Talk:Saint Joseph's Oratory

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Requested move[edit]

In accordance with Wikipedia's Naming Conventions (WP:UE), I recommend this article be moved to Saint Joseph's Oratory, which is the common English name for the building. Have you ever heard anyone call it "Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal" in English? I would say it's not even common in French. I would just move it myself but "Saint Joseph's Oratory" has a history Larineso 05:18, 23 July 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Add *Support or *Oppose followed by an optional one sentence explanation, then sign your vote with ~~~~
  • Suppport. If an English name exists it should be used. – AxSkov (T) 05:36, 27 July 2005 (UTC)[reply]
    • The English name should be used not if it exists, but if it is the most commonly used name among English speakers. However, that is the case in this situation, and therefore, support. - Montréalais 01:53, 29 July 2005 (UTC)[reply]
  • Support. The full English name is actually "Saint Joseph's Oratory of Mount Royal", but "Saint Joseph's Oratory" alone is far more common. - Farquard 18:22, 1 August 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Since there seems to be no problem with consensus, I will move this article. - Montréalais 08:05, 3 August 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Indeed, and to cope with the variable naming (St Joseph's, St Joseph's Oratory, Saint Joseph's Oratory (by far the most common) redirects can be made). --Msanford (talk) 19:06, 27 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

About those miracles[edit]

People don't leave their crutches behind (especially in days past when such items were very costly) unless they no longer need them and wish to use them as a testament. I visited the site just three weeks ago and the crutches by the thousands line several walls. While you are free to be a non believer you do not have license to dipute the work and deeds of a Saint of the Catholic Church. These medically unexplained healings are the primary reason for this magnificent church as the money was donated by people who had/have no doubts about their miracle. This part is non negotiable. I'll have to continue to change to make this clear. Otherwise, the article is a fine but brief article. I am currently researching some facts to add to the article on this impressive church.


Spelling error "ever year" also, I think that "supposedly healed" sounds somewhat partisan, perhaps "believed to have healed" or something of the like. Maybe a mention of JD Rockerfeller's financial support would be in order. I won't edit, as I'm just learning the ropes. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 66.131.194.135 (talkcontribs) .

I think "Supposedly healed" sounds VERY partisan and as there is documented proof that these people WERE healed and no documented proof that it was mass psychosis, I'll change. If you change it back, I'll change it again. Thanks! —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 70.126.11.65 (talkcontribs) .



I've been there myself and am not convinced. I want some documented proof, cited here and cited now.

"While you are free to be a non believer you do not have license to dipute the work and deeds of a Saint of the Catholic Church."

Oh yes I do.

Cs302b (talk) 02:13, 13 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]


"If you change it back, I'll change it again, thanks!" Yeah, that's exactly how wikipedia is supposed to work. Cs302b (talk) 02:15, 13 May 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Fr. Andre's heart ?[edit]

When i visited the oratory in 1993, there was a glass case which supposedly contained Fr. Andre's preserved heart (i saw this with my own eyes)... An adjoining rumor was that the heart was a replacement, as the real had been stolen as a sick sort of 'prank' back in the '60s. I was wondering if anyone had any first-hand knowledge of such a thing, as i did not see it referred to in the article, and was looking for substantiation. Thoughts?

For information about Fr Andre's heart, suggest referring to the Oratoire's website for information - http://www.saint-joseph.org/en_1098_index.php - I question if the history section referring the heart is accurate. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.240.157.64 (talk) 03:45, 3 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Construction cost baseline year[edit]

The "Construction cost" field in the infobox should clearly state which year is used as the baseline currency. I have a strong suspicion that the cost was 2.3M $ 1967 dollars, and not 2008 dollars, which represents a serious difference. --Msanford (talk) 19:05, 27 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]


Add picture[edit]

I propose the following picture in order to illustrate the Saint Joseph's Oratory:

Saint Joseph's Oratory
Saint Joseph's Oratory


I find the night pictures make it harder to clearly see the building. What about this second one? PieCam (talk) 01:58, 20 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Oratoire Saint-Joseph du Mont-Royal - Montreal.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on April 28, 2013. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2013-04-28. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page. Thanks! — Crisco 1492 (talk) 22:41, 11 April 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Saint Joseph's Oratory
Saint Joseph's Oratory is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and national shrine in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Construction of the church, the largest in the country, was initiated in 1904. It is considered a National Historic Site.Photo: Paolo Costa Baldi

"Its dome is the third-largest of its kind in the world"[edit]

What criteria are being used for this, and what does "of its kind" refer to? It seems poorly explained and not sourced. Reversinator (talk) 01:40, 14 January 2018 (UTC)[reply]

"Of its kind" refers to the classical church dome, made of masonry or concrete, and excludes contemporary steel-structured domes like those you would find in this article, such as that of Singapore National Stadium.Jonahrapp (talk) 02:08, 15 March 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Staircase[edit]

One of the obvious features is a huge triple staircase leading from the lower car-park to the entrance. The outer stone stairs are for normal pedestrians. The middle wooden stairs are reserved for pilgrims who ascend on their knees saying a prayer on each step. You can see the top two flights in the photo at the head of the article. I feel that this should be mentioned but I have no information about nor any reference to this staircase. My knowledge comes from visiting the Oratory and being blown away by the sight from the lower car-park. OrewaTel (talk) 23:01, 9 May 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Hi, OrewaTel. I can add some information about the stairs to the article. Will do it in the next few days. I did mention in the Lead in the past that pilgrims venture to the Oratory each year to climb its steps, but I can add more information about that. Thanks. Jonahrapp (talk) 20:03, 10 May 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Hi again. I just read over the article and I actually did previously include this information at the end of the Shrine section. See: Saint Joseph's Oratory#Shrine Jonahrapp (talk) 20:05, 10 May 2020 (UTC)[reply]
Sorry! I missed the sentence. It's good that it is reported. Thanks OrewaTel (talk) 10:49, 11 May 2020 (UTC)[reply]