Traudel
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 Posted: Thu Jul 17, 2008 7:39 pm Post subject: July 17th - The Blessed Carmelites of Compiègne |
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July 17th - The Blessed Carmelites of Compiègne
On July 17, 1794, the sixteen Carmelites nuns of Compiègne were guillotined
in Paris, convicted of crimes against the state by the tribunal of the
French Revolution. On this day they were born to eternal life.
Mother Henriette de Jesus, renowned for her great beauty and strong
personality, stood up to represent the other Carmelite sisters before the
revolutionary tribunal and was remarkable for her heroic resolution. Since
the prosecutor accused the Carmelites of being fanatics and
counter-revolutionaries, she asked him to explain the meaning of those
words. The irritated judge vomited a torrent of offenses against her, and
then said: "It is your attachment to your Religion and the King."
Hearing these words, she replied, "I thank you for the explanation." Then,
addressing her companion Carmelites, she said: "My dear Mother and my
Sisters, we must rejoice and give thanks to God for we die for our Religion,
our Faith, and for being members of the Holy Roman Catholic Church."
She was the last one before the Prioress to mount the scaffold to die. To
the end, she encouraged her Sisters to persevere. When a charitable person
offered a glass of water to one of the Sisters, Mother Henriette told her:
"In Heaven, my Sister, in Heaven we will soon have water aplenty to drink."
Comments of the late Prof. Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira: (died 1995)
These Sisters knew that they were being put to death for their fidelity to
the Catholic Church and the King, but they wanted the prosecutor to admit it
out loud, because this would be a public witness of their martyrdom and an
encouragement for them in face of the dangers of apostasy. This is why
Mother Henriette was charged with asking that question.
When the answer came, she was happy and transmitted it to her Mother and
Sisters in religion. All of them shared that joy and went forward to die.
Mother Henriette, who was very resolute, offered assistance to each of them
until the end. Only the Prioress, Mother Teresa of St. Augustine, died after
her, because she was the superior, and the Captain must always be the last
one to leave the sinking ship.
The episode with the glass of water is beautiful. Certainly there were some
Carmelites who were nervous facing the trauma of such a violent death. To
drink a glass of water could give them some relief. When Mother Henriette
saw that one Carmelite Sister was inclined to accept the offer, she was
probably thinking: "This small sacrifice can be yet another pearl for her
crown in Heaven." So, she advised her to not take it, and gave this
magnificent reason: "My Sister, in Heaven soon we will have water aplenty to
drink."
She was clearly referring to Our Lord, Who is the source of all living
waters, to the face-to-face contemplation of God that gives eternal
happiness. The thirsty Sister understood that when she would receive her
crown of martyrdom, it would have an additional star because she made that
sacrifice.
You can contrast Mother Henriette de Jesus with an imaginary personage in a
popular novel, The Dialogue of the Carmelites by George Bernanos. The
character was called Blanche de la Force and was presented as a weak and
timid Carmelite Sister. She is an imaginary personage, but it is worthwhile
considering her, because she represents a common character type.
In his novel, Bernanos presented her as a Sister who had panicked when the
other Sisters were taken by the revolutionary soldiers and sentenced, and
for this reason had apostatized from the Order. She was no longer living
inside the Carmelite community, but she went to see the execution of her
former companions who would suffer martyrdom that day. The Sisters were
chanting the Veni Creator in chorus and, one by one, they walked up the
steps to the scaffold to be guillotined. When she saw this, she was moved by
a grace, stepped out of the mob and, singing, joined the cortege to be
executed along with them.
The two attitudes of both religious - Mother Henriette and Sister Blanche -
express well the different paths of Divine Providence for different
souls-the different marvels God works with His chosen ones. For some He
chooses the glory of repentance - this is one of the glories attributed to
the Apostles who fled during His Passion. For others He gives the strength
that he gave to Mother Henriette of Jesus, that is, to view death from a
distance and face it bravely, walking toward it joyfully. This was what He
did with Mother Henriette, who helped all the others face their martyrdoms.
These are two different paths God chooses to lead and direct souls.
Seeing these two contrasting paths, you can admire the infinite beauty of
God in the unity and variety of His ways. This is why the Saints are
different from one another and why there are different schools of
spirituality in the Catholic Church. It serves to show the beauty and
richness of Holy Mother Church, a reflection of the beauty of the Heavenly
Jerusalem.
See Images at:
http://www.traditioninaction.org/SOD/j136sdCarmeliteCompeigne_6-17.htm
Saint Quote:
No one is to be called an enemy, all are your benefactors, and no one does
you harm. You have no enemy except yourselves.
-St. Francis of Assisi
Bible Quote:
And they sung to thy holy name, O Lord, and they praised with one accord thy
victorious hand. For wisdom opened the mouth of the dumb, and made the
tongues of infants eloquent. (Wisdom 10:20-21)
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Act of Consecration to St. Joseph
O dearest St. Joseph, I consecrate myself to thy
honor and give myself to thee, that thou mayest always
be my father, my protector and my guide in the way of
salvation. Obtain for me a greater purity of heart and
fervent love of the interior life. After thine example may I
do all my actions for the greater glory of God, in union
with the Divine Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart
of Mary. O Blessed St. Joseph, pray for me, that I may
share in the peace and joy of thy holy death. Amen. |
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