Anne-Marie Rivier

Blessed Anne-Marie Rivier (1768-1838) was a Religious Sister in the Latin Rite branch of the Catholic Church and foundress of the Sisters of the Presentation of Mary, a religious congregation ministering in eighteen different countries. The Sisters of her congregation celebrate her memorial on 3 February.

Anne-Marie Rivier (known to her family as Marinette) was born on 19 December 1768, in Montpezat-sous-Bauzon in the Ardèche Department, south-central France.

When she was just over a year old, the young Marinette suffered an accident which resulted in a badly broken hip, leaving her unable to walk. Every day, for four years, Marinette’s mother, who was described as a "woman of great faith" brought her to a local Catholic shrine, called the Chapel of the Penitents, where she would spend hours in prayer before a representation of the Pietà (a statue of the Virgin Mary holding the body of her son, Jesus, after He had been taken down from the Cross following the Crucifixion). On 8 September 1774, (the Feast of the Birth of Mary), Marinette found that she was able to walk, albeit with the help of crutches. For someone who had been unable to walk for four years, this in itself was something of a miracle; slowly her strength returned, although she was never to be a physically strong person. The fact that Anne-Marie and her mother believed that it was through the intercession of the Mother of Christ that she regained her strength influenced Marinette greatly as would be evident in her choice of name for the religious community she was to establish.

Vocation

When she was 17 years of age, Marinette applied to join the Sisters of Notre Dame in Pradelles, Haute-Loire but was turned down due to her poor physical health. Undetered, she established a school in her home town the following year, when she was still a teenager. As well as operating a school, Marinette and her fellow workers visited those who were sick and opened a room where unemployed youth could come and volunteer.

Not long after this, the nation experienced the trauma of the French Revolution; all religious congregations were suppressed and any act of religious expression was viewed with suspicion by the authorities. However, Marinette held fast to her belief in Christ and to the living out of that faith; when there was no Catholic priest available to celebrate the Eucharist, she would hold prayer services and she continued to teach about the Bible, Jesus and the saints in her school.

In 1794, the revolutionary authorities confiscated the building in which the school was run and Marinette and her companions moved to the town of Thueyts where they received support from Father Luigi Pontanier who was a member of the Society of Saint-Sulpice. It was in the attic of the new school that, on 21 November 1796 (the feast of the Presentation of Mary in the Temple), the five women formally dedicated themselves to God. The newly established group pledged themselves to teaching, working with orphans and visiting people in their homes. By the very next year, the group had increased to twelve. A provisional constitution was written and approved by the local bishop and the women made their religious professions on 21 November 1797. The Sisters of the Presentation of Mary had been established.

Growth

With the Concordat of 1801 religion was able to be freely practised once more in France and the fledgling congregation grew. By 1810 the Sisters had established 46 communities as well as a novitiate in 1803 in order to train the numerous young women who were responding to God’s call to the religious life. Due to the rapid increase in membership, the mother-house was moved to larger premises in Bourg-Saint-Andéol in 1815. By 1820 the Sisters had expanded their presence to such an extent that they had 88 houses in 8 dioceses.

Anne-Marie died, at the age of 70, on 3 February 1838. At the time of her death, the Congregation numbered 300 sisters living in 141 communities in 15 dioceses. Anne-Marie once said "My daughters will one day cross the seas." After the death of Rivier, the Sisters of the Presentation of Mary continued to grow and are now to be found on every continent, ministering in eighteen countries. There are over 3,000 sisters in the Congregation.

Sister Anne-Marie Rivier was beatified by Pope John Paul II on 23 May 1982.