Saint of the Day for Tuesday; our patron Saint at my home parish

 

St. Jane Frances de Chantal

What a way to start a marriage! Jane no sooner arrived at her new home then she discovered she might lose it. Her husband, Christophe, had not only inherited the title of baron but enormous debts as well.

But Jane had not come to the marriage empty-handed. She brought with her a deep faith instilled by her father who made daily religious discussion fun, allowing the children to talk about anything -- even controversial topics. She also brought a good-hearted way that made a friend comment, "Even stupid jokes were funny when she told them."

These qualities helped the twenty-year-old French woman take charge by personally organizing and supervising every detail of the estate, a method which not only brought the finances under control but won her employees' hearts as well.

Despite the early financial worries, she and her husband shared "one heart and one soul." They were devoted to each other and to their four children.

One way Jane shared her blessings was by giving bread and soup personally to the poor who came to her door. Often people who had just received food from her would pretend to leave, go around the house and get back in line for more. When asked why she let these people get away with this, Jane said, "What if God turned me away when I came back to him again and again with the same request?"

Her happiness was shattered when Christophe was killed in a hunting accident. Before he died, her husband forgave the man who shot him, saying to the man, "Don't commit the sin of hating yourself when you have done nothing wrong." The heartbroken Jane, however, had to struggle with forgiveness for a long time. At first she tried just greeting him on the street. When she was able to do that, she invited him to her house. Finally she was able to forgive the man so completely that she even became godmother to his child.

These troubles opened her heart to her longing for God and she sought God in prayer and a deepening spiritual life. Her commitment to God impressed Saint Francis de Sales, the bishop who became her director and best friend. Their friendship started before they even met, for them saw each other in dreams, and continued in letters throughout their lives.

With Francis' support, Jane founded the Visitation order for women who were rejected by other orders because of poor health or age. She even accepted a woman who was 83 years old. When people criticized her, she said, "What do you want me to do? I like sick people myself; I'm on their side." She believed that people should have a chance to live their calling regardless of their health.

Still a devoted mother, she was constantly concerned about the materialistic ways of one of her daughters. Her daughter finally asked her for spiritual direction as did may others, including an ambassador and her brother, an archbishop. Her advice always reflected her very gentle and loving approach to spirituality:

"Should you fall even fifty times a day, never on any account should that surprise or worry you. Instead, ever so gently set your heart back in the right direction and practice the opposite virtue, all the time speaking words of love and trust to our Lord after you have committed a thousand faults, as much as if you had committed only one. Once we have humbled ourselves for the faults God allows us to become aware of in ourselves, we must forget them and go forward."

She died in 1641, at sixty-nine years of age.

*In the USA, Jane Frances de Chantal's feast day was moved to August 12 in order to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12.

Saint of the Day for Monday; patroness of my parish in Abita Springs, LA

 St. Jane Frances de Chantal

What a way to start a marriage! Jane no sooner arrived at her new home then she discovered she might lose it. Her husband, Christophe, had not only inherited the title of baron but enormous debts as well.

But Jane had not come to the marriage empty-handed. She brought with her a deep faith instilled by her father who made daily religious discussion fun, allowing the children to talk about anything -- even controversial topics. She also brought a good-hearted way that made a friend comment, "Even stupid jokes were funny when she told them."

These qualities helped the twenty-year-old French woman take charge by personally organizing and supervising every detail of the estate, a method which not only brought the finances under control but won her employees' hearts as well.

Despite the early financial worries, she and her husband shared "one heart and one soul." They were devoted to each other and to their four children.

One way Jane shared her blessings was by giving bread and soup personally to the poor who came to her door. Often people who had just received food from her would pretend to leave, go around the house and get back in line for more. When asked why she let these people get away with this, Jane said, "What if God turned me away when I came back to him again and again with the same request?"

Her happiness was shattered when Christophe was killed in a hunting accident. Before he died, her husband forgave the man who shot him, saying to the man, "Don't commit the sin of hating yourself when you have done nothing wrong." The heartbroken Jane, however, had to struggle with forgiveness for a long time. At first she tried just greeting him on the street. When she was able to do that, she invited him to her house. Finally she was able to forgive the man so completely that she even became godmother to his child.

These troubles opened her heart to her longing for God and she sought God in prayer and a deepening spiritual life. Her commitment to God impressed Saint Francis de Sales, the bishop who became her director and best friend. Their friendship started before they even met, for them saw each other in dreams, and continued in letters throughout their lives.

With Francis' support, Jane founded the Visitation order for women who were rejected by other orders because of poor health or age. She even accepted a woman who was 83 years old. When people criticized her, she said, "What do you want me to do? I like sick people myself; I'm on their side." She believed that people should have a chance to live their calling regardless of their health.

Still a devoted mother, she was constantly concerned about the materialistic ways of one of her daughters. Her daughter finally asked her for spiritual direction as did may others, including an ambassador and her brother, an archbishop. Her advice always reflected her very gentle and loving approach to spirituality:

"Should you fall even fifty times a day, never on any account should that surprise or worry you. Instead, ever so gently set your heart back in the right direction and practice the opposite virtue, all the time speaking words of love and trust to our Lord after you have committed a thousand faults, as much as if you had committed only one. Once we have humbled ourselves for the faults God allows us to become aware of in ourselves, we must forget them and go forward."

She died in 1641, at sixty-nine years of age.

In Her Footsteps

We have been told the secret of happiness is finding: finding yourself, finding love, finding the right job. Jane believed the secret of happiness was in "losing," that we should "throw ourselves into God as a little drop of water into the sea, and lose ourselves indeed in the Ocean of the divine goodness." She advised a man who wrote to her about all the afflictions he suffered "to lose all these things in God. These words produced such an effect in the soul, that he wrote me that he was wholly astonished, and ravished with joy."

Today, when any thoughts or worries come to mind, send them out into the ocean of God's love that surrounds you and lose them there. If any feelings come into your heart -- grief, fear, even joy or longing, send those out into the ocean of God's love. Finally, send your whole self, like a drop, into God. There is no past no future, here or there. There is only the infinite ocean of God.

Prayer: Saint Jane, you forgave the man who killed your husband. Help me learn to forgive a particular person in my life who has caused me harm. You know how difficult it is to forgive. Help me to take the steps you took to welcome this person back into my life. Amen

St. Jane de Chantal, pray for us.

Live Jesus+

*In the USA, Jane Frances de Chantal's feast day was moved to August 12 in order to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12.

Continue reading about St. Jane Frances de Chantal

The patron Saint of my home parish located in Abita Springs LA

 

St. Jane Frances de Chantal

What a way to start a marriage! Jane no sooner arrived at her new home then she discovered she might lose it. Her husband, Christophe, had not only inherited the title of baron but enormous debts as well.

But Jane had not come to the marriage empty-handed. She brought with her a deep faith instilled by her father who made daily religious discussion fun, allowing the children to talk about anything -- even controversial topics. She also brought a good-hearted way that made a friend comment, "Even stupid jokes were funny when she told them."

These qualities helped the twenty-year-old French woman take charge by personally organizing and supervising every detail of the estate, a method which not only brought the finances under control but won her employees' hearts as well.

Despite the early financial worries, she and her husband shared "one heart and one soul." They were devoted to each other and to their four children.

One way Jane shared her blessings was by giving bread and soup personally to the poor who came to her door. Often people who had just received food from her would pretend to leave, go around the house and get back in line for more. When asked why she let these people get away with this, Jane said, "What if God turned me away when I came back to him again and again with the same request?"

Her happiness was shattered when Christophe was killed in a hunting accident. Before he died, her husband forgave the man who shot him, saying to the man, "Don't commit the sin of hating yourself when you have done nothing wrong." The heartbroken Jane, however, had to struggle with forgiveness for a long time. At first she tried just greeting him on the street. When she was able to do that, she invited him to her house. Finally she was able to forgive the man so completely that she even became godmother to his child.

These troubles opened her heart to her longing for God and she sought God in prayer and a deepening spiritual life. Her commitment to God impressed Saint Francis de Sales, the bishop who became her director and best friend. Their friendship started before they even met, for them saw each other in dreams, and continued in letters throughout their lives.

With Francis' support, Jane founded the Visitation order for women who were rejected by other orders because of poor health or age. She even accepted a woman who was 83 years old. When people criticized her, she said, "What do you want me to do? I like sick people myself; I'm on their side." She believed that people should have a chance to live their calling regardless of their health.

Still a devoted mother, she was constantly concerned about the materialistic ways of one of her daughters. Her daughter finally asked her for spiritual direction as did may others, including an ambassador and her brother, an archbishop. Her advice always reflected her very gentle and loving approach to spirituality:

"Should you fall even fifty times a day, never on any account should that surprise or worry you. Instead, ever so gently set your heart back in the right direction and practice the opposite virtue, all the time speaking words of love and trust to our Lord after you have committed a thousand faults, as much as if you had committed only one. Once we have humbled ourselves for the faults God allows us to become aware of in ourselves, we must forget them and go forward."

She died in 1641, at sixty-nine years of age.

In Her Footsteps

We have been told the secret of happiness is finding: finding yourself, finding love, finding the right job. Jane believed the secret of happiness was in "losing," that we should "throw ourselves into God as a little drop of water into the sea, and lose ourselves indeed in the Ocean of the divine goodness." She advised a man who wrote to her about all the afflictions he suffered "to lose all these things in God. These words produced such an effect in the soul, that he wrote me that he was wholly astonished, and ravished with joy."

Today, when any thoughts or worries come to mind, send them out into the ocean of God's love that surrounds you and lose them there. If any feelings come into your heart -- grief, fear, even joy or longing, send those out into the ocean of God's love. Finally, send your whole self, like a drop, into God. There is no past no future, here or there. There is only the infinite ocean of God.

Prayer: Saint Jane, you forgave the man who killed your husband. Help me learn to forgive a particular person in my life who has caused me harm. You know how difficult it is to forgive. Help me to take the steps you took to welcome this person back into my life. Amen

*In the USA, Jane Frances de Chantal's feast day was moved to August 12 in order to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12.

Continue reading about St. Jane Frances de Chantal

Novena prayer to St. Jane Frances de Chantal - today is Day 1

 Join us in praying a daily Novena to St. Jane. Day 1:

O Glorious saint blessed Jane Frances, who by your fervent prayer, attention to the Divine Presence, and purity of intention in your actions attained on earth an intimate union with God, be now our advocate, our mother, our guide in the path of virtue and perfection. Plead our cause near Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, to whom you were so tenderly devoted, and whose holy virtues you did so closely imitate. Obtain for us, O amiable and compassionate saint, the virtues you see most necessary for us; an ardent love of Jesus in the most holy Sacrament, a tender and filial confidence in His Blessed Mother, and, like you, a constant remembrance of His sacred Passion and death. Obtain also, we pray, that our particular intention in this Novena may be fulfilled. V. Pray for us, O holy St. Jane Frances. R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Let us pray: O almighty and Merciful God, Who did grant blessed St. Jane Frances, so inflamed with the love of You, a wonderful degree of fortitude through all the paths of life, and was pleased through her to adorn Thy Church with a new religious Order, grant, by her merits and prayers, that we, who know our weakness while confident in Your Strength, may overcome all adversities with the help of Your heavenly Grace, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Friday is the feast day of our parish patron Saint: Jane de Chantal

St. Jane Frances de Chantal

 

What a way to start a marriage! Jane no sooner arrived at her new home then she discovered she might lose it. Her husband, Christophe, had not only inherited the title of baron but enormous debts as well.

But Jane had not come to the marriage empty-handed. She brought with her a deep faith instilled by her father who made daily religious discussion fun, allowing the children to talk about anything -- even controversial topics. She also brought a good-hearted way that made a friend comment, "Even stupid jokes were funny when she told them."

These qualities helped the twenty-year-old French woman take charge by personally organizing and supervising every detail of the estate, a method which not only brought the finances under control but won her employees' hearts as well.

Despite the early financial worries, she and her husband shared "one heart and one soul." They were devoted to each other and to their four children.

One way Jane shared her blessings was by giving bread and soup personally to the poor who came to her door. Often people who had just received food from her would pretend to leave, go around the house and get back in line for more. When asked why she let these people get away with this, Jane said, "What if God turned me away when I came back to him again and again with the same request?"

Her happiness was shattered when Christophe was killed in a hunting accident. Before he died, her husband forgave the man who shot him, saying to the man, "Don't commit the sin of hating yourself when you have done nothing wrong." The heartbroken Jane, however, had to struggle with forgiveness for a long time. At first she tried just greeting him on the street. When she was able to do that, she invited him to her house. Finally she was able to forgive the man so completely that she even became godmother to his child.

These troubles opened her heart to her longing for God and she sought God in prayer and a deepening spiritual life. Her commitment to God impressed Saint Francis de Sales, the bishop who became her director and best friend. Their friendship started before they even met, for them saw each other in dreams, and continued in letters throughout their lives.

With Francis' support, Jane founded the Visitation order for women who were rejected by other orders because of poor health or age. She even accepted a woman who was 83 years old. When people criticized her, she said, "What do you want me to do? I like sick people myself; I'm on their side." She believed that people should have a chance to live their calling regardless of their health.

Still a devoted mother, she was constantly concerned about the materialistic ways of one of her daughters. Her daughter finally asked her for spiritual direction as did may others, including an ambassador and her brother, an archbishop. Her advice always reflected her very gentle and loving approach to spirituality:

"Should you fall even fifty times a day, never on any account should that surprise or worry you. Instead, ever so gently set your heart back in the right direction and practice the opposite virtue, all the time speaking words of love and trust to our Lord after you have committed a thousand faults, as much as if you had committed only one. Once we have humbled ourselves for the faults God allows us to become aware of in ourselves, we must forget them and go forward."

She died in 1641, at sixty-nine years of age.

*In the USA, Jane Frances de Chantal's feast day was moved to August 12 in order to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12.

Continue reading about St. Jane Frances de Chantal

Three Maryland churches vandalized including Catholic Church named for St. Jane de Chantal; believed to be in response to overturning Roe V Wade

 

Three churches vandalized in Montgomery Co., arson investigation underway

Officials say vandals damaged three churches in Bethesda, Maryland, this weekend with fires being set at two of them. Investigators believe it is arson.

Around 2:15 a.m. on Sunday, Montgomery County firefighters responding to a call found several church pews on fire at Saint Jane Frances de Chantal Catholic Church, located on Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda near the Capital Beltway.

Within hours, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service had launched an arson investigation into the fire.

Less than a mile away, early Saturday morning officials discovered vandals had damaged the Wildwood Baptist Church and neighboring North Bethesda United Methodist Church, where a small fire had been started on the property outside, causing an estimated $1,000 in damages.

Investigators also found damage to head stones & broken wood pieces scattered at the cemetery adjacent to Wildwood Baptist.

At Saint Jane Frances de Chantal, officials said it took about 65 firefighters to put out the fire. There have been no reported injuries from the blaze. Damages to the church have been estimated to be around $50,000.

“Anybody who lives in this area, if they saw any unusual activity after midnight and before 2 a.m., call us,” said Montgomery County Fire and EMS Spokesperson Pete Piringer.

Despite the early morning fire, Sunday’s masses were held at the church’s Christopher Hall Gymnasium, according to the parish website.

Addressing the congregation and those watching the mass’s livestream, Rev. Samuel Giese shared news of the vandalism.

“Last night our church was vandalized,” Giese said. “People broke in. They overturned statues. They tore down the Stations of the Cross. They desecrated the tabernacle and tried to set the church on fire.”

Giese said he believed the vandalism was in response to the Catholic Church’s anti-abortion stance. He alluded to the country’s political divide on abortion, which has deepened since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that had legalized abortion almost 50 years ago.

“I believe that this is because of the church’s stand on the issue of life: when it begins, and that it should be protected. And that this is one of the manifestations of the deep divisions right now within our country. That there are those who believe that we do not have even the right to practice our faith,” Giese said.

A spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Washington said in an email they were shocked and saddened by the vandalism, adding “when we are tested by fire (literally, in this case), our resolve and bond are only strengthened.”

Investigators are looking for more information about the fires. Anyone who may have seen suspicious activity near these churches is asked to call Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service’s tip line at 240-777-2263.

#iGiveCatholic and Giving Tuesday

 

Catholics’ ‘power of generosity’ fuels annual #iGiveCatholic Giving Day

Julie Asher November 19, 2021

Volunteers Catalina Enriquez, 9, and Amanda Auguste, 14, distribute potatoes at St. Jerome Church in the East Flatbush section of Brooklyn, N.Y., Nov. 19, 2019, during the annual turkey and trimmings giveaway sponsored by Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens. The online #iGiveCatholic Giving Day is Nov. 30, 2021. People can donate at https://www.igivecatholic.org to benefit schools, parishes and nonprofit ministries in U.S. dioceses. A two-week early giving phase began Nov. 15. (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Cory Howat, president of #iGiveCatholic, is optimistic that despite setbacks in their household finances they might have because of the ongoing pandemic and now inflation, Catholics will be as generous as ever on the seventh annual #iGiveCatholic Giving Day Nov. 30.

“We believe in the power of generosity. In fact, it is one of the most beautiful aspects of our Catholic faith,” he told Catholic News Service.

Donations received on that day, online or offline, will benefit more than 2,600 participating Catholic organizations, which include parishes, schools and ministries in 40 U.S. dioceses. An advance two-week giving phase that leads up to the day is currently underway.

A number of national ministries also have joined the effort this year, and schools across the country are taking part independently in an effort sponsored by the National Catholic Educational Association.

“Over the past six years, we’ve seen people experiencing tough times and in a spot where they need help,” Howat said. “#iGiveCatholic organizations are here for them to reach out and get the help they need.

“We’ve also seen those in a place of good times and abundance, and they reach out in gratitude to support organizations participating in the U.S. Catholic Church’s Giving Day. Both situations are signs of our faith in action!”

Howat and his team, who are based in New Orleans, see #iGiveCatholic Giving Day as a kickoff to the charitable season, and a way to bring the Catholic community together to give thanks and give back on #GivingTuesday, which refers to the Tuesday after Thanksgiving in the United States. This year that’s Nov. 30.

Giving Tuesday is a movement initially started in 2012 by the 92nd Street Y, a community center in the New York borough of Manhattan, and the United Nations Foundation, as a response to consumerism the organizations felt is represented by the post-Thanksgiving shopping days known as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Last year, #iGiveCatholic raised more than $12.7 million from 48,273 donors to support schools, parishes and nonprofit ministries in dioceses across the country.

Anyone can participate in #iGiveCatholic by visiting www.igivecatholic.org and making a minimum $20 online donation to their preferred Catholic institution or organization Nov. 30 or during the advance giving phase.

The online minimum donation was lowered this year from $25 to $20 as “one practical step” that recognizes “people are struggling this year,” Howat told CNS, adding that there’s a renewed emphasis “that offline gifts of cash or check given directly to a favorite Catholic organization can be made in any amount.”

Those interested in donating to schools participating through the NCEA may do so at ncea.igivecatholic.org or to national ministries participating this year at nationalministries.igivecatholic.org.

Our Sunday Visitor, a Catholic publisher based in Huntington, Indiana, that serves millions of Catholics globally through its publishing and communication services, is the national sponsor of #iGiveCatholic.

“Every one of the Catholic schools, parishes and ministries that benefit from the generosity of #iGiveCatholic donors plays a fundamental role in building up the body of Christ,” Kyle Hamilton, CEO of OSV, said in a statement. “Catholic donors help fulfill the Christian mission.”

Every year since the giving campaign was launched in 2015, there has been “exponential growth in the amount of funds raised as well as the impact this effort has had in the church,” according to Howat.

“Throughout history, Catholics have always been transformational givers; we are a generous people,” he told CNS. “Our world and our society need to see and experience increased generosity. More importantly, they need to see the joy Catholics have as we give back out of our gratitude in return for how we have been blessed.”

“Generosity has different faces,” he added.

“Many Catholics can share their financial or other resources, while some are generous with their time spent in acts of kindness or service to others, and others give of their talents serving in nonprofits, our schools and parishes,” he said. “Everyone can make a difference in another person’s life.”

On #GivingTuesday, “we encourage all to go out and be generous,” he added.

And here is the link for my home parish...Give to St. Jane de Chantal Church | #iGiveCatholic

Live Jesus! Remembering St. Jane de Chantal on this, her feast day

 Live Jesus!

I greet you all, my dearest Sisters and Brothers, with the very greeting that our great and worthy Father (Francis de Sales) taught us:  LIVE JESUS!  Yes, I say the words with intense delight: LIVE JESUS in our memory, in our will, and in all our actions!  Have in your thoughts only Jesus, in your will have only the longing for his love, and in your actions have only obedience and submission in his good pleasure, not only in externals, but, much more, in your interior spirit: a spirit of gentle cordiality toward one another, a spirit of recollection of your whole being before our divine Master, and that true, sincere humility which makes us simple and gentle as lambs.  Finally, strive for that loving union of hearts which brings about a holy peace and the kind of blessing we should desire to have in the house of God and his holy Mother.

Live Jesus!

The wisdom of good St. Jane de Chantal

On Love of Neighbor

If you want to love others, you can start by not looking at their faults, but at their virtues and what is good in them.  You can regard them in the heart of God and discover the image of God in each one.  Be extremely compassionate, loving and patient with each person, especially with those who are troubled.

People stumble.  Gently bear with them and pray for them.  We each in turn commit some faults: others today, and I tomorrow.  Never open your heart to the belittling of your neighbor; but love them constantly and perfectly with cordial affection.  Our Lord never said: Love your neighbors who are perfect or those who never commit faults, for our good Savior well knew that mortals are not perfect, and that none are exempt from some faults; therefore, Jesus said without qualification: Love one another as I have loved you.

Many times in groups we speak divisive words, or which bruise the reputation and good esteem of others, which produce such bad effects in the hearts of the listeners, that they will never forget the impressions.

We offend our neighbor, or rather God in our neighbor, when we speak unreasonably, or sometimes even by being silent: I am told something good about a person whom I have no great love, who has displeased me; so I hold my tongue, or I answer coldly.  I offend God And I am not exempt from fault, for I make known that I have no esteem for the person spoken of, and my coldness will perhaps take away the good opinion in which he or she was held, or I lessen it by some little word I drop in an undertone, and this word, falling like a drop of oil on a cloth, makes an impression that cannot be erased in the heart of the one who has heard it.

Those who divide hearts and sow discord between brethren are an abomination to God.  Strive then to avoid all words of hearsay and separation, I beg you with all my heart.  For we do not look very closely at what concerns sweet charity towards one another, and we think we are right in whatever we say.  We are very often deceived and taken in by our own inclinations or by subtlety of our self-love, and even by the good opinion we have of ourselves, which makes us believe it is impossible that we can be deceived.

Honor God in one another whose temples you have now become.  In this practice is the true love and honor which we must have one another.  Now, God shall be found equally in everyone.  Whether poor or rich, noble or of low estate, perfect or imperfect, all are made the temple of God.  It follows that if we have the sight of this truth well imprinted in our minds, we shall honor and mutually respect each other alike, not simply in gestures, looks, and words, but in deed and truth.  

Without holy charity for each other we are without virtue.  Compare our Lord's love for us with our love for each other.  Not only did he die for us, but he gave us the Blessed Sacrament.  He accepted the kiss of Judas who had betrayed him; while I am loath to be inconvenienced, or to have my wishes thwarted, for the sake of someone.

She was a wife, mother then foundress of religious order and is the patron Saint of my assigned/home parish

 

St. Jane Frances de Chantal

What a way to start a marriage! Jane no sooner arrived at her new home then she discovered she might lose it. Her husband, Christophe, had not only inherited the title of baron but enormous debts as well.

But Jane had not come to the marriage empty-handed. She brought with her a deep faith instilled by her father who made daily religious discussion fun, allowing the children to talk about anything -- even controversial topics. She also brought a good-hearted way that made a friend comment, "Even stupid jokes were funny when she told them."

These qualities helped the twenty-year-old French woman take charge by personally organizing and supervising every detail of the estate, a method which not only brought the finances under control but won her employees' hearts as well.

Despite the early financial worries, she and her husband shared "one heart and one soul." They were devoted to each other and to their four children.

One way Jane shared her blessings was by giving bread and soup personally to the poor who came to her door. Often people who had just received food from her would pretend to leave, go around the house and get back in line for more. When asked why she let these people get away with this, Jane said, "What if God turned me away when I came back to him again and again with the same request?"

Her happiness was shattered when Christophe was killed in a hunting accident. Before he died, her husband forgave the man who shot him, saying to the man, "Don't commit the sin of hating yourself when you have done nothing wrong." The heartbroken Jane, however, had to struggle with forgiveness for a long time. At first she tried just greeting him on the street. When she was able to do that, she invited him to her house. Finally she was able to forgive the man so completely that she even became godmother to his child.

These troubles opened her heart to her longing for God and she sought God in prayer and a deepening spiritual life. Her commitment to God impressed Saint Francis de Sales, the bishop who became her director and best friend. Their friendship started before they even met, for them saw each other in dreams, and continued in letters throughout their lives.

With Francis' support, Jane founded the Visitation order for women who were rejected by other orders because of poor health or age. She even accepted a woman who was 83 years old. When people criticized her, she said, "What do you want me to do? I like sick people myself; I'm on their side." She believed that people should have a chance to live their calling regardless of their health.

Still a devoted mother, she was constantly concerned about the materialistic ways of one of her daughters. Her daughter finally asked her for spiritual direction as did may others, including an ambassador and her brother, an archbishop. Her advice always reflected her very gentle and loving approach to spirituality:

"Should you fall even fifty times a day, never on any account should that surprise or worry you. Instead, ever so gently set your heart back in the right direction and practice the opposite virtue, all the time speaking words of love and trust to our Lord after you have committed a thousand faults, as much as if you had committed only one. Once we have humbled ourselves for the faults God allows us to become aware of in ourselves, we must forget them and go forward."

She died in 1641, at sixty-nine years of age.

In Her Footsteps

We have been told the secret of happiness is finding: finding yourself, finding love, finding the right job. Jane believed the secret of happiness was in "losing," that we should "throw ourselves into God as a little drop of water into the sea, and lose ourselves indeed in the Ocean of the divine goodness." She advised a man who wrote to her about all the afflictions he suffered "to lose all these things in God. These words produced such an effect in the soul, that he wrote me that he was wholly astonished, and ravished with joy."

Today, when any thoughts or worries come to mind, send them out into the ocean of God's love that surrounds you and lose them there. If any feelings come into your heart -- grief, fear, even joy or longing, send those out into the ocean of God's love. Finally, send your whole self, like a drop, into God. There is no past no future, here or there. There is only the infinite ocean of God.

Prayer: Saint Jane, you forgave the man who killed your husband. Help me learn to forgive a particular person in my life who has caused me harm. You know how difficult it is to forgive. Help me to take the steps you took to welcome this person back into my life. Amen

*In the USA, Jane Frances de Chantal's feast day was moved to August 12 in order to celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on December 12.

Continue reading about St. Jane Frances de Chantal