Note: To observe the Jubilee Year of Mercy (which runs through November 20), for several weeks I am featuring women who exemplify one of the corporal or spiritual works of mercy. Today: Instruct the ignorant.
The Basics: Born April 17, 1620, in France; died January 12, 1700, in Canada; canonized October 31, 1982, by John Paul II; feast day, January 12. Woman religious and teacher.
The Story: Marguerite, the sixth of twelve children in a middle-class family, felt called to religious life–
missionary life, in particular–but was rejected by both the Poor Clares and the Carmelites. In her twenties, she began teaching poor children and then, in her early thirties met the founder of what would become Montreal, far across the Atlantic Ocean. He was looking for women to teach the children of French settlers and Native Americans alike. Marguerite embraced the idea, and arrived in Montreal on November 16, 1653. Five years later, she established the settlement’s first school–in a stable–and went on to establish a network of schools and social services across the area. All this work garnered her the nickname “Mother of the Colony.”
She went back to France several times to get young women to join what became the Sisters of the Congregation of Notre-Dame, one of the first non-cloistered Catholic communities of women religious.
In 1982, Marguerite became the first Canadian woman to be canonized.
Marguerite’s Wisdom: “God is not satisfied if we preserve the love we owe our neighbor; we must preserve our neighbor in the love he ought to have for us.”
What We Can Learn from Marguerite: Marguerite listened to God’s call, and was patient in waiting for the way she would obey. May we listen just as carefully, and not become impatient when what we are to do is not immediately clear.
To Learn More About Marguerite: Visit the Marguerite Bourgeoys Museum and Notre-Dame-de-
Bon-Secours Chapel Web site or check out what her congregation is doing today to help people today.
To Learn More About Other Women Saints and Blesseds: Come back next week, or consider buying my books, Blessed Are You: Finding Inspiration from Our Sisters in Faith or Sisterhood of Saints: Daily Guidance and Inspiration.
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