Mass on the feast of Saint Marie Eugenie of Jesus, foundress of the Religious of the Assumption, at the Assumption Sisters’ chapel (16th district).
Is. 62:2B-4; Ps 83; 1 Cor. 3:7-11; Jn. 15:9-17
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As we celebrate Saint Marie Eugenie today, I allow myself to recall, as you surely do as well, that a relic of Saint Marie Eugenie is enshrined in the recently consecrated altar of Notre-Dame de Paris. This, of course, refers to the fact that Saint Marie Eugenie found her vocation at Notre-Dame, upon hearing Father Lacordaire preach. There, she discerned the path she would follow throughout her life. And it is precisely this aspect that guides us tonight: having clearly heard a call to open a new religious way, a new form of consecration, and at the same time understanding that her mission would be primarily in the field of education. Education was a crucial issue, as it is in every century, but at that time, particularly in France, it was a key point in human development and growth. It was something to be promoted with the conviction of guiding people toward the Lord, toward the Kingdom of God, and with the certainty that the participation of the Sisters and all those who would receive their education would be an anticipation of a better society, allowing it to develop according to the Lord’s desire for social and human life.
As we reflect on the mystery of Saint Marie Eugenie’s vocation, I find it beautiful to highlight some aspects of the readings we have just heard, which contribute to this meditation on vocation and allow us to learn from her life.
First of all, in the book of Isaiah, what struck me the most this afternoon, as I meditated on this text before coming, is the use of the future tense: "You shall be called…", "You shall be a glorious crown…", "You shall no longer be called Forsaken…", "You shall be called My Delight…", "This land shall be called Espoused…". This is an entire life project entrusted by the Lord Himself. He makes this promise, and Saint Marie Eugenie understood well that this promise was addressed to her, but also, through her, to the entire people of God. It is not merely about the relationship between our God and Father with one individual, but rather, through that person, it extends to an entire people. This is a wonderful opening. Today, the Lord says, "You shall be my bride," and He says it to the one we honor today, but also to all those touched by her vocation. She is the origin of a new covenant, the unfolding of the eternal Covenant that God makes with humanity in Jesus Christ. This use of the future tense in the text is a powerful sign. God is always the God of promise, a promise He fulfills and will fulfill. He desires to make a covenant, and He truly does so.
This continues in the Letter to the Corinthians: "Neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything." This means, of course, that it is good, right, and necessary for the Lord’s disciples to work, but this work would not exist or bear fruit if there were not Someone who gives the growth. Once again, growth points to what is yet to come, to the promise—the promise of fruit, the promise of what will happen when the Lord’s Word is received, when one enters His school, when one allows to grow what He has desired and promised.
We could continue reflecting on this theme of promise and fruitfulness, and the Gospel indeed does so, but I would like to emphasize another element in these texts: the diversity of names given to the Lord’s disciples.
In the Letter to the Corinthians, we are told that we are "God’s co-workers." It also says that we are the "house" that God builds. These words are not insignificant when referring to a foundress. To be a co-worker of God to this extent, to be the house in which future generations will find refuge—and this is precisely what has happened with Saint Marie Eugenie’s mission—is no small thing. To be a co-worker, to be a house, and above all, to be the foundation on which others will build, is a magnificent image that reflects all the work accomplished by Saint Marie Eugenie and by you, who continue welcoming and associating more people in her work, firmly established on the only true foundation: Jesus Christ.
In today’s Gospel, other names for the Lord’s disciples also appear: that of "servant." Of course, as the evangelist Luke says, we are "mere servants." We have been called to serve in a mission and to serve the Son of God in the Gospel. This is what we try to live out day after day. But we see that these servants are now called "friends." And they become bearers of hope, because once again, the image of growth appears, the image of fruit—the fruit that remains, the fruit that multiplies. God’s promise is fulfilled in the one He has chosen, and this word "one" must be understood in both singular and plural. God’s promise is realized and bears fruit: it is He who gives fruit and who allows us to understand how much good this life has done, how useful and fruitful it has been.
I cannot conclude without giving thanks to God for all of this. Because you have perceived within yourselves what the Lord has accomplished. And in the Church, He has desired to manifest that His choice was a good one, and that what happens through your Congregation, spread throughout the world, is the promise of God still being fulfilled in your works today.
May the Lord continue to bless you, may He make your mission fruitful—a visible fruit, a fruit of hope in this jubilee year, a year of joy, marking 2025 years since the Incarnation of the Son of God. The Pope invites us to be "pilgrims of hope," one more title to add to the previous ones. To be bearers of hope is one thing; to be pilgrims of hope is, in addition, to walk towards a world so diverse, so vast and scattered, that we never finish serving and leading it to the Lord, to the door of His Kingdom.
Blessed be the Lord!