Every May 19, the Church celebrates Saint María Bernarda Bütler, a nun and missionary who was sanctified in the evangelizing service of the abandoned towns of South America. Her own words, addressed to her nuns, portray her well: “Open your homes to help the poor and the marginalized. “They prefer caring for the homeless to any other activity.”
Saint María Bernarda Bütler was the founder of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary Help of Christians.
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Love the will of God and his times
Saint Mary Bernard was born in Auw, Switzerland, on May 28, 1848. Her given name was Verena Bütler. In her early youth, she entered a city convent as an aspirant, but she did not find favorable circumstances for herself, nor the conviction or maturity necessary to continue. That remained there, without being consolidated, and María Bernarda returned to her parents’ house to help them with the work in the field.
In the following months he devoted himself again to manual work, prayer and supporting catechism in a parish. Shortly after her, at the age of 19, she made the second and definitive attempt to become a nun, requesting admission to the Franciscan monastery of Mary Help of Christians.
The Franciscans of Mary Help of Christians saw with pleasure that Mary Bernarda was better disposed and renewed in her desire to give herself to the Lord. With the Franciscans, she would be confirmed by the Lord to persevere and consolidate her vocation. A couple of years later, the young woman would receive the Franciscan habit and adopt the religious name ‘María Bernarda del Sagrado Corazón de María’.
Step by step, as God’s mercy changed her heart, the young nun responded with greater generosity to the beautiful gift of the religious vocation, striving to grow in virtue and spiritual life.
An “unforeseen” turn: From Switzerland to Ecuador
The effort and good disposition of the saint would be crowned with abundant graces and new responsibilities. With humility and a spirit of obedience, she accepted to be a novice teacher and then superior of her convent, a service that she would perform with dedication until God entrusted her with a new challenge: to be a missionary.
That unusual call was consolidated first in prayer and, second, in recourse to the advice of the higher levels of his Order. After overcoming initial resistance from certain ecclesiastical authorities, María Bernarda obtained papal permission to leave the monastery and leave, with six of her companions, for Ecuador to serve the remote populations of that country.
This great step, originally conceived as the founding of a branch of her monastery, would be followed by another: Sister María Bernarda would become the founder of a new institute: the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians.
In Chone, Ecuador, the nuns dedicated themselves to the education of children and young people, assisting the sick and needy at the same time. This experience of faith flourished in that place, which was already difficult to access and spiritually very abandoned.
Another change of course: heading to Colombia
In 1895, Mother María Bernarda and 14 sisters were forced to flee Ecuador due to a political revolt against the Church, heading towards Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, where they decided to settle. Soon vocations began to emerge – local and foreign – and it was necessary to open new residences for the novices. First one was built in Colombia, which would be followed by another in Austria and one more in Brazil.
In response to the growth of the Order, Mother María Bernarda dedicated herself to the spiritual care of her daughters. She began to visit each of the Institute’s convents, spread across several countries. She, too, the saint, would visit other places where there was some possibility of opening a new foundation. Wherever the saint went, she enchanted with her evangelical simplicity and kindness, edifying and encouraging many people to empathize with the needs of God’s people.
Call to serve and not to be served
The mother led the congregation for 30 years until she resigned from her position. Away from the tasks of governing the congregation, she dedicated herself, to the extent possible, to the spiritual assistance of her youngest daughters. For them, their mother was always an example of humility and joy.
Saint María Bernarda Bütler left for the Father’s House on May 19, 1924 in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia. She was 76 years old, 57 of which she lived as a religious or consecrated woman. Of those almost 60 years, 38 of them were dedicated to missionary work. Mother María Bernarda was beatified by Saint John Paul II in 1995 and canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2008.
More information at: https://www.aciprensa.com/santos/santo.php?id=680.
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