DAY 2 -Service of the poor 11th September
Even before St. Emilie founded the
Congregation, a profound love of God and of the poor was her driving force ever
since she was only a child, following
the good example of several members of her family, particularly her
grandmother.
“I loved
the poor and experienced real pleasure in giving them alms. A pious lady, called Marianne Gombert, a
dressmaker who knew my soft spot for the poor, used to take me with her
somtimes to visit them. I used to give
them the money I had.
One day, we
had only three francs. We visited 20
poor sick people. We gave each one no
less than 3 “sous”. We gave 5 or even 6
“sous” to some. When we had finished, my
purse which had only 3 francs was not yet empty. Marianne exclaimed at the realisation of this
multiplication of money, that it was: “Providence ”!
Throughout her life, Emilie remained faithful
to her first intuition: the poor are to be her priority and her love for them
is to be seen as the measure of her love for God.
“God
considers that whatever we do for the poor, of whom he likes to call himself
the Father, we do for him, and the great reward which he has planned for his
faithful servants seems to be inextricably linked to the service they have
given to those who are poor and suffering.”
Let us do
all in our power so that we may deserve to hear these words:
“Come you
blessed of my Father, for
I was
hungry and you gave me to eat,
I was
thirsty and you gave me to drink,
I was
homeless and you put me up,
I was naked
and you clothed me,
I was sick
and you visited me,
I was in
prison and you came to see me.”
Think of
these wonderful words often and charity will abound in your hearts.”
Prayer to St. Emilie
St. Emilie,
you who said, “Providence
and the poor, these were my riches.” Be
with us in our Day! Intercede for us, so
that we may recognise Jesus, and love and serve Him in the poorest of the poor. May we, like you, put our whole trust in
Christ who is our ALL!
St. Emilie,
pray for us.
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