St. Julie Billiart (1751-1816)

Today marks the death of St. Julie Billiart (1751-1816). At sixteen, she began teaching to help support her family. When the French Revolution broke out, she offered her home as a hiding place for loyal priests. Around this time she had a vision of Christ surrounded by women in a habit she had never seen before. An inner voice told her that these would be her daughters and that she would begin an institute for the Christian education of young girls. She and another woman founded the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. At Amiens, the two women and a few companions began living a religious life in 1803. In 1805, Julie and three companions made their profession and took their final vows. She was elected as Mother General of the young Congregation. In 1815, she taxed her poor health by nursing soldiers wounded at the Battle of Waterloo. For the last three months of her life, she again suffered much, but she died peacefully on April 8, 1816 at 64 years of age. Julie was beatified on May 13, 1906, and was canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1969.