Saintly Saturday - Blessed Juana Maria Condesa Lluch

 

Juana Maria Condesa Lluch, Foundress of the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Immaculate Conception, Protectress of Workers, was born on March 30, 1862. She was welcomed into a wealthy Christian family of Valencia, Spain, and received a sound Christian education. Juana lived a life rooted in prayer and from an early age, felt the call to live in a more profound union with God. She fostered a devotion to the Blessed Mother and to the Eucharist, and was known for her humility, selflessness and the joy that accompanies the two when practiced out of love. 

As the growth of industrialization swept increasingly throughout the 19th century, Juana was especially attentive to factory workers. These were people forced to leave the country in order to find a means of living in the cities. Left with no other option, they were forced to make their living in the factories, and treated them as instruments. 

Ever mindful of these injustices, Juana, at the young age of eighteen, sought to physically, mentally, and spiritually help factory workers. Feeling the call to found a community for this purpose, Juana’s first attempts were refused, due to her age. After much persistence, she was finally given permission to open a shelter in 1884. This she dedicated to welcoming the oppressed and offering them spiritual formation and the human dignity of which they had been deprived. 

Shortly after, a school for the children of factory workers was opened in the shelter, and Juana was joined by other young women sharing in her call. In 1892, the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Immaculate Conception, Protectress of Workers, was officially approved.

Mother Juana is celebrated on January 16, 1916, the day of her death

Blessed Juana Maria Condesa Lluch, Pray for Us!