Sophie's Feast Day

The first RSCJ called by the Lord to establish the Society of the Sacred Heart were attracted to solitude and desire to live in contemplation, devoting themselves only to the interior life; but he who was for them the medium of God's will made them understand, in a moment when faith was nearly extinct, they should give themselves to re-enkindle it in hearts, devoting themselves to the education of youth. Obedient to God's voice, they sacrificed their attraction for the cause of his glory ....It seems that the Lord, providentially guiding us, wanted to teach us that interior life must be the first need of our hearts and only God's glory and the zeal for souls should make us leave it. and that we should, in the midst of our exterior work, preserve the interior attraction that unites us with God, so that we may not act but under the impulse of his grace. if we possess this Spirit, it is to communicate it to others

On the day of Sophie's Final Profession, June 7th, 1802, when everyone was going to the chapel, Sophie did not appear. At last she was found in the garden, under a walnut tree. She was in an extraordinary state of recollection completely unconscious of her surroundings: motionless. God was revealing himself to her in this ecstasy. When Sophie came back to earth, glowing and radiant, she went to the chapel and consecrated herself to her God who had so ravished her.