1. St. Marie Eugenie of Jesus
Foundress of the Religious of the Assumption
WITH YOU, WE CAN
10th march, 2013
2. Who is she?
She is Anne Eugenie
Milleret de Brou ,
later to become St. S
Eugenie of Jesus ,
the future foundress of
the Religious of the
Assumption
3. The family of St. Mª Eugenie of
Jesus
Anne Eugenie’s father, Jacques
Milleret, had met Eleonore-Eugenie de
Brou in Luxembourg.
Five children, three boys and two girls,
were born to them.
4. The family of St. Mª Eugenie of
Jesus
Anne Marie
Eugenie was born
in 1817 in Metz,
into a wealthy
family and grew up
in a chateau in the
suburb of Priesch,
north of Paris
5. The family of St. Mª Eugenie of
Jesus
She grew up in a family that had no interest in
religion or Jesus Christ, but that was privileged,
wealthy and passionate about politics and social
justice
7. Anne Eugenie was baptized on October 5, 1817 in
her family’s own chapel at Preisch.
8. For Anne Eugenie, Preisch meant the
countryside, an atmosphere of freedom, games
with Louis, walks, the joys of childhood, the
vast library, visits to the poor with her mother,
parties.
9. First Communion of St. Mª Eugenie of
Jesus
¡Navidad de 1829!
At the age of 12, Anne-Eugénie made her First
Holy Communion at the Church of Saint Segolene
10. First Communion of St. Mª Eugenie of
Jesus
“The moment I received Jesus Christ, it was as if
everything I had seen on earth was only a passing
shadow.”
11. First Communion of St. Mª Eugenie of
Jesus
Through receiving this sacrament, she experienced
Through receiving this sacrament, she experienced
the presence of God, a mystical moment, one about
the presence of God, a mystical moment, one about
which she would talk throughout the rest of her life
which she would talk throughout the rest of her life
12. For Sale
In 1830, her father lost his
fortune and had to put Preisch
up for sale. In the house in Metz,
too, sheriff’s seals were
everywhere. An even more bitter
drama was the separation of her
parents.
13. For Sale
Anne Eugenie went to live
in Paris with her mother while
Louis remained with M.
Milleret.
14. In 1832, a cholera
epidemic ravaged the
capital. Mme. Milleret
became ill; within a few
hours she was dead.
Anne Eugenie was
fifteen, alone and in
great distress.
15. Her father then sent Marie Eugenie to live with very
Catholic cousins in Paris.
16. Then God intervened.
In Lent 1836, Anne Eugenie heard Father
Lacordaire in Notre Dame:
He spoke to her heart. She
realised that she had to give
her life to God.
17. As she said later, "My
vocation dates from
Notre Dame."
18. It was only the next year that chance -
or the hand of God -
brought her into contact with Fr.
Combalot.
19. Combalot told her that he was looking for
someone to help him found a religious
order devoted to Mary and to the
education of the poor, and thought that
Anne-Eugénie would be such a
foundress.
At the age of 22, with four young
companions, she founded the
Religious of the Assumption
20. Fr. d’Alzon founded
the Augustinians of
the Assumption
6 years after the
foundation of the
Religious of the
Assumption
Fr. d‘Alzon became
her spiritual director
and intimate friend for
40 years .
23. April 30, 1839 :
Foundation Day
Religious of the
Assumption
First apartment at Rue
Ferou
24. Appartment on Rue Ferou
On April 30, 1839,
Anne Eugenie Milleret and Anastasia Bevier met in a small
apartment on Rue Ferou, a tiny lane near Saint Sulpice. Year after
year, Marie Eugenie would celebrate that anniversary foundation of
the Religious of the Assumption on by recounting once more the
amazing deeds of God.
25. “In the Assumption,
everything is from
Jesus Christ,
everything belongs to
Jesus Christ,
everything must be
for Jesus Christ.”
26. Site of the first boarding school
at Impasse des Vignes which
opened in the Spring of 1842
with 14 students.
27.
28. On August 10, 1857, the Community left
the heart of the city and went to Auteuil;
To the Chateau was added the boarding
school. The new monastery became the
heart of the Congregation and would be
the House of Mother Marie Eugenie for
40 years.
36. What inspired her? ~ Reign of God
• A lifestyle and a mission lived in the following of
Jesus and under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
• A way of life that creates an interior
order of priorities and values that
structures persons and society in love,
justice and peace.
“It pains me to hear this earth called a land
of exile. I consider it a place of glory for
God.”
37. What inspired her…
~ the basis of her pedagogy …
To challenge a worldly education whose instruction
was superficial;
An authentic Christianity and not a external piety;
To give girls a formation of the whole person in the
light of Christ
To transform those who are too narrow-minded in
their religiosity ~
“…hearts that do not beat
for anything
broad-minded…”
38. The Educational Project
Educate to help persons transform their way of
thinking and acting, to transform their Social
environment
Born from a double vision~
– The REIGN of God – beginning and end of
everything
– Christian Society – where God is recognized,
loved and served
Formation of the intelligence enlightened by faith ~
Christianize the Intelligence