My Patron Saint Chose Me!

by Karen Luise Fields~ Recording Secretary/Webmaster

As I was being prepared for confirmation at the age of thirteen, I was instructed to pick a name from a list of Patron Saints and that would be the name to be confirmed under. I don’t fully remember the explanation as to why we had to choose a new name but it had to do with having someone to emulate in our Christian life. As I read through the list, as it was typed double space in those days, no one jumped out at me. The problem with the list was all the saints were the standard variety. The ones everyone always chose. The cookie-cutter saints as I call them. I was looking for someone with deeper meaning that matched the sorrows I had been through in my then short existence! You’re probably wondering what sorrows I had experienced from birth to age thirteen? A lot! I won’t go into complete detail but sufficed to say the very people instructing me were also the ones who caused the sorrows I suffered. So, it was no surprise they chose saints who didn’t match me at all! Time was running out and I had to make a choice if I was to be confirmed on time! 

My Mom, who always tried to guide me in the path of Jesus, gave me a Book of Saints she found at a thrift store. It was big and looked as if it would take a while to look through. I started flipping through the pages and it landed on a page about St. Louise de Marillac. I read a little and then put the book away. I didn’t bookmark the page. A few days went by and I picked up the book again and started from the beginning and suddenly the book fell to the ground and when I picked it up, the book was open to the page about St. Louise de Marillac again! This was page where I left off and I figured God was helping me find my place in the book so I didn’t have to start from scratch. Not so much! I still didn’t book mark where I left off again and went off to do something else. Mind you, the book is closed and sitting where I left it but when I picked it up a third time, it opened to the same place! St. Louise de Marillac! That is three times this saint has come into my view! My Mom said it was sign that I should read further about her life because she just might be the saint I was looking for. We did sort of share a name. My middle name is Luise (without the O)! I did as my Mom said (a rarity) and read on. Turns out, she was and is the saint I was looking for! She was also French! I also had an affinity for all things French since birth! Not sure why. Later on in my life, on my first trip to Paris, I walked the streets as if I had been there before! No map! However, that is a story for another day! Let me tell you how great a match this turned out to be!

St. Louise de Marillac is the Patron Saint of Social Workers. That is the simple explanation. Like most saints, her early life was marred with tragedy. Her Aunt, who was a Dominican Nun, cared for and educated Louise during her formative years. She learned household management as well as herbal medicine. Those are skills I acquired at a very early age from my Mom! I suspect her health issues, like mine, were the cause of her learning herbal medicine! Louise wanted to become a Capuchin nun but was rejected for reasons unknown. It was possibly due to recurring health issues but no one knows for sure. At the age of 22 her uncle married her off and she bore a son. Her life as a married woman found her accepted into the aristocracy as her husband was Secretary to the Queen. She had a leading role in the Ladies of Charity, an organization of wealthy women dedicated to assisting those suffering from poverty and disease. After the death of her husband, Louise continued to care for her son and do charity work though she still felt a deep calling to help those in need. 

Louise met Francis de Sales in Paris and then his friend, Jean Pierre Camus, the Bishop of Belley. They became her friends and confessors. They guided her and advised her to meditate on God’s will. Louise received a vision of a new spiritual guide and then met Vincent de Paul a short time later. He was the person she saw in her vision. Turns out, he lived nearby though he was reluctant to be her confessor because he was inundated with helping the poor. They communicated with letters and discovered their mutual deep yearning to serve the poor. Louise had become poor again because of political unrest and her families fortunes were lost. Vincent de Paul, later canonized himself, recognized that she would be able to serve the poor on a practical level and invited Louise to join his work and help him run The Ladies of Charity. The organization was comprised of Aristocratic women wanting to do good deeds but they did not have the compassion or wherewithal to truly help those in need. They were good with fundraising and correspondence but the day-to-day caring for the sick and poor their forte. The lavish clothing and lifestyle did nothing but insult the very poor they were trying to help. This is where Louise came in. She helped organize ladies who were from poor means who understood the task of caring for the less fortunate because they too came from the same background. This is how the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul were formed. The ladies helped any and everyone who needed it. 

My skills to help those in need manifested at an early age. Kids would come to me on the playground wanting help with various issues or school work. I just wanted to be a kid! My confessor (counselor) was Sister Edwardine. She said I was born to help people. She even went so far as to say would live a life like Joan of Arc! Also French! I wasn’t amused! She also pointed out my compassion in helping those kids regardless of my feelings. She said don’t grumble! I was still not amused! I discovered being able to empathize with those less fortunate manifested because my parents and grand parents grew up destitute. My ability to comfort the sick came because I was a sickly child and I also  grew up watching my Grandmother caring for sick relatives and other friends as they had no one else to care for them. I became a full fledged caretaker a few years after my confirmation at the age of 16 to my Great-Aunt. I don’t feel I missed out on being a kid or teenager because of time spent helping others. I just knew it was the right thing to do! It helped me become an adult who continues to help those in need. Reading about St. Louise de Marillac that day, tied all my knowledge and charitable works together for the first time! It was like she reached down from Heaven and showed me my path! I had peace about choosing her as my Patron Saint! A lot people did not understand why I chose St Louise de Marillac and I couldn’t explain it to them. Some said I took the easy way out because we shared the same name. My Mom and I knew in actuality, she chose me! 

Who is your Patron Saint? Did you choose or were you chosen? Leave us a comment below!