Europe has six patrons, three men and three women. Today’s saint is one of them. St. Bridget of Sweden was born in 1303 and had a vision of the crucified Jesus at an early age, which guided her throughout her life. She married at 14 and had eight children; her daughter Catherine is a saint. When her husband died after 28 years of marriage she became a Third Order Franciscan. Later, she founded a religious order for men and women, the Order of the Most Holy Savior, called the Bridgettines. She traveled to Rome in 1349 seeking approval of her order from the pope, who was in Avignon, France. It wasn’t until 1370 when the pope moved back to Rome that her order was approved. During that time, she remained in Rome praying, prophesying, and writing about her mystical experiences. She died in 1373 and was canonized in 1391.
The Order of the Most Holy Savior was reestablished, due to its dissolution during the Reformation, in 1911 by St. Elizabeth Hesselblad, who was born in Sweden. The charisms of the order include living the lives of the crucified Jesus and the Blessed Virgin at the foot of the cross as well as having special concern for the reunification of all Christians in ecumenism.
The motto of the Bridgettines is Amor meus crucifixus est, “My love has been crucified.” Jesus is our love and he was crucified for our sins, so that we may achieve salvation. St. Bridget lived these words in her life. We are also called to reflect upon, pray, and live these words. We are blessed by the words, lives, and examples of the saints, the cloud of witnesses praying for us. St. Bridget of Sweden, pray for us.
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