Our Patron Saint
St. Louis, King of France, patron of Tertiaries, was the ninth of his name. He was born in France in 1214. His father was Louis VIII, and his mother was Blanche, daughter of Alfonso VIII of Castille, surnamed the Conqueror. At the age of 12, Louis he lost his father, and his mother became regent of the kingdom. From his infancy she had inspired him with a love for holy things.
In 1234, he married Margaret, the virtuous daughter of Raymond Berenger, Count of Provence, and two years later he took the reigns of government into his own hands. He was well known for protecting the French clergy from secular leaders and for strictly enforcing laws against blasphemy. Louis generally remained neutral in international disputes. However, because of a dispute between the Count of Le Marche and the Count of Poitiers, in which Henry III supported the Count of Le Marche, he was forced to go to war with England.
In 1238, he headed a crusade, in which he fell a prisoner among the Mohammedans, but a truce was concluded and he was set free and he returned to France. In 1242, Louis defeated Henry III at Tailebourg. After the war, he made restitution to the innocent people whose property had been destroyed. He established the Sorbonne (1252) and the monasteries of Rayaumont, Vavert, and Maubuisson. Louis led two crusades — the Sixth and the Seventh Crusades. He was captured and imprisoned during the Sixth (1244-1249). In 1267, he again set out for the East at the head of a crusade. In 1270, he was stricken by the pestilence at the siege of Tunis, and after receiving the Last Sacraments, he died of dysentry. Louis was canonized in 1297, and his feast day is August 25.
Sisters of St. Louis (SSL)
The Sisters of St Louis (SSL) is a Roman Catholic religious order. It traces its origins back to France in 1797, when originally included men as well as women, but it subsequently became a women-only order. It is a small order committed to working towards a world healed, unified and transformed.
Ut Sint Unum – that all may be one – is the SSL charism.
The charism of SSL calls for growth towards oneness in Christ and for its members to foster right relationships with each other, others, God and the whole of creation. In the spirit of Sint Unum, the order works toward:
- Living God’s love for the whole of creation
- Standing in solidarity with those who have no voice
- Responding to the radical call to conversion
- Transforming unjust structures
- Promoting peace and reconciliation
- Embracing diversity