Born in the Belle Époque (1901), Yvonne Beauvais would live through both World Wars and be decorated by the French, British, and United States governments for her heroic conduct during the Nazi occupation of France. Having consecrated her life to Jesus in a secret “pact” at the age of nine, she lived a life of heroism and generosity marked by extraordinary spiritual favors: she bore the stigmata, bled from the wounds of the scourging, underwent a spiritual betrothal and marriage (with a miraculous wedding ring), and on occasion flowers would mysteriously appear around her.
Yvonne entered the Augustinian order of Hospitaller (or Nursing) nuns, which revitalized her community. She drew up plans and oversaw rebuilding of the hospital and grounds, was made Mistress of Novices, and upon her full profession to the Order was unanimously elected Superior. At the same time that she was caring for the wounded of the occupying German army, she sheltered and treated wounded members of the Resistance and downed American and British airmen. Other Augustinian houses of Hospitallers in France, England, and South Africa looked to her and her community for inspiration and practical assistance.
Yvonne also navigated a host of ecclesiastical hurdles in order to gain Church approval for a federation of the houses of her Order. She was received in private audience by Pope Pius XII and was unanimously elected the first Superior General of the new federation. In this capacity she undertook journeys not only throughout France but also overseas. It was while preparing for one such journey (to Africa) in February 1951 that she died of cerebral hemorrhage, just four months shy of her half-century. Since then, Mother Yvonne-Aimée’s renown has never ceased to grow, especially in the French-speaking world, largely thanks to the books and television appearances of René Laurentin. Now the details of her extraordinary life and extraordinary love are made known for the first time in English to readers of this full biography.
Praise
“In a Church whose history is already rich with extraordinary mystics and mystical phenomena, Mother Yvonne-Aimée seems to belong to a category entirely her own. Showered beyond compare with miraculous gifts—to such an extent that all writings concerning her were suppressed by the Holy Office in 1960 to avoid erroneous preoccupations and deductions—this steadfast nun, in her day-to-day life, expended her considerable energy on serving her sisters, neighbors, enemies, and correspondents, generously sharing with them the warmth of love and the light of wisdom that God made to flow like a torrent within her. The translation of René Laurentin’s carefully researched biography dramatically improves our English-language resources on Mother Yvonne-Aimée, bringing her the attention she deserves as a witness to the grace and power of God in our midst.” —PETER KWASNIEWSKI, author of Are Canonizations Infallible? Revisiting a Disputed Question
“In these End Times, when the re-alignment of each and every soul with the designs of its Creator has never been more urgent, the life of a chosen soul dedicated to conforming her will to God’s Will is essential reading. Delightful, sobering, astonishing, instructional, and inspirational in turns, this fine translation of Fr. Laurentin’s engaging biography of Mother Yvonne-Aimée de Jesus is a great gift to the English-speaking world.”—ROD PEAD, editor of Christian Order
About the Author
Monsignor René Laurentin was a French priest and theologian who authored over 150 books. Born in Paris in 1917, he began university studies in 1934 simultaneously at the Catholic University of Paris and at the Sorbonne. He graduated with degrees from each in 1938. In 1940, serving as an officer in the French army, he was captured by the Germans in Belgium. After liberation and his return to France he was ordained to the sacred priesthood on December 8th, 1946. As an expert in Mariology he was a member of the Preparatory Commission of Vatican II’s constitution on the Church. He became well known to French readers, as he authored several in-depth biographies and studies of modern-day saints, such as Bernadette of Lourdes, Catherine Labouré, and Thérèse of Lisieux. In 1981 the Vatican authorized him to carry out a study of French mystic and war heroine Yvonne-Aimée of Malestroit, whose Cause had been introduced after her death in 1951. Earlier, in 1960, after exaggerated and speculative articles in the French tabloid press, the Vatican had placed a moratorium on all publishing regarding Yvonne-Aimee. The lifting of that ban in 1981 was specifically and solely for the research and eventual biography by Laurentin, who went on to author several studies of Yvonne-Aimée: her untiring and lifelong charitable works, her stigmata, her recorded cases of bilocation. Pope Benedict XVI created Laurentin a Prelate of Honor of His Holiness in 2007. He died in 2017, a month short of his 100th birthday.
