Émilie d'Oultremont

Émilie d'Oultremont (11 October 1818 – 22 February 1878) – in religion Marie of Jesus – was a Belgian Roman Catholic widow and later religious sister who founded the Sisters of Mary Reparatrix. She had four children and two of them, both daughters, joined her order and later predeceased her. She dedicated herself to the expansion of her order and sent religious to places such as England and India.

Pope John Paul II beatified her on 12 October 1997 in Saint Peter's Square.

Life

Youth and marriage

Emilie was born to Count (21 July 1787 – 4 August 1851) and Marie-Charlotte de Lierneux de Presles (28 July 1785 – 14 September 1850) at the Wégimont Castle as a member of the House of d'Oultremont, which had ruled in the region for centuries. Her father helped to negotiate the independence of the Belgian people from the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1830. and 1 February 1939 after a greater evaluation of them. The formal introduction to the cause came on 2 July 1941 under Pope Pius XII and she was titled henceforth as a Servant of God. An apostolic process was opened in Rome on 20 March 1942 and closed on 15 July 1943, while another was held in Liège from 24 July 1942 until 8 October 1943. An apostolic rogatory process was opened in Toulouse on 18 June 1942 and closed on 14 April 1943 while a second one opened in Madrid on 5 July 1942 and closed on 25 February 1943. The Congregation of Rites validated all these previous processes on 8 March 1946 while an ante-preparatory congregation approved the cause's direction on 18 March 1952 as did a preparatory committee on 9 April 1957.

The Positio was submitted decades later in 1989 to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints while theologians approved the contents of the dossier on 25 May 1993; the C.C.S. did so as well on 16 November 1993. Pope John Paul II declared her to be Venerable on 23 December 1993 after he confirmed that she had lived a model life of heroic virtue.

The miracle required for beatification was investigated and then validated on 12 February 1994 which allowed for a medical board to approve it on 5 October 1995 and for theologians to do so as well on 19 January 1996, while the C.C.S. issued approval on 18 June 1996. John Paul II issued his final approval to this on 17 December 1996 and beatified the late religious on 12 October 1997.