A golden view of the Golden Dome and more
...from Notre Dame. A view of Mary atop the Main Building, the steeple of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, AND the Hesburgh Library from St. Mary's Lake. It is the perfect Notre Dame trifecta. Enjoy your Sunday wherever you may be!
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One hundred and seventy-five years ago TODAY, November 26, 1842, five members of the Congregation of Holy Cross: Father Edward Sorin and Brothers Francis Xavier Patois, Gatien Monsimer, Basil O'Neil and Patrick Conley set foot for the first time on this property and named it "Notre Dame du Lac."
In a Dec 5, 1842 letter, Father Sorin writes:
“Everything was frozen, and yet it all appeared so beautiful. The lake, particularly, with its mantle of snow, resplendent in its whiteness, was to us a symbol of the stainless purity of Our Lady whose name it bears; and also of the purity of soul which should characterize the new inhabitants of these beautiful shores. … Yes, like little children, in spite of the cold, we went from one extremity to the other, perfectly enchanted with the marvelous beauties of our new abode. Oh! may this new Eden be ever the home of innocence and virtue! There, I could willingly exclaim with the prophet: Dominus regit me … super aquam refectionis educavit me! [“The Lord guides me … beside still waters”; Psalm 23] Once again in our life we felt then that Providence had been good to us, and we blessed God with all our hearts.”
The great dreamer continued,
“While on this subject, you will permit me, dear Father, to express a feeling which leaves me no rest. It is simply this: Notre Dame du Lac has been given to us by the Bishop only on condition that we build here a college. As there is no other within five hundred miles, this undertaking cannot fail of success, provided it receive assistance from our good friends in France. Soon it will be greatly developed, being evidently the most favorably located in the United States. This college will be one of the most powerful means of doing good in this country, and, at the same time, will offer every year a most useful resource to the Brothers’ Novitiate; and once the Sisters come – whose presence is so much desired here they must be prepared, not merely for domestic work, but also for teaching; and perhaps, too, the establishment of an academy. … Finally, dear Father, you may well believe that this branch of your family is destined to grow and extend itself under the protection of Our Lady of the Lake and St. Joseph. At least such is my firm conviction; time will tell whether I am deceived or not.”
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NOTRE DAME!
