Emilie de Vialard was a French nun who founded the missionary community of the Sisters of Saint Joseph. She inaugurated a new form of religious life dedicated to ministering to the poor and the sick, as well as teaching and educating children. The Catholic Church venerates her as a saint.
Origin
Emilie de Vialard was born on September 12, 1797 in Gaillac in southern France, a small town about 45 km northeast of Toulouse. Her family was well known in the region and beyond. Saint Emilia's grandfather, Baron Portal, was brought up at the court of Louis XVI. He was the royal physician to Louis XVIII and Charles X. Emilie's mother, Antoinette Portal, was a very devout Christian. She married Baron Jacques de Vialard. He served in the municipal administration and worked at the local hospital. Saint Emilia's brother, Augustin de Vialard, was one of the first settlers of the newly conquered Algiers.
Early years
Emilia spent her childhood in Gaillac, where she lived with her parents and two younger brothers. At the age of seven, she entered a local school. At an early age, the girl tried to overcome her natural vanity,which she acknowledged with particular frankness. She did not allow herself to look in the mirror when her mother gave her a new dress and refused to wear jewelry.
Youth
When the French saint was 13 years old, she was sent to a boarding school at the Abbey-aux-Bois convent in Paris. The nuns of the Congregation of Notre Dame became the mentors of the girl. In 1810 Emilia lost her mother. Two years later, the girl left school and returned home to take care of the family.
Striving for faith
According to the most holy Emilia, the death of her mother was for her a "blessed blow". The girl began to realize her religious vocation. She began to attract foreign missions. Wishing to restore the ruins left by the French Revolution, Saint Emilia undertook to instruct the local children and bring back the souls who had lost their faith. She refused her fiancé and made a personal vow to consecrate her life to God in the state of virginity.
The beginning of the holy path
In 1832, Emilia and her brothers inherited their grandfather's large fortune. The saint decided to leave her father's house. She was free, as her brother Maximin brought his new wife into the house. Separation from a widowed father was difficult for Emilia. She knew what misfortune she would bring to him and her heart. But faith was stronger.
The birth of the society of sisters
After leaving the house, the Catholic saint settled in a large building, which she bought with money from her inheritance. She was joined by three young women whoshared her concern for children and the sick poor. Over time, the community consisted of eight people. With the help of the assistant parish priest of St. Peter's Church, she gained religious significance. It happened on March 19, 1833. In June of the same year, the sisters became twenty-six. Two years later they took religious vows. Thus was born the community of the sisters of St. Joseph, whose founder was ready to take over all the charitable affairs of the city, in particular the upbringing of children and the care of the sick in homes, hospitals and prisons.
Algeria
In August 1935, Emilia's brother asked for help from the Society of Sisters. Three nuns, led by a saint, arrived in Algiers. There was a terrible cholera epidemic in this city. The sisters spent days and nights in the hospital, where there were European, Israeli and Muslim patients. Since the funds of the region were insufficient to cope with all the necessary expenses, Emilia herself financed the work of the sisters. The sick, regardless of race, were won over by the radiant mercy of the nuns. At the end of 1835, Saint Emilia visited Paris, where she met with Queen Marie-Amelie, who promised her her patronage for her selfless work in Algeria.
Continuation of the mission
Back in Algeria, Emilia of Caesarea opened a hospital and a school attended by many Christian and Jewish students. Then the sisters were asked for help by missionaries from Bonn. Six nuns came to the city to teach children at the local school. Also theyworked in a civilian hospice. Meanwhile, the governor-general began to insist that Emilie de Vialard take charge of the asylum in Algiers. She agreed. In 1838, four nuns take on the responsibility of raising and educating one hundred and fifty children. In the same year, the saint founded a workbench in Algiers designed to teach needlework to young women. Then, at the invitation and with the help of the bishop, she opened the orphanage.
After Algiers
Returning from Algeria, Emilia diligently worked on the Constitution of the Institute, which was later approved by Bishop Albi. Then, at the request of the abbot Suchet, Father Constantine, she created a new foundation of faith in the city of Oran. The sisters immediately began serving in the hospital and won the sympathy of the entire population.
Jurisdiction conflict
While Saint Emilia was preparing to establish an orphanage in Oran, she faced opposition from Bishop Dupuch. He considered himself the chief lord, having all the rights to the congregation of sisters. Mother Vialar went to Rome with a complaint to the Holy See. But the government ordered the sisters of St. Joseph to be driven out of the city. Emily had to deal with it. But before that, she made a report that the orphanages of Bonn, Oran and Algiers are the absolute property of the Congregation of Saint Joseph, and this expulsion must be accompanied by compensation. Shortly before his death, Bishop Dupuch wrote a letter in which he asked for forgiveness from Saint Emilia for the evil he had done to her.
Afterexile
What Algeria lost with the departure of the sisters, Tunisia acquired. Mother Vialard, with the permission of the apostolic prefect, established a foundation in Tunis, where her sisters began to carry out cleansing work. The purpose of the Constitution of Saint Emilia was the establishment of schools and hospitals. The biggest achievement was St. Louis College. Over the following years, Mother Vialar founded 14 new shelters, traveled extensively, and helped other communities.
The Courageous Way
After being expelled from Algeria, the sisters had to live in extreme poverty. Sometimes they had to eat in canteens run by other communities. But the tireless mother Vialar continued to work on several fronts at once. Despite numerous setbacks, she had no doubt that she would eventually overcome all the obstacles that stood in front of her. Conflicts, travel, sometimes inevitable returns to Gaillac, a visit to Rome, a shipwreck in M alta, where she created an orphanage - nothing threw her off her intended path. The Sisters of Saint Joseph helped people in Tunisia, Greece, Palestine, Turkey, Jaffa, Australia and Burma. Emilia de Vialard spent her entire inheritance on missionary work. In 1851, she went bankrupt. With the help of Bishop Eugene de Mazenod, the saint succeeded in founding the House of the Mother of the Sisters in Marseilles, in which she gathered all her nuns. To this day, the sisters of St. Joseph continue their good work around the world.
Prayer
"Oh Saint Emilia, you who in the church wanted to show the love of the Father, as it was done through the incarnationSon, grant us your obedience to the Spirit, your boldness and your apostolic courage. Amen".
Departure
The saint died from a hernia that troubled her throughout her life. This happened in Marseille on August 24, 1856. In 1951, Pope Pius 12 canonized her as a saint. Thus, the church recognized the outstanding merits of the nun. The body of Emilie de Vialard was transferred to Gaillac. The memory of a saint cannot be celebrated on her birthday on the feast of St. Bartholomew. She was beatified on June 18, 1939, the feast of Saint Ephrem.
