Madeleine Sophie Barat

10 March Reflection Quote

"The nature of love is to change the lover into the Beloved." Madeleine Sophie Barat, Letter 93 to Emilie Giraud, 1828.

The power of love to transform us is one of the great themes in literature. Many stories and songs remind us that love calls forth the best in us. In fact, it calls us to be the love of the Heart of God. – have you ever seen love change a person for the better? – how does being loved help you to be a better person? – in what ways does love draw you into union with the Heart of God?

5 March Reflection Quote

"You are growing older and suffering; so you can do very little, but this is a means of becoming interior and of unting yourself to Jesus in his self-emptying." Madeleine Sophie Barat, Letter 74 to Adreinne Michel, 1837

Our culture tends to value having and doing over being. It is not surprising then that we may fall into valuing ourselves according to what we do. Jesus, however, shows us another way. – does this saying from St Madeleine Sophie Barat feel like an unhelpful suggestion that you ‘offer up’ your sufferings? – how might less action help you to be closer to Jesus? – what feeling arise when you can do very little?

24 February Reflection Quote

"Your life is Jesus and nothing but Jesus." Madeleine Sophie Barat, Letter to Alexandrine de Riencourt, 1833.

We tend to think of ourselves as the protagonists in our lives. However St Madeleine Sophie Barat invites us to a life that is so Jesus-centred that there is nothing but Jesus. – who or what takes centre stage in your life? – how can you be the Heart of God in the heart of the world? – when do you feel the most in union with the Sacred Heart of Jesus?

19 February Reflection Quote

"How is the Society that we so love to be upheld, propagated and extended? Believe me, there is only one way - by the depth and sincerity of our religious spirit." Madeleine Sophie Barat, Circular Letters: xvi, February 1844.

At a time when there is some anxiety about the future of religious life, these words offer comfort. Through them our founder, St Madeleine Sophie Barat, points the way. – what for you is ‘religious spirit’? – how might we express ‘religious spirit’ today? – what might the words ‘upheld’, ‘propagated’ and ‘extended’ mean today?

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