Quote of the day, 4 March: Venerable Anne of Jesus

On Monday [17 January 1605 in the new Carmel of Pontoise] Mother Anne of Jesus gave the religious habit to four young ladies of Monsieur Gallemant’s community; the first received was called Agnes of Jesus; later she became Sub-Prioress, and took great care of Blessed Mary of the Incarnation (Madame Acarie) in her last illness.

After the ceremony, Mother Anne of Jesus, in order to excite the fervor of the novices just received, spoke these remarkable words:

“You have entered an Order so holy and perfect, that by keeping its rules and constitutions faithfully, one will go directly from her deathbed to her home in heaven.”

The first night these novices passed in the house they noticed a miraculous odor, which the Spanish Carmelites told them to call the perfume of St. Teresa.

Blessed Anne of St. Bartholomew

Chapter V, Foundation of the monastery of Pontoise

Note: Venerable Anne of Jesus died in Brussels on 4 March 1621. At this link, you can browse through all of our posts concerning Venerable Anne of Jesus.

Anne of St. Bartholomew, M; Bouix, M 1917,  Autobiography of the Blessed Mother Anne of Saint Bartholomew, inseparable companion of Saint Teresa, and foundress of the Carmels of Pontoise, Tours and Antwerp, translated from the French by Michael, M A, H. S. Collins Printing Co., Saint Louis.

Featured image: This detail of a portrait of Venerable Anne of Jesus is a treasured 17th c. painting at the Carmel of Pontoise, France. Found in the online database of the French Ministry of Culture, this portrait of Venerable Anne is a reduced and simplified copy of a painting kept in the Carmel of the Incarnation in Clamart, France. Photo credit: © Ministère de la Culture (France), Médiathèque du patrimoine et de la photographie, diffusion RMN-GP.