Blessed Marianne Cope, O.S.F., also known as Blessed Marianne of Molokai, (23 January 1838 - 9 August 1918) was a member of The Sisters of Saint Francis of Syracuse, New York.
She was known for her charitable works and virtuous deeds, she spent many years caring for the lepers on the island of Molokai, Hawaii. Despite direct contact with the patients over many years, Cope was not afflicted by the disease, considered by some faithful to be miraculous.
In 2005, she was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI and is scheduled to be canonized in October of this year.
At their annual meeting, the U.S. bishops voted to add her to the U.S. liturgical calendar as an optional liturgical memorial in the proper of saints on January 23.
Fr. Jeremiah Myriam Shryock CFR
St. Felix Friary, Yonkers, NY
We are all beggars before God. There is nothing we can truly call our own. Everything is a gift from God and everything comes from him.
However, not all beggars are alike. Some are childish, obsessed with their own needs and anxiously try to prolong their existence and fulfill their desires as much as possible. They demand things from God in a timely fashion and if their prayer is not heard according to their will they do whatever is necessary to make sure their needs are accomplished. Another type of beggar is one who is humble, sincere and has realized his own helplessness and in humility has turned outside of himself for the answers and for the help he needs for his life. His “nothingness” has not led him to despair but to hope in a loving and merciful God.
Which kind of beggar are we?
