The Spirituality of Blessed Pauline Jaricot
Behind the living Rosary is a woman with a spirituality centered on Jesus and Mary. She had a great desire for evangelization. In particular, she wanted to spread the prayer of the rosary after the disaster of the Revolution. Many people still participate today in the work of the Lyon woman.
Briefly, who is Pauline Jaricot?
Pauline was born in Lyon in July 1799. The blessed Lyonnese woman grew up in a Christian family. At the age of 17, she decided to take a vow of chastity while remaining secular in the world. From that moment on, her life was entirely turned towards God. She was driven by a great desire: to make God known and loved. The revolution wreaked so much havoc that faith was no longer very strong in her contemporaries. She put in place different action plans to evangelize her city.
She was not spared hardship and illness. She lived in communion with God.
About Pauline, Pope Leo XIII said in 1881: By her faith, her trust, her strength of soul, her gentleness, and her serene acceptance of all crosses, Pauline proved to be a true disciple of Christ.”
The Faith of Pauline
Pauline made strong choices, like her vow of chastity, to dedicate herself entirely to the mission of evangelization. She was determined to make Christ and the Blessed Virgin, to whom she had a great devotion, known. Sacrifice and difficulties did not frighten her. Her deep faith helped her every day. She said: “I am made to love and act. My cloister is the world.”
Her desire to make the Virgin known
Pauline had this great desire to dust off the prayer of the rosary. She wanted to break free from prejudice by offering this prayer to all Pauline was 26 years old when she founded the first living rosary. She gathered a group of 15 people and distributed to each member of the group a mystery of the rosary to meditate on. Every day, the 15 members committed to reciting their decade of the rosary. So at the end of each day, the group recited the rosary. This is a mission of evangelization that she maintained until the end of her life in 1862. The rosary is a prayer to which Pauline has always been faithful.
“I prayed incessantly to Our Lord to save sinners...I wanted to contribute to the glory of God.”
“This beautiful prayer was left to the devotees of the profession, although they were old and had nothing to do; which was a false prejudice...”
Her love for Jesus
Pauline honored the Blessed Virgin every day through the rosary, but she did not forget Christ. Pauline had a great desire for the Eucharist, and in particular for adoration. She liked to take time in front of the monstrance, where Jesus is really present through the wafer. During these times of adoration, Pauline spoke to Jesus as her friend, in all sincerity.
She said that Jesus, during these times of worship, taught her everything.
How can I follow in Pauline Jaricot's footsteps?
While being secular like Pauline, we can also set the world ablaze by our faith.
Pauline invites us to evangelism. We also have our mission of evangelization to implement around us: “ Join this mission. Pray and make others pray.”
Pauline encourages us to get to know the Virgin and her Son through meditation on the mysteries of the rosary. It is also possible to join a living rosary group, a group of 20 people meditating on the 4 mysteries proposed by the Church. It is a beautiful way to pray the rosary with our Christian brothers and sisters and in a dynamic way.
At the tme of Pauline's beatification in 2022, Rosario was born. It is an application dedicated to the rosary and is part of the initiative launched by Pauline many years ago. With this app, it is possible to pray the rosary alone or in a group and to make our devotion to Mary known.
“The rosary is like an abridged history of Our Lord Jesus Christ and Mary.”
It is a book open to all, a fruit that gives a taste of God, an abundance of consolation.”
The Prayer of the Rosary Teams
O Venerable Pauline Marie Jaricot, You who “loved Jesus Christ more than anything on earth,” intercede for us, so that following your example, we may generously devote ourselves to making Christ known and loved through the mysteries of the rosary. To remain faithful to the mission of the rosary teams, grant us the same spirit of boldness, courage, and strength that inspired you. Then we will be able to offer the Gospel with Mary to the people around us, in our neighborhoods, inviting them to join our Rosary prayer in teams. Intercede for us before Christ, so that He may set our hearts on fire with His charity, and that in turn we may ignite the world with the fire that He came to kindle on our earth. Amen.
Ask for Pauline's intercession with Hozana and pray a decade with Rosario
On Hozana, you can participate in a novena to ask for pardons from Pauline Jaricot. Currently blessed, it takes a second miracle to declare her a saint in the Church. Rosario is an application created by Hozana that perpetuates Pauline's work via modern means of communication. You can download Rosario and pray your daily decade by following in Pauline's footsteps.
