Our Second Mother: St. Colette of Corbie (1381-1447)

On January 13, 1381 a child was born in France who was destined to fulfill a great mission. This was Colette Boillet. The circumstances of her birth were extraordinary since her parents had been childless for many years and her mother was 60 years old.

After praying to St. Nicholas they were blesses with a daughter whom they named Nicolette, calling her Colette for short. As Colette grew up, she was known for being devout, candid and beautiful. When her parents died when she was 18 years old, she gave all her possession to the poor, and desired to dedicate her life completely to God.

Eventually, she became a recluse and lived in a small hermitage or anchor hold, but God had other plans. Through a series of unusual visions, Colette came to understand that she had been chosen by God as His instrument for the reform of the Order of St. Clare. With the permission of the Pope, she left her hermitage and spent the last 41 years of her life reforming Poor Clare monasteries in France and Belgium, as well as founding many new ones. She died in Ghent, Belgium on March 6, 1447.

Although Saints Francis and Clare are the beloved founders of the Poor Clares, the memory of St. Colette is also cherished by her daughters because she brought new life to the Order by recapturing the original spirit.

Today there are many Colettine Poor Clares throughout the world, with 11 monasteries in the United States who affectionately call St. Colette their “second mother.”

Because of the circumstances of her own birth and the many miracles brought about through her intercession, St. Colette is invoked as the patron saint of childless couples, expectant mothers and sick children. Her feast day in celebrated in the United States on February 7.