The feast day of The Holy Innocents is celebrated on December 28.
According to the Gospel of St. Matthew 2:16-18, Herod ordered the execution of all young male children near Bethlehem out of fear of a newborn King of the Jews after the announcement of His birth by the Magi.
It is not known how many children died, however, they are considered Martyrs and are honored by the Catholic Church.
An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream saying;
“take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child and kill kill Him.”
Joseph took Mary and Jesus to Egypt keeping them safe from harm.
The feast day of St. Thomas De and Companions is celebrated on December 19.
St. Thomas was a tailor in Vietnam who entered the Dominican Orderas a tertiary. He was arrested and charged with giving aid and shelter to foreign missionaries. He was strangled at the age of 26.
The companions of St. Thomas De were Dominic Uy, Augustine Moi, Xavier May and Francis Man.
Augustine was also a Dominican tertiary. He was a day laborer. He refused to trample a crucifix when he was ordered to do so. He was strangled.
Francis Xavier was a native catechist and was also strangled.
Francis Man was a Dominican Tertiary working as a catechist when arrested.
St. Thomas De and Companions were among the 117 Vietnamese martyrs canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1988.
The feast day of St. Simon and St. Jude is celebrated on the same day…October 28. They were both Apostles and Martyrs. St. Simon is the patron saint of tanners. St. Jude is the patron saint of impossible causes.
St. Simon was the second Bishop of Jerusalem. He preached in Egypt and Persia with St. Jude where both suffered martyrdom.
There are two stories of his death. The first has him dying by crucifixion in Samaria. The second has him sawed in half in Persia.
St. Simon and St. Jude
St. Jude was the son of Cleohas, who died a martyr and Mary who stood at the foot of the cross. He was the brother of St. James the Lesser, and a cousin to Jesus. He was a fisherman. He is not to be confused with Judas Iscariot, who was a traitor. After the resurrection, Jude preached in Syria and Persia with St. Simon. He was a healer and an exorcist. He was beaten to death with a club then beheaded in Persia. His relics are at St. Peter’s Basilica, in Rome. As apostles, both St. Simon and St. Jude became close to Jesus. They truly believed he was the Lord. After the Resurrection Hey spent their life spreading the good news of salvation. Their martyrdom shows us the depth of their love for Jesus.
Come my light and illumine my darkness.
Come my Life and revive me from death.
Come my physidian and heal my wounds.
Come, Flame of Divine Love and burn up the thorns of my sins.
kindling my heart with the flame of thy love.
Come my King, sit upon the throne of my heart and reign there,
For you alone are my King and my Lord.
Prayer of St. Dimitri of Rostov; Feast Day October 28
The feast day of Bl. Rose Chretien is celebrated on July 17. It is also the Feast of the Carmelite Martyrs of Compiegne. She was born near Eureaux, France in 1741.
Bl. Rose married at a young age and soon became a widow. She decided to join the Discalced Carmelite Order and became a choir nun. At her profession in 1777 she took the religious name of Sister Julia Louise of Jesus.
Bl. Rose is considered one of the Carmelite Martyrs of Compiegne. The sixteen Carmelites were imprisoned along with English Benedictine nuns. The Carmelites were condemned as traitors and sentenced to death by guillotine. As they were martyred, one by one, they renewed their vows and chanted the hymn Veni Creato Spiritus which was the hymn sung at their ceremony professing their vows.
Several days after their deaths, the persecution called the Reign of Terror led by Robespierre came to an end. The English Benedictine Nuns credited the Carmelites with ending the bloodbath and saving their community.
The Carmelite Sisters were buried in a common grave at Picpus Cemetery with a single cross where 1306 other victims of the guillotine were buried.
Those who do something for the glory of God are not troubled by failure, because they have already achieved their pupose of pleasing God, by acting with a pure intention.
Quote of St. Alphonsus Liguori, Feast day August 1
The feast day of Bl. Emmanuel Ruiz and Companions is celebrated on July 10.
Emmanuel was born in Santander, Spain. He became a Franciscan priest serving as a missionary in Damascus during a time of great persecution.
During the massacre which occurred in 1860 thousands of victims were tortured and died. The villages of Lebanon were pillaged and burned. The massacre began with a quarrel between a Maronite and Druse. When a crowd came looking for them, Emmanuel and his companions refused to renounce their faith and become Muslims. Emmanuel, his supervisor and seven others were tortured and martyred.
Bl. Emmanuel was beatified in 1926 by Pope Pius XI.
The First Martyrs of the Church of Rome are honored on June 30. The feast day has been celebrated beginning in 1969.
More than half of Rome was destroyed by fire in July of 64. The unpopular Emperor Nero was blamed for the fire but he accused the Christians to cover his own crimes. The martyrs were executed in many different ways. Some were burned alive at night to be used as living torches. Others were crucified and still others were fed to wild animals. The crime they were charged with was “their hatred of the human race”.
There was a large Jewish population in Rome at the time of the persecution. Paul had not yet visited Rome, however there were Christians living there.
The Catholic Church celebrates the Solemnity of St. Paul and St. Peter on June 29.
Both saints were martyred for their faith during the persecution of Nero. St. Peter was crucified upside down by his own request. He did not consider himself worthy to be crucified in the same manner as Our Lord. St. Paul was beheaded. It is possible they were both martyred on the same day.
St. Peter was one of the original Apostles. He was a fisherman before he was called to follow Jesus. He was the brother to the Apostle Andrew. St. Peter was clearly the leader of the apostles. With James and John he witnessed the Transfiguration and the Agony in the Garden. His mother-in-law was cured by Jesus. Originally, Peter’s name was Simon. Jesus asked the apostles, “Who do you say that I am?” Simon said, “You are the Messiah, the son of the living God.” Jesus then said:
“Blessed are you Simon, Son of Jonah, for flesh and blood have not revealed this to you but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
During the crucifixion of Jesus, Peter denied Jesus three times. Jesus also told Peter three times…
“Feed my sheep”.
St. Peter is the patron saint of fishermen.
St. Paul was not one of the original apostles. While persecuting Christians after the death of Jesus, he was thrown to the ground by a bright light. He heard a voice asking him,
“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
He responded with “Who are you, Lord?” Jesus answered him:
“I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city and you will be told what you are to do.”
Paul was blinded by the light for three days after which scales fell from his eyes. He then joined the apostles, becoming known as “The Apostle of the Gentiles”. He wrote many of the epistles in the Bible. He is the patron saint of writers, the press, and missionaries.
Prayer to St. Peter and St. Paul
Grant, we pray, O Lord our God, that we may be sustained by the intercession of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, that as through them you gave your Church the foundations of her heavenly office, so through them you may help her to eternal salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
The feast day of St. Charles Lwanga is celebrated on June 3.
The Society of Missionaries attracted many converts in Uganda. The converts soon became teachers of the faith also. Uganda was ruled by King Mwanga who was violent and a pedophile. The Christians who lived and taught at King Mwanga’s court tried to protect the pages from the King. The leader of the 200 Christians was Joseph Mkassa. He confronted the King after a Protestant missionary and his companions were killed. Mwanga ordered his execution. Before he was beheaded and burned on Nov. 15, 1885 Joseph forgave Mwanga, but asked for repentance.
St. Charles, who was 18 when he converted, became the new leader of the Christian group. For six months the persecution lessened. Then, however, King Mwanga became angry and killed another student of Christianity with a spear. He ordered the royal compound sealed so no one could escape. Charles baptized four catecheumens (students) that night. The next day the king ordered the 15 boys and men to be executed because they refused to give up being Christians. They were ordered to walk 37 miles to be executed in Namugongo. Three died on the journey. After seven days in prison, they were burned to death. Thirteen Catholics and eleven Protestant’s died.
The Catholic faith was practiced in secret without clergy. After the death of King Mwanga, there were 500 Christians and 1000 catecheumans waiting to receive the sacraments again.
The 22 Catholic Martyrs of Uganda were canonized.
Do not be ashamed to confess the cross, for angels glory in it.
The feast day of the Carthusian Martyrs is celebrated on May 11. The Carthusian Order was founded in 1084 by St. Bruno of Cologne. It was a strict order. Its members lived as hermits, focusing on contemplative prayer. It consisted of 25 houses with 350 male and 75 female members. They came under attack during the Hessite Revolution in Bohemia in the 15th century.
In 1537 during the English Reformation the London Charter house was dissolved. Its members were put in prison and later executed when they refuse to declare King Henry the head of the Church of England. King Henry issued the “Act of Supremacy” declaring any who refused to take an oath recognizing him as head of the Church of England to be guilty of high treason. Eighteen Carthusians refused and were sentenced to death.
The first Carthusians to be martyred were hanged, drawn and quartered. All were tortured before they were martyred. Eighteen were beatified by Pope Leo XIII in 1886. Three were canonized in 1970 by Pope Paul VI.
Our Lord likes courage. Get it from Him. You won’t find it in yourself.
Sts. Irene, Agape and Chionia were sisters living in Salonika. Their feast day is celebrated on April 3. They lived during the reign of Emperor Diocilian in a pagan family. In 303 he issued a decree making it an offense punishable by death to possess sacred Christian writings. The sisters owned several volumes of Holy Scriptures which they kept hidden.
The three sisters were arrested for refusing to eat food that had been offered to the Gods. The governor (Dulcetius) questioned each of them. Agape answered his questions by saying…
“I believe in the living God and will not by an evil action lose all the merit of my past life”
St. Chionia and St Agape were sentenced to be burned alive. Irene, because of her age was to be imprisoned. After her sisters were executed, the house was searched and the forbidden books were found. Irene was sent to a brothel where she was forced to strip naked. Miraculously she was protected from harm. After once again refusing to conform she was sentenced to death. She died either by being forced to throw herself into flames or by being shot in the throat with an arrow. The books were publicly burned after her death.
The martyrdom of the three sisters is recorded in an existing document.
It is in loving the cross that one discovers his heart.
The feast day of St. Perpetua and St. Felicity is celebrated on March 7.
Both St. Perpetua and St. Felicity were martyred during a time of great persecution. They were put to death in the year 202 in the games which made public spectacles of those who refused to renounce their faith.
St. Perpetua was a well educated noblewoman living in Carthage, North Africa. Her mother was a Christian but her father was a pagan. Her father tried unsuccessfully to convince her to renounce her faith. Perpetua was 22 when she was arrested and imprisoned. She kept a diary of her sufferings and the nature of the torture she endured. She continued to care for her child in spite of the torture she was forced to endure.
St. Felicity was a pregnant slave girl who was imprisoned at the same time as Perpetua. She also was tortured and condemned to die. Several days before the games began she gave birth to a baby girl. The baby girl was secretly taken away to be raised by Christians.
Both St. Perpetua and St. Felicity are honored on their Feast day of March 7.
I know God will not give me anything I can’t handle.
During colonial times, Catholic immigrants coming to the U.S.from Europe settled primarily in the colonies of Maryland, Pennsylvania and New York. Laws protecting religious freedom had not yet been written. Intolerance between religious groups was a common occurrence.
After over fifty years without a bishop, Father John Carroll, a Jesuit, was consecrated bishop and served the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Catholics were a distinct minority at the time. Bishop Carroll estimated the Catholic population in the colonies to be 25,000, or less than one percent of the total population. The church grew rapidly under his guidance.
Today, according to Pew Research there are 75 million Catholics in the United States, approximately 24 percent of the total population.
The colonial Catholics were served by missionaries, both Jesuits and Franciscans.
The following men and women in the U.S. have been proclaimed saints by the Pope. They are considered role models in holiness for Catholics today to turn to for guidance.
There are four steps to becoming a saint in the Catholic Church.
Servant of God…….Formal investigation has begun…………………….82 investigations ongoing
Venerable……………Heroic virtue has been decreed by Pope……….16 from U.S.A.
Blessed……………….First miracle has been confirmed……………………7 from U.S.A.
Saint..………………….Second miracle has been confirmed……………..12 from U.S.A.
The following saints have lived in the United States. Most are immigrants, however two were born in the United States; Kateri Tekakwitha is the first Native American saint and Elizabeth Ann Seton is the first saint from the United States to be canonized.
The Catholic Church teaches that everyone in heaven is a saint. The Church declares certain people to be saints when their holiness is obvious, if they were martyred for the faith and after miracles attributed to them have been investigated.
While there are thousands of declared saints, only the following Americans have received the official title of Saint.
North America Jesuit Martyrs
North American Martyrs
In the 1600’s, eight French Jesuit missionaries lost their lives while trying to spread the news of the gospel to the Huron, Iroquois, and Mohawk Indians. Three of them died in what is now New York State, five of them died in what is now Canada.
Isaac Jogues, René Goupil and Jean La Laude died in New York.
John DeBrebeuf, Gabriel Lalemant, Charles Garnier, Anthony Daniel, and Noel Chabanel died in Canada.
St. René Goupit was a Jesuit Lay brother. He was the first to be martyred. He was killed by tomahawk at Osermenon, (Auriesville, NY)) in 1942.
Father Isaac Jogues, a Jesuit priest, was held captive by the Mohawks for thirteen months. He had several fingers cut off his hand. He escaped and returned to France. He later returned to the mission. He was killed by tomahawk by a Mohawk brave in 1946.
St. Jean de La Lande, a Jesuit donné (not a member of the Society, but at their service) tried to retrieve Father Isaac Jogues’ body, but was killed also.
These martyrs were the first saints of North America. The martyrs were canonized by Pope Pius XI on June 29, 1930.
The memorial in the U.S.A is celebrated on Oct. 19. The memorial in Canada is celebrated on September 26.
The martyrs are patron saints of America
St. Frances Xavier Cabrini
St. Francis Xavier Cabrini
St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. Francesco Cabrini was born in Lombardi, Italy in 1850. She was one of 13 children, raised on a farm. She attended school in a convent. She wanted to become a nun but was hindered by poor health. She became a teacher, teaching at a girl’s school for six years.
Frances took religious vows in 1877, adding Xavier to her name to honor St. Francis Xavier.
At the urging of Pope Leo XIII, she immigrated to the Unites States with six nuns to work with Italian immigrants. She crossed the Atlantic ocean in spite of her great fear of water.
She founded many schools, hospitals, and orphanages in the United States, England, France, Spain and South America. In New York City, St. Frances Cabrini founded Columbus Hospital and Italian Hospital. In the 1980’s they merged into Cabrini Hospital.
In 1909 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini became a naturalized United States citizen. She died from malaria at the age of 67, on December 22, 1917, at Columbus Hospital in Chicago, IL.
In 1931, her body was exhumed, found partially incorrupt, and is now enshrined under glass in the altar at St. Frances Cabrini Shrine in Manhattan.
The feast day of St. Frances Cabrini is celebrated on November 13th.
St. Frances Cabrini was beatified on Nov. 13, by Pope Pius XI. St. Frances Cabrini was canonized on July 7, 1946 by Pope Pius XII.
St. Frances Cabrini is the patron saint of immigrants. orphans and against malaria.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Public Domain Image
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is the first native born American to be canonized a saint.
Elizabeth was born on Aug. 28, 1774 in New York City. She was raised in the Episcopal Church. At the early age of 3 her mother died. At the age of 19 she married William Seton, a wealthy businessman.
Within four years, she suffered the death of her father in-law which left William in charge, not only of his father’s business but the seven half-brothers and sisters as well. The business failed, forcing bankruptcy.
William became ill with tuberculosis. In an attempt to find a cure they moved to Italy. He died while living in Italy. Elizabeth grew very close to God. She accepted and embraced the will of God. Elizabeth eventually was led into the Catholic church. She had a strong devotion to the Virgin Mary.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton established the first free Catholic school in America. On March 25, 1809 she took a vow of poverty, chastity, and obedience. She became the founder of the Sisters of Charity, which followed the rules written by St. Vincent de Paul for the Daughters of Charity in France. She became Mother Seton.
Her final years were spent leading and developing the new congregation. The sisters opened free schools and orphanages along the East Coast.
Elizabeth. died in 1821 of tuberculosis at age 46.
Pope John XXIII canonized her as St. Elizabeth Ann Seton on Sept. 14, 1975. He stated, “In a house that was very small, but with ample space for charity, she sowed a seed in America.”
The feast day of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is celebrated on Jan. 4.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is the patron saint of in-law troubles and loss of children.
St. John Newman Public Domain Image
St. John Neumann
St. John Neumann was born in Bohemia in 1811. Due to the shortage of priests in the colonies, he traveled to New York to be ordained a priest and worked in an isolated parish.
Father John eventually joined the Redemptorists who were dedicated to helping the poor and abandoned. In 1852, he was appointed Bishop of Philadelphia. He increased the number of Catholic schools from two to a hundred.
His desire to hear confessions led him to learn at least six languages. He knew Spanish, English, French, Italian, Dutch and Gaelic.
Bishop Neumann died at the age of 48 on Jan. 5, 1860.
After his death the National Shrine of St. John Neumann was constructed at the Parish of St. Peter the Apostle in Philadelphia. Our Lady of the Angels College, founded by the Congregation of Franciscan Sisters he had founded renamed the College Neumann College. It was later given University status.
St. John Neumann was beatified on Oct. 13, 1963 by Pope Paul VI.
St. John Neumann was canonized on June 19, 1977 by Pope Paul VI.
The feast day of St. John Neumann is celebrated on Jan. 5, the day of his death.
St. John Neumann is the patron saint of Catholic education.
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne Public Domain Image
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne
St. Rose was born in Grenoble, France in 1769. She was drawn to the contemplative life. During the French revolution she spent her time nursing prisoners. She soon joined the Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
During Eucharistic Adoration she experienced a vision where she was serving God in the New World. Twelve years later , at the age of 49, she moved to the United States. She was sent to the Louisiana Territory.
In Louisiana, she opened the first free school west of the Missouri River. By 1828 she had founded six houses. She worked among the Potawatomie Indians who named her Quah-kak-ka-num-ad, “Woman-Who-Prays-Always”.
St. Rose died at the age of 83 at St. Charles, Missouri on November 18, 1852.
St. Rose was Beatified by Pope Pius XII in 1940.
St. Rose was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1988.
The feast day of St. Rose is celebrated on November 18.
St. Rose is the patron saint of the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau, Missouri
St. Theodore Guerin Public Domain Image
St. Theodore Guerin
St. Theodore Guérin’s birth name was Anne Thérése. She was born on Oct. 2, 1798 in Etables, France. Her father served in Napoleon’s navy. At the young age of 15 her father was murdered by bandits while traveling home for a visit.
Anne Thérése turned to God in the difficult years following his death. At the age of 25 she entered the Sisters of Providence to serve the poor, sick and dying. Anne Thérése became Sister Theodore. She was asked to lead a small missionary band of Sisters to the United States in Indiana.
Mother Théodore accepted the mission in spite of her fragile health. She could only consume soft, bland food and liquid. She traveled to the Unites States with five other sisters. After surviving a violent storm at sea in the trip Mother Théodore wrote the following:
“What strength the soul draws from prayer! In the midst of a storm, how sweet is the calm it finds in the heart of Jesus. But what comfort is there for those who do not pray?”
Mother Théodore established schools in Indiana and Illinois. She is described as saintly by people who knew her.
Sixteen years after coming to the United States she died. She is buried in the Church of the Immaculate Conception in St. Mary of the Woods, Indiana.
St. Théodore Guérin was beatified on Oct. 25, 1998 by Pope John Paul II.
St. Théodore Guérin was canonized on Oct. 15, 2006 by Pope Benedict XVI.
The feast day of Théodore Guérin is celebrated on October 3.
St. Théodore Guérin is the patron saint of the Diocese of Lafayette, Indiana.
St. Katharine Drexel Public Domain Image
St. Katherine Drexel
St. Katerine Drexel was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Nov. 26, 1858. She was the child of wealthy parents who taught her to be generous.
Katherine became a Sister in 1889 at the age of 31. She founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Black and Native American people. She dedicated her life and great wealth to this work.
She helped to open the first mission school for Indians in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Other schools soon followed. She then founded Xavier University in New Orleans.
St. Katherine Drexel is the second recognized American born saint.
Katherine Drexel was beatified on Nov. 2, 1988 by Pope John Paul II.
St. Katherine Drexel was canonized on Oct. 1, 2000 by Pope John Paul II.
We celebrate the feast day of St. Katherine Drexel on March 3.
St. Katherine Drexel is the patron saint of philanthropists and racial justice.
St. Kateri Tekakwitha Public Domain Image
St. Kateri Tekakwitha
St. Kateri is the first Native American saint. She was born in 1656 to the daughter of a Mohawk warrior and a Catholic Alqonquin.
When Kateri was four years old smallpox attacked her family. Her mother and little brother died from the disease. Kateri’s face was scarred by the disease and she became partially blind. Her two Aunts and an Uncle adopted her.
On Easter, 1676, Kateri was baptized by Jesuit missionary Father Jacques de Lambertville at the age of 20. She was devoted to prayer, penitential practices and the care of the sick and aged in Caughnawaga near Montreal. Her relics are now enshrined in Caughnawaga..
Because of her conversion, she incurred hostility from her tribe. She went to a new Christian colony in Indianan, Canada. She was devoted to the Eucharist and to “Christ crucified.” She spent much time praying before the Blessed Sacrament. Her motto was…
“Who can tell me what is most pleasing to God that I may do it?”
At the age of 23 Kateri died on Wednesday of Holy Week, at approximately 3 p.m. Within fifteen minutes after her death, her face, which was marked by smallpox, was healed and became beautiful. Father Cholone called others to see what had happened.
Miraculous cures at the Sault Mission were frequent that year (1682) and attributed to Kateri. She appeared to many people after her death, always carrying a cross.
She was beatified (declared Blessed) by Pope John Paul II in 1980 and canonized by Pope Benedict XVI at Saint Peter’s Basilica on October 21, 2012.
We celebrate St. Kateri‘s feast day on July 14. She was known as “the Lily of the Mohawks”.
St. Kateri Takakwitha is the patron saint of the environment.
Damien was still in minor orders when he volunteered to go to Hawaii. Two months after his arrival in Hawaii, he was ordained a priest on May 24, 1864.
The Hawaiin King Kamehameha IV created an isolated settlement on the island of Molakai to deal with the public health crisis. Many people were dying of influenza, syphilis and leprosy. Father Damien wished to minister to the sick so he asked his Bishop to send him to Molokai knowing the risk of death.
When he arrived in Molokai, there were 600 lepers for him to minister to. He built the Parish Church of St. Philomena for the people to learn the Catholic faith. He restored personal pride and dignity to people who needed hope. He provided care and comfort for sixteen years. working as a priest, doctor and builder. He built houses, a school and an orphanage. Not only did he dress their ulcers, he also built over 600 coffins and dug graves.
Father Damien said ” My greatest pleasure is to go there (the cemetery) to say my beads, and meditate on that unending happiness which so may of them are already enjoying.”.
In 1885, Father Damien contracted leprosy. In his final years, he enlarged his orphanages and sought help. St. Marianne Cope came with her sisters to help him while he was ill. She reassured him she would carry on his work.
Father Damien died at the age of 49 on April 15, 1889.
The feast day of Father Damien is celebrated on May 10.
Father Damien was beatified by Pope John Paul II on June 4, 1195.
St. Damien was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on Oct. 11, 2009.
St. Damien is known as “The Apostle of the Lepers.”
St. Damien of Molokai is the patron saint of Hawaii, leprosy and the outcast.
St. Marianne cope Public Domain Image
St. Marianne Cope
St. Marianne Cope was the first Franciscan woman from North America to become a saint.
The birth name of St. Marianne Cope was Barbara Koob (now officially Cope) She was born on Jan 23, 1838 in SE Hessen, West Germany. She was one of ten children. Her father was a farmer. The family moved to the United States one year after her birth.
Her vocation to the religious life was delayed by the necessity to support her family when her father became ill. At the age of 25, Barbara entered the Sisters of St. Francis in Syracuse, New York. She received her religious habit and the name of Sister Marianne. She served as a teacher and principal in several elementary schools in New York. She also helped establish two of the first hospitals in central NY. In 1870, she became a nurse administrator at St. Joseph’s in Syracuse, NY.
In 1882, a priest requested help managing hospitals and schools in Hawaii; primarily working with leprosy patients. She responded to his letter with the following words.
“I am hungry for the work and I wish with all my heart to be one of the chosen ones, whose privilege it will be to sacrifice themselves for the salvation of the souls of the poor Islanders…I am not afraid of any disease, hence, It would be my greatest delight to minister to the abandoned lepers.”
Along with six other sisters of St. Francis, she arrived in Honolulu in Nov. 1833. Mother Marianne was the supervisor as they managed Kakóako Branch Hospital on Oahu which treated 200 leprosy patients. They began by thoroughly cleaning the hospital. They also opened a home for the healthy daughters of the patients who were ill.
Mother Marianne met Fr. Damien (now St. Damien…the Apostle to Lepers) in January 1884 while he was still healthy.
In 1887 the new government in charge of Hawaii closed the Hospital. In 1888, she went to Kalaupapa several months before the death of St. Damien. She reassured him she would provide care for the patients at the Boy’s Home at Kalawao on the Island of Molokai.
Three Sisters ran the Bishop Home for boys and girls.
Mother Marianne died in Hawaii of natural cause on August 9, 1918 and is buried on the grounds of Bishop Home.
