Marie-Madeleine d'Houët

Marie-Madeleine d'Houët (1781–1858) also known as Viscountess de Bonnault d'Houët, was a French widow and single mother who, later in her life, was inspired by zeal for God and guided by Ignatian spirituality to found a religious institute of Religious Sisters known as the Faithful Companions of Jesus. Their goal is to work to help the poor and needy of society, and their communities have expanded around world, running schools and social service operations.

Life Early life She was born Marie-Madeleine-Victoire de Bengy in Châteauroux, then in the ancient Province of Berry in the Kingdom of France (now in the Department of Indre), the second of five children of Chevalier Sylvain Charles Pierre de Bengy, commander of a corps of French Marines, and Marie de Cougny de la Presle. She was affectionately called "Gigi" by her family. The Bengy family was a large and prosperous one, prominent in the history of the region. Her parents, to whom she was close, were devout Catholics, and when the French Revolution broke out her father was imprisoned by the local Revolutionary Tribunal. While she worked to free her father, his wife took the children to a secluded farmhouse, where they followed a domestic routine. Madeleine was struck by the quiet determination and faith her mother displayed during this period.

Her father was freed from imprisonment in 1800, and after his reunion with the family, they moved to Issoudun. There Bengy met another young girl her own age who was to become a lifelong friend, Constance. They became inseparable, sharing their innermost thoughts with one another. They would also go together to provide help to the poor and sick of the city.

Expansion From the institute's first foundation in Amiens, it spread quickly across the globe. Twenty seven convents of the institute were established in Mother d'Houët's lifetime with several more thereafter. Genazzano FCJ College in Kew, Notre Dame de France in Paris, Vaucluse College FCJ in Richmond, Gumley House at Isleworth, and another FCJ College in Benalla were established thanks to her work.

Madeleine d'Houët was a devoted missionary having completed more than five hundred journeys during her years of ministry. The community founded by Madeleine d'Houët is dedicated to the education of the underprivileged and marginalised, especially girls and women, in the Americas, Asia, Australia, and Europe.

Madeleine d'Houët is the foundress of Laurel Hill Coláiste, a girls school in Limerick, Ireland.

Veneration

Her spiritual writings were approved by theologians on 22 April 1903, and on 13 December 1916 the cause for her beatification was formally opened, granting her the title of Servant of God.

Resting place In 1904, upon the expulsion of the Sisters from France by an anti-clerical government, Mother d'Houët's remains were transferred to a cemetery of a convent of the congregation in England, near Birkenhead. In 1980, at the request of the Postulator of the cause, the remains were transferred to the chapel of the General Motherhouse of the congregation in Broadstairs, Kent.

On 22 September 2012, the remains were moved one final time and returned to Paris, where they were entombed in the Church of St. Dominique, Paris near the house where she had died. Some 50 Companions of Jesus from around the world were present for the ceremony, as well as seven generations of Mother d'Houët's descendants and members of the Bengy family.