Joan of Arc, Virgin

Joan was the youngest of five children of Jacques d’Arc, a peasant farmer. She was only thirteen when she experienced the first of her visions, which she described as a voice accompanied by a blaze of light. She later identified the voices as those of St. Michael, St. Catherine, St. Margaret and others. They revealed to Joan that her mission in life was to save France by assisting the Dauphin, the rightful heir to the throne of France. Even though few believed her, she remained faithful to the vision she had seen. Eventually Joan convinced the civil and church authorities that she was not a heretic and did have a mission to save France. Joan was charged as a heretic by the British and condemned to be burned at the stake. This occurred on May 30, 1431, in Rouen, France. She was later cleared of all charges.

Joan was cast into an unfamiliar and unexpected role by God and sent on a mission with specific goals. We are often asked to perform unusual, if less dramatic, tasks than Joan’s. Usually, the only ill consequence to us might be embarrassment or inconvenience.