Saint Marie Guillemette Émilie de Rodat

Biography

Émilie de Rodat, born Marie Guillemette (Wilhelmina) Emilie de Rodat on September 6, 1787, near Rodez, southern France, was a nun and the founder of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Villefranche. At 18 months old, she was sent to live with her maternal grandmother in Villefranche to protect her from the French Revolution's oppression. In 1803, at age 16, she experienced a spiritual moment that led her to become a teacher two years later. In 1815, Rodat established a school for poor girls in Villefranche, which grew into the Sisters of the Holy Family of Villefranche. Despite her own health challenges, the community expanded significantly, founding 38 houses, 25 cloistered communities, and 32 schools with over 5,000 students by 1999. The sisters also visited prisoners and cared for abandoned infants in China. Émilie de Rodat died on September 19, 1852, and her feast day is celebrated on the same date. She was beatified in 1940 and canonized in 1950.