Fr Medaille, who spent much of his
time as a missionary in Central France saw at first hand the terrible
effects of the civil and religious wars….the widows and orphans, the sick
with nobody to care for them, the poor and those who had fallen into crime
as a way of life.
He also met, and was very touched,
by some young women and widows who wished to dedicate their lives to God and
service of the poor. Apostolic religious life did not exist in the Church at
this time so to think of ‘consecration’ meant to think ‘cloister’. Fr
Medaille knew that these women did not feel called to this. He reflected, he
prayed and it was in praying before the Blessed Sacrament he got this
vision. He envisioned a new type of life- a Little Design- groups of women
not cloistered, but with vows and living in small groups. From 1646 onwards
the vision of the Little Design began to evolve.
In 1650 the new Bishop of Le Puy
was very aware of the poverty of his town and at this time Fr Medaille was
ready to try to get recognition for his new vision. These two men together
had what was needed and so the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph was
founded on the 15th Oct 1650. At the beginning there were six Sisters about
whom we know very little:
Francoise Eyraud, Claudia Chastel,
Marguerite Burdier, Anna Chalayer, Anna Vey, Anna Brun.
The Congregation was canonically
erected on the 10th March 1651 and given legal status in Jan.
1674.
