Saint Who?
Saints of the Ordinary
Blessed Pauline Jaricot
Laywoman († 1862) Feast: January 9
Pauline’s father owned a factory in Lyon, France, and she was a pretty, flirtatious teenager when multiple trials altered the direction of her life. First, she heard a homily on vanity, which cut her to the heart. Next, she suffered a serious fall, leaving her in severe pain. Then her mother and brother died. She turned to a priest for guidance, and he helped her trust God in her suffering.
As her health slowly improved, Pauline dedicated more time to prayer and spent less money on clothing. She was also troubled about the widespread rejection of God in France, and she founded a prayer group to offer sacrifices in reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus for these offenses. When she learned that French missionaries were in desperate need of money, she organized another group to pray and make weekly offerings for the missions. Later, she founded another lay association to promote the rosary.
Pauline became famous throughout France. Near the end of her life, she purchased a factory, which she hoped would become a model for Christian employers, but her business manager swindled her, and she spent her final years paying off her debts. But her associations, including the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, spread everywhere and proved the power of one woman’s trust in God.
Holy Spirit, teach us how to pray for
the needs of our world today.
