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Louise de Marillac and Vincent de Paul. Paula and Jerome. Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross. It’s not unusual for women saints to have had non-romantic ministry or spiritual instruction relationships with men also honored by the Church. But many would agree the best known of such partnerships is that of Clare and Francis of Assisi.
Even as a child, Frances knew she was made to be a missionary; she loved crafting little paper boats and sending them off to sail with “missionary” flowers aboard.
“May God give you fortitude so that you remain steadfast in righteousness, even if you find yourself surrounded by great danger. Blessed are trials when, however heavy, they do not make one turn aside in the least from righteousness.”
— from the book Blessed Are You: Finding Inspiration from Our Sisters in Faith
Elizabeth Ann and William Magee had a busy, beautiful life together in Lower Manhattan. They cohosted a party for George Washington’s sixty-fifth birthday. They lived next door to Alexander Hamilton. They were stalwarts of the Episcopal church, and set a good example for their children in their charitable activities.
I often speak about the female saints to Catholic women’s groups, and two things tug at my heart. The first is the little boxes we try to put these holy women in. They weren’t perfect, folks, and they would have been the first to tell you about their struggles with the loss of loved ones, their health, their dignity. The faith and confidence they had in the Lord make them bigger than those little boxes. That brings us to the second thing: Like them, you are blessed. Not tomorrow, not when the kids go off to college, not when you get that next promotion. Now. Today. How do I know that?
We find our own spiritual poverty in many different ways: in humbling ourselves and working and living simply; in stripping ourselves of all the titles and possessions that give us pride; in finding the faith to set aside all the fears and paranoia that give us anxiety. For God to fill us up, we must first empty ourselves of all the stuff that stands between him and us. If we are strong enough to do that—to accept spiritual poverty, to understand that all we need is God and when we have God we have all we need—we begin to see the kingdom of heaven.
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