The Roots of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd

 

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Let's quickly walk through the history of the Order of Our Lady of Charity, founded by S. João Eudes in the 17th century, and that of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, founded by Saint Maria Eufrásia Pelletier in the 19th century.

First, let's go back to early 17th century France. In 1601, a man named João Eudes was born, a priest by vocation and an excellent preacher, deeply in love with Jesus Christ. With a heart overflowing with zeal for the salvation of people, John Eudes affirmed that Jesus is the center of the world, that the work of works is to form Jesus in us, and he never tired of repeating: “Jesus is the true Light!”. He was an authentic missionary of mercy who dedicated his life to showing the great heart of God, incarnated in the Son who became man to welcome the misery of the poor.

Especially sensitive to the suffering of girls and women who clamored for protection and healing of lost dignity, in 1641, in Caen, founded, with the help of women of good will, a refuge, that is, a house where girls and women in need could be accepted and treated. Later, in 1656, with the approval of the Holy See, the Order of Our Lady of Charity of the Refuge was born, making the refuge of Caen the first monastery of the Order.

On this path of many years, João Eudes encountered many obstacles, resistance and difficulties, within society and the Church itself. So much so that more than 30 years passed before other monasteries were founded. This expansion, although very slow, was possible thanks to the strength of the charisma received by Father Eudes, the Catholic Counter-Reformation, the commitment of some enterprising personalities, and the support of benefactors.

Let us remember that the 16th century had seen the birth of the Churches of the Reformation, that is, the Protestant Churches. For this reason, in 1545, the Catholic Church called the famous Council of Trent and started a movement known as the Catholic Counter-Reformation. This council defined, among other things, the orientations of religious life, declaring cloister as an integral and obligatory part of religious life; the requirement of at least 30 years of age and 8 years of religious profession to be elected superior of a community; and the maximum authority of the diocesan bishop over the monasteries located in the respective diocese, especially in relation to female communities.

Now, in the middle of the 17th century, the time of the first foundation in Caen, French society was in the phase of the Catholic Reformation, which sought to restore moral order and provide the means to ensure it. Due to the orders of the Tridentine Council, the monasteries of Nossa Senhora da Caridade will observe a strict enclosure, they will be materially autonomous from each other, although spiritually united in charism and mission, and will depend on the diocesan bishop. At that time this was the only possible canonical form of religious life.

We have now arrived at the 19th century. In the aftermath of the French Revolution, in 1796, Rosa Virgínia Pelletier was born, who became a great woman inspired by God and concerned about human suffering, especially that of the female face.

In 1714, a monastery of the Order of Our Lady of Charity was founded in the city of Tours. One hundred years later, on October 20, 1814, on the Feast of the Heart of Jesus, while the community was celebrating the centenary of this foundation, the young Rosa Virgínia entered as a postulant and received the name of Sister Maria de Santa Eufrásia. Having professed in 1817, at the age of 21, she was elected superior in 1825, immediately implementing several innovations in the community of Tours.

One of his first decisions, in August 1825, was to found a contemplative community. This decision was taken in the logic of love, as a response to some young women who were entrusted to them and who felt called to the contemplative mission. Contemplative life in the Congregation has been opening up to new realities, today  we have the apostolic and contemplative dimensions that complement each other.

From his revitalizing leadership, a new foundation was born in Angers, which was officially opened on July 31, 1829. In 1831, Mother Maria Eufrásia, at the end of her mandate, left the monastery of Tours, to assume responsibility for the monastery of Angers , founded two years earlier.

Between 1831 and 1835, the monastery of Angers prospered greatly under the leadership of Mother Maria Eufrásia, to the point that several requests were received for the founding of new monasteries.

Let's see that more than 150 years have passed since the death of St. John Eudes, in 1680. The Revolution of 1789 profoundly shook France. The post-revolutionary social context has left thousands of children and young people to fend for themselves, and requests for new foundations to help them keep coming. What to do? How to respond? Simultaneously, vocations multiplied and benefactors committed themselves to supporting the new communities. Then came the idea of another organization: a Generalate, that is, a common fund, uniting people and leveraging resources, so that the various monasteries could support and help each other more easily, consequently improving responses to needs.

Now, let us remember that the Order founded by St. John Eudes comprised autonomous and independent monasteries subordinated to the diocesan bishop. For this reason, the request for the Generalate, made to the Holy See by Mother Maria Eufrásia in 1833, had the support of many and the opposition of many others. The period between 1833 and 1835, the year in which the Generalate was approved by the Holy See, was painful for both parties: on the one hand, the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity stood firm against the Generalate, considering it a betrayal of founding intuition of St. John Eudes; on the other hand, Mother Maria Eufrásia also experienced an enormous test with this situation, since she never wanted to separate from the Order of Our Lady of Charity. However, when she left the Order to become Superior General of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, it was already thriving internationally.

Born with the approval of the Generalate, Mother Maria Eufrásia gives the greatest proof of her love and fidelity to St. John Eudes by giving continuity to his charism and spirituality. She exercised with unalterable firmness and dynamism the position of Superior General for 33 years, until her death in 1868. Throughout history, how many attempts at reconciliation!...

Continuing our journey, we come across the innovations of the Second Vatican Council (CVII) (1962-1965), which had consequences for the universal Church in general and for religious life in particular, which could not escape the blow of conciliar renewal. The CVII determined that religious life should no longer be separated from the world, but should be a sign of God in it, which is why religious congregations of apostolic action were not allowed to continue to observe the cloister, which so affected N.ª Sr. of Charity and Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd.

Over the years, the action of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd has been guided by important choices, of which we highlight: the development of a commitment to justice and peace, the importance of lay groups and associated partners, the evolution of government structures and the conception of congregational leadership, the adaptation of the Constitutions.

From the 1980s onwards, both the Sisters of N.ª Sr.ª da Caridade and the Sisters of the Good Shepherd began to witness the forces of reconciliation and union that operated between them, evoking the awareness that common roots drive the two congregations to a unified future. Thus, on July 27, 2014, after 179 years of separation, and 358 years after the first foundation, the Order of Our Lady of Charity and the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd they merged into a single apostolic body of missionaries of mercy, with the common name of Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd.

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