Marguerite D’Youville. Wife. Mother. Saint.

Written on: May 14, 2015

A recently published article in the Western New York Catholic paper, highlighted the life of our foundress, St. Marguerite d’Youville.  Mother’s day is a time to remember our own Mothers, but also a time to be reminded of faithful women who have taken the role of Mother to new levels. The two saints author Milagros Ramos focused on were St. Monica and St. Marguerite. St. Monica is well known for her heroic efforts in prayer to intercede for her son, Augustine. Through her steadfast love and constant prayer, Augustine was received into the Catholic faith and converted from his life of “worldly” pursuits into one of our greatest saints.

St. Marguerite is lesser known, but perhaps has an even more interesting path to sainthood. Marguerite showed a spirit of self-sacrifice throughout her life. Beginning at the tender age of 12 when her father died, Marguerite left school to return home to assist her mother in caring for her younger siblings. After her husband died, Marguerite was left with two young sons, an uncaring mother-in-law and the crushing debts of her recalcitrant spouse. Still, she looked around and saw others in more desperate need than herself.  To these, she showed her care and compassion, often nursing them in her own home. Her works drew the attention of other similarly intentioned women and led to the foundation of the Grey Nuns of Montreal.  Her life of service and dedication to the poor was noted by Pope Pius XII when he called for her beatification as the Mother of Universal Charity.

We invite you to read more about St. Marguerite and find example from her for your own life of service to others. Click here to read more.

This entry was posted in Blog and tagged: Mother's Day, Pope Pius XII, St. Marguerite d'Youville, St. Monica