Louis-Albert Vachon

Who was Louis-Albert Vachon?

Louis-Albert Vachon, CC OQ was a Canadian educator, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, and Archbishop Emeritus of Quebec.

He became a cardinal on May 25, 1985.

Vachon was born and raised in Saint-Frédéric, Quebec, one of a family of six. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Minor Seminary of Quebec in 1934 and studied theology at the Major Seminary of Quebec before being ordained by Jean-Marie-Rodrigue Cardinal Villeneuve on June 11, 1938. He then attended Université Laval, graduating in 1941 with a Ph.D. in philosophy. He taught philosophy at Université Laval from 1941 to 1947, then began studies at the Pontifical Athenaeum Angelicum in Rome, Italy, where he was awarded a doctorate degree in theology in 1949 with a dissertation entitled "La vertu d'espérance et le péché de présomption : leur nature et leur opposition mutuelle."

Father Vachon returned to Quebec in 1949 to take up the position of Professor of Theology, a position he held from 1949 to 1955. In that year he was nominated as Rector of the Grand Seminary of Quebec and vice-rector of the Université Laval.