Early life Jean-Baptiste Brondel was born on 23 February 1842 in
Bruges in the
Kingdom of Belgium to Charles Joseph and Isabella (née Becquet) Brondel. One of seven children, Jean-Baptiste was the youngest of his parents' five sons; his eldest brother and one of his sisters also pursued religious careers. He received his early education from the
Xaverian Brothers in his native city. In 1852, Brondel entered the College of St. Louis in Bruges, where he studied for ten years. Inspired by the works of the missionary Reverend
Pierre-Jean De Smet in the American West, Brondel decided to become a missionary to the Native American peoples.
Priesthood Brondel was
ordained to the priesthood in
Mechelen, Belgium, by Cardinal
Engelbert Sterckx on 17 December 1864. At age 24, he was below the age requirement for ordination, but was granted a
dispensation by
Pope Pius IX. He also significantly increased the number of priests; by 1903, the number of seminarians in Montana increased from one to thirteen. He took a particular interest in the evangelization of
Native Americans. The United States government often used his popularity among that community to further its aims in the community. Jean-Baptiste Brondel died on 23 February 1842 at
Helena at age 61, and was buried in a vault under the cathedral of that city. ==References==