St. Louise de Marillac: Her Life as Parable

8/6/2019 St. Louise de Marillac: Her Life as Parable

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Louise de Marillac:Her Life as Parable


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1591-1625:Childhood,

Adolescenceand Young

Adult


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Her earliest years

August 12, 1591: born,daughter of Louis de Marillacand unknown mother

October 10, 1591: placed in careof Dominican Sisters of Poissywith an aunt. Very welleducated

July 1604: Louis dies. Louisesent to boarding school forgirls of lower estate at age 13

Summer 1612: Louises requestto enter Capuchin sistersrejected because of herdelicate health


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Dealing with rejection

The Word:

Mark 1:40-45

Mark 7:24-30

Mark 10:46-52


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Married and widowed

February 5, 1613: marries Antoine LeGras she became MademoiselleLe Gras

October 13, 1613: son Michel is born

1617: left with care of four orphaned

children of Valence De Marillac My deceased husband consumedeverything: his time, his life takingcare of the business of this family

1622: DeMarillacs political fortunesimprove; Antoine becomes sick and

in severe economic need. Louisebecomes increasingly depressed.

August 12, 1623: Louise takes Vowof Widowhood

December 21, 1625: Antoine Le Gras

dies


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Dealing with anxiety &seeming failure

The Word:

Mark 9:14-29

Luke 2:41-52; 7:11-17; 8:40-56


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Livingwithdarkness

& thepower ofprayer

The Word:

Luke 18:1-8; Mark 14:32-42


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The Light of

PentecostOn the feast of Pentecost I was in St. Nicolas-des-Champs during Holy Mass, and all in aninstant my mind was cleared of these doubts, and I was made to realize that I must remainwith my husband, and that a time would come when I should be in a position to make vows ofpoverty, chastity and obedience, and that this would be done with persons where other womendid the same.

I then understood myself to be in a place for the relief and assistance of my neighbors, but I

could not understand how this was being done, because these neighbors were coming andgoing.

I also understood that I was to be in peace as to my director, and that God would give meone, whom he caused me to see, as I supposed, for I felt a repugnance about accepting him, butall the same I consented; and it seemed to me that this was because I was not to make thischange just yet.

My third burden was taken from me by the assurance that I felt in my mind, that it was Godwho was teaching me these things, and that since there was a God I ought not to be doubtfulabout the other things. At that time, the doubt as to immortality was leading me to disbelievein Divinity.

I have always believed that I received this grace through the blessed Monseigneur ofGeneva, because I had greatly desired, before his death, to communicate these troubles to him,and since then I have felt towards him a great devotion, and I have received through him manygraces. At that time I had some matter about which I sought his advice, but I cannot now

remember what it was. This happened on the feast of Pentecost, 1623, in the church of StNicolas-des-Champs, during Mass.


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1625-1633:

A Time ofHealing


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Vincent & Louise:beginning a relationship

1625: Mlle Le Gras meetsVincent de Paul.Recommended for her spiritualdirector by Bishop Camus afterconsulting with Francis de

Sales. In the beginning Louise

continually searching for Godswill for her life; extremelyconcerned about her sonMichel; a structured and rigid

prayer style. 1625-1628: Louise becomes more

involved in preparing clothingor food for the poor.

July 1628: Louise, in prayer, ledto devote herself to the serviceof the poor


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Learning to trust God

The Word:

Matthew 14:22-33; Luke 8:22-25


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The mission begins May 16, 1629: Vincent sends Louise on

mission to visit the Charity atMontmirail.

1629: first establishment of theConfraternities in the city of Paris atSaint Sauveur

1630: the arrival of Marguerite Nasseauand Marie Jolie

November 16, 1630: failed coup detatby two of Louises uncles onedecapitated, the other dies in prison.Louise keenly feels this loss.

1631: gentleman accuses Louise ofhaving accepted his offer of marriage.

1629-1633: visit and organized Charitiesoutside Paris in summer and, in winter,established Charities in Paris


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Marguerite Nasseau

Margaret Nasseau . . . was the first Sister who hadthe happiness of pointing out the road to our otherSisters, both in the education of young girls and innursing the sick, although she had no other masteror mistress but God. She was a poor, uneducatedcow-herd. Moved by a powerful inspiration fromHeaven, the idea occurred to her that she would

instruct chldren and so she bought an alphabetbut, as she could not got to school for instruction,she went and asked the parish priest or curate totell her what were the first four letters of thealphabet. Afterwards, while she minded hercows, she studied her lesson. And so, little bylittle, she learned to read, and she then taught theother girls of her village. She undertook all thiswithout money or any other help save that of

Divine Providence. The harder she worked atteaching the children, the more the village folklaughed at and calumniated her. When shelearned that there was a Confraternity of Charityin Paris for the sick poor, she went there moved bya desire to be employed in this work. This wasindeed the will of God, for He intended her to bethe first Daughter of Charity and servant of thesick poor.


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Coming to believe in self,Gods purpose & plan

The Word:

Luke 1:26-66

John 20:1-18


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1633-1660:

Years of theLittle Company


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Founding the Daughters & Ladies

May to October 1633: Vincent andLouise engage in dialogue andprayer about the possible foundingof a new type of Confraternity

November 29, 1633: Louise gathersthe first 4 or 5 young women

volunteers in her own rooms.

March 25, 1634: Louise binds herselfby vow to consecrate herself to thework of this Confraternity of theDaughters of Charity

July 31, 1634: Vincent explains theRules to the first 12 sisters already5 houses in Paris

1634: The Ladies of Charityestablished as Confraternity

1639: 16 houses of Daughters in Paris


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The mission & troubles expand

1640: Michel abandons the cassock

March 25, 1642: first vows in Little Companyof four sisters

Pentecost Eve 1642: collapse of Motherhousefloor and increasing problems: fights

between Sisters, tensions with pastors &bishops, death of Sisters due to plague.

1645: Vincent submits to Louise theMemorandum on the Establishment of theDaughters 30 to 40 houses of Daughters

November 20, 1646: Erection of the Companyof the Daughters of Charity as aConfraternity this document was lost

1647: crises with Michel and the community

January 18, 1650: Michel marries GabrielleLe Clerc


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Learningto relax

and

listen

The Word:

Luke 10:38-42


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Final approbationof the Daughters

January 18, 1655: approbation of the Companyof the Daughters of Charity by Cardinal deRetz the term Company rather thanCongregation safeguarded them againstbecoming enclosed as nuns:

Company had 122 members at this time.

August 8, 1655: acts of establishment ofDaughter of Charity

November 1657: Louis XIV approves theestablishment of the Company

December 16, 1658: registration by Parlementof Letters Patent of King

March 15, 1660: Louise dies in Paris

June 8, 1668: Papal approval of the Daughtersof Charity, Servants of the Poor Sick

1934: Canonization of St. Louise de Marillac


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Vincent to the Daughters of Charity,August 24, 1659

Your monastery and your house is that of thesick, your cell is a hired room. Your chapel is theparish church, where you should always assist atthe divine sacrifice and give good example,

always being present there to edify the people,yet not abandoning the necessary service of thesick. For cloister, the streets of the city, throughwhich you walk in winter and in all sorts ofweather to seek out the sick poor. For enclosure,

obedience. For a grille, the fear of God. For aveil, holy modesty. I beg Our Lord to enlightenyour minds, to inflame your wills that you mayhenceforth love nothing but him, in him, and forhim.


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Peace & freedom in service

The Word:

Luke 7:36-50;

John 13:1-17

Documents

St. Louise de Marillac: Her Life as Parable