Saint Joan of Arc is the patroness of soldiers and of France. On January 6, 1412, Joan of Arc was born to pious parents of the French peasant class, at the obscure village of Domremy, near the province of Lorraine. At a very early age, she heard voices: those of St. Michael, St. Catherine and St. Margaret.

At first the messages were personal and general. Then at last came the crowning order. In May, 1428, her voices “of St. Michael, St. Catherine, and St. Margaret” told Joan to go to the King of France and help him reconquer his kingdom. For at that time the English king was after the throne of France, and the Duke of Burgundy, the chief rival of the French king, was siding with him and gobbling up evermore French territory.

After overcoming opposition from churchmen and courtiers, the seventeen year old girl was given a small army with which she raised the seige of Orleans on May 8, 1429. She then enjoyed a series of spectacular military successes, during which the King was able to enter Rheims and be crowned with her at his side.

In May 1430, as she was attempting to relieve Compiegne, she was captured by the Burgundians and sold to the English when Charles and the French did nothing to save her. After months of imprisonment, she was tried at Rouen by a tribunal presided over by the infamous Peter Cauchon, Bishop of Beauvais, who hoped that the English would help him to become archbishop.

Through her unfamiliarity with the technicalities of theology, Joan was trapped into making a few damaging statements. When she refused to retract the assertion that it was the saints of God who had commanded her to do what she had done, she was condemned to death as a heretic, sorceress, and adulteress, and burned at the stake on May 30, 1431. She was nineteen years old. Some thirty years later, she was exonerated of all guilt and she was ultimately canonized in 1920, making official what the people had known for centuries. Her feast day is May 30.

St. Joan was canonized in 1920 by Pope Benedict XV.

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26 COMMENTS

  1. HAPPY AND JOYOUS FEAST DAY ST.JOAN, I Love You Sister and Thank You for being my Friend and Patron, Pray for me and for my nation the United States of America, we all need your Prayers and Intercession….

  2. Happy Feast Day, St. Joan! Watch over our soldiers and I pray for peace always! Thank you for your love of God and bravery. Your life is an inspiration.

  3. happy feast day st. Joan. Even when those around refused 2 believe in in your visions u did not retract them. Pray that if we too find ourselves in such conditions, we’ll not give up our beliefs

  4. Pray for us St. Jeanne D’Arc as per your example of faith and love to our Christ and to see in the face of our brothers and sisters the face of our Lord. Amen

  5. God bless you brave woman of God an the church please pray for me.. To be set free from all anxiety an help me an my daugher Fiona an husband Rab to be healed of our grief an broken hearts as their one an only beautiful daughter Caoilte passed away at Christmas age 5 an a half heal our brokenness.. Dear lord an our blessed mother give us the strength to go on Amen

  6. SAINT. JOAN. OF. ARC………..WHEN…..GOD….CALLS…..YOU…..CAN….CHOOSE …….
    OR…..SO….YOU….THOUGHT. !!!!!!

  7. SAINT. JOAN. OF. ARC……………..
    YOU…DID…IT………
    YOU………WENT…TO….WORK….FOR….CHRIST……OUR….SAVIOR!!!!!!

  8. SAINT. JOAN. OF. ARC………..
    MAY……MORE….OF….GOD’S…….PEOPLE……BE….EXACTLY…..LIKE…YOU. !!!!!!!!
    AND…..SO….YOU….SAID……
    ALL ……..OF….OUR….SOLDIERS………FOLLOW….THEIR….CALL…….WHEREVER……IT…MAY….LEAD….THEM..!!!!!!!!

  9. SAINT. JOAN. OF. ARC………..
    WHAT…IS…DIFFERENT,,,,,,OUR,,,,SOLDIERS….NOW……OR…..YOURS…..HUNDREDS….OF….YEARS,,,,AGO ????????
    NO….DIFFERENCE….AT….ALL!!!!!!

  10. SAINT. JOAN. OF. ARC……….
    THERE…IS…A….WAY…TO…LIVE…YOUR….L I F E …!!!!!!!!
    WITH….YOUR….SUPREME…….BEING……WHOEVER……THAT…MAY….BE………..AND……..A….WALK…..THROUGH
    LIFE………WITH……YOUR…..GOD…OF….GOODNESS !!!!!!!!!!!
    BELIEVE…..IN…..A….GOD…OF….LOVE….
    BELIEVE………THAT….THIS….GOD……..WANTS…..EVERYTHING……B R I G H T and. BEAUTIFUL…FOR…YOU..!!!!!!!!!!!!
    AND…….NOT….FOR….JUST…A…..FEW !!!!!!!!!!

  11. SAINT. JOAN. of. ARC,,,,,,,,,
    SHE. KNEW. VERY. WELL………….NO. ONE…..HURTS….THE……..I N N O C E N T. ..?????????
    FOR…..ANY..REASON……….MUCH……LESS…..S E L F ….GRATIFICATION !!!!!!!!!!!!
    YOU……SAINT. JOAN……….WERE…..A….BEHOLDER……..OF…….THIS……LAW !!!!!!! AND……HUNDREDS…OF……
    YEARS…..LATER…….MEN….AND…..WOMEN…….HAVE….HEARD….YOUR…..CALL !!!!!!!!!!!!

  12. So brave. So young. Such conviction. St. Joan of Arc, pray for us. Protect the vulnerable in France and globally. Protect Roman Catholic sites from vandalism and desecration. Amen.

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