Cándida María de Jesús (31 May 1845 – 9 August 1912), born in

Andoain Andoain is a town in the province of Gipuzkoa, in the autonomous community of Basque Country, in the North of Spain. Nowadays it has a population of 14,637 inhabitants (2019), which has been quite stable since the 90s. Andoain is located where t ...

, as Juana Josefa Cipitria y Barriola, was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

and the founder of the

Daughters of Jesus The Daughters of Jesus () is a French Roman Catholic congregation of religious sisters, founded in 1834 at Kermaria-Sulard, Brittany, in the Diocese of Vannes. Its goal is the care of the sick poor, and the education of girls. Today their mo ...

. The order – founded in 1871 – was under

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

direction from her

spiritual director Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divinity, divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters ...

and was involved with the education of children in

Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...

though expanded during her lifetime. Barriola was canonized as a saint on 17 October 2010.

Life

Juana Josefa Cipitria y Barriola was born in May 31, 1845 in Berrospe,

, as the eldest of seven children to the weavers Juan Miguel Cipitria and María Jesús Barriola. Her father was a weaver. Rather than attend school she helped look after her siblings because she was the eldest child. She received her

Confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...

on 5 August 1848 and made her

First Communion First Communion is a ceremony in some Christian traditions during which a person of the church first receives the Eucharist. It is most common in many parts of the Latin tradition of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Church and Anglican Communion (ot ...

in 1855. At a young age, she went to

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populous municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of th ...

to help support the household and worked as a domestic servant in various homes. Barriola was affected to a great degree from the depth of the poor conditions that she witnessed in a place undergoing the social effects of the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

in her native land. The

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

Miguel José Herranz advised her on her path ahead and at his advice started a number of charitable and educations programs; the two met in

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

in 1868. Barriola believed that she experienced a vision of

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

on 26 March 1869 on

Good Friday Good Friday, also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday, or Friday of the Passion of the Lord, is a solemn Christian holy day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary (Golgotha). It is observed during ...

. On April 2, 1869, she received the inspiration to found a Congregation with the name ''Hijas de Jesus''. On 8 December 1871 – alongside five companions – she founded the

and assumed the religious name: "Cándida María de Jesús"."The Foundress of the Congregation", Hijas de Jesus
/ref> She founded the congregation for the education of children and the advancement of the women in

. It received diocesan approval from the

Bishop of Salamanca The Diocese of Salamanca () is a Latin diocese of the Catholic Church located in the city of Salamanca in the ecclesiastical province of Valladolid in Spain.Spiritual Exercises The ''Spiritual Exercises'' (), composed 1522–1524, are a set of Christian meditations, contemplations, and prayers written by Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish Catholic priest, theologian, and founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesui ...

of Ignatius Loyola. Herranz collaborated with her as she wrote the constitutions for the order which received the decree of praise from

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII (; born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2March 181020July 1903) was head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 until his death in July 1903. He had the fourth-longest reign of any pope, behind those of Peter the Ap ...

in 1902; full papal approval came from

Pope Pius X Pope Pius X (; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 to his death in August 1914. Pius X is known for vigorously opposing Modernism in the Catholic Church, modern ...

after her death in 1913. Barriola was a contemplative religious who spent long hours before the

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

where she became serene even in trials and suffering. Her motto for life was: "I am for God alone". Barriola died in 1912. In October 1911, the first Hijas de Jesus left for Brazil. They arrived in the Philippines in 1932.Hermoso, Christina. "Feast of Saint Candida Maria de Jesus on Aug. 9", ''Manilla Bulletin'', August 9, 2023
/ref> In 2005 her order had 1116 religious in 114 houses in countries.

Canonization

The informative phase for the beatification process spanned in Salamanca from 17 June 1942 until 9 July 1957; all of her spiritual writings received theological approval on 25 October 1961. The formal introduction to the cause came on 22 September 1978 under

Pope John Paul I Pope John Paul I (born Albino Luciani; 17 October 1912 – 28 September 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal h ...

and she became titled as a

Servant of God Servant of God () is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint. Terminology The expression ''Servant of God'' appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in ...

. Theologians approved the

Positio A ''positio'' (short for the Latin ''positio super virtutibus'': "position on the virtues") is a document or collection of documents used in the process by which a Catholic person is declared Venerable, the second of four steps on the path to can ...

on 12 March 1993 as did the C.C.S. on 22 June 1993; the confirmation of her

heroic virtue Heroic virtue is the translation of a phrase coined by Augustine of Hippo to describe the virtue of early Christian martyrs. The phrase is used by the Roman Catholic Church. The Greek pagan term hero described a person with possibly superhuman a ...

allowed

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

to title her as

Venerable ''The Venerable'' often shortened to Venerable is a style, title, or epithet used in some Christianity, Christian churches. The title is often accorded to holy persons for their spiritual perfection and wisdom. Catholic In the Catholic Churc ...

on 6 July 1993. The miracle for beatification was investigated in Spain and received C.C.S. validation on 17 December 1983; the medical experts approved it on 22 June 1994 as did theologians on 28 October 1994 and the C.C.S. on 10 January 1995. John Paul II approved this miracle on 6 April 1995 and beatified the late religious on 12 May 1996 in

Saint Peter's Square St. Peter's Square (, ) is a large plaza located directly in front of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, the pope, papal enclave and exclave, enclave in Rome, directly west of the neighborhood (rione) of Borgo (rione of Rome), Borgo. Both t ...

. Another miracle needed for her to become a saint was investigated again in Spain and it received C.C.S. validation on 10 June 2005 before medical experts approved it on 25 September 2008. Theologians likewise approved this miracle on 7 March 2009 as did the C.C.S. on 16 June 2009.

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

approved this miracle on 3 July 2009 and canonized her as a saint on 17 October 2010.

References

External links

Hagiography Circle

Saints SQPN

Stella Maris Academy of Davao
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cándida María of Jesús 1845 births 1912 deaths 19th-century venerated Christians 19th-century Spanish nuns 20th-century venerated Christians 20th-century Spanish nuns Beatifications by Pope John Paul II Canonizations by Pope Benedict XVI Founders of Catholic religious communities People from Andoain Spanish Roman Catholic saints Venerated Catholics by Pope John Paul II 19th-century Spanish women educators 19th-century Spanish educators