Kansas City, MO: Cause for Sainthood for Sr. Marie de Mandat-Grancey

Here is some good news from the Diocese of Kansas City – St. Joseph:

Diocese Granted Jurisdiction in Historic Process

Half a world away from a shrine that attracts millions of Christian and Muslim pilgrims each year, a Cause for the Beatification and Canonization for Sainthood will open on Friday, January 21, at 6 p.m., at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, in Kansas City, for Sister Marie de Mandat –Grancey, a woman who was instrumental in identifying the House of Mary in Ephesus, Turkey. Sister Marie played a central role in the preservation of Mary’s Home, said to have been the dwelling of Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and the Apostle John, after the crucifixion. The shrine, on a hillside overlooking Ephesus, is a place of pilgrimage for millions of people each year, both Christians and Muslims.

“We are honored to be designated by the Vatican to undertake this work of studying Sister Marie’s life,” said Bishop Robert Finn of the Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. “Her holiness was well known in her day, and this process will be a source of inspiration to many.”

Sr. Marie de Mandat-GranceyBorn into French nobility in 1837, Adele Louise Marie de Mandat-Grancey surrendered a life of privilege to enter a religious community. As a Daughter of Charity, she devoted her early ministry to care for the sick and teach orphans in Paris. Under her leadership, the orphanage tripled in size and inspired the necessary donations of food and clothing to care for the children. In 1886, she moved to a medical mission at a hospital in Smyrna, Turkey. There, she joined archaeologists in researching the location of Mary’s Home and rescuing it from oblivion. Contemporary popes – Pope John XXIII, Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, and Pope Benedict XVI – have honored the Shrine at Ephesus with pilgrimages to the site.

In early Christianity, public acclaim affirmed sainthood. Over time, the Catholic Church instituted a process to investigate lives marked by great charity and heroic virtue and were worthy of imitation. The process starts with an investigation of the individual’s life, including personal history, writings, teachings, and actions. Once complete, the local commission will send its findings to the Vatican for review.

While on a pilgrimage to the Middle East in 2008, Bishop Robert Finn visited Mary’s Home and met with Archbishop Franceschini, of Turkey. Citing insufficient personnel and resources, Archbishop Franceschini appealed to Bishop Finn to take an active role in Sister Marie’s cause. With support from the Vatican Congregation for the Cause of Saints, the Diocese of Kansas City ~ St. Joseph received jurisdiction to open the cause for Sister Marie de Mandat-Grancey.

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One Comment

  1. Traductora says:

    Interesting work. Yesterday I was passing through our Cathedral and saw an entire family of what appeared to be Muslims kneeling at the creche. Judging by their dress, they were Pakistanis. They may actually have been crypto-Christians, that is, the hidden Christians, who cannot express their faith in their native countries. Who knows? But it’s a worthwhile thing to keep gently evangelizing them.

    Someone born into an absolutist society tightly controlled by a political/quasi-religious cult like Islam can’t really be blamed for their beliefs or world view, and it’s very hard to reach out to them because their society is so closely monitored and controlled. But sometimes small gestures can get through where grand ones can’t.

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