Jane Frances was born in Dijon, France on January 28, 1572.  She was the mother of six children, while three of them died shortly after they were born.  She was also widowed at the age of 28.  She met St. Francis de Sales when he preached at the Sainte Chapelle in Dijon.  They became intimate friends. 

After developing her friendship with Sr. Francis de Sales, she was inspired to start a religious order for women, the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary.  It would be an Order with the support of St. Francis de Sales, for those women rejected by other orders due to poor health or age, those that were rejected by other orders. 

St. Jane Frances de Chantal died on December 13, 1641 at the age of 69.  She passed at the Visitation Convent in Moulins, one of those she founded, and was buried in Annecy.   She was beatified in 1751 by Pope Benedict XIV and canonized in 1767 by Pope Clement XIII.   St. Jane Frances’s feast day is currently celebrated on August 12^th. 

Practical Take Away

St. Jane Frances de Chantal experienced a lot of tragedy in her life, mostly at an early age.  She lost three of her six children, and her husband by the age of 28.  She knew her faith, and clung to that faith, to see her through her trials.  It wasn’t until she met St. Frances de Sales and became very good friends with him, that she took her faith to the next level.  She founded the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary, an order that was for women that were too old or sick to enter other orders.  Her compassion, allowed many to enter religious life and be of service to the Church.  Many times in our lives we too, have the opportunity to turn sorrow into good, our compassion into helping others, let us call upon St. Jane Frances de Chantal to help us do good for others through our faith.