John Eudes
Johannes Eudes , also Jean Eudes (born November 14, 1601 in Mazerai near Ri , Normandy , France , † August 19, 1680 in Caen ) was a French Roman Catholic priest and founder of the Congregation of Jesus and Mary and the Congregation of the Sisters of Good shepherd . Because of his commitment to spread the veneration of the hearts of Jesus and Mary, St. John Eudes also called "the author, teacher and apostle of the liturgical veneration of the heart of Jesus " (Pope Pius X ). His feast day is August 19th.
Life
His parents prayed for a long time to the Virgin Mary for a child and consecrated it to her after his birth, which St. Johannes liked to mention Eudes in his sermons.
At the age of 14 he went to a Jesuit school in Caen . In 1622 in Caen he met the oratorian community of secular priests founded by Cardinal Pierre de Bérulle and entered there. He was ordained a priest on December 20, 1625.
In 1627 his father wrote to him that the plague raged in and around Argentan and that many people died without the sacraments . Johannes Eudes then devoted himself to the care and pastoral care of those suffering from the plague.
At the suggestion of Cardinal Bérulle, his superior, Eudes held numerous popular missions and wrote books, the most famous of which is The Life and Kingdom of Jesus in Christian Souls . His spirituality is strongly influenced by the École française de spiritualité ("French School") Bérulles. The École française turned against the elitist Jansenism in the form of Port Royal , which cultivated a strict piety. In contrast, John Eudes placed the mercy of God at the center of his preaching.
In 1640 he founded the religious community of women of Christian love in Caen .
St. John Eudes often met priests who were poorly prepared for their office and who did it poorly. Therefore, he wanted to ensure a better education for the future priests. His superiors refused, however, because it did not fit the purpose of the community. After much prayer and struggle, he left the congregation of the oratory on March 25, 1643 with some priests and founded a new community: the Congregation of Jesus and Mary CJM, which is now also called Eudists .
This community opened a seminar in Caen. Later St. Johannes Eudes further seminars in Normandy and Brittany . He tirelessly reminded the priests of the meaning of their task and preached to them the priestly sanctity of life: the priest who is connected with the life of Christ must be “a bodily image of Christ”, he must be “clothed with his holiness”.
On February 8, 1647, Johannes Eudes celebrated the first liturgical feast of the Heart of Mary in Autun . For Eudes, the mother of Jesus is "the perfect type" of Christian life: Christ lives and rules perfectly in her heart.
In 1672 the Eudist communities celebrated the first liturgical feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the first years the festival was celebrated on August 30th, from 1672 on October 20th. The introduction of this feast, which was later extended to the universal Church, was the result of his whole life of prayer and apostolic ministry.
In 1641 Eudes founded a “Refuge” house in Caen, where devout women looked after former prostitutes who wanted to start a new life. From this the religious community "Our Lady of Love" developed, from which the Sisters of the Good Shepherd later emerged. A well-known member of this order was the beatified Maria Droste zu Vischering .
canonization
Saint John Eudes died in Caen on August 19, 1680 and was beatified in 1909 by Pope Pius X and in 1925 by Pope Pius XI. canonized.
Fonts
- La vie et le Royaume de Jésus , 1637
- Le bon confesseur , 1666
- Le Cœur admirable de la très Sainte Mére de Dieu , 1680
Work editions
- Oeuvres complètes , ed. J. Lebrun u. Ch. Dauphin, Vannes 1905/11
- Oeuvres choisies de saint Jean Eudes. Lethielleux, Paris 1935.
literature
- Joseph Hector: Blessed John Eudes, Apostle of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, Founder of the Order of Our Lady of Love, the "Religious of the Good Shepherd". Bonifatius, Paderborn 1909.
- Oda Schneider: Johannes Eudes, the prophet of the heart. Herder, Vienna 1947.
- Maria Exenberger: The new heart - Johannes Eudes. Johannes, Leutesdorf 1990, ISBN 3-7794-1184-9 .
- Paul Milcent: Saint Jean Eudes, un artisan du renouveau chrétien au XVIIe siècle. Éditions du Cerf, Paris 1985, ISBN 2-204-02334-5 .
- Paul Milcent, Jacques Venard: Saint Jean Eudes, 1601–1680. Desclée de Brouwer, Paris 1999, ISBN 2-220-04458-0 .
- Thomas Marschler: The heart of Mary in its relationship to the Triune God according to the teaching of St. Jean Eudes . In: Manfred Hauke (ed.): Die Herz-Mariä-Verreung. Historical development and theological content (Mariological Studies 22). Pustet, Regensburg 2011, pp. 85-108.
- Zöckler: Eudes, Jean, Eudists . In: Realencyklopadie for Protestant Theology and Church (RE). 3. Edition. Volume 5, Hinrichs, Leipzig 1898, pp. 574-575.
- Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz : Eudes, Jean. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 1, Bautz, Hamm 1975. 2nd, unchanged edition Hamm 1990, ISBN 3-88309-013-1 , Sp. 1548-1549.
Web links
- Entry in the Catholic Encyclopedia (Eng.)
- The complete works available online
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Eudes, Johannes |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Eudes, Jean |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | French founder and saint |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 14, 1601 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Mazerai near Ri , Normandy , France |
| DATE OF DEATH | August 19, 1680 |
| Place of death | Caen |