St Marie Alphonsine Danil Ghattas: Serving in Obscurity

 St Marie Alphonsine Danil Ghattas is the woman we read about today in the book In Caelo et in Terra. She was born in Jerusalem, and eventually became a nun. She was visited by the Blessed Virgin Mary, who told her to found a new religious order for Arab girls. She did so, but kept her involvement a secret for many years. Most of her work was done in obscurity for most of her life. It wasn't until many years later, in 2015, that much of her work came to light, and she was canonized as a saint. 

This is a nice reminder of my favorite saint, Therese of Liseux. Most people who knew St Therese had no idea that she was a saint and doctor of the church during her lifetime. Even Therese herself would have been surprised to hear that she was a doctor of the church. Her life was spent (happily) in obscurity and in humility.

Many of us are called to a similar path. Called to be obscure and humble. A few of us are called to speak loudly in the limelight. But most, I think, are called to work quietly behind the scenes. You can read more about St Marie Alphonsine here. 

Thank You, God, for the quiet example of this nun. St Marie Alphonsine, pray for us.