It was some months after this that a very important letter arrived. It was from Fr Pierre Colin who had moved on to other parishes, but had never lost touch with these women who had impressed him so much. When Jeanne-Marie read this letter, she felt something new stir within her heart.
Fr Pierre was writing from a tiny village coiled Cerdon many miles away where he was parish priest. Living with him there and helping him run the parish was his younger brother, Jean-Claude. It was this young man who was the one to help Jeanne-Marie Chavoin finally make her decision for God.
Earlier in his life Jean-Claude also did not know what to do. On the one hand, he wonted to give his life to God - and being a priest seemed the best way. But, on the other hand, he didn't want to be like some of the priests he had met - they were treated almost like princes, acting in a very high and mighty way and they were very harsh with people who found it hard to keep the laws of the Church.
While he was studying for the priesthood Jean-Claude found other students who felt as he did, One of them, Jean-Claude Courveille, shared an idea that had come to him while he was praying at a shrine of Our Lady in a place called Le Puy. The idea was that Mory herself wonted a group of people to be known by her name, who would follow Jesus as she did, who would bring people to God by being the kind of person she is
Jean-Claude and his student-friends kept meeting to talk about this idea. They even mentioned it to one of the professors at the seminary who encouraged them.
Finally they decided to make a plan. On the day after their ordination they climbed the hill of Fourviere to celebrate mass at the shrine of Our Lady. There they pledged that, as soon as they could, they would begin the Society of Mary. It was 23 July 1816.
In Cerdon during the year that followed the young Father JeanÂClaude Colin began to share this dream of the Society of Mary with his brother, Pierre. He described it as a tree with many branches - men and women, people with religious vows and lay people too (without vows}, all belonging to Mary known as Mary-ists, or Marists. When Pierre listened to the part about a branch for women, he immediately thought of his two friends from Coutouvre. That is when he wrote his letter.
It was some months after this that a very important letter arrived. It was from Fr Pierre Colin who had moved on to other parishes, but had never lost touch with these women who had impressed him so much. When Jeanne-Marie read this letter, she felt something new stir within her heart.
