While St. Margaret Mary was the privileged recipient of the revelation by Jesus Christ of His Sacred Heart, several other Vistandines of her era were also inspired through her influence to a great and apostolic sharing of the devotion to the Love of Jesus.
One such Visitandine was Sister Jeanne Madeleine Joly of Dijon.
From a translation of the Annals of the Visitation of Dijon we read her story:
“It was the reliability of the first government of Mother Marie-Dorothée Desbarres that publicly established the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Our very honored sisters Marie-Françoise de Saumaise and Jeanne-Madeleine Joly were the instruments God used to accomplish the plan of mercy.
The Venerable Sister Margaret Mary Alacoque was then a novice, and Mother Saumaise admitted her to holy profession. The extraordinary experiences of the newly professed placed her first Superior in great perplexity, but the Reverend Father La Colombiere, whom she consulted about it, calmed her concerns. At the end of her two triennials Mother MarieFrançoise Saumaise left Paray, full of reverence for Sister Margaret Mary and went govern the Monastery of Moulins.
Mother was afflicted during her stay in Moulins, which obliged her to return to Dijon.On her return there, Mother Saumaise found our dear Sister Jeanne Madeleine Joly animated with zeal that penetrated itself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. She was a humble and fervent soul, all hidden with Christ in God.
As soon as Sister Margaret Mary Alacoque had introduced Sister Jeanne Madeleine to the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, she seemed to live only to pay homage to this divine Heart. All the lights of her mind and all the movements of her heart were devoted to this cause.
She felt inspired to write a book which would serve to spread the cult of the Sacred Heart, and communicated her desire to Mother Marie-Dorothée Desbarres. This enlightened Superior, who knew the virtue of our dear sister Jeanne, told her to follow her inspiration. The simplicity of obedience held for her the place of learning, and after she had written a litany, a Mass and office of the Sacred Heart of Jesus with a common prayer for each hour, she had it translated into Latin by M . Charolais, the Confessor. She added a few instructions and forms of prayer on this devotion. Before her book was printed, our dear sister Joly showed it to the venerable sister Alacoque, who replied as follows: “It is true My dear sister, you are of the number of true lovers of the Heart of our kind Jesus.
Here is a letter St Margaret Mary wrote to Sister Jeanne Madeleine:
To Sister Jeanne- Madeline Joly, at Dijon
April 10, 1690
You would not believe, dear Sister, how delighted the adorable Heart of our good Master makes me with the zeal you show in making Him known and loved, and at the pains you take in doing so. He will never forget it , I am sure , but will Himself be your eternal reward. Eventually this divine Heart shall reign in spite of all those who oppose Him. Satan and all his followers will be confounded. Fortunate shall they be whom He uses to establish His empire! It seems to me He is like a king who does not think of giving rewards while he is making his conquests and overcoming his enemies, but only then indeed when he has come to reign victoriously on his throne. The adorable Heart of Jesus wishes to establish His reign of love in the hearts of all, to destroy and bring to ruin the kingdom of Satan. It seems to me He has so great a desire of doing this that He promises great rewards to men of good will who work for it with all their heart according to the strength and lights He gives them. Do not be afraid, then, of the difficulties and sufferings you will have to put up with in this holy undertaking. Rather we ought to think ourselves fortunate that He considers us worthy to work for so noble a cause. Yes, I say we ought to be willing to bear every kind of trial, contradiction, calumny, and suffering. The more of these I find the more encouraged I feel and the greater is my hope that this enterprise will succeed for the glory of this lovable Heart and the salvation of many souls. But this is the kind of devotion that cannot be forced or imposed on anyone. It is enough to make it known and then leave to this divine Heart the work of entering the souls He has prepared by His grace. Fortunate indeed are these.
We must love this divine Heart, beloved Sister, in such a way that we no longer live except for Him and through Him. I always say I do not want to write any more, but I cannot help doing so when there is question of speaking of the Sacred Heart of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. I must confess that, outside of this, everything torture. But in this divine Heart everything, even the bitterest suffering, is changed into love. Let is make there our real and continual dwelling. If only we abandon ourselves entirely to Him, nothing will trouble us any more. Let us not interfere with His acting in us and for us just as He wishes.
Ask of Him for me that He hide me so carefully in His heart that I remain forever forgotten and despised. Every torture, even death itself, will be a pleasure to me if only He may reign. I find no consolation in this life except in the progress and happy success of this devotion to the Sacred Heart, and in hearing news of it.”
Mother Saumaise worked together with our dear sister Jeanne-Madeleine. These letters and many others that we hold in reverence gave new courage to the two holy women to work to make the public devotion to the Heart of Jesus.
Before printing the book , our dear sister Jeanne Madeleine wanted a picture of the Sacred Heart to put at the beginning of her book. Mother Saumaise wrote to Sister Alacoque at least to tell her how she thought it had to be done.. “I tell you, dear Mother, ‘replied the servant” of God, I asked a Jesuit priest to be good enough “to draw it.. After two years, he sent me a picture that is not my idea. Other people have begun to do so in vain: all failed. It is you, dear Mother, that God has reserved for this.
Sister Marie-Françoise de Saumaise communicated this letter to Mother Marie-Dorothée Desbarres and our dear sister Jeanne Madeleine Joly. She had conceived the idea, but she dared not undertake the execution, having never learned to draw. Our very honored Mother ordered her to make a sketch. She obeyed with simplicity, and God blessed her blind submission because it was so successful, that the skilled painter who was sent to her work had nothing to edit!
Mother Marie-Dorothée Desbarres sent our first sisters of the Monastery in Paris a sketch of the image to be engraved, and submitted for consideration to the Bishop of Langres the book written by our dear sister Jeanne Madeleine Joly . The Prelate undertook to review it with Mr. Amat, his vicar-general, who, finding this book filled with the spirit of God, gave his approval. This book was printed in 1686 and sent to almost all monasteries of the Order. Other religious communities also received it and addressed to the Sister Joly great accolades.
Our very honored sisters Marie-Françoise de Saumaise and Jeanne-Madeleine Joly, who had been chosen by God for this glorious enterprise, counted for little the pains and contradictions they had suffered in the pursuit of their purpose. They did not stop until they died to provide new worshipers to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. There is no reason to doubt that they have received one and the other in heaven the reward of their zeal and their work. The first died July 31, 1694, aged seventy-three years, and the second October 19, 1708, sixty-five years. She had the consolation of seeing founded in our church, by some pious people, a Mass in perpetuity for the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”