Memorial of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious (1572-1641)
“Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Today’s Gospel (Matthew 18:20).
What an extraordinary parade of saints fills this week: Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr, on Monday; Clare of Assisi on Tuesday; Pontian, Pope, and Hippolytus, Priest, and Martyrs on Thursday; Maximilian Kolbe, Priest and Martyr, on Friday; all culminating on Saturday in the feast of the Assumption.
What a wonderful glimpse of the long history of the Church, from the earliest days through the Middle Ages, culminating in the terrible days of World War II. Reflecting on this parade leads me to recall days and nights in my childhood bedroom. Because we lived only three blocks north of the Visitation Monastery in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, I often heard the bells calling the Sisters of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal to prayer at Mass and at the various hours of the Liturgy of the Hours.
My faith was strengthened every time those bells rang out. I was barely aware of them at the time, but the sound has stayed with me ever since. The remembered sound unites me to all the believers, over all the years, all sharing in the amazing NOW of the Eucharist.
Think of the wonderful words of the Easter Vigil, “Christ yesterday and today, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega. All time belongs to him and all the ages. To him be glory and power, through every age and forever. Amen.” We Christians, of every age and of every place, are united in our commitment as ambassadors of Christ to love and serve all people. We pray today for the grace we need to bring everyone to faith in Our Lord.
Let Us Pray:
O God, who made Saint Jane Frances de Chantal radiant with outstanding merits in different walks of life, grant us, through her intercession, that walking faithfully in our vocation, we may constantly be examples of shining light. Through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever. Amen. (Prayer for the Feast of St. Jane Frances de Chantal)
