Blessed Mère Saint-Louis

Marie-Louise-Élisabeth de Lamoignon de Molé de Champlâtreux (3 October 1763 – 4 March 1825) - in religion Saint-Louis - was a French Roman Catholic professed religious and the founder of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Louis (1803). Lamoignon dedicated herself to the education of both the poor and abandoned girls of her region though her love for the poor was noted during her marriage; this was something her politician husband also supported before he was executed during the French Revolution. That period bought great turmoil upon her coupled with the loss of two of her five children. Her beatification was held in mid-2012 in her native France. Marie-Louise-Élisabeth de Lamoignon was born on 3 October 1763 in Paris to Chrétien François de Lamoignon (18.12.1735-16.05.1789) - a politician - and Marie-Elisabeth Berryer as the second of six children; her parents' union was described once as "one of the best matches in Paris". Her two politician brothers were Anne-Pierre-Chrétien de Lamoignon (15.06.1770-21.03.1827) and René-Chrétien-Auguste de Lamoignon (19.06.1765-07.04.1845). Her sisters were Marie Gabrielle Olive de Lamoignon (b. 18.01.1761) and Constance de Lamoignon (14.01.1774-30.04.1823) and Marie Catherine de Lamoignon (1759–1849). Lamoignon received her baptism on 3 October after her birth in the local parish church of Saint-Sulpice. Lamoignon was close to her maternal grandmother who watched over her and instilled religious values in her; she was likewise influenced from her parents' spiritual director and Jesuit priest Louis Bourdaloue. Lamoignon made her First Communion in 1771. On 9 February 1779 she married the politician Édouard-François Mathieu Molé (05.03.1760-20.04.1794) who came from an esteemed noble household. Her new husband supported her desire for a simple life in service to the poor and the poor soon came to call her the "Angel of the Garrets".