Blessed Jean-Martin Moÿe
Blessed Jean-Martin Moÿe (born January 27, 1730 AD in Cutting, Lorraine, France; died May 4, 1793 AD in Trier, Germany) was a French Catholic priest, missionary to China, and founder of the Sisters of Divine Providence of Portieux and of the community of Christian Virgins in China. Zealous for the instruction of the poor and of country children, he devoted his life to catechesis and the missions. His feast day is May 4.
Jean-Martin Moÿe founded the Sisters of Divine Providence to teach poor and rural children in Lorraine, then spent years as a missionary in China, where he established the Christian Virgins to catechize women and girls. Driven from his homeland by the French Revolution, he died at Trier while ministering to refugees. He was beatified in 1954.
Stored in Cargo: Blessed Jean-Martin Moÿe
| Blessed Jean-Martin Moÿe | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | May 04 |
| Profession | Priest; missionary to China; founder of the Sisters of Divine Providence of Portieux |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Paris Foreign Missions Society (Missions Étrangères); Sisters of Divine Providence |
| Patronage | Catechists; missionaries; teachers of poor children; the Sisters of Divine Providence |
| Attributes | Priestly cassock; catechism; missionary in China |
| Birthplace | Cutting, Lorraine, France |
| Death Place | Trier, Germany |
| Cause of Death | Natural death; died of typhus at Trier while caring for refugees after being exiled by the French Revolution; priest, missionary, and founder |
| Primary Shrine | Portieux, Lorraine, France |
Biography
Early life and priesthood
Jean-Martin Moÿe was born on January 27, 1730, at Cutting in Lorraine, one of many children of a devout farming family. He studied for the priesthood at Metz and was ordained in 1754, serving as a curate in various parishes. From the beginning he was marked by a deep concern for the religious instruction of the poor and of children in the countryside, who were often neglected.
Sisters of Divine Providence
To meet this need, in 1762 Moÿe founded the Sisters of Divine Providence at Portieux, a congregation of simple, poorly paid schoolmistresses who would live among and teach the children of poor rural villages. The work faced opposition and hardship, but it took root and spread.
Missionary in China
Longing for the foreign missions, Moÿe joined the Paris Foreign Missions Society and in 1772 set out for China. He labored for some years in the difficult and dangerous mission of Sichuan, where Christianity was subject to persecution. There he founded the Christian Virgins, groups of consecrated native women who catechized girls and women and sustained the faith in places the missionaries could not always reach—an innovation of lasting importance for the Church in China.
Return, exile, and death
Ill health obliged Moÿe to return to France in 1783, where he resumed the direction of his sisters and continued his preaching and catechetical work. When the French Revolution unleashed persecution of the Church, he refused the oath to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy and was forced into exile. He withdrew to Trier, where he devoted himself to the care of French refugees.
Ministering amid crowded and unhealthy conditions, Jean-Martin Moÿe contracted typhus and died at Trier on May 4, 1793. He was beatified by Pope Pius XII on November 21, 1954. His feast is kept on May 4.
Significant events
- 1730 — Born at Cutting in Lorraine on January 27.
- 1754 — Ordained a priest.
- 1762 — Founds the Sisters of Divine Providence at Portieux.
- 1772 — Sets out as a missionary to China; founds the Christian Virgins in Sichuan.
- 1783 — Returns to France.
- 1793 — Dies of typhus in exile at Trier on May 4.
- 1954 — Beatified by Pope Pius XII on November 21.
Significant locations
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Feast day
May 4
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