Her Profession.

“My child, it is not enough to sacrifice one thing to God; all must be immolated to Him.” Mother Prioress to Sr Marie de St Pierre.

Our humble novice passes rather lightly over this important circumstance. We can supply some interesting particulars of the period which elapsed between the time of her admission by the community and the day of the solemn ceremony. These facts have been taken from the annals of the monastery. The interval of several weeks was passed by Sr St Peter in fervent and careful preparation for the all-important day. She made a retreat of ten days with so much fervour and recollection, that she had not once raised her eyes, so absorbed was she in God. The day on which she pronounced her vows, the Mother Prioress, on leaving the room in which Sr St Peter had been congratulated by the community, perceived a young novice very sad and pensive, turning towards the newly professed the Mother said, ‘Peter, go and console John!’ Sr St Peter ran to embrace her companion, promising her that her turn would soon come. In fact, the latter was professed a few months later, notwithstanding the many forebodings to the contrary. She never forgot the impression made on her on that occasion. In embracing Sr St Peter it seemed to her that she had approached an angel. Sister St Peter’s profession took place on the 8th of June 1841, a date worthy of record. On such an important occasion, the sister was not without having given her Divine Spouse a new proof of her love. The following is her act of consecration.

“The devil of blasphemy caused me no small amount of suffering, but I kept strongly attached to the cross during the temptation, not daring to say, ‘Oh God! Come to my assistance.’ I offered my suffering to Our Lord for the salvation of souls and for the accomplishment of His designs. I said one day, ‘O my God, I am now well aware of my nothingness and my misery!’ Meaning thereby to say, ‘It is enough, my God! I shall now know how to discern thy gifts, and shall never attribute them to myself. I see that I am nothing but a poor and miserable sinner.’”

Finally, she felt urged to have recourse to her holy Mother, St Teresa, in whose honour she commenced a novena; the nine days had not passed ere her sufferings had altogether disappeared. The Lord now resumed with His servant the course of His extraordinary communications which had been totally interrupted for more than two years. But it was necessary that she should return to the House of her Father, that is to say, to the heart of Jesus, where, as gold in the furnace, her soul would be purified by the fire of suffering and love. The Devotion of the Holy Face emanates from that of the Sacred Heart, the one is the complement of the other. In the order of the designs of the Divine Master, His faithful disciple was to be conducted to the intimate recesses of His most amiable heart, before being initiated in the mystery of reparation by means of His dolorous Face.”

Footnote: M. Dupont, establishing a comparison between the revelations of Blessed Margaret Mary and those of Sr St Peter, said, “If the heart of Jesus is the emblem of love, His adorable Face is that of the sufferings endured for our salvation.’’ (Life of Mr. Dupont, vol. II), On this subject a distinguished member of the Society of Jesus, Rev. L. P. Gros, has written the following, which furnishes matter for pious reflection. The heart is the symbol of love; the face is the living mirror of the heart; the face reveals what the heart contains, namely, love, sorrow with the other sentiments of the soul. For this reason the Church does not regard with a favourable eye the images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, if the heart be isolated from the face; it is the face which authorises us to say, behold such a one! When I have before me the Face and the heart of Jesus, I have before me Jesus entire, His soul and its sentiments. Thus Jesus manifested Himself to Blessed Margaret Mary, the face of Jesus in this vision, certainly was the light, the life, the word of the heart; that Face of Jesus, at Paray-le-Monial, was a dolorous face, a Holy Face. Behold the heart which has so much loved mankind… and, They offer me nothing but ingratitude! Surely it was not joy that was then expressed on the Face of Jesus!’’

heart which has so much loved mankind… and, They offer me nothing but ingratitude! Surely it was not joy that was then expressed on the Face of Jesus!’’

… to be continued…

Excerpt taken from: The Holy Face and the Work of Reparation, by Sr Marie de St Pierre, & Abbè P. Janvier (ed.), (1884), reprinted in 2026 by A.D. Press.