Born
at Le Blanc in France in 1773, Elizabeth was the daughter of Antoine
Bichier, the Seigneur of Ages and a public official, and Marie Augier de
Moussac, whose father was a politician. She spent much of her childhood
at the convent at Poitiers.
In 1792, after the death of her
father, Elizabeth took her mother to live in La Guimetière. Near their
new home was a parish left in chaos because of the French Revolution,
and Elizabeth dedicated herself to rebuilding the community. Every night
she gathered the parishioners for prayers and hymns. Elizabeth soon
became aware of a nearby parish in a similar situation: a
priest, André-Hubert Fournet (who later became a saint), offered the
Sacrifice of the Mass in a local barn. They quickly became friends, and
together they reestablished religion in the area.
With
Fr. André Fournet’s spiritual guidance and assistance, Elizabeth found
her true vocation. In 1806, she established a religious congregation of
women to care for the sick and aged, for the education of children and
to offer reparation for the blasphemies and sacrileges committed against
the Most Blessed Sacrament during the French Revolution. The
congregation was officially recognized by the diocese in 1816 and named
“Daughters of the Cross.”
In 1836, Elizabeth fell seriously ill.
After ten days of intense suffering, she died on August 26. She was
canonized in 1947. Before she died, she opened over sixty convents under
the rule of the Daughters of the Cross.
Thursday, August 26, 2021
St. Elizabeth Bichier des Ages
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