100th Anniversary of Joan of Arc’s Beatification
April 3rd, 2009This April will mark the 100th anniversary of Saint Joan of Arc’s Beatification by the Roman Catholic Church in 1909. The official pronouncement was issued on April 11, 1909, and a ceremony attended by thousands of people was held at the Vatican on April 18, 1909. A special page at MaidOfHeaven.com has been set up to celebrate that contains a picture of the ceremony, a translation of the official pronouncement of beatification and a copy of a newspaper article from April 19, 1909 describing the ceremony.
Why is Saint Joan of Arc still remembered today? Her life was one that contained great triumph as well as great tragedy and she has inspired people down through the ages with her example of bravery and self sacrifice. Sir Winston Churchill, the legendary leader of Britain in WWII, once wrote of her: “Joan was a being so uplifted from the ordinary run of mankind that she finds no equal in a thousand years.” Mark Twain, the great American writer, described her as “perhaps the only entirely unselfish person whose name has a place in profane history.”
In the official pronouncement by Pope Pius X that was issued on April 11, 1909, the Pope described Joan of Arc as “a witness to divine power, which has chosen what is weak in the world to confound what is strong.” This 100th anniversary in an excellent opportunity to again remember this amazing women and all that she accomplished in her life.
For more detailed information about Joan of Arc and her Beatification visit:
http://www.maidofheaven.com
