"Hold Your Eyes on God and Leave the Doing to Him."

August 12th Readings Reflection: Optional Memorial of Saint Jane Frances de Chantal, Religious

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Jane Frances de Chantal. A lesser-known saint in modern times, St. Jane’s life is a beautiful example for those in any state of life who are striving to walk along the path of holiness.

St. Jane married the French Baron de Chantal, and her deep Faith in God and admirable charity immediately won the hearts of everyone around her. Despite her family’s difficult financial situation, St. Jane always found a way to give bread and soup to the poor. Beggars would line up at her door, and she would personally hand them food. Even when some would return to the line more than once to receive more food, St. Jane never refused anyone, saying, “What if God turned me away when I came back to him again and again with the same request?” (Catholic.org).

When St. Jane was 28, her husband was killed in a tragic hunting accident, leaving the widow to raise their four children alone. She struggled to forgive the man who had killed her beloved husband, but by the grace of God, she was able to completely forgive him with time. St. Jane took a vow of chastity after the death of her husband, desiring that her heart now belong solely to God. She and her children lived with her father-in-law for several years, where she patiently endured his difficult temperament and arrogant steward.

Four years after the death of her husband, St. Jane met the great Bishop of Geneva, St. Francis de Sales. This began a life-long friendship between the two saints as St. Francis de Sales became St. Jane’s spiritual director. Together they founded the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary when St. Jane’s children were old enough for her to leave them. The Visitation Order was less austere than the other existing religious orders at that time, and as such, they were able to accept women who had been rejected by other orders due to poor health or age.

The response for today’s Psalm is, “In [Y]ou, Lord, I have found my peace.” This aptly summarizes the life of St. Jane Frances. She did not always have an easy life, experiencing great spiritual struggles as well as earthly trials and sufferings. However, she never allowed any of her sufferings to shake her faith or prevent her from practicing virtue. People from all walks of life sought St. Jane’s advice, which continues to remain relevant even in our own day.

St. Jane once said, “Hold your eyes on God and leave the doing to Him. That is all the doing you have to worry about.” This is a beautiful reminder in the midst of the anxieties of our daily lives, timeless advice given to us from a saint who lived all three states in life (married, celibate single, and religious). May St. Jane Frances de Chantal intercede for us from Heaven as we strive to imitate her virtue and unwavering faith in our own lives.

St. Jane Frances de Chantal, ora pro nobis!