+J.M.J.+ "I CAME, SENT FROM GOD.” These words of Jehanne d’Arc, uttered to her judges in one of her characteristically spirited moments, sums up not only her life but also her sanctity. She was literally a godsend, not only to France, but to every living soul since the late Middle Ages. Nobody has ever changed the course of history as this 19 year old girl did. It therefore remains a mystery why such a holy and well-known child of God would have to wait almost half a millennium to finally be canonized by the Church she served so well. What, then, does it take to be declared a saint? A cause for canonization has to be introduced in Rome, and the procurator of the cause has to prove that the individual practiced every virtue to a heroic degree. St. Thomas Aquinas says: “Common virtue perfects one in a human manner; heroic virtue gives one a superhuman perfection.” Therefore, a saint is literally Superman. Yet at the same time, in human life, the only sanity is sanctity. Our monastic forefather, St. Anthony of the desert, once said: “A time is coming when men will go mad; and when they see someone who is not mad, they will attack him, saying, ‘You are mad; you are not like us.’” The Hundred Years’ War was indeed a mad time, both in the church and in the world. When St. Joan of Arc was born on January 6th, 1412, two monarchs claimed the throne of France and three popes claimed the chair of Peter. It was to remedy this chaos that Divine Providence sent the humble Maid of Lorraine into France, for the world, as a lamb among wolves. On the 492nd anniversary of Joan of Arc’s birthday, Pope St. Pius X declared the heroicity of her practice of the theological, cardinal and connected virtues. Ironically, it was thanks to the most concerted efforts of the enemies of God, who tried their hardest to prove Jehanne to be a fake and a heretic, that they themselves unwittingly initiated the investigation into the heroicity of her virtues, making this simple, country girl one of the most well documented personages of her era. The catalogue of her virtues comprises several volumes. On May 16th, 1920, in the presence of 43 cardinals, 350 bishops, 600 French priests, 80 dignitaries, senators and deputies of state, 140 descendants of her family and an innumerable throng of faithful, Pope Benedict XV declared: "For the honor of the Holy and indivisible Trinity, for the exaltation of the Catholic Faith and the Christian religion, by the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, having deliberated and implored divine help, We proclaim that the blessed Joan of Arc is a saint.” Some have said that in the essential elements of their lives, St. Joan of Arc most resembles Jesus than any other saint. He indeed was her strength, her life, her last thought and her last words: “Jesus.” Taken from Our Lady of Guadalupe Monastery Autumn 2020 newsletter: https://www.ourladyofguadalupemonastery.com/news-letters
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