BOUNTIFUL — "We know our faith comes from our personal knowledge of God and we recognize the love of God in very different ways," said Daughter of Charity Sister Joan Gibson, at the Ladies of Charity of the Diocese of Salt Lake City Lenten Retreat April 1, at St. Olaf Church. Sr. Joan was the guest speaker. She has been a sister for 51 years and has served as a teacher, principal, and counselor for 45 years. She currently visits families who are in need of financial assistance in sending their teenage children to Sacred Heart Cathedral High School in San Francisco. Sr. Joan said the two levels of faith, hope, and love, include the Christian level and the human level. She tied these levels in with the life of Saint Louise de Marillac. St. Louise and Saint Vincent de Paul founded the Ladies of Charity in 1617, and the Daughters of Charity in 1633. "Faith, hope, and love are the three theological virtues," said Sr. Joan. "The gift of suffering is faith. Our journey to the resurrection is through hope. The human level of faith means having trust in oneself and in others. On the spiritual level, faith brings us to understand that no matter what happens in our lives, all will be well. The human level of hope is that the future will bring us opportunities to become better people. We have the hope that change is possible through our suffering. The human level of love and caring deeply for ourselves and others comes through companionship, without which we would have no community and nothing to keep us together. "The Christian level of faith, hope, and love is a deeper acceptance of God’s presence in our lives and knowing God is always there for us," said Sr. Joan. "Our lives go beyond being human and ordinary because of God’s grace. We have faith God will continually keep us on the right path. We do not expect God to live up to our expectations, we live up to God’s expectations. So we need to be open to the gift of God’s call, even if we are called to something we do not want to do." Sr. Joan said we are all called in different ways to serve the poor. Sometimes we think we choose who we are and what we do, but God chooses us by our abilities. St. Louise was an ordinary woman, who did extraordinary things in her life. She was born illegitimately in France on Aug. 15, 1591, and the identity of her mother is unknown. This affected her throughout her life until she met St. Vincent. She was adopted by an aristocratic family with a long-standing tie to nobility. Louise’s adopted mother died when she was still an infant. Louise’s father loved her very much, but married a woman who did not care for her. Her father could see she was suffering, so he put her in a boarding school run by Dominican sisters. Louise wanted to become a nun in a cloistered community, but they rejected her saying she was not strong enough. She felt it was because she was illegitimate, which depressed her. In 1611, at age 22, Louise married Antoine LeGras. Upon his death from tuberculosis in 1625, she felt alone, abandoned, and again she felt depressed. She felt God was punishing her because she did not become a nun. As a result of the Dominican influence in her childhood, her spirituality was that of a mystic. Her idea of God was a distant God to be feared. It was not until Louise met Vincent following the death of her husband, that she was able to understand God in a loving way through Jesus Christ. Vincent’s initial desire to be a priest was mainly for social advancement and monetary gain. His change of heart began when he realized the poor tenants of wealthy estate holders were longing for the gospel and good priests to minister to them. He realized God was talking to him through the tragic human situations of the poor, and calling him to found the Congregation of the Mission (the Vincentian order of priests). Vincent saw Christ in the poor. When Vincent first met Louise, he viewed her as depressed and despondent, as a woman who was filled with worry. They did not initially like each other, but soon Vincent learned to rely on Louise and all her skills. Louise realized all her suffering had meaning, and she began to rebuild her faith in God and faith in the people she served. The poor led her to Christ. "The eternal design of God in all things is the history of our salvation," said Sr. Joan. "The reason Jesus came to live with us in this world was to bring us back to God. Sometimes things are great in our lives and other times we hit obstacles. It is important to pay attention to the path God has put you on to bring you back to him. Louise’s understanding of the eternal design for her life was her suffering prior to meeting Vincent. She began to see it was not just happenstance. Our spirituality comes from what we experience in life. If we become bitter and angry, we cannot grow." Sr. Joan said Jesus gave us the Eucharist to unite us with God and with one another. Louise worked constantly to make the world a better place on behalf of the poor. She realized God had given her the gift of organization and she established schools so young girls could receive an education. She trusted in God and in herself, and she began to see her own potential and the potential of others. "Jesus was sent to live among us to show us God’s love," said Sr. Joan. "Without Christ’s resurrection on Easter Sunday, there would be no hope for us. No one could have ever predicted what happened on Good Friday. Easter is the essence of our hope."
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