 St. Germaine Cousin, Patroness of the Abandoned
A story for children about God's love for those who are mistreated.
St. Germaine Cousin was the daughter of Laurent and Marie. Laurent, a lowly farm worker, and his wife Marie lived in a little village name Pibrac near Toulouse, France. In the year 1579 St. Germaine was born. The times were very hard for people in the French countryside at that time. There were wars going on, people were very poor and there wasn't much food. There was even a plague. A plague is when a great many people get sick with the same disease and die. When St. Germaine was still very small, her mother died, probably because of the plague.
St. Germaine was certainly very lonely being without her mother, but there were even more things for her to deal with besides the loss of her mother. She was also very sick as a child. Not only this, but her right hand was deformed so that she couldn't use it and she had a disease known as "scrofula" which left a large, ugly lump on her neck. This disease is not common anymore, but at that time in France it was common. People were very ignorant about diseases back then and they called scrofula "the King's Evil". People were not very nice to St. Germaine because of the way she looked to them, with this lump on her neck. Although the lump itself was not painful, the way people treated her because of it must have been hard for St. Germaine to deal with.
St. Germaine's father got married again after his wife died, but the new family was very mean to her, especially the step-mother. St. Germaine's father allowed them to be mean to her. They even made her sleep in the barn under a stairway and she was not allowed to eat with the others in the family. She was fed only scraps of food that were left over from what the others had eaten. The step-mother was not only unkind to St. Germaine. She would beat her, too, and leave bruises on her.
When she was only nine years old, St. Germaine was put to work watching the family's flock of sheep. In order to get to the fields where the sheep were, she had to walk through the Bouconne Forest. This was very dangerous because there were wolves in the forest, so St. Germaine had to put her trust in God for protection every time she went to and from the fields. She also had to spin wool while watching the sheep. She was told how much work to do and if she didn't finish it all, she was punished severely. St. Germaine prayed a lot while she was watching the sheep and she made her own Rosary out of a piece of string by tying knots in it.
St. Germaine never wanted to miss Mass even though she was in charge of the flock. When the bell rang for Mass at the Church of St. Mary Magdalen, she would pray and ask her guardian angel to look after the sheep while she was at Mass. The sheep never got hurt while she was at Mass even though there were wolves about. Through the Church, St. Germaine learned all about the love of God. One of the important things she learned was that sufferings bring grace. All of the sufferings we must go through in life have meaning to God because of His great love for us. Those who suffer in innocence will surely be rewarded with a shining crown in heaven thanks to what Jesus has done on the Cross for us all. Perhaps it is because everyone else was so mean to her that St. Germaine was able to see how very much God loves her and it was through the Church that she learned about this great love. For this reason, St. Germaine never ever wanted to miss going to Mass to learn more about God and to receive Him in the Eucharist.
St. Germaine had very little to share except her love of God, so she taught the catechism to the children she would meet in the fields. She would teach them about the goodness of God by sharing with them the little food that she had. People laughed at her as she did this but St. Germaine did not show anger toward them. She remained silent. She was able to do this because she knew how very much God loved her even if no one else seemed to.
St. Germaine performed many miracles even during her lifetime. Once, there had been a heavy rain and the river which she had to cross to go to Mass was swollen and running swiftly. She should not have been able to cross it and some who knew she would try to cross it to get to Mass came to laugh at her. St. Germaine was very brave and faithful, though, and stepped into the river to go to Mass. Those who had come to laugh at her later said that the waters had parted in front of St. Germaine to allow her to cross.
St. Germaine's stepmother accused her once of stealing food, and when St. Germaine opened her apron, many flowers fell out of it. Since this was in the wintertime, everyone was amazed by it and people began to believe that she must be a very holy young woman. Even her parents started to believe it and offered to treat her more kindly and let her live in the house with them, but St. Germaine chose to live as she had always lived before, sleeping under the stairs. This is where she died, on a bed of straw. She was only 22 years old.
After St. Germaine died, people began to realize more and more how special she had been. They believed she must be a saint and began to ask for her help. When we ask for the help of a saint, the saint's help is called "intercession". Over 400 miracles are believed to have happened because of the intercession of St. Germaine.
During a time when money and fame were the kinds of glory people wanted -- much like today, right? -- St. Germaine was the opposite of that. She was very poor, not educated except in the teachings of the Faith, very sick and crippled and she was hated even by her own family. She seemed to have no one who cared, but she knew that no matter how horrible things were for her, God loved her and He was there for her. She loved Him so much in return that she did just as Jesus asked by treating people kindly, no matter how badly they treated her. For this, St. Germaine received real glory that comes from God -- a place in heaven with all the saints -- and she will never be lonely or sick or abused again but have a crown of glory with Jesus.
The Lesson of St. Germaine -- Do not fear loneliness or mistreatment of any kind because God has created you to receive His love. God's love is enough for us, so do not fear when you do not receive it from others. Remember, too, to be very grateful if you have a family who treats you well and not like St. Germaine's family treated her. Seek God's love always and pass God's love on to others. God has promised to reward those in heaven who follow Him on earth as St. Germaine did.
Some recommended articles for grown-ups on related topics at Catholic Culture --
|
St. Germaine Cousin
is patroness for the sick,
the poor, victims of abuse,
disabled persons,
shepherdesses, orphans,
children who live in rural areas,
and unattractive people.
When others mistreat you,
ask St. Germaine for help.
You may use this prayer
or ask her in your own words.
A Prayer to St. Germaine
Dear St. Germaine,
You are now at the throne of God
and you are known to help
people who ask you
for your prayers.
Please ask God to protect me
from my fears and to help me
to lead a holy life
the way you did.
~Amen.~
And pray always to God
for His help
because He loves you
so very much.
Dear God,
I am sometimes afraid
of being alone because I think
no one likes me. Please help me
to remember how St. Germaine
was satisfied with your love,
and help me to see
that my family loves me
even when I think they do not.
Help me to be thankful
for the good things You
have given me
and help me to be kind to others
even if they are mean to me.
Dear God, Please listen
to the prayers of St. Germaine
when she asks You
to help me.
I ask this in the name
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
~Amen.~
Visit a church
Visit a school
For Parents:
This book on the Rosary
for teens has stories of saints
including the story of
St. Germaine.
|
