 |
|
 |
| Little Sisters of the Poor |
| |
|
| |
Nomination: For serving the world's poor and for their fidelity to their religious vocations
The Little Sisters of the Poor
God Has Done
Great Things For Us!
As recipients of the Mother Teresa Award, we have been asked to summarize the “achievements and victories” of our Congregation. While any thought of achievement seems out of place when speaking of our life of humble service to the least of Christ’s brethren, we Little Sisters cannot help but echo the refrain of our Blessed Lady: “God who is mighty has done great things for me; holy is His name!” We are reminded of the words of our foundress, Blessed Jeanne Jugan, who, like Mary, attributed to God the good that she was able to realize. “If God is with us it will be accomplished,” she often said. And at the end of her life, she would insist, “The good God has blessed me because I have always greatly thanked His Providence.”
Looking back over our 160 year history, it seems clear that the greatest achievement of our Congregation is the very life and soul of our foundress. A childhood marked by poverty and loss, a rudimentary education, thirty years of domestic work and a virtual lack of resources are not typical foundations on which to build a great work. But God gifted Jeanne Jugan with deep faith, profound humility, a selfless love for the poor and an audacious trust in His Providence. The life of our foundress is a powerful witness to the great things that God achieves in a soul that surrenders itself totally to Him.
From her youth Jeanne was convinced that God wanted her for Himself. He would, indeed, consecrate her for a unique work in the Church, but many years would pass before He would reveal His plan to her. Christ visited Jeanne Jugan on a cold winter night in 1839 in the person of a poor, elderly blind woman to whom she opened her heart and her home. “Never forget that the poor are our Lord,” Jeanne would repeat, as more needy old people found their way to her doorstep and young women began to join her to assist in their care. The Congregation of the Little Sisters of the Poor was born.
After only a few years as foundress Jeanne Jugan allowed herself to be set aside, but she continued to exert a profound influence on her young Congregation. Imbued with her spirit of humility, universal charity and confidence in Providence — and strengthened by their vow of hospitality — Jeanne’s spiritual daughters founded homes for the aged poor across France and beyond. At the time of her death in 1879 there were already 2,400 Little Sisters caring for the elderly in ten countries. Although she died in obscurity, Jeanne Jugan’s life and virtues were eventually recognized, culminating in her beatification on October 3, 1982. In his homily on that occasion Pope John Paul II proclaimed: “Et exaltavit humiles! These well-known words of the Magnificat fill my spirit and my heart with joy and emotion after I have just declared the humble foundress of the Little Sisters of the Poor one of the Blessed ... God could glorify no more humble a servant than she.”
God continues to do great things through the humble soul of Jeanne Jugan. Today our Congregation administers homes for the needy aged in 31 countries on five continents. New foundations are underway in Columbia, India and the Philippines. Striving to continue the family spirit established by our foundress, we welcome the collaboration and support of a large network of benefactors, staff, professional consultants, volunteers of all ages and members of the Association Jeanne Jugan.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
