Bishop Baraga: The Snowshoe Priest
By Mary Frances Myler,
The shores of Lake Superior are often unforgiving. The world’s largest freshwater lake is known for both its fickleness and its frigid temperature. Strong winds churn up massive waves which crash onto the shore with incredible force, ice lingers in the lake well into the summer, and winters are cruel and cold. Even today, the shores of Lake Superior are only sparsely populated, and those who live near the lake are tough, practical people who recognize the immense power of the natural world but who choose to carve out an existence within it.
The hostile shores of Lake Superior were once walked by a man of God and a servant to all he met. Bishop Frederic Baraga, or the “Snowshoe Priest” braved the fierce elements of northern Michigan to bring the Gospel to native tribes. His physical sacrifice, spiritual stamina, and unwavering dedication to bringing the sacramental life of the Church to all Catholics is astonishing.
Frederic Baraga was born in Slovenia on June 29, 1797. His parents valued education, and Baraga received instruction in all subjects, including religious formation. By the age of sixteen, Baraga was an orphan, and he left home to continue his studies in the capital city. Later, he studied law in Vienna and continued to learn multiple languages. During summer vacations, Baraga would spend weeks walking through neighboring countries, practicing his language skills, and immersing himself in local cultures.
After law school, Baraga was drawn to the seminary. He gave up his inheritance and was ordained on Sept. 21, 1823, at the age of twenty-six. Fr. Baraga served the people of Slovenia for several years but he never felt truly settled in the diocese. His heart yearned for something different. Upon learning that the American diocese of Cincinnati needed missionary priests, Fr. Baraga appealed to his bishop in the hopes of serving in America. In 1830, he crossed the Atlantic to the land that would become his home.
In Cincinnati, Fr. Baraga began to study the Ottawa language under the instruction of an Ottawa chief attending the local seminary. His knack for languages was an enormous asset, and Fr. Baraga quickly learned to converse with Ottawa men and women in their native tongue. He was assigned to serve a small community of recent native converts in northern Michigan, where he continued to study the tribal languages. Eventually, Fr. Baraga assembled the first written dictionary of the Ottawa language.
Across the wilderness of northern Michigan, thousands of Indians had embraced Catholicism, but many had not yet received baptism due to the scarcity of priests. Fr. Baraga crossed the region, baptizing men, women, and children and dedicating the small wooden churches built by the communities. It was here, on the shores of Lake Michigan, the second largest Great Lake, that Fr. Baraga had his first experience of a northern Michigan winter. Heavy wind, frigid temperatures, and deep drifts of snow presented a challenge for his ministry to local tribes, but Fr. Baraga persevered nonetheless.
In 1835, Fr. Baraga was assigned to the Lake Superior region of Michigan’s upper peninsula, where French Jesuits had spread the faith among native Chippewa tribes a century earlier. Fr. Baraga was welcomed by the village of LaPointe, where the local community gathered to build the village’s first log church within a week of his assignment to the area. Catholics were hungry for the sacraments and eager to offer Fr. Baraga assistance in his new role in unfamiliar territory.
Winters in the lower peninsula had been long and cold, but nothing prepared Fr. Baraga for the brutal Lake Superior winters. In order to reach fellow Christians, he had to travel by snowshoe from one village to another, often trekking miles in white-out blizzard conditions. Fr. Baraga resolutely accepted the challenges of ministry amidst the forces of nature, earning the nickname of “Snowshoe Priest” for his lengthy treks across the area. In February of 1845, Fr. Baraga walked 600 miles over the course of five weeks.
In the summers, Fr. Baraga travelled by canoe to visit neighboring Indian communities. His travels often involved life-threatening incidents, as the unpredictable weather on Lake Superior could bring high winds, towering waves, and icy water. On one trip, Fr. Baraga took the forty-mile shortcut across the open waters of Lake Superior, rather than spending a month traveling the 200-mile alternate route. When Fr. Baraga and his native companion, Lewis, were in the middle of the lake a storm arose and they struggled to keep the canoe afloat amidst ever-rising waves. Fr. Baraga prayed through several hours of heavy wind and blinding rain, until land finally appeared. Fr. Baraga and Lewis found the calm mouth of a river, disembarked, and named the river “Cross River” in thanksgiving for their safety.
During his time at the Indian missions, Fr. Baraga wrote a book on tribal life which was published in Europe, sparking interest in the American missions. He also composed a prayer book and a life of Christ in the Chippewa and Ottawa languages. And, just as he composed a dictionary of the Ottawa language, Fr. Baraga also compiled a 1,700 page dictionary of the Chippewa language. Fr. Baraga recognized the unique beauty of the native cultures and languages and sought to preserve them against eradication as more settlers moved north into Indian territory.
As Michigan’s economy developed, Fr. Baraga was uniquely situated to influence local events. The nearby town of LaPointe served as the headquarters where Indians from all across the Great Lakes region had to gather the small annual payments given to them as a result of a treaty with the United States government. As a result, Fr. Baraga could interact with natives from across the region. He converted many, baptizing and catechizing hundreds of Indians. He was also able to advocate for the natives, holding government officials accountable for their promises to distribute money to the tribes.
Once valuable metals were discovered in the Upper Peninsula, a growing number of Catholic immigrants arrived in the area to work in the mines. Both Indians and the Catholic mission were persecuted by anti-Catholic citizens, but Baraga was able to use the legal education he received as a young man to defend the rights of native people and Catholic immigrants.
In 1853, Fr. Braga was appointed the bishop of the newly created diocese stretching for thousands of miles across northern Michigan, including the entire Upper Peninsula. He wrote a pastoral letter in English and Chippewa, encouraging his flock to stay true to the faith and to love God each day. To this day, this is the only pastoral letter printed in a language of the native peoples of the United States.
Apart from the hostile weather, Bishop Baraga faced great isolation and experienced profound loneliness. He ministered to a massive territory sparsely populated by a few small communities. Each day was filled with physical exertion, and Bishop Baraga struggled to find sufficient resources for the diocese. He received criticism for his close ties with Indians, especially for his generosity towards the native communities, but he nonetheless fought against the destruction of native cultures by Americans and Europeans eager to obtain the natural riches of northern Michigan. Despite the myriad challenges he faced daily, Bishop Baraga continued to serve his flock, frequently making long mid-winter treks on snowshoes to baptize converts and say Mass for various native communities. With such an active life, it was no surprise that he suffered as his health deteriorated with age.
Bishop Baraga died in Marquette, Michigan on January 19, 1868 after thirty-seven years of ministry to the native peoples of the Great Lakes. His dedication to evangelization, physical perseverance, and willingness to lay down his life provide inspiration for Catholics today. Bishop Baraga, pray for us!
For recommended reading on Bishop Baraga, we suggest By Cross and Anchor: The Story of Frederic Baraga on Lake Superior by James K. Jamison; some of the information from this article was drawn from this book.
