Frances Cabrini was born in Italy on July 15, 1850, the youngest of thirteen children. She grew up enthralled by the stories of missionaries who had traveled to distant lands to share the Gospel and she made up her mind to join a Religious Order. Because of her frail health, she was not permitted to join the Daughters of the Sacred Heart who had been her teachers and under whose guidance she obtained her teaching certificate.
However, in 1880, with seven young women, Frances founded the Institute of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. She was as resourceful as she was prayerful, finding people who would donate what she needed in money, time, labor, and support. She and her sisters wanted to be missionaries in China. She visited Rome to obtain an audience with Pope Leo XIII. The Pope told Frances to go “not to the East, but to the West” to New York rather than to China as she had expected. After arriving here, she and her Sisters were able to help the thousands of Italian immigrants already in the United States.
In 1889, in a time filled with chaos and poverty, Mother Frances Cabrini and her companions stepped in to alleviate the suffering of the immigrant population. The Sisters organized catechism and education classes and provided for the needs of the many orphans. She established schools and orphanages despite tremendous odds.
Soon, requests for the Sisters’ help came from all over the world. She traveled to Europe, Central and South America, and throughout the United States. She made 23 trans-Atlantic crossings and established 67 institutions: schools, hospitals, and orphanages. Her activity was relentless until her death on December 22, 1917, in Chicago. In 1946, she was canonized a saint in recognition of her holiness and service and was named Patroness of Immigrants.
Let us pray. God our Father, who called Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini from Italy to serve the immigrants of America. By her example, teach us to have concern for the stranger, the sick, and all those in need. By her prayers help us to see Christ in all the people we meet. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son. Amen.
