St.Genoveva Torres Morales

Ø  Foundress of the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Holy Angels
Born	On 3 January 1870 in Almenara, Castile, Spain
Died	5 January 1956 in Zaragoza, Spain of natural causes
Beatified	29 January 1995 by Pope John Paul II
Canonized	4 May 2003 by Pope John Paul II at Plaza de Colón, Madrid, Spain
Feast	5th January

Youngest of six children. By the age of eight, both her parents and four of her siblings had died. A child homemaker for her older brother, Genovena grew up a quiet child, accustomed to solitude. She took an interest in spiritual reading around age ten, and early understood that the purpose of all life is to follow God. When she was 13 her left leg became gangrenous and had to be removed; there was no anathesia for the operation, it never properly healed, and she was on crutches the rest of her life.   From 1885 to 1894 she lived at the Mercy Home run by the Carmelites of Charity, healing, learning to sew, and deepening her spiritual life. She wanted to join these sisters, but her health was not good enough. In 1894 she moved in with two other lay women who supported themselves and each other, living a poor but prayerful life. The desire to help poor women grew in Genoveva's, and in 1911 Canon Barbarrós suggested she start a religious community for just such a mission. At the age of 41 ,She established the first community of the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Holy Angels  in Valencia, Spain; they would receive papal approval in 1953. It immediately attracted many women, both those needing help, and those wanting to help, and other communities were formed around Spain. Saint Genoveva’s order received papal approval in 1953, three years before her death.  Genoveva spent the rest of her life working for these communities, overcoming her physical and health problems, and even tougher, her own desire for quiet solitude.   The constant establishment of new foundations and communities was difficult for Mother Genoveva, who wished nothing more than to return to her interior solitude, alone with the Lord.  However, she never let her own personal discomfort or physical suffering interfere with the acceptance of God’s call.  She is remembered for saying, "Even if I must suffer greatly, thanks be to God's mercy, I will not lack courage".  Saint Genoveva further inspires us today with her reputed kindness and acceptance of all people as God’s creations, as well as for her sense of humor despite her pain and suffering.