July 15, 2026

By Deacon Kevin Mastellon
North Country Catholic

Missionaries from Quebec first came to this country across the St. Lawrence River to Watertown, NY in 1876. They came to minister to a small French speaking Catholic community and to establish a school in the Watertown community.

A celebration of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart 150th Anniversary in the United States will be held August 2. 2026 at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Church in Watertown. An 11 a.m. Mass is planned followed by a luncheon.

Rev. Michael Miller, MSC, is the current Provincial of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in the United States. On a visit to Watertown in 2024, Father Miller told the North Country Catholic “When our seminary closed in 1972 in Geneva, Illinois. the MSC looked around at various seminaries to continue the formation of the men. One location was in Watertown because the Missionaries had a prep school here. We were all disappointed when they said you're going to Watertown. For us it was like going to the end of the world. We would be buried in snow.

That disappointment really turned out good for me,” the Provincial said, “ because I got to attend Immaculate Heart Academy and got to know my classmates. It was a good year.”

Father Miller has returned to Watertown several times over the years, but now as the leader of Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in the United States and in Columbia, South America.

Father Miller succeeded Rev. Richard Kennedy, MSC as provincial. Father Kennedy had been pastor of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart prior to his election. Father Kennedy is now living in Pennsylvania.

The priests, deacons and brothers, with many lay ministers, continue their pastoral work throughout this country and in Columbia. In this Diocese, Rev. Frank Natale, MSC serves as Pastor of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Watertown, St. Paul’s in Black River and St. Mary’s in Evans Mills. Rev. Raymond Diesbourg, MSC is Pastor of the Roman Catholic Community of Cape Vincent, Rosiere, and Chaumont. Father Diesbourg also served as Provincial of the Missionaries in the US. Rev. Jaya Kumar Francis, MSC was named Pastor of St. James Minor Parish in Carthage and St. Mary’s in Copenhagen.

The Missionaries, principally through the efforts of the late Rev. Pierre Aubin, MSC, founded the Sacred Heart Foundation. The Foundation continues to fund the education of seminarians internationally. Father Aubin served the Diocese of Ogdensburg in numerous parishes, retiring as Pastor of the Cape Vincent area parishes. He died in December 2025.

The motto of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart is: May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be loved everywhere. This phrase emphasizes their commitment to spreading the love of Jesus as revealed through His Sacred Heart. The motto was established by Father Jules Chevalier, who founded the Society in France in 1854.