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Jan 23, 1572
Saint Jane De Chantal
Jane De Chantal is born on January 23, 1572 in Dijon, France. -
1573
Saint Jane’s early life
After losing her husband Saint Jane decided to begin a life of service to the poor and sick and renewed her desire to love God more and more. -
Saint Jane’s religious life
In 1604 Jane met Saint Francis de sales while he was preaching his Lenten sermons. Jane wanted to live a religious life but Francis, her spiritual director, advised her to remain a widow and mother of her children. Through constant writing Saint Francis and Jane decided to found a religious order for sisters to devote themselves to pray. -
Saint Jane as a sister
When Saint Jane’s children were old enough to be on their own, her and a few other women decided to live a life as a Sister of the Visitation of Holy Marie in the Galerie house in Annecy, France. Eventually Saint Francis and the Bishop of Geneva, gave the sisters the spiritual directory to start a new religious community. -
Saint Jane’s older life
As the new order grew the Archbishop of Lyon decided to force the sisters to follow the strict papal enclosure for the women’s religious order. This led the sisters to focus upon preserving and sharing the teachings of Salesian Spirituality. -
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque
Saint Margaret was born on July 22, 1647 in L’hautecour, France. Margaret was bedridden with an illness and devolved a great devotion to the Virgin Mary and often prayed the rosary. Margaret decided to join a religious order Blessed Virgin Mary. -
Saint Margaret’s religious life
At 27 she joined the Visitation community and chose the Name Sister Margaret Mary. Mary was treaty harshly by other inter stand the illness she had. Margaret relived that her vocation was to accept and difficulties and to unite with Christ’s sufferings in the passion. She had two visions of the Sacred heart. -
Saint Margaret’s death
Saint Margaret’s feast day is October 17. -
Saint Jane’s Death
Saint Jane was canonized on August 18, 1767. -
Saint Mary de Sales Chappuis
Marie de Sales Chappuis was born on June 16, 1793 in Switzerland. She was very poor in health and a still joined the Visitation Monastery and professed her vows as Sister Mary Francis de Sales Chappuis. -
Saint Mary’s religious life
She reestablished the Monastery after the French Revolution in Troyes, France. Her focus was on the sacred Humanity of Christ. Eventually a school for girls was opened to teach people about Saint Francis de Sales. She came to believe that she was called to establish a religious community for men who would live the spiritual directory of Saint Francis. It took her 30 years to convince father Briton to fulfill This. -
Blessed Father Louis Brisson
Louis Brisson June 23, 1817 in Plancy, France. He was a very smart man who was into science and eventually decided to become a preistly educator. He was ordained a diocesan priest on December 19, 1840. -
Father Brisson’s religious life
His first assignment was as a teacher at the Visitation school in Troyes, France where Mother Mary de Sales Chappius served as the superior. Father Brisson denied the request of Mary to from a Salesian order of religious men. Eventually Father Brisson had a vision of Jesus and he finally agreed to found the order of the Oblates of Saint Francis de Sales. On August 27, 1876 the new order was established. -
Saint Leonie Aviat
Leonie was born on September 16th, 1844 in Suzanne, France. She attended the Visitation Convent school at Troyes. Saint Aviat agreed to run the homes of Father Brisson, which were started for young girls working at textile factories. She professed here first Vows on October 11, 1871 for the Oblate Sisters of Saint Francis de Sales. -
Saint Mary’s death
She died on October 7, 1875, in the Visitation Monastery in Troyes, France. Her feast day is October 12th, Oblates Founder Day. -
Saint Leonie Aviat religious life
Saint Leonie founded a school for girls in order to help diversity amd extend the reach of the educational mission of the Oblate Sisters of Saint Francis de Sales. Eventually the French government started evicting religious from their houses forcing Leonie to a mother houser in Italy. Things became so tuff that she had to disguise herself as a lay women, when she received her final blessing from Father Brisson. Saint Aviat opened missions in South Africa and Ecuador. -
Father Brisson’s Death
Father Brisson died on February 2nd, 1908, with mother Aviat and many Oblates at his side. We celebrate the founding of his two orders on Oblate Founders Day on October 12th. We celebrate the life of Father Brisson on February 2nd. -
Saint Leonie Aviat’s Death
Sister Leonie Aviat died on January 10, 1914, 6 years after Father Brisson. She was canonized in 2001 and is the most recently canonized member of the Salesian family. Her feast day is on January 10th. -
Seven visitation Martyrs
The Visitation sisters were martyred during the Spanish Civil War.
In 1936 the religious persecution was occurring and the sisters realized it would be dangerous to stay where they were. An anti- religious neighbor found where the sisters went to hide and they were arrested and with great love for God the sisters held each other’s hand and were shot. -
Seven Visitation sisters feast day
The seven Visitation sisters feast day is November 18th.