This Saturday, the Vatican announced that Blessed Mary Alphonsine Danil Ghattas, Blessed Mary of Jesus Crucified Baouardy and Blessed Jeanne Emilie de Villeneuve will be canonized saints. Born in Jerusalem in 1843, Mary Alphonsine Danil Ghattas would enter the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition at age 15. The blessed is the founder of the first Palestinian congregation, the Congregation of Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary of Jerusalem, and is known for working tirelessly to help young people and Christian mothers.
This sister, who had a special mystic affinity for the Mother of God, passed away in 1927.
Maria Baouardy was born in Abellin, a village in Upper Galilee, in 1846 to Arab parents. She was baptized in the Melchite Greek Catholic Church. From her early youth, she experienced many sufferings together with extraordinary mystic phenomena.
In France, she entered the Carmel of Pau. From there, she was sent to India to found new Carmels, and then to Bethlehem, where she died in 1878. In 1983, she was beatified by Pope John Paul II.
Born in Toulouse, France in 1811, Jeanne Emilie de Villeneuve would go on to found the Congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception. The congregation is committed to educating poor girls, children, the sick and faraway missions.
The French sister died of cholera in 1854. In 2009, she was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI.
HCEF President/CEO Rateb Rabie, KCHS was estatic to hear about the canonization of Blessed Mary Alphonsine Danil Ghattas and Blessed Maria Baouardy. “The recognition of these Palestinian Nuns as saints through canonization reveals to the world an unfamiliar but crucial message about the Palestinian people as a whole. That they are bound by deep traditions that they have helped preserve, they remain true to the faith born in their land, and, above all – according to the tenets of that faith – they promote peace on earth. All Palestinians are honored by the canonization of these two nuns. They are a people dedicated to the divine principles of peace, justice, and servanthood for all humankind.”
Source: ZENIT Website
