FEASTS OF THE DAY WEDNESDAY, 26 AUGUST, 2026 OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA SAINT TERESA OF JESUS JORNET IBARS OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA Our Lady of Czestochowa, or the Black Madonna of Poland, is a very famous painting of the Blessed Virgin holding the Child Jesus. Under this title, Mary is the Patron and Protector of Poland. Since the face of Mary is very dark, she is referred to as the Black Madonna. This darkening of the image comes from centuries of being hidden and the many years of soot and smoke from candles illuminating the icon. The picture follows the traditional form of an icon. Mary gestures toward Jesus, directing the attention away from her and pointing to Jesus as the source of salvation. The child Jesus extends his right hand in blessing to the viewer of the painting and holds a book of the gospels in his left hand. As in many icons Jesus looks like a small man, reminding us that Jesus, while still a child, is fully mature in his Divine nature. The painting of the Madonna has a long history. Legend has it that it was painted by Saint Luke on a piece of a cedar tabletop built by Saint Joseph. Some even say it is part of the table used at the Last Supper. Saint Helen found this painting when she went to Jerusalem in search of the true cross. She gave the painting to her son, Constantine. When the city of Constantinople was invaded by the Saracens, the people prayed to Mary and the city was saved. This began the great devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary attached to this painting. The history of the painting is more accurately documented in 1382, when Prince Ladislaus was owner of the painting. In that year, when the Tartars were invading the Prince's palace, an arrow hit the painting, lodging in the throat of Mary. Prince Ladislaus decided to take the icon to Opala, the town where he was born, in order to keep the picture safe. On the journey there, he stopped and spent the night at Czestochowa. The next day, as they began to continue the journey, the horses pulling the wagon with the painting of Our Lady refused to move. Prince Ladislaus took this as a sign that the painting was to remain in Czestochowa. The icon was placed in the care of the Order of the Hermits of Saint Paul at their monastery called the Mount of Light, or in Polish, Jasna Gora. The icon of the Black Madonna, Our Lady of Czestochowa, is there to this day. The icon was again in danger and damaged in 1430 when the Hussites invaded the monastery. Twice the painting was struck with a sword, and before it could be hit the third time, the looter fell to the ground and died. Despite trying to repair the painting, the sword cuts and the arrow wound are still visible in the painting today. In 1655 Swedes invaded Poland. The people prayed to Mary, and Poland was again saved from the invaders through the intercession of Mary. Our Lady of Czestochowa was thus crowned as the Queen of Poland, and this icon became the symbol of national unity.There is even a modern legend from the time Russia invaded Poland in 1920. The Russian army was ready to attack when an image of Mary was seen in the clouds. At this vision, the troops withdrew and Poland was again saved. The Church honors Mary, the Mother of God, in various ways. Mary can intercede for us, as is evidenced by the many healings and miracles that have been attributed to prayers to Our Lady of Czestochowa over the years. PRAYER: Holy Mother of Czestochowa, Thou art full of grace, goodness and mercy. I consecrate to Thee all my thoughts, words and actions – my soul and body. I beseech Thy blessings and especially prayers for my salvation. Today, I consecrate myself to Thee, Good Mother, totally – with body and soul amid joy and sufferings to obtain for myself and others Thy blessings on this earth and eternal life in Heaven. Amen. SAINT TERESA OF JESUS JORNET IBARS FOUNDRESS (9 January 1843 - 26 August 1897) Teresa Jornet Ibars was the born January 9th, 1843 in the Catalan region of Spain. She was the foundress of the Little Sisters of the Abandoned Aged, better known as the Little Sisters of the Poor. This is not to be confused with the Congregation also called this founded by St. Jeanne Jugan. From a young age, Teresa had a strong concern for the poor, often bringing them to the home of an aunt, where they were sure to receive assistance. Later she moved to Lerida, and lived with another aunt as she pursued her education. She became a teacher in Barcelona. During this time, she felt drawn to the monastic life and applied for admission to the Poor Clares, but she was not accepted. For this reason she devoted herself to her teaching and became a Carmelite tertiary to help in the development of her Spiritual life. She was encouraged by her Spiritual Director to undertake caring for the many elderly people of the area who were living alone and in poverty. She accepted this challenge. In 1872, she opened the first house in Barbastro. Her sister Maria helped her, and the following year the small group took the habit and became a religious Congregation. Since Teresa had previously been with the Carmelite Order, she took the name of their great foundress, Teresa of Jesus. She was elected the first superior of the new community. They were totally dedicated to the care of the aged. Mother Teresa of Jesus taught her Sisters to sacrifice their own personal comforts for that of the men and women that they cared for. In addition for her intense commitment, she was noted for her overwhelming peace, and that drew in many young women to join her. An outbreak of cholera hit Spain in 1897, and she joined the other members of the Congregation in their care of the victims of this plague. By the time it ended, 24 Sister, and seventy of their patients had died from the disease. She was physically overwhelmed and retired to the house in Liria. This is where she died, on August 26, 1897. At the time of her death, her Congregation had fifty houses. She was beatified in 1958 by Pope Pius XII, and canonized in 1974 by Pope Paul VI. PATRON: Senior citizens, retired people, the Poor and the Abandoned. PRAYER TO ST. TERESA OF JESUS JORNET IBARS: St. Teresa of Jesus Jornet Ibars, help us to show a want to serve the poor. Help us to open our eyes to those who live in poverty. Help us to stay determined as you did. Help us to fearlessly accept the tasks given to us. Amen.
When I was in Poland I travelled by car way out in the country to Jasna Gora. It is a monastery that look very much like a fortress, which is really what it is. I think of it like the heart of Poland. Outside on the ramparts there was a huge statue of Pope St John Paul 2. So touching , the Poles are so very,very proud of their very own Pope. The chapel were they kept the Black Madonna looks a lot like a little gilded Nuclear Bomb shelter. There at last was the Black Madonna! The icon I had loved from childhood! I can't imagine what it is like for a Pole visiting. The very heart of Poland.
SAINT OF THE DAY THURSDAY, 27 AUGUST, 2026 SAINT MONICA WIDOW (c.331 – 387) The circumstances of St. Monica's life could have made her a nagging wife, a bitter daughter-in-law and a despairing parent, yet she did not give way to any of these temptations. Although she was a Christian, her parents gave her in marriage to a pagan, Patricius, who lived in her hometown of Tagaste in North Africa. Patricius had some redeeming features, but he had a violent temper and was licentious. Monica also had to bear with a cantankerous mother-in-law who lived in her home. Patricius criticized his wife because of her charity and piety, but always respected her. Monica's prayers and example finally won her husband and mother-in-law to Christianity. Her husband died in 371, one year after his baptism. Monica had at least three children who survived infancy. The oldest, Augustine (August 28) , is the most famous. At the time of his father's death, Augustine was 17 and a rhetoric student in Carthage. Monica was distressed to learn that her son had accepted the Manichean heresy (all flesh is evil) and was living an immoral life. For a while, she refused to let him eat or sleep in her house. Then one night she had a vision that assured her Augustine would return to the faith. From that time on, she stayed close to her son, praying and fasting for him. In fact, she often stayed much closer than Augustine wanted. When he was 29, Augustine decided to go to Rome to teach rhetoric. Monica was determined to go along. One night he told his mother that he was going to the dock to say goodbye to a friend. Instead, he set sail for Rome. Monica was heartbroken when she learned of Augustine's trick, but she still followed him. She arrived in Rome only to find that he had left for Milan. Although travel was difficult, Monica pursued him to Milan. In Milan, Augustine came under the influence of the bishop, St. Ambrose, who also became Monica's spiritual director. She accepted his advice in everything and had the humility to give up some practices that had become second nature to her. Monica became a leader of the devout women in Milan as she had been in Tagaste. She continued her prayers for Augustine during his years of instruction. At Easter, 387, St. Ambrose baptized Augustine and several of his friends. Soon after, his party left for Africa. Although no one else was aware of it, Monica knew her life was near the end. She told Augustine, “Son, nothing in this world now affords me delight. I do not know what there is now left for me to do or why I am still here, all my hopes in this world being now fulfilled.” She became ill shortly after and suffered severely for nine days before her death. PATRON: Abuse victims; alcoholics; alcoholism; difficult marriages; disappointing children; homemakers; housewives; married women; mothers; victims of adultery; victims of unfaithfulness; victims of verbal abuse; widows; wives. PRAYER: O God, who console the sorrowful and who mercifully accepted the motherly tears of Saint Monica for the conversion of her son Augustine, grant us, through the intercession of them both, that we may bitterly regret our sins and find the grace of your pardon. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Monica's husband was called Patricius. This derives from the Latin, 'Patrician', who were the Roman ruling class. From which we have the name, 'Patrick', which makes me think St Patrick came from a well to do family and must have been very hard for him to be a poor slave. Patricius was a pagan and bad tempered and hard to live with. Her son Augustine was a thorn in poor Monica's heart all her life and she died just after his conversion. Patricius too was converted just before his death. This reminds us that the people and things that seem to be the biggest pain in our own lives are in fact own fastest excalators to heaven. Just before she died Monica talked all night to Augustine about heaven. How I wish I might have been a fly in the wall to that! Before my own mother died of cancer we talked about heaven. We spoke about how hard it was to imagine a place were every tear will be wiped away. Were there is nothing but happiness and joy. Heaven, who can even imagine it. "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away."
SAINT OF THE DAY FRIDAY, 28 AUGUST, 2026 SAINT AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO BISHOP, CONFESSOR, FATHER AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH (13 November 354 - 28 August 430) St. Augustine of Hippo is the patron of brewers because of his conversion from a former life of loose living, which included parties, entertainment, and worldly ambitions. His complete turnaround and conversion has been an inspiration to many who struggle with a particular vice or habit they long to break. This famous son of St. Monica was born in Africa and spent many years of his life in wicked living and in false beliefs. Though he was one of the most intelligent men who ever lived and though he had been brought up a Christian, his sins of impurity and his pride darkened his mind so much, that he could not see or understand the Divine Truth anymore. Through the prayers of his holy mother and the marvelous preaching of St. Ambrose, Augustine finally became convinced that Christianity was the one true religion. Yet he did not become a Christian then, because he thought he could never live a pure life. One day, however, he heard about two men who had suddenly been converted on reading the life of St. Antony, and he felt terrible ashamed of himself. "What are we doing?" he cried to his friend Alipius. "Unlearned people are taking Heaven by force, while we, with all our knowledge, are so cowardly that we keep rolling around in the mud of our sins!" Full of bitter sorrow, Augustine flung himself out into the garden and cried out to God, "How long more, O Lord? Why does not this hour put an end to my sins?" Just then he heard a child singing, "Take up and read!" Thinking that God intended him to hear those words, he picked up the book of the Letters of St. Paul, and read the first passage his gaze fell on. It was just what Augustine needed, for in it, St. Paul says to put away all impurity and to live in imitation of Jesus. That did it! From then on, Augustine began a new life. He was baptized, became a priest, a bishop, a famous Catholic writer, Founder of religious priests, and one of the greatest saints that ever lived. He became very devout and charitable, too. On the wall of his room he had the following sentence written in large letters: "Here we do not speak evil of anyone." St. Augustine overcame strong heresies, practiced great poverty and supported the poor, preached very often and prayed with great fervor right up until his death. "Too late have I loved You!" he once cried to God, but with his holy life he certainly made up for the sins he committed before his conversion. PATRON: Brewers; diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut; Cagayan de Oro, Philippines; diocese of Kalamazoo, Michigan; printers; city of Saint Augustine, Florida; diocese of Saint Augustine, Florida; sore eyes; diocese of Superior, Wisconsin; theologians; diocese of Tucson, Arizona. PRAYER: Renew in your Church, we pray, O Lord, that spirit with which you endowed your Bishop Saint Augustine that, filled with the same spirit, we may thirst for you, the sole fount of true wisdom, and seek you, the author of heavenly love. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
My favourite story from St Augustine is that when he was a child he and his friends robbed an apple orchard. What saddened him was that he did not do it for the apples. He didn't care about the apples. He robbed the apples out of pure badness. So insightful. Only a man with a crystal pure conscience could have written that.
SAINTS OF THE DAY SATURDAY, 29 AUGUST, 2026 MARTYRDOM OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST SAINT EUPHRASIA ELUVATHINGAL MARTYRDOM OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST In addition to the feast of the nativity of St. John the Baptist (June 24), the Church, since the fourth century, commemorates the martyrdom of Christ's precursor. According to the Roman Martyrology, this day marks "the second finding of his most venerable head." The body of the saint was buried in Samaria. In the year 362 pagans desecrated the grave and burned his remains. Only a small portion of his relics were able to be saved by monks and sent to St. Athanasius at Alexandria. The head of the saint is venerated at various places. That in the Church of St. Sylvester in Rome belongs to a martyr-priest John. Also in the Dominican church at Breslau the Baptist's head is honored. There is no doubt that blessed John suffered imprisonment and chains as a witness to our Redeemer, whose forerunner he was, and gave his life for him. His persecutor had demanded not that he should deny Christ, but only that he should keep silent about the truth. Nevertheless, he died for Christ. Does Christ not say: "I am the truth"? Therefore, because John shed his blood for the truth, he surely died for Christ. Through his birth, preaching and baptizing, he bore witness to the coming birth, preaching and baptism of Christ, and by his own suffering he showed that Christ also would suffer. Such was the quality and strength of the man who accepted the end of this present life by shedding his blood after the long imprisonment. He preached the freedom of heavenly peace, yet was thrown into irons by ungodly men. He was locked away in the darkness of prison, though he came bearing witness to the Light of life and deserved to be called a bright and shining lamp by that Light itself, which is Christ. To endure temporal agonies for the sake of the truth was not a heavy burden for such men as John; rather it was easily borne and even desirable, for he knew eternal joy would be his reward. Since death was ever near at hand, such men considered it a blessing to embrace it and thus gain the reward of eternal life by acknowledging Christ's name. Hence the apostle Paul rightly says: "You have been granted the privilege not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for his sake." He tells us why it is Christ's gift that his chosen ones should suffer for him: "The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us." PRAYER: O God, who willed that Saint John the Baptist should go ahead of your Son both in his birth and in his death, grant that, as he died a Martyr for truth and justice, we, too, may fight hard for the confession of what you teach. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
SAINT EUPHRASIA ELUVATHINGAL RELIGIOUS (CARMELITE NUN FROM KERALA , ALSO KNOWN AS THE "PRAYING MOTHER") (17 October 1877 - 29 August 1952) The daughter of Anthony and Kunjethy of Eluvathingal Cherpukaran, Rose Eluvathingal was born on 17 October 1877 in the village of Kattoor, in the Diocese of Trichur, India. Her mother's deep piety and great devotion to the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, had a strong influence on little Rose from her childhood. From the stories that her mother told her, especially about St Rose of Lima, she grew with a strong desire to practice the virtues, to suffer for Jesus and to be holy, and to do all this in a quiet, hidden manner. During her developing years Rose began to detach herself from earthly possessions and pleasure and took a great interest in spiritual matters. This was all the more rooted in her at the age of 9 by means of an apparition of the Blessed Mother, after which the young girl offered herself totally to the Lord. Notwithstanding the strong opposition of her father, who wanted Rose to marry into a rich family, she wanted to become a religious Sister. Her intense prayer life, which included the rosary, fasting and abstinence, as well as the rather sudden death of her younger sister, brought about a change of heart in her father, Anthony, who granted Rose permission to enter the convent. In fact, her father accompanied her personally to the convent of the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel at Koonammavu, the first indigenous congregation of Syro-Malabars. But even with her desire to be a Religious, Rose was often afflicted with various illnesses which caused her intense suffering. Once, during a particularly painful attack, the Sisters were resolved to send her away for ever, but through an apparition of the Holy Family she received a miraculous healing that permitted her to continue following God's call. MODEL OF PRAYER, ABANDONMENT On 10 May 1897 Rose became a postulant and took the name Sr Euphrasia of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and on 10 January 1898 she received the holy habit of Carmel. She practised the virtues of humility, charity and renunciation and grew in holiness with the help of the Blessed Virgin Mary. For the periods of grave illness and the trials of the powers of darkness that she endured, she was rewarded by intense spiritual joys. On 24 May 1900 St Mary's Convent was founded in the current Archdiocese of Trichur, and on the same day Sr Euphrasia made her perpetual vows to God, a day of unspeakable joy, since now she belonged for ever to her Heavenly Spouse. From 1904 to 1913 Sr Euphrasia was entrusted with the duty of novice mistress and, sustained by the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit, she formed the future members of her Congregation. In their Mother Mistress the novices saw the heroic virtues of humility, poverty, penance, obedience and abandonment to God's will. Although Sr Euphrasia wanted to live a hidden life, she was chosen as Superior of the Convent of St Mary at Ollur. Due to her profound humility she found it difficult to accept this new duty. But after an interior inspiration she acquired a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, placed it in the centre of the convent and entrusted the duty of Mother Superior to his Sacred Heart. She held the post from 1913 to 1916. For almost 48 years the convent of St Mary was home to Mother Euphrasia. Observing her life of prayer and holiness, the local people called her "Praying Mother", and her Sisters in community referred to her as the "Mobile Tabernacle", because the divine presence she kept within her radiated to all she encountered. From the first years of her Religious life, Mother Euphrasia had the blessing of the spiritual guidance of Bishop John Menacherry. He ordered her to reveal to him every aspect of her spiritual life, and he wisely kept all of her letters. When his successor, Mar George Alappatt, retired, he entrusted the letters to the Superior of the Congregation of the Carmelites of Trichur with the prophetic words: "You will need them". In fact, they are a precious treasure and an authentic mirror of the spiritual life of this holy, humble Religious. LOVING CHURCH AND NEIGHBOUR Mother Euphrasia spent much of her day in the convent chapel before the Blessed Sacrament and she also nourished a great love and devotion for the Blessed Virgin Mary; as a result, she was naturally an apostle of the Eucharist and of the Rosary. She was totally dedicated to love and was continually consoled by the Crucified Lord. She was the first to humble herself and to accept suffering, misunderstandings and rejection for love of Christ. Her strength came from Jesus, who had become her betrothed in spiritual matrimony as her letters testify. From her profound union with the Lord Jesus came her capacity to give of herself to others, and so she fully incarnated the motto of her Congregation: "Remain united to me in contemplation and consecrated to me in action" (cf. Jn 15: 5). Thus, with a pure heart Mother Euphrasia gave her maternal love and tenderness to those who sought her help. She gave them the comforting words of Jesus' Gospel and interceded for them. For each little kindness bestowed upon her she would reply, "I will not forget it, not even after death". Mother Euphrasia had a profound sense of Church and she personally felt the sorrows and problems of the Church of her day. She offered her mortifications and penances for the conversion of schismatics and asked the novices and children to pray for them. She prayed ardently before the Blessed Sacrament for the Holy Father, for Bishops, priests and Religious. Mother Euphrasia offered her life in sacrifice for love of God. She abandoned herself to his will and finally joined him in the heavenly embrace with her holy death on 29 August 1952. After Mother Euphrasia's death many of those who had obtained her help during her lifetime now continued to beseech her help at her tomb. In 1990 her tomb was opened, and her mortal remains were moved to the convent chapel.Pope John Paul II approved the Decree of the heroic virtues of the Servant of God in 2002, proclaiming her Venerable. On Sunday, 3 December 2006, she became the fifth Blessed of Kerala, India, and the sixth of the Nation of India. She was canonised as a Saint by Pope Francis on 23 November 2014 in Vatican City. PRAYER: O God, loving father, we sincerely thank Your great benevolence, for the very gift of St. Euphrasia who attained sanctity through constant prayer and an ascetic life. Saint Euphrasia, dearly beloved daughter of Mother Mary, we entrust to you, each one of us, Mother Church and the whole world. Help us to offer our sufferings at the foot of the Cross, and to progress in life's journey trusting in divine providence. Teach us to seek the Kingdom of God and His justice. Guide us to grow in love of God and love of others through prayer and a life of mortification. In all the critical situations of life, especially in this particular need (mention your petition). St. Euphrasia, we plead your intercession. Amen. 3 Glory be...
All these wonderful Carmelite saints¬ !! These saintly nuns. There appears to be hundreds and hundreds of them. From time to time I watch videos of Carmelite communities on utube and one or two of them really often stand out and I think to myself that there is another hidden saint. God may decide to mark out a nun like st Euphrasia or he may chose to keep them hidden. I suspect there are many hidden saints in Carmels all across the World.
Although we have this: Matthew 5:15 Salt and Light …14You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.…
SAINT OF THE DAY SUNDAY, 30 AUGUST, 2026 SAINT JEANNE JUGAN RELIGIOUS FOUNDER (25 October 1792 - 29 August 1879) (Today is also the feast of Saint Euphrasia Eluvathingal - For more details on the Saint please refer to 29th August Saint of the Day) St. Mary of the Cross (in the world: Jeanne Jugan) was born at Cancale, in Brittany, France, on 25 October 1792 in the turbulent period of the French Revolution. She was the sixth of eight children, four of whom died in infancy. Their fisherman father was lost at sea when Jeanne was only four. From her mother and the place of her birth, Jeanne inherited a lively, deep faith and a profound determination that could overcome any difficulty. The political climate and the family's financial plight prevented Jeanne from going to school. She learned to read and write from some ladies of the Third Order of St John Eudes who were numerous in the region. In Jeanne's world children began working at an early age. She would pray her Rosary while tending the herd, on the high cliffs above the Bay of Cancale. The beautiful view uplifted her soul. At the age of 15 she left home and went to work in a wealthy family not far from Cancale. With her new employer, she went to the help of the needy. In 1801 Napoleon Bonaparte restored religious freedom and a true spiritual awakening ensued. Numerous missions were preached and it was in this fervent atmosphere that the future Foundress of the Little Sisters of the Poor heard the Lord's call. When a young man asked for her hand in marriage she told him that God wanted her for himself, and was keeping her for a work as yet unknown. And as an immediate response she divided her clothes into two piles, leaving the prettiest to her sisters. She then left for Saint-Servan where for six years she worked as an assistant nurse. She enrolled in the Third Order of St John of Eudes. From that time her one desire was to "be as humble as Jesus". Health problems obliged Jeanne to leave the hospital. She was taken in by a friend in the Third Order, Miss Lecoq, whom she would serve for 12 years until her death in 1835. In 1839, Jeanne was 47 years old and shared an apartment with two friends: Fanchon, 71, and Virginie Trédaniel, a 17-year-old orphan. In Saint-Servan at that time the economic situation was disastrous; 4,000 out of population of 10,000 were reduced to begging. One winter evening in 1839, she came across a poor and blind old lady. Jeanne did not hesitate to give the lady her own bed. This was the initial spark that kindled a great blaze of charity. From that time, Jeanne was not to be deterred. In 1841 she rented a large room in which she welcomed 12 elderly people. In 1842, without money, she purchased a dilapidated convent where she soon provided 40 elderly persons with accommodation. Encouraged by a St John of God brother, she begged for the poor in the streets and founded her institution on abandonment to Providence. In 1845 she won the Montyon Prize, awarded each year "to a poor French man or woman for outstandingly meritorious activity". She founded homes in 1846 in Rennes and in Dinan, in 1847 in Tours, and in 1850 in Angers. The Congregation spread throughout Europe, America, and Africa and shortly after her death, to Asia and Oceania. It would seem that this fruitfulness was the result of a total and radical dispossession. In 1843, Jeanne had been re-elected Superior. Contrary to all expectations and solely on his own authority, Fr Le Pailleur, named as Superior instead Marie Jamet, who was 21 years old. In his action, Jeanne discerned God's will and supported the work, encouraging the younger sisters by her example. In 1852, the Bishop of Rennes officially acknowledged the Congregation and appointed Fr Le Pailleur Superior General. His first act was to call Jeanne Jugan back definitively to the Motherhouse for a retirement that was to last 27 long years.The younger sisters, ever increasing in number with the expansion of the Congregation, did not even realize that she was their Foundress. Jeanne, living in their midst, with her serenity and wisdom, transmitted a constant spirit of praise. "Love God very much; he is so good. Let us entrust ourselves to him". She died peacefully on 29 August 1879. Her Congregation then numbered 2,400 Little Sisters in 177 homes on three continents. John Paul II beatified her on 3 October 1982. PATRON: The destitute elderly. PRAYER TO SAINT JEANNE JUGAN: Jesus, you rejoiced and praised your Father for having revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven. We thank you for the graces granted to your humble servant, Jeanne Jugan, to whom we confide our petitions and needs. (pause to voice your personal needs and intentions) Father of the poor, you have never refused the prayer of the lowly. We ask you, therefore, to hear the petitions that she presents to you on our behalf. Jesus, through Mary, your Mother and ours, we ask this of you, who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit now and forever. Amen.
I remember the Little Sisters of the Poor used to call at our door when I was a child. My mother used to always hustle to gift them something and it was lovely to see and talk to them. I don't suppose they had changed very much from the time of St Jeanne Jurgen. But after Vatican 2 they stopped coming. Perhaps they modernised and stopped the practice . Sad. It was not just about getting money, people like me, children got to see their Christian witness. Their Light got a little bit more hidden.
