St. Madeleine
The Society of the Sacred Heart was founded in France in 1800 by St. Madeleine Sophie Barat. In the late 1700s Joseph Varin, a leader in the religious renewal in France following the French Revolution, sought a young woman to head an educational order modelled on the Jesuits and dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Madeleine Sophie Barat worked to heal French society in the aftermath of war and revolution through a movement devoted to the love of Jesus and the education of girls.
Saint Madeleine Sophie died in Paris on 25 May, 1865. Ascension Day. She was buried in the cemetery at Conflans. When the French nuns were expelled by the Combes laws, her body was transferred to the Sacred Heart at Jette, Brussels, in 1904.
St. Madeleine Sophie Barat
St. Madeleine ( Cont.)
Born in 1779 in Joigny, France, Madeleine Sophie Barat heard the call to follow Jesus in religious life at an early age.At this time in France, convents had been closed due to the French Revolution, so religious practice had to be conducted in secret. Despite this, Madeleine Sophie's older brother Louis was ordained a Catholic priest and became her teacher, giving her a more thorough education than most girls of her ordinary background would receive.
When he went to Paris in 1796 to work in the clandestine church, Madeleine Sophie went with him. On 21st November 1800, shortly before her 21st birthday, Sophie and a small group of friends made their first vows in Paris, and so the Society of the Sacred Heart was born. In her own heart, she had two deep desires: to lead a life of prayer, and to help the society of her day in the aftermath of war and revolution, especially through the education of the minds and hearts of girls.Throughout her life, she opened innumerable houses in various countries. Despite frail health, Sophie overcame many difficulties and challenges. Her faith was rooted in Jesus Christ, and she had a deep desire to reveal to others the love of the Heart of Jesus, a love she herself experienced so powerfully.Sophie's father was a vintner, and she often described this relationship with Jesus with his words in John’s gospel: "l am the Vine, you are the branches".Madeleine Sophie Barat died on 25th May 1865 at the age of 85, leaving 3539 religious in 99 communities in Europe, N Africa, and N and S America. She was canonised in 1925, and her feast day is the 25th May.
When he went to Paris in 1796 to work in the clandestine church, Madeleine Sophie went with him. On 21st November 1800, shortly before her 21st birthday, Sophie and a small group of friends made their first vows in Paris, and so the Society of the Sacred Heart was born. In her own heart, she had two deep desires: to lead a life of prayer, and to help the society of her day in the aftermath of war and revolution, especially through the education of the minds and hearts of girls.Throughout her life, she opened innumerable houses in various countries. Despite frail health, Sophie overcame many difficulties and challenges. Her faith was rooted in Jesus Christ, and she had a deep desire to reveal to others the love of the Heart of Jesus, a love she herself experienced so powerfully.Sophie's father was a vintner, and she often described this relationship with Jesus with his words in John’s gospel: "l am the Vine, you are the branches".Madeleine Sophie Barat died on 25th May 1865 at the age of 85, leaving 3539 religious in 99 communities in Europe, N Africa, and N and S America. She was canonised in 1925, and her feast day is the 25th May.