St. Marianne Cope, January 23, Generous Soul in the Lord's Vineyard

Painting in the Cathedral Basilica
of Our Lady of Peace

I love this feast day for many reasons. St. Marianne Cope, OSF, was German-born but came to the United States with her parents when she was just a year old, 1839. The family settled in New York where she was educated to the eighth grade, worked to support the family when her father became an invalid, and then entered religious life at age twenty-four. She was a very capable woman who spent most of her religious life working in the medical field. Eventually, she became the Superior General of the Sisters of St. Francis of Syracuse.

As Superior General of the Congregation, in 1883 she received a request from the King of Hawaii to send religious sisters to help in the work with lepers. Fr. Damien of Molokai was already there and had been devoting himself to the lepers for many years, having arrived in Hawaii in 1864 as a young, not yet ordained, Roman Catholic seminarian.

Sister Marianne Cope's affirmative response was the first to over fifty requests the King had sent out. All the other Orders declined to send sisters to help with the mission to the lepers. Later that year, she and five other sisters traveled by boat to Honolulu. They were greeted with open arms and set to work immediately in helping with the medical needs of lepers on the island of Oahu. Later, Mother Marianne Cope was sent to the island of Maui to set-up a hospital there. She returned to Oahu a year later only to find the administrator in charge of the hospital for the lepers abusing them. She insisted either he be fired, or she and the sisters would return to New York. The administrator was fired, and the sisters continued to serve the lepers.

Sister Marianne Cope responded to the needs of the lepers and their families in many ways. She established schools and orphanages for the children. The need on Molokai was great. Father Damien was dying. He had contracted leprosy. He was assisted in his work by a lay volunteer, Joseph Dutton, a devout and tireless worker for the lepers, but more help was needed. Sister Marianne was asked to set-up a home for women and girls on Molokai. She had always intended to return to New York, the home of her religious order and the home of her family. With grace and good will she responded as she always had to God's every invitation to give of herself generously and unselfishly. "We will cheerfully accept the work."

She cared for St. Damien in his dying months and then was asked by the government to take charge of Molokai.  Under her direction,  her religious sisters, Joseph Dutton, and the religious community of the Sacred Heart brothers continued the work so faithfully and unselfishly established by Fr. Damien.

In 1918, Mother Marianne Cope died of natural causes. Blessedly none of her sisters ever contracted leprosy. She was canonized in October 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI. Her remains are interred in the Basilica of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, where Fr. Damien was ordained, in Honolulu, Hawaii.

She remains in my mind an outstanding example of feminine generosity. Mother Marianne Cope was not able to finish her own education but went to work to support her family. She worked until her siblings were old enough to support themselves. She then entered religious life, a calling she had put off for many years. A capable and experienced worker, she proved herself worthy of the office of Superior General of her order. Administering her order well in New York, she generously responded to the needs of the leper mission in Hawaii. Again, she administered the work that she was given to do in Hawaii and was invited to take on more responsibility. Not thinking of herself, she remained in Hawaii until her death. Why? Because she was needed. She gave her all for the mission, for the love of Christ in the lepers, an amazing woman in my estimation.

St. Marianne Cope, pray for us!