louise de marillac

Louise de Marillac’s Statue in St. Peter’s Basilica, Rome

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The Vincentiana Collection in Archives/Special Collections at DePaul University’s John T. Richardson Library has recently acquired this 1947 press photo. The text reads:

“SCULPTURE READIED FOR ST. PETER’S BASILICA ROME: Professor A. Silva, official Vatican artist puts the finishing touches to the head of the sculpture of the recently canonized Louise de Marillac, founder of the order of the Sisters of Charity. The statue, which is made after model at top right, will be twenty feet high, in accordance with the normal size of statutes in St. Peter’s Basilica, where it will be erected.”

ACME Photo by Julius Humi, Staff Correspondent, 9/27/47

Rare Rosalie Rendu Print Acquired

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The Vincentiana Collection located at the Special Collections and Archives of DePaul University has recently acquired a rare 19th century print depicting a famous incident involving Rosalie Rendu during the 1848 revolution in Paris.   For more information see Sr. Louise Sullivan’s 2006 biography: Sister Rosalie Rendu: A Daughter of Charity On Fire with Love for the Poor,

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“Early Vincentian Family Holy Card.”

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The Vincentian Studies Institute recently acquired this Italian holy card for its collection. Dating from the late 19th or early 20th century (after the beatification of Jean-Gabriel Perboyre in 1893)  it is a very early example celebrating the wider Vincentian Family including the Congregation of the Mission, the Daughters of Charity, the Ladies of Charity, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, and the Sisters of Charity.  Louise de Marillac is also featured.

Book of the week: “Bastards: Politics, Family, and Law in Early Modern France.”

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Matthew Gerber: “Bastards.  Politics, Family, and Law in Early Modern France,”  (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012). pp. 274. ISBN 978-0-19-975537-0.

 

This volume explores the evolving jurisprudence and social customs in Early Modern France with respect to illegitimacy and the political history of the family.  The first two chapters in particular provide fascinating insights into Louise de Marillac’s conflicted status as the acknowledged “natural daughter” of Louis de Marillac born out of wedlock.  Chapter 1: “Bastardy in Sixteenth-Century French Legal Doctrine and Practice.  Chapter 2: “Jurisprudential Reform of Illegitimacy in Seventeenth-Century France.”

 

Matthew Gerber is an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Colorado at Bolder.

Denise P. Gallo, Ph.D. Appointed Provincial Archivist for Daughters of Charity Province of Saint Louise

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NEWS RELEASE

Denise P. Gallo, Ph.D., Appointed Provincial Archivist for Daughters of Charity Province of St. Louise

The Daughters of Charity Province of St. Louise announce the appointment of Denise P. Gallo, Ph.D., as Provincial Archivist. Dr. Gallo will oversee the Provincial Archives located at historic St. Joseph House in Emmitsburg, MD. Currently under renovation, the Archives will soon boast a state-of-the-art repository, collection exhibit space, and a reading room for researchers. The Archives will combine the collections of four former U.S. Daughters of Charity Provinces—St. Louis, MO; Evansville, IN; Albany, NY; and Emmitsburg. These four former Provinces unified in July of 2011 as the Province of St. Louise; as members of this province, 540 Daughters of Charity serve in 22 U.S. States, Washington, D.C., Quebec, Montreal, Canada, and in foreign missions on six continents.

Most recently the Head of the Acquisitions and Processing Section in the Music Division of the Library of Congress, Dr. Gallo holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in English (Merrimack College in Andover, MD) and in Italian and History (both from The University of Maryland in College Park, MD). She has Masters of Arts degrees in English (Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, IL) and Musicology (Antioch University in Yellow Springs, OH); her doctorate is in Historical Musicology from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. In addition, Dr. Gallo holds an Advanced Studies Certificate in Archives and Records Management from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Prior to joining the music archives at the Library of Congress, Dr. Gallo was the Co-Chair of the Music History Division and Assistant Professor of Music History at Catholic University. She previously served as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Loyola University in New Orleans, LA, and as a Lecturer at The Johns Hopkins University, Continuing Studies Division in Baltimore, MD. She also worked as an Instructor and Field Registrar at The University of Maryland at the US Naval Air Station in Sigonella, Italy.

A member of the Steering Committee for Acquisitions and Appraisal section of the Society of American Archivists, Dr. Gallo also is a member of the Mid-Atlantic Region Archives Conference, ARMA International (Records and Information Management), the American Association of Museums, Archivists for Congregations of Women Religious, and the American Musicology Society.

An active volunteer, lecturer, and mentor, Dr. Gallo and her husband Albert M. Gallo, Jr., reside in New Oxford, PA.

VHRN Press Release: Sr. Betty Ann McNeil, D.C., appointed Vincentian Scholar-in-Residence, DePaul University

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DePaul University Appoints Sister Betty Ann McNeil, D.C., Vincentian Scholar-in-Residence

Sister Betty Ann McNeil, D.C., will join DePaul University as its second Vincentian Scholar- in- Residence in the school’s Office of Mission and Values. The Vincentian Scholar-in-Residence program seeks to support the research of notable Vincentian Scholars in support of DePaul University’s identity as the premiere international resource for Vincentian Studies.

Sister McNeil entered the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, Emmitsburg Province, in 1964 and earned a bachelor’s degree in social welfare from Saint Joseph College, Emmitsburg, Maryland in 1969 and a master of social work from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1975.

A leading expert on the history of Vincentian tradition especially Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton and the early history of the Sisters of Charity in the United States, Sister McNeil has been a member of the Vincentian Studies Institute since 1988 and currently serves on its editorial board. Her publications include “The Vincentian Family Tree,” a survey of all communities related to Saint Vincent de Paul, Saint Louise de Marillac and the Vincentian Family, published by the Vincentian Studies Institute in 1996.

She also has written or edited numerous volumes on Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, as well as histories of the Daughters of Charity in the United States including their service as nurses in the Civil War. She has given numerous presentations nationally and internationally on these same topics. Sister McNeil is currently archivist on the Emmitsburg campus of the Daughters of Charity, Province of Saint Louise. She is DePaul’s second Vincentian Scholar in Residence, joining the Rev. John Rybolt, C.M.

“We look forward to supporting the Vincentian research and publication agenda of Sister McNeil, and we look forward to her contributions to mission and heritage enhancement programs at DePaul University” said the Rev. Edward R. Udovic, C.M., senior executive for University Mission at DePaul.

Founded in 1979 and sponsored by DePaul since 2007, the Vincentian Studies Institute is the premiere international organization promoting a living interest in the history and spirituality of the Vincentian family founded by Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) and Saint Louise de Marillac (1591-1660). The institute supports a wide variety of research, publication, and continuing education efforts particularly making use of the latest technology advances provided by the World Wide Web.

Saint Vincent de Paul was a 17th Century French priest who was known as the “Apostle of Charity” for his commitment to the poor and marginalized. His community service and advocacy of respect for the individual were the hallmarks of his philosophy and ministry. He worked closely with Saint Louise de Marillac, to found the Daughters of Charity in 1633, to minister to the spiritual and material needs of poor persons. In 1625 he founded the Congregation of the Mission (the Vincentians) who are the sponsors of DePaul University.

Book of the Week: Praying with Vincent de Paul

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Praying with Vincent de Paul by Thomas F. McKenna, C.M. (Chicago: Vincentian Studies Institute, 2011), pp. 107.  ISBN: 978-1-936696-02-1.  Originally published by St. Mary’s Press in 1994 this volume appeared in their popular “Praying with…” series.  St. Mary’s Press has discontinued the series.  This reprint includes new translations from Coste and updates citations.

From the book jacket:

“Saint Vincent de Paul models the fullness of a Christian life that is prayerfully active and actively prayerful. He found and served God in theanawim-poor people, sick people, the abandoned outcasts in the countryside and in the cities. Vincent will be a good companion to anyone who seeks balance between action and contemplation, between organizing good works and relying on divine providence, between intelligent activity and trusting surrender.”

Thomas F. McKenna, C.M., presently serves as the provincial director for the new Saint Louise province of the Daughters of Charity headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.

Daughters of Charity Archives

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Four North American provinces of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul merged on July 31, 2011, and formed the province of St. Louise USA with administrative offices located in St. Louis, Missouri.  The archival collections of the former provinces (Albany, New York; Emmitsburg, Maryland; Evansville, Indiana; and St. Louis, Missouri) will be consolidated in a new 20,000-square-foot facility located within the former St. Joseph’s Provincial House, in Emmitsburg, Maryland.  The new archives also will house records of the Province of St. Louise.  The facility will include a state-of-the-art repository, exhibit areas, and a research and reading room.  Part of a multiphase construction project is now underway, the archives is expected to be ready for transfer of records in late summer 2012, with opening anticipated in 2013. The committee planning the new archives is chaired by Sr. Margaret John Kelly, D.C.; members include archivists John Diefenderfer; Lois Martin; Sister Betty Ann McNeil,D.C.; and Carole Prietto. For more information, contact Sr. McNeil, the archivist at mcneilsrba@doc.org, or visit the Web site: http://www.daughters-of-charity.org/

Early Rosalie Rendu Holy Card

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The Vincentiana Collection at DePaul University recently purchased this very early holy card depicting a scene from the life of Rosalie Rendu.  This incident took place during the revolution of 1848.  Sr. Louise Sullivan has an account in her biography of Rosalie on pages 179-180.  The card does not name Sr. Rosalie, but it depicts her historical role in this incident.  The card certainly dates to within years of the event.  The back of the card has this description (translated from the French).

 

“It is in times of trials and terror that the sublimity of religion is clearly revealed in the devotion of its ministers and its virgins. While in the faubourg Saint-Antoine the venerable prelate of the capital (Msgr. Affre the archbishop) gave his life for his sheep, in the Saint-Marceau district an officer of the national guard was saved by the devotion of the daughters of Saint Vincent de Paul. He took refuge among them to escape his pursuers from among the insurgents.  However, when he heard the death threats that these men made against these holy women he gave himself up to his furious pursuers despite the sisters’ pleas. He was grabbed, forced to his knees, and was about to be executed. At this moment, the courageous superior ignored the threats of the malefactors and placed herself between them and their intended victim.  She said to them: “This is the house of God, and you will not soil it by this crime!  For 45 years I have served you, and for the first time I ask you for something in return. Can you refuse me?” Then one of these men put his bayonnet to the throat of another of the sisters and said: “Well then, it is you who will be killed.” “Do you think I am afraid of your bayonette?” said the courageous virgin to him. She responded with disdain.  “It is God alone that I fear.” How can one not recoginze the divinity of a religion which engenders such sublime devotion!”