Frail but empowered by the Spirit, Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini is celebrated today as both an immigrant and the first U.S. citizen to be canonized a saint. Feeble in health all her life, she was denied admittance into religious life. However, that did not stop Frances. Sent by a local bishop to reform House of Providence orphanage, she went on to start one of the first orders of women missionaries with just seven orphans. She founded Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. For the next 28 years she took the Americas by storm establishing schools, hospitals and orphanages from the U.S. to Argentina, Brazil and Nicaragua. She also founded houses in England, France and Spain. Her love for Christ was expressed in a visible compassion for the poor, homeless-migrant, the sick and the uneducated.Deuteronomy 10:17-19 comes to mind when reflecting upon the life of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini: “The Lord, your God is the God of gods, the Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who has no favorites, accepts no bribes, who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and befriends the migrant, feeding and clothing him. So you too must befriend the migrant, for you were once aliens yourselves in the Land of Egypt.”
We are inspired to pray …
May we see and serve you Lord, in the sick, the suffering and the sorrowful.
May we know you in the poor, the uneducated and the unloved.
May we love you in the unwanted, the bereaved, the homeless, the migrant and the refugee.
May we be thankful for the basics of food, water clothing and shelter.
3 comments:
You know when people ask me where the modern day saints are, I always say look for poor, sick or homeless and there is your saint. St. Francis Crabini reminds us that you don't have to perfect to be a saint. You don't have to be healthy, wealthy or wise. You just have to have a love of your fellow man and a willingness to help out.
Thanks for the reminder.
I.S., beautiful and well said!
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