraments are practiced by everyone. Sometimes we even have the consolation of receiving a heretic into the womb of the Holy Church. We were thinking seriously about the savages, but the death of our Superior will probably suspend this Mission for the time being. We still do not have enough people, nor enough money to undertake anything more. This is in essence what I wanted to tell you in this letter. Don’t neglect to write to me, and let me know how our Mother is, and all the others at home, how many children you have, what their names are, etc., etc.\n
\n-\n
\nI ask that you be exact in fulfilling your duties, that you regularly take the sacraments, honor our Mother, and give her with [missing word/s] sincere proofs of your affection and attachment to her. Remember that at this point I have tasked you with doing the following for me: Keep the harmony, and let peace reign at Home among your wife, and our mother, sister, aunt, etc., etc. Say the Rosary together every evening, and pray for me. Attend your temporal affairs in such a way that you do not come to forget the great matter of your eternal salvation. If the former go badly, there is always a remedy, but if you fail in the latter, all will be lost, and lost forever.\n
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\nYour most affectionate brother,\n
\nJoseph Rosati pri[est] of the\n
\nCongregation of the Mission\n
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