Wyatt North - The Life and Prayers of Saint Joan of Arc

The Life and Prayers of

Saint Joan of Arc

Wyatt North

Wyatt North Publishing

Wyatt North Publishing, LLC 2013

A Boutique Publishing Company

Publishing by Wyatt North Publishing, LLC.

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Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

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Foreword

One part biography, one part prayer book, The Life and Prayers of Saint Joan of Arc is an essential book for any Christian.

Though Joan described herself as a poor girl who knew neither how to ride nor lead in war, she did know how to obey God. That simple skill changed the course of both her life and that of the entire nation.

Twenty-five years after her execution, Saint Joan was pronounced innocent, and declared a martyr. Joan stood up for her belief and against all odds fought for her people.

She was a true hero, and remains an inspiration to this day.

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Quick Facts

The new Quick Facts section in The Life and Prayers collection provides the reader with a collection of facts about each saint!

Born:

ca. January 6, 1412

Domrmy, Duchy of Bar, Kingdom of France.

Died:

May 30, 1431

Rouen, France

Memorial:

May 30

Attributes:

military personnel; people ridiculed for their piety; prisoners; soldiers

O ne life is all we have, and we live it as we believe in living it. But to sacrifice what you are, and to live without belief; that is a fate more terrible than dying.

-Saint Joan of Arc

The Life of Saint Joan of Arc

Most Extraordinary Soldier

The title of this biography, as well as all the chapter titles, are taken from a traditional prayer to Saint Joan of Arc.

Chapter 1: you insistently proclaimed: Let God be served first!"

Joan of Arc was born on January 6, 1412, in Lorraine, France. Those who shared her home in Domremy would not have guessed that their new baby would one day save their country. However, they might have hoped that she would one day be a saint. Jacques and Isabell dArc were a simple, peasant couple who were known for their piety. They named their fifth child Joan (or Jehanne in the original French). Jehanne was a popular name in that part of France, though it would be centuries before it became a saints name. Joans aunt, and all three of her godmothers were also named Jehanne.

Years later, when Joan was famous for her work on behalf of her country, both spiritual and secular leaders sent investigators to Domremy to interview those who had known her as a child. Most of those interviewed remembered Joan fondly and spoke well of her. Many recalled seeing her, with the rest of her family, at Notre Dame de Bermont, the local Catholic church. They reported that she mastered the prayers of the rosary at a young age and was regularly seen praying before and after the mass. She also was known to stop whatever she was doing whenever the village bells rang at 9:00 for the Angelus, dropping to her knees beside the road if necessary in order to offer her morning sacrifice of praise.

Not only was young Joan spiritually mature, but she also seems to have had a practical streak in her piety. The girl who would later be best remembered as a soldier was often seen moving quietly about her village, giving aid and alms to the less fortunate. Rarely was a new baby born in Domremy without Joan showing up with soup for the new mother and hands ready to help care for the other members of the family. Those who knew her family best assured the investigators that she was a good and dutiful daughter, and served in her home much as the Blessed Virgin might have served her family in Nazareth.

These descriptions of Joans early life seem idyllic. However, the world she lived in was far from peaceful. France had been at war with her old enemy, England, for more than eighty years by the time Joan was born. She was just learning to talk when Henry V won his famous victory at the Battle of Agincourt, defeating the French army and forcing them into a state of disrepair and confusion.

Things in the French court were no better. The current king, Charles VI, was mentally unbalanced and unfit to reign. His supporters wanted his son, the Dauphin, to take over the reins of the kingdom and rule in his stead. However, the Queen sided with the Duke of Burgundy against her husband and son and insisted that she should have the throne instead. This led to a civil war that pitted small villages like Domremy, most of which remained loyal to Charles, against the larger cities like Paris, which supported the Queen and the Duke. As a result, Joans family and their neighbors lived under the constant threat of raids, as soldiers rode in, killing and pillaging the homes of anyone they thought opposed their leaders.

Joans father had more to worry about than many of his neighbors. In addition to farming his small plot of land and raising livestock, he also served in the city government of Domremy. In fact, he was the chairman of the villages watch committee, and thus charged with protecting the citizenry from raids. While Joan was still a young girl, he convinced his fellow villagers that they would be wise to find a place a short distance from the village where they could hide their livestock in case of raids by the Burgundians. Under his leadership, they raised money to rent a small castle on an island nearby. There they could hide with their families in case of raids. Because the castle was surrounded by water it was easily defensible and nearly impossible to reach by soldiers with no boats or rafts.

When the English defeated the French at Agincourt, it proved to be a triumph for the Burgundians. They had allied themselves with the English in opposition to King Charles and the Dauphin. As a result of the battle, the English were able to negotiate a treaty that would give them a significant share of land formerly belonging to France. They sealed this treaty with the marriage of the English king, Henry V, to Catherine de Valois, King Charles daughter. Catherines mother brokered this deal herself, completely banishing her husband and son from the French court.

With Charles out of the way, the Duke of Burgundy met with Henry V to divide control of France between them. England controlled all of Northern France except the Duke of Burgundys own lands. They also had everything from Agincourt to the English channel. The Burgundians had their own holdings and the rest of the country. The only question remaining was who would get Paris and Orleans. While the two kings wasted the remaining months of their lives arguing over these two properties, the Dauphin and his men were reorganizing themselves and formulating a new plan of attack. By 1422, both Henry and Charles were dead and Catherines infant son was Henry VI, king of England and France.