Biography and life of Saint Maria Josefa of the Heart of Jesus Sancho de Guerra
Santa María Josefa del Corazón de Jesús Sancho de Guerra was born on March 25, 1748 in the Spanish town of Belmonte, province of Cuenca. She was the second daughter of the marriage formed by Juan Bautista Sancho and María Teresa Guerra.
At the age of five, Maria Josefa lost her mother, who died giving birth to a third child. Her father married again soon after and had another ten children with his second wife. Although he was a very religious man, he did not allow his children to receive a formal religious education due to his anticlerical ideas. However, Maria Josefa was educated in love and fear of God by her paternal grandmother, who was very devoted to her.
At sixteen, Maria Josefa felt called to religious life and asked her father for permission to enter the convent. Although he initially refused, she finally agreed when she promised him that she would be a good wife if he changed his mind in the future. She Maria Josefa entered the convent of Carmen Calzado in Cuenca in 1764. There she took the name of Sor María del Corazón de Jesús and she made perpetual vows two years later.
During her time at the convent, Sister Maria del Corazón de Jesús proved to be a model nun. She was extremely humble and helpful and she spent much of her time praying and meditating on the Word of God. In 1767, she was elected superior general of the convent and she served in this position for the next ten years. She was also mistress of novices during this time and helped many young women answer the religious call.
In 1777, Sister Maria del Corazón de Jesús felt called to found a new convent dedicated to perpetual Eucharistic worship. With financial help from the local bishop, they purchased a plot of land near the current convent and began construction work on what would become known as the Convent of the Most Holy Sacrament. The first group of nuns moved into the new convent in 1778 and began perpetual Eucharistic activities that same day. Worship would continue uninterrupted until the French expulsion later that same century.
In 1781, Sister Maria of the Heart of Jesus was elected superior general for the third time. Two years later, she had a prophetic dream in which she saw Pope Pius X blessing her religious order. She was convinced that this dream meant she would found another religious order dedicated exclusively to perpetual Eucharistic cultivation. In response, she founded the Eucharistian Tertiary Religious Order (ERTE) with four other nuns from the Blessed Sacrament convent and several local lay women. The order was officially established by papal decree on December 12, 1786, and they adopted the simple white habits following the model of Saint Francis of Assisi. The order's corrective was extreme humility and absolute obedience to the Catholic Church and its commitment was to lead normal lives within their homes while devoting much time to prayer and meditation on the Eucharist and promoting the virtues of mercy, self-denial, and compassion to all those in need. The Order was officially recognized by Pius XII in 1826 and became a Catholic Church on December 10, 1884 by Saint Innocent III (canonized in 1958) and renewed by John Paul II (beatified in 2004) during his visit to Cuenca as its first bishop (1976-1984). Since then, it has expanded many of the Order's charitable activities and founded many religious associations and brotherhoods both in Spain and in other parts of the world such as Latin America and Africa and has also inspired other faiths and foundations that imitate the Order's virtues and dedication to cultivating the Perpetual Eucharist and other charitable purposes on behalf of the needy such as the mentally or physically disabled, the homeless elderly, and other socially marginalized and destitute.
Prayer to Saint Maria Josefa of the Heart of Jesus Sancho de Guerra
Prayer to Saint Anthony of Padua. (long, in stanzas) Santa María Josefa of the Heart of Jesus Sancho de Guerra.
Saint Anthony, lover of the Lord,
that by the name of Jesus you call all men,
and with your word you announce the truth to them;
second sentence
Oh, Saint María Josefa of the Heart of Jesus Sancho de Guerra, who was a woman of great faith and love for God, intercede before Him for us, so that we may be filled with His grace and love.
Oh, Saint Maria Josefa, whose entire life was an example of dedication to Christ and his Church, help us to follow your example, so that we can lead a holy and faithful life to the Lord.
Oh Saint Maria Josefa, whose devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus was so great that it earned you the title of "Apostolate of the Sacred Heart", help us to imitate your devotion and love for the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Oh Saint Maria Josefa, whose prayer was so powerful that it healed many sick and brought comfort to the afflicted, intercede before God for us so that we may be free from all physical and spiritual illness.
Oh, Saint Maria Josefa, whose life was full of mercy towards others, help us to follow your example so that we can be instruments of mercy in the world. Amen.
important things you did
– She was the founder of the Congregation of Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
– She was a passionate missionary, traveling all over the world to preach the Gospel.
– She was an ardent advocate for women's rights and worked tirelessly to improve conditions for women around the world.
– She was a visionary educator, founding numerous colleges and universities for women such as the House of Bernarda Alba.
– He wrote numerous books on religious and spiritual topics.
