St. Madeleine Sophie Barat lived in France in the time of the French Revolution. It was a time of fear when being a Catholic was dangerous, yet she managed to thrive and to spread the faith in a recovering country.
Sophie’s older brother, a deacon, provided her with a wonderful education. It was a privilege to receive an education at this time in history and very rare for girls to receive a high level of education, but Sophie’s brother taught her multiple languages, history, science, math, and theology. Her education was equal to that of his studies to become a priest.
After the chaos and religious prosecution of the French Revolution in the 1790s, Sophie helped to found a new order of religious sisters dedicated to teaching young women. The original school was a boarding school for girls from upper class families. The order soon also opened a free school for the poor in the area.
Sophie was chosen as the superior of the Society of the Sacred Heart just two years after its foundation. She was known to have a special gift as a leader. She was able to discern the correct people for each position within the order and trust that they would complete their given tasks. Both of these are very difficult for many people, but they were gifts with which she was blessed.
Under Sophie’s direction, the order continued to grow and opened many more schools. The schools were spread across France, Europe and even reached North America and South America. Each time they added a school, they opened one boarding school for girls whose parents could pay for their education and another school nearby for the poor. Their goal was to provide a high quality education for every student, no matter how much money their family had. More than anything, these schools gave the students a strong faith and devotion to the Sacred Heart.
Sophie was not, however, consumed by her work leading the order. She always made time to pray, often spending time alone to increase her relationship with God.
By the time of her death, the Society of the Sacred Heart had over 3,500 members teaching in over 13 countries. Today, the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Jesus continues their mission of education in 41 countries around the world.