Thursday, May 30, 2024

A first-hand account about depression and mental health by Bishop James Conley

Christ Offers ‘Future With Hope’ Amid Mental Illness,

Writes Bishop After Bout With Depression

(OSV News) — Six years ago, Bishop James D. Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska, began to notice he was no longer able to sleep.

The year 2018 had started well — “wonderful in probably every way,” he told OSV News — but the warming weather soon turned into what Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York would later call the “summer of hell” due to explosive developments in the clerical abuse crisis.

As the Catholic Church in the U.S. reeled from the Theodore McCarrick scandal and the 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report on abuse in six Catholic dioceses — followed by a number of attorney general investigations in several states, including Nebraska — Bishop Conley soon found himself thrown off balance, wrestling with what would become a debilitating bout with anxiety and depression.

Now, after experiencing “the depths of darkness,” Bishop Conley said he has emerged with “joy and an even deeper love for our Lord” — and he has written a new pastoral letter to help others struggling with mental illness do the same.

Released this May during the nation’s observance of Mental Health Awareness Month, Bishop Conley’s letter “A Future with Hope” — available on the Diocese of Lincoln’s website in both text and audio format — affirms that healing is possible, thanks to holistic interventions grounded in Christ that treat body, mind and spirit.

“Jesus yearns to walk with you, and He offers a peace and hope this world cannot give,” writes Bishop Conley in the introduction to the letter. “I pray sharing my journey will help you with your journey.”

The path is a well-trod one: Close to 60 million U.S. adults, or one in five, experienced mental illness in 2021, with more than 14 million of them reporting a serious condition and well over 19 million battling both substance abuse and mental illness concurrently, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

The nation’s youth have been particularly hard hit: in 2021, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy issued an advisory on the issue, citing data that showed in 2019, one in three high school students and half of female students reported feelings of persistent sadness or hopelessness, a 40% spike since 2009.

Bishop Conley told OSV News that the onset of his depression and anxiety was preceded by “a sort of rush of adrenaline” that buoyed him as he worked to “rise to the occasion” and face the 2018 abuse crisis.

He began holding listening sessions at parishes where there had been abuse allegations, while gathering files and documents for the state investigation and having “a lot of conversations with attorneys.”

But the magnitude of those tasks took their toll.

“I was just laying in bed all night long, going over scenarios and trying to find solutions and figure it all out,” said Bishop Conley. “I felt like I had to come up with the answers. I did have a good team around me, but we were all … dealing with this onslaught at once.”

By September 2018, he was suffering from chronic insomnia and a constant ringing in his ears. Although he “just kept forging forward,” during the spring of 2019, “my body really started to break down,” he said. “I don’t think I’d really had a good night’s sleep for probably six months.”

With his health deteriorating, he finally sought a medical evaluation and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression and tinnitus. The verdict — which entailed therapy, medication and “pretty intense spiritual direction” — brought both relief and shame.

“All these (treatments) were a great help,” Bishop Conley said. “(But) I was still thinking, mistakenly, that it was still up to me to figure this out. … (that) I can’t show any weakness; I’ve got to be invincible.”

He tried to do just that well into the autumn of 2019 — but amid the continued fallout of the clerical abuse crisis and the ongoing state investigation of his own diocese, Bishop Conley found himself “almost paralyzed” with depression by October 2019.

“It was very difficult to answer questions and to try to provide leadership,” he said. “My sister said, ‘You can’t keep going like this. … Something’s going to break here.'”

With the help of the papal nuncio, Cardinal (then Archbishop) Christophe Pierre, Bishop Conley was able to arrange for a leave of absence from his see — a “humbling” move about which he was fully transparent with his flock, who responded with what he called in the pastoral letter “an outpouring of support and prayer.”

Bishop Conley’s recovery — which began in December 2019 with a move to a diocesan retreat facility in Phoenix at the invitation of now-retired Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted — overlapped with the COVID-19 pandemic, the “added isolation” of which compounded his anguish and left him “feeling like I had lost nearly everything,” he wrote.

Mass, the rosary and the Liturgy of the Hours (the official prayers of the church recited daily by priests and religious) were “three anchors” that nonetheless “offered little solace” — although Psalm 88:18, in which the psalmist laments that “my one companion is darkness,” gave some comfort, as did the symbol of the unilluminated new moon, which reminded him of the unseen but no less present God.

“During this period of darkness … Jesus’ words, ‘Apart from me, you can do nothing’ (Jn 15:5) began to take on deeper meaning,” wrote Bishop Conley in his letter. “As I more fully embraced the Lord as healer and teacher, I learned more about my radical dependence on him.”

As part of that realization, Bishop Conley was better able to appreciate what he calls in his letter “the Catholic context of mental health” that “defines well-being according to reason and revelation” and guides a person to see both “wholeness and holiness.”

“You can’t pray yourself out of this,” Bishop Conley told OSV News. “We are body and soul, and grace builds upon nature.”

While noting that he offers pastoral reflections rather than clinical advice in his letter, Bishop Conley stresses the need to “seek Jesus directly” and “indirectly.”

Regular prayer and the sacraments — particularly the Eucharist and reconciliation — are “crucial” since “through them we directly receive a share in divine life,” he wrote. “In the sacrament of the Eucharist, the God who healed lepers, the blind, the sick, and the lame literally unites himself with us!”

Healing services and the intercession of the faithful, both on earth and in heaven, are also beneficial, he wrote, noting that St. Joseph has been a key ally in his own healing.

“I can’t encourage you enough to personally consecrate yourself to St. Joseph and experience firsthand the benefits of his powerful intercession,” wrote Bishop Conley.

Certain saints can particularly empathize with mental health struggles, he noted: “St. Ignatius of Loyola contemplated suicide, St. Jane Frances de Chantal suffered from depression for over forty years, St. John of God had a mental breakdown that resulted in hospitalization, and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton struggled with anxiety and depression.

“They all grew closer to God through their struggles and so can we,” wrote Bishop Conley.

Psychological, psychiatric and spiritual counseling, as well as medical treatment were also essential, he wrote.

“While recognizing that your access to such support may be limited, I encourage you to seek help via whatever means are available to you,” he said in the letter.

Restoring balance to body, mind and soul also includes simple tasks such as “making time for sleep, healthy eating, exercise, and recreation,” he wrote.

The shadows of depression and its accompanying isolation are likewise dispelled by nurturing human interactions, he added.

“There is something immensely healing about a loving community,” he wrote. “We are communal creatures and, since many wounds are relational, much healing can be found through safe and loving relationships.”

Overcoming depression and anxiety “wasn’t automatic” and “didn’t happen overnight,” Bishop Conley, who returned to the Diocese of Lincoln in November 2020, told OSV News. “It was a gradual coming out of the darkness.”

But as he gained “more traction” in his recovery, “I noticed a lot of things that started to lighten up.”

He closes his pastoral letter with a “simple practice adapted from St. Francis de Sales” — the church’s “Doctor of Divine Love,” revered for his keen understanding of human nature and God’s mercy.

“Throughout the day, before beginning various tasks, let us do three things: acknowledge, offer, and accept,” wrote Bishop Conley. “Acknowledge that the Lord is with us and, if needed, ask for his help; offer whatever we are about to do up to him and place it in his hands; resolve to accept whatever happens.”

Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @GinaJesseReina

The full text of Bishop James D. Conley’s pastoral letter, “A Future with Hope,” is available in text and audio format, along with an interview with the bishop, at lincolndiocese.org/afuturewithhope.

USCCB releases detailed report on the current state of clerical abuse

New report shows fewer abuse claims brought against U.S. Catholic clerics

By Jonah McKeown

CNA Staff, May 28, 2024 / 18:15 pm

A new report from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) shows that across the country from mid-2022 to mid-2023, just over 1,300 clerical abuse allegations came to light, while payouts to victims reached $284 million — tens of millions more than the prior year.

This figure is down from 2,704 allegations brought the prior year, the report states, while some 4,434 allegations were brought in 2019.

Of those allegations, dioceses and eparchies deemed 229 of them credible; 71% of those allegations concerned incidents that occurred or began in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. The total number of new allegations from victims who were currently minors in the studied year remained similar to the prior year, at 17.

“These numbers are not just numbers. The statistics are the many stories and accounts of the betrayal of trust and the lifelong journey towards recovery,” Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the USCCB, wrote in the report’s introduction.

“I am most grateful to victim survivors for reporting the abuse they suffered, for holding all of us accountable, and for allowing us to journey alongside you.”

The 2024 report, released May 27, was produced in collaboration with an accounting firm by the National Review Board for the Protection of Children and Young People, a lay advisory body to the bishops established in 2002 on the protection of children and youth.

The report covers a period between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023. All 196 Catholic dioceses and eparchies participated in data collection for the audit, but not all 196 dioceses and eparchies participated in an on-site audit, the report noted. Nevertheless, the report cited a “very high percentage of clergy, educators, seminarians, and employees who receive training in the area of child safety and abuse prevention, along with equally high numbers of those participating in background checks.”

“No other institution can readily provide and publish the body of knowledge and statistics as the Catholic Church does. The abuse crisis in the Catholic Church is a part of a larger societal problem of abuse,” Broglio continued.

“What are we learning as a Church because of the abuse crisis? By acknowledging wrongdoing and communicating remorse and sorrow, the Church is taking ownership of her failure to protect. We are emphasizing the core value of relationships and encounters. We are putting in place steps and measures for safe environments and following up on near misses. The child or vulnerable person is at the center of these conversations.”

The figures

The number of clerics accused of sexual abuse of a minor during the audit period totaled 842. Of this total, 548 were diocesan priests, 122 belonged to a religious order, 34 were incardinated elsewhere, and 51 were deacons. Of the identified clerics, 45% had been accused in previous audit periods. Since 2019, the majority — two-thirds — of abuse allegations have been made known to a diocese, eparchy, or religious community through an attorney.

Out of the 1,308 allegations identified in this report, 17 involved people who were minors when they brought the allegations — four males, 11 females, and two were unknown due to a lack of detailed information.

Taking a broader view, the report says that looking at all abuse allegations received in the U.S. from 2004 to 2023, 55% of all the credible allegations occurred or began before 1975, 41% occurred or began between 1975 and 1999, and 4% began or occurred since 2000.

Of those allegations, three were substantiated, seven were categorized as investigation ongoing, four were unsubstantiated, two were categorized as unable to be proven, and one was categorized as other, the report says. There were 44 allegations of abuse of minors brought in 2021, only four of which were substantiated.

Of those accused, the report says, nine in 10 (91%) of them are deceased, already removed from ministry, already laicized, or missing. A further 5% of those identified during 2023 were permanently removed from ministry during that time; a handful were temporarily removed from ministry pending investigation of the allegations. None were returned to ministry or remain in active ministry pending the investigation, the report says.

Forty-nine percent of alleged offenses occurred or began before 1975, 42% between 1975 and 1999, and 9% after 2000. Among the 228 victims where their gender was known, three-quarters were male.

Separately, the report identified 113 credible allegations of sexual abuse of a minor committed by religious order priests, brothers, and deacons, made by 111 persons against 69 individuals. The alleged victims in this case were 80% male; only 63% of religious institutes provided information for the report, however.

Similar to diocesan clergy, a high percentage, 91%, of accused religious are deceased, already removed from ministry, already laicized, or missing.

Costs

The report found that dioceses and eparchies that responded to the survey paid out $260,509,528 to victims between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023, a figure 66% higher than that reported for year 2022. In the past decade, only the years 2020 and 2019 respectively saw higher total payout amounts. The 2023 payout figure includes payments for allegations reported in previous years, the report notes.

Insurance payments covered approximately $38,294,901, or 15%, of the total allegation-related costs paid by dioceses and eparchies. Money from savings, general operating budgets, loans or lines of credit, investments, bankruptcy filings, debt restructuring, property sales, staff reductions, and program or service elimination were also cited by dioceses as means of paying.

In total, U.S. dioceses, eparchies, and religious communities reported paying out $284,043,825 for costs related to allegations between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023, a 41% increase over last year’s total of $201,973,695.

At the same time, U.S. dioceses, eparchies, and religious communities paid $43,747,179 for child protection efforts between July 1, 2022, and June 30, 2023. This is a 4% increase from the amount spent on such child protection efforts in the previous reporting year.

Compared with fiscal year 2022, the amount of payments for attorneys’ fees for fiscal year 2023 was 23% higher.

USCCB releases a report concerning the Synod process in the United States

Synod report for U.S. shows growth, tensions and 'deep desire to rebuild' the body of Christ

Growth, undeniable tensions and "a deep desire to rebuild and strengthen" the body of Christ have emerged as key themes in the latest synod report for the Catholic Church in the U.S.

Released by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops May 28, the "National Synthesis of the People of God in the United States of America for the Interim Stage of the 2021-2024 Synod" summarizes responses from more than 35,000 participants and over 1,000 listening sessions, with 76% of the nation's dioceses and eparchies submitting reports to the U.S. synod team.

In addition, over 350 people met in some 15 listening sessions that focused on church life, social justice and vocations, while U.S. bishops also met for a synod listening session.

Launched by Pope Francis in October 2021, the first session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, organized around the theme "For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission," was held Oct. 4-29, 2023, in Rome.

Ahead of the concluding session of the synod, which will take place in Rome in Oct. 2-27, dioceses across the U.S. were asked to hold additional listening sessions during Lent 2024, following a request from the Vatican's Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops. Those responses were incorporated into the newly released synthesis.

"We had to be nimble with the Spirit," U.S. synod team member Alexandra Carroll, who serves as the U.S. bishops' conference communications manager for social mission, told OSV News, adding that even with short notice of the extra sessions, "our diocesan synod leaders took it on and really owned the process."

Fellow synod team members Richard Coll, executive director of the conference's Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, and the senior adviser for the synod Julia McStravog agreed.

Coll said he was "very, very taken by the commitment that was evident" in the responses to the listening sessions.

"The diocesan directors continue to be very devoted to this path," he told OSV News. "It's a wonderful thing to see, because it is now the third year of this process, but it didn't seem … to me that there was any kind of 'synod fatigue.' People seem to be even more enthusiastic."

"Synodality is really taking root," said McStravog. "People are getting accustomed not only to sharing, but to listening in a deeper way."

In his introduction to the synthesis, Bishop Daniel Flores of Brownsville, Texas — who serves as chairman of the bishops' Committee on Doctrine, and who has shepherded the synodal process in the U.S. — noted that "while no document could cover the full range of topics on the hearts and minds of Catholics" who took part in the listening sessions, the report showed the synodal journey has made progress in the U.S.

Among their insights, many of which were directly quoted in the report, participants expressed "two basic hopes for the church" — that it be both a "safe harbor" and a "fiery communion."

As a "safe harbor," the church can be a place "where the faithful are embraced, sustained and loved," said the synthesis, citing one respondent who observed, "People come when they are broken. … At my parish, I feel I have a family there."

That welcome must be more than "superficial," the report said, pointing to parishes with numerous small communities and prayer groups as being "most successful" in reaching and integrating people from diverse backgrounds. With the church in the U.S. comprising "countless cultural and ethnic groups," the report noted a desire "to promote interculturality, so that there is more unity between cultures that share the same church."

At the same time, respondents described the church as a "fiery communion," with the synodal process digging up a number of tensions within the church.

In particular, a lack of clear communication from church hierarchy and from media, both Catholic and secular, creates confusion and division over what it means to be Catholic — and hinders the church's mission, said synod participants.

That uncertainty can be especially evident when trying to balance welcoming LGBTQ and other marginalized persons while making known the truths of the Catholic faith, said synod participants.

Catholic social teaching was "another area where division was keenly experienced," with "conversations 'on social justice and inclusion … filled with moments of profound pain and generational hurt,'" the report said. "Participants expressed concerns that the church has allowed the ongoing polarization and conflict (in civil society) to lead to a denial of the church's social magisterium in many situations."

The liturgy itself can be a flashpoint for tension, with the celebration of the Mass using the Roman Missal of 1962 (informally known as the "Latin Mass") becoming "a focal point of broader debates about tradition, modernity, and the best ways to nurture faith across the diverse spectrum of Catholic belief and practice," the interim synthesis said.

Another sore spot identified by participants was complacency in many parts of the church, which potentially stands to pave the way for "grave institutional sins such as sexual abuse and racism" — both of which remain "enduring wounds" that "continue to inflict pain today," said the document.

"The trauma and scandal (of the clerical abuse crisis) have had a generational impact," keeping youth and young adults distrustful and desiring an apology "for abuses that happened not to them, but to their parents, grandparents or further generations," the interim synthesis said.

Likewise, the sin of racism, and "the sin of enslaving Black people for the betterment of the church," continue to haunt the church, the report said.

At the same time, the listening sessions revealed a commitment to the importance of evangelization, and the need for catechesis and formation to sustain such witness. Participants also articulated a desire to actively participate in the church's mission, seeking greater co-responsibility for the laity (especially women and young adults) in that task through their "baptismal dignity."

Both clericalism and a lack of vocations to the priesthood and religious life were lamented, as was division among priests, with one priest participant sharing that clergy "need to be better at getting past the bitterness and different theologies and political preferences."

Bishops who attended the listening session also highlighted polarization among priests, with some shepherds likening themselves to "the episcopal referee" among an increasingly diverse clergy, many of whom hail from other countries. The Ukrainian Catholic bishops of the U.S. expressed their gratitude for the positive relationships they enjoyed with the U.S. bishops' conference and the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S., noting that "sometimes the Latin Church in other parts of the world (is) not so accepting and supportive."

The bishops also applauded recent changes in the structure of their biannual meetings, which have facilitated more small group encounters reminding them they are "spiritual brothers and not just ecclesial figures."

On balance, bishops' relations with the Holy See were "generally positive," and although "direct contact with Rome is not very frequent," the report said that the apostolic nuncio, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, has succeeded in "fostering a spirit of communion" and in "facilitating communication with the Holy See." At the same time, the bishops "did express some frustration that communication between bishops and the offices of the Holy See could be better," but described their ad limina visits to Rome — during which they provide the pope with an update on the status of their respective dioceses — as "occasions of fraternity and joy."

The interim synthesis concluded by noting that "a major theme" articulated by participants was "the deepening awareness of how our trust in God expresses itself in relation to our imperfect institutions within the church."

"It was noted by many that the faithful 'should not be embarrassed about recognizing that our church might be a little messy — it's better not to pretend that we are the perfect institution, but that we belong to the perfect and one, true faith,'" said the report.

Carroll, Coll and McStravog told OSV News that the synodal process of listening and dialogue is essential to healing the church's wounds — and that dynamic is for all the faithful, they said.

"Synodality isn't just in Rome or at the USCCB," said Coll. "It's right here. It's with you. It's with all of us."

Pope Francis sends greetings to consecrated men and women of Brazil

POPE

Pope urges Brazil’s consecrated religious to care for their vocation

Pope Francis sends his greetings to Brazil’s Congress of Consecrated Religious Life, and praises their various charisms for building up the mission of the Church.

By Devin Watkins

Religious men and women in Brazil are celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Conference of Religious of Brazil with a congress focused on the theme: “CRB 70 years: Grateful Memory, Mysticism, Prophecy, and Hope.”

Pope Francis sent a message on Thursday to participants, encouraging their vocations to serve the Church in the Latin American nation.

In his message, the Pope prayed that the Congress of Consecrated Religious Life might bear “abundant fruit in the life of each religious community and the Church in Brazil.”

He said religious men and women have shown great commitment to proclaiming the Good News of Christ.

“I am grateful,” he said, “for the immense gift of the vocation to consecrated life which, in its various charisms, enriches ecclesial communion and greatly collaborates with the mission of the Church throughout the world.”

Safeguard gift of religious vocation

Pope Francis went on to recall that the “gift of vocation” must be safeguarded and cared for each day, so that men and women religious may bear fruit.

He praised the choice of the congress’ theme—“Remain in my love”—words which Jesus directed to His apostles on the night before He died.

“To live the divine call well,” he said, “we must remain in His love, through constant dialogue with Jesus in daily prayer and fidelity to the vows that beautifully express our consecration.”

Consecrated life, added the Pope, has the ability to perceive beauty when firmly rooted in the Lord.

Evangelical poverty, he said, leads to higher freedom; chastity frees one to love without possessing; and, obedience offers Jesus’ style of victory over our drive for anarchy.

Proclaiming Gospel courageously

In conclusion, Pope Francis encouraged Brazil’s consecrated men and women to live in the present “sustained by the mysticism” of their particular charism, while remaining committed to proclaiming the Gospel in a prophetic manner.

“I entrust these wishes and prayers to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Aparecida, Mother of consecrated men and women in Brazil, to whom I wholeheartedly grant my blessing, also asking that you do not forget to pray for me.”

A Papal meeting with the "young" Priests of Rome

POPE

Pope meets with young Roman priests: “Do not tire of doing good”

Pope Francis continues his series of meetings with the clergy of his diocese, speaking with a group of recently-ordained priests about pastoral issues.

By Salvatore Cernuzio

This was the Pope’s second meeting with clergy from Rome, after the one on May 14 with priests who have been in ministry for 40 years and more.

Today, the Pope met with newly ordained priests, those who have been serving for less than ten years.

The encounter was hosted by the Pious Disciples of the Divine Master, an order of religious sisters, and the Pope received an affectionate welcome from the nuns, amidst greetings, gifts, and blessings.

Then, a closed-door dialogue with the priests on pastoral issues, which began with a prayer written by Pope Paul VI.

Welcome from the nuns

“Thank you, thank you. How many novices do you have?”. The Pope immediately began conversing with five nuns, both Italian and foreign.

It was hard to hear the exchange because loud applause had already erupted from inside upon spotting the white cassock.

All the nuns, with the older members of the community in the front row, many in wheelchairs, were lined up in the pews ready to greet the Pope.

Greetings and Gifts

Francis made a double round to shake hands with everyone, then received a white balloon – like those hanging outside the entrance of the house – from a child, to whom he then gave his blessing, along with a sweet.

Taking a basket, the Pontiff also distributed sweets to the nuns. One shouted, “Your Holiness, today I turn 84. Will you bless me?”

The Pope placed his hand on the head of an elderly nun who whispered something in his ear while holding his hands.

Dialogue with the priests

“Thank you for your words,” the Pope said, looking at the large group in the chapel. “I give you my greetings and blessings. Do not tire of doing good!”

The Pope received a chasuble and a book from the Pious Disciples, who celebrated their centenary in February.

Entering the Church dedicated to Jesus the Divine Master, the Pope was greeted by the young priests (also with loud applause). Some, explained Bishop Michele Di Tolve, delegate for the care of the diaconate, clergy, and religious life, were ordained as recently as 2024.

Francis opened the meeting with a prayer and the reading of the day’s Gospel.

After that, the closed-door Q&A session, mainly concerning pastoral issues, began.

Meetings in his diocese

Today’s meeting is the second with the clergy of the Pope's diocese.

From September 2023 until early May, he made a tour of the various prefectures of Rome to meet parish priests and prefects and hear from them the challenges, difficulties, beauties, and gratifications of their work.

All this in a diocese that, as the Argentine Pontiff has often said, has become a “mission territory.”

This is something that – and it is the Pope himself who has repeated this on various occasions – “is always very good for a bishop.”

Wednesday, May 29, 2024

Thursday Saint of the Day

St. Joan of Arc

Feastday: May 30
Patron: of soldiers and France
Birth: 1412
Death: 1431
Canonized: Pope Benedict XV

St. Joan of Arc is the patroness of soldiers and of France.

On January 6, 1412, Joan of Arc was born to pious parents of the French peasant class in the obscure village of Domremy, near the province of Lorraine. At a very early age, she was said to have heard the voices of St. Michael, St. Catherine, and St. Margaret.

At first the messages were personal and general, but when she was 13-years-old, she was in her father's garden and had visions of Saint Michael, Saint Catherine, and Saint Margaret, each of whom told her to drive the English from French territory. They also asked that she bring the Dauphin to Reims for his coronation.

After their messages were delivered and the saints departed, Joan cried, as "they were so beautiful."

When she was sixteen-years-old, she asked her relative, Durand Lassois, to take her to Vaucouleurs, where she petitioned Robert de Baudricourt, the garrison commander, for permission to visit the French Royal Court in Chinon.

Despite Baudricourt's sarcastic response to her request, Joan returned the following January and left with the support of two of Baudricourt's soldiers: Jean de Metz and Bertrand de Poulengy.

Jean de Metz admitted Joan had confided in him, saying, "I must be at the King's side ... there will be no help if not from me. Although I would rather have remained spinning [wool] at my mother's side ... yet must I go and must I do this thing, for my Lord wills that I do so."

With Metz and Poulengy at her side, Joan met Baudricourt and predicted a military reversal at the Battle of Rouvray near Orléans, which were confirmed several days later by a messenger's report. When Baudricourt realized the distance of the battle's location and the time it would have taken Joan to make the journey, he concluded she had seen the reversal by Divine revelation, which caused him to believe her words.

Once she had Baudricourt's belief, Joan was granted an escort to Chinon through hostile Burgundian territory. For her safety, she was escorted while dressed as a male soldier, which later led to charges of cross-dressing, but her escorts viewed as a sound precaution.

Two members of her escort confirmed they and the people of Vaucouleurs gave her the clothing and had been the ones to suggest she don the outfit.

When she arrived in the Royal Court, she met in a private conference with Charles VII and won his trust. Yolande of Aragon, Charles' mother-in-law, planned a finance relief expedition to Orléans and Joan asked to travel with the army while wearing armor, which the Royal government agreed to. They also provided Joan's armor and she depended on donations for everything she took with her.

With a donated horse, sword, banner, armor, and more, Joan arrived to Orléans and quickly turned the Anglo-French conflict into a religious war.

Charles' advisors worried Joan's claims of doing God's work could be twisted by his enemies, who could easily claim she was a sorceress, which would link his crown to works of the devil. To prevent accusations, the Dauphin ordered background inquiries and a theological exam at Poitiers to verify Joan's claims.

In April 1429, the commission of inquiry "declared her to be of irreproachable life, a good Christian, possessed of the virtues of humility, honesty and simplicity." Rather than deciding on whether or not Joan was acting on the basis of divine inspiration, theologians at Poitiers told the Dauphin there was a "favorable presumption" on the divine nature of her mission.

Charles was satisfied with the report but theologians reminded him Joan must be tested. They claimed, "[t]o doubt or abandon her without suspicion of evil would be to repudiate the Holy Spirit and to become unworthy of God's aid."

They suggested her test should be a test of her claim to lift the siege of Orléans, as she originally predicted would happen.

In response to the test, Joan arrived at Orléans on April 29, 1429, where Jean d'Orléans, the acting head of the ducal family of Orléans, ensured she was excluded from war councils and kept ignorant of battles.

During the five months prior to Joan's arrival to Orléans, the French had only attempted one offensive assault, which resulted in their defeat, but after her arrival, things began to change.

Though Joan claimed the army was always commanded by a nobleman and that she never killed anyone in battle since she preferred only to carry her banner, which she preferred "forty times" better than a sword, several noblemen claimed she greatly effected their decisions since they accepted she gave Divinely inspired advice.

On May 4, the Armagnacs captured the fortress of Saint Loup and the next day led to fortress Saint-Jean-le-Blanc, which was deserted. With Joan at the army's side, English troops approached the army to stop their advance but a cavalry charge was all it took to turn the English away without a fight.

The Armagnacs captured an English fortress build around the Les Augustins monastery and attacked the English stronghold Les Tourelles on May 7. Joan was shot with an arrow between her neck and shoulder as she held her banner outside Les Tourelles, but returned to encourage the final assault to take the fortress. The next day, the English retreated from Orléans and the siege was over.

When Joan was in Chinon and Poitiers, she had declared she would show a sign at Orléans, which many believe was the end of the siege. Following the departure of the English, prominent clergymen began to support her, including the Archbishop of Embrun and the theologian Jean Gerson, each of which wrote supportive treatises.

After the Orléans victory, Joan was able to persuade Charles VII to allow her to march into other battles to reclaim cities, each of which ended in victory. When the military supplies began to dwindle, they reached Troyes, where Brother Richard, a wandering friar, had warned the city about the end of the world and was able to convince them to plant beans, which yields an early harvest. Just as the beans ripened, Joan and the army arrived and was able to restore their supplies.

Following their march to Troyes, Joan and the French military made its way to Paris, where politicians failed to secure Duke Philip of Burgundy's agreement to a truce. Joan was present at the following battles and suffered a leg wound from a crossbow bolt. Despite one failed mission - taking La-Charité-sur-Loire" - Joan and her family were ennobled by Charles VII in reward of her actions on the battlefield.

A truce with England came following Joan's ennoblement but was quickly broken. When Joan traveled to Compičgne to help defend against an English and Burgundian siege, she was captured by Burgundian troops and held for a ransom of 10,000 livres tournois. There were several attempts to free her and Joan made many excape attempts, including jumping from her 70-foot (21m) tower, landing on the soft earth of a dry moat, but to no avail. She was eventually sold to the English for 10,000 gold coins and was then tried as a heretic and witch in a trial that violated the legal process of the time.

Clerical notary Nicolas Bailly, who was responsible to collect testimony against Joan, was unable to find any evidence against her. Without evidence, the courts lacked grounds to initiate trial but one was opened anyway. They denied Joan the right to a legal advisor and filled the tribunal with pro-English clergy rather than meeting the medieval Church's requirement to balance the group with impartial clerics.

When the first public examination opened, Joan pointed out that the partisans were against her and she asked for "ecclesiastics of the French side" to provide balance, but her request was denied.

Jean Lemaitre, the Vice-Inquisitor of Northern France, objected to the trial from the beginning and many eyewitnesses later reported he was forced to cooperate after the English threatened to kill him. Other members of the clergy were threatened when they refused as well, so the trial continued.

The trial record includes statements from Joan that eyewitnesses later claimed astonished the court since she was an illiterate peasant who was able to escape theological traps. The most well-known exchange was when Joan was "[a]sked if she knew she was in God's grace, she answered: 'If I am not, may God put me there; and if I am, may God so keep me.'"

The question is a trap because the church doctrine was that no one could be certain of being in God's grace. If she answered yes, she would have been charged with heresy, but if she answered no, she would have been confessing her own guilt. Notary Boisguillaume later testified that "[t]hose who were interrogating her were stupefied."

Many members of the tribunal later testified important parts of the transcript were altered.

Joan was held in a secular prison guarded by English soldiers, instead of being in an ecclesiastical prison with nuns as her guards per Inquisitorial guidelines. When Joan appealed to the Council of Basel and the Pope to be placed in a proper prison, Bishop Cauchon denied her request, which would have stopped his proceeding.

While imprisoned, Joan wore military clothing so she could tie her clothing together, making it harder to be raped. There was no protection in a dress, and a few days after she started wearing one she told a tribunal member that "a great English lord had entered her prison and tried to take her by force." Following the attempted rape, Joan returned to wearing male clothing as a precaution and to raise her defenses against molestation.

Jean Massieu testified her dress had been taken by the guards and she had nothing else to wear.

When she returned to male clothing, she was given another count of hersy for cross-dressing, though it was later disputed by the inquisitor presiding over court appeals after the war. He found that cross-dressing should be evaluated based on context, including the use of clothing as protection against rape if it offered protection.

In accordance to the inquisitor's doctrine, Joan would have been justified in wearing armor on a battlefield, men's clothing in prison and dressing as a pageboy when traveling through enemy territory.

The Chronique de la Pucelle states it deterred molestation when Joan was camped in the field but she donned a dress when men's garments were unnecessary.

Clergy who testified at the posthumous appellate trial confirmed that she wore male clothing in prison to deter molestation.

Though the Poitiers record did not survive the test of time, Joan had referred the court to the Poitiers inquiry when questioned about her clothing and circumstances indicate the Poitiers clerics approved the practive. She had also kept her hair short through the military campaigns and during her imprisonment, which Inquisitor Brehal, theologian Jean Gerson and all of Joan's supporters understood was for practical reasons.

Despite the lack of incriminating evidence, Joan was condemned and sentenced to die in 1431.

Eyewitness accounts of Joan's execution by burning on May 30, 1431 describe how she was tied to a tall pillar at the Vieux-Marché in Rouen. She asked Fr. Martin Ladvenu and Fr. Isambart de la Pierre to hold a crucifix before her and an English soldier made a small cross she put in the front of her dress. After she died, the English raked the coals to expose her body so no one could spread rumors of her escaping alive, then they burned her body two more times to reduce it to ashes so no one could collect relics. After burning her body to ash, the English threw her remains into the Seine River and the executioner, Geoffroy Thérage, later said he "... greatly feared to be damned."

In 1452, during an investigation into Joan's execution, the Church declared a religious play in her honor at Orléans would let attendees gain an indulgence by making a pilgrimage to the event.

A posthumous retrial opened following the end of the war. Pope Callixtus III authorized the proceeding, which has also been called the "nullification trial," after Inquisitor-General Jean Bréhal and Joan's mother Isabelle Romée requested it.

The trial was meant to determine if Joan's condemnation was justly handled, and of course at the end of the investication Joan received a formal appeal in November 1455 and the appellate court declared Joan innocent on July 7 1456.

Joan of Arc was a symbol of the Catholic League during the 16th century and when Félix Dupanloup was made bishop of Orléans in 1849, he pronounced a panegyric on Joan of Arc and led efforts leading to Joan of Arc's beatification in 1909. On May 16, 1920, Pope Benedict XV canonized her.

Centuries after her death, Joan became known as a semi-legendary figure. There were several sources of information about her life, time on the battlefield and trials, with the main sources being chronicles.

Many women have seen Joan as a brave and active woman who operated within a religious tradition that believed a person of any class could receive a divine calling.

Joan of Arc has been depicted in several works by famous writers such as William Shakespeare (Henry VI, Part 1), Voltaire (The Maid of Orleans), Mark Twain (Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc), and many many more.

Images depicting Joan of Arc often show her with short hair adorned in armor.

There are several prayers to Joan of Arc, including the "Prayer of Thanks and Gratitude to St. Joan of Arc," written by Andrea Rau:

Dear Patron Saint,

Thank you for accompanying me throughout the day, and in the work that I did. Thank you also for your guidance and your counsel. Please help me to listen to God and to you, dear Saint, that I may do what I am called to do. Please intercede on my behalf and beg God to take all my faults and turn them into virtues. I thank you for all you have done for me, and all the things you have interceded for on my behalf. Please continue to pray for me and for all the souls who need it.

St. Joan of Arc, Pray for us.

Amen.

abitadeacon