Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Joan Begins Her Mission!

On February 23, 1429, Joan of Arc finally received the blessing of Sir Robert de Baudricourt and departed Vaucouleurs to begin her mission. Joan had to make three attempts requesting help from de Baudricourt before he finally relented and agreed to send her to Charles VII in Chinon. It was during the evening of the 23rd that Joan assembled her small party of six that included her two knights, Jean de Metz and Bertrand de Poulengy, their two servants and two of the King’s messengers. The journey they were embarking upon was long and hazardous and required them to travel at night. Just before Joan departed Vaucouleurs a women of the town asked Joan: “How can you make such a journey when on all sides are enemy soldiers?” to which Joan famously responded: “I do not fear the soldiers, for my road is made open to me; and if the soldiers come, I have God , my Lord, who will know how to clear the route that leads to messire the Dauphin. It was for this that I was born!”

Friday, February 3, 2012

Joan Pilgrimage in 2012

If you are looking for a unique way to celebrate Joan of Arc’s 600th Birthday in 2012 then you might consider going on a pilgrimage to France to walk where Saint Joan of Arc once walked. I have been friends with Chris and Catherine Snidow of PilgrimWitnesses.com for several years and have always been impressed with how committed they are to presenting Joan’s true history and who she really was. Over the years they have sent me many pictures from their pilgrimages of statues and other images of Joan which I have gratefully used at MaidOfHeaven.com to better teach Joan’s true history. I can tell from viewing these pictures that the Snidow’s pilgrimages are very well planned and usually visit some of Joan’s most famous locations. This year’s pilgrimage seems especially enticing with visits to Orleans, Rouen and Domremy which were probably the three most significant cities in Joan’s life. The Snidow’s description of this year’s pilgrimage given below illustrates their commitment to providing the ultimate experience for people wanting to learn the real story of Joan of Arc.

“God willing, in June 2012, we will lead our sixth pilgrimage to France (our fifth with the spirituality and footsteps of Joan foremost in our plans). 2012 marks Joan's 600th birthday anniversary, and this will be celebrated in various ways throughout France. As before, the philosophy we are aiming for on this trip is one of going back to the essentials, of simplicity, of quality time in some places instead of 'rush-rush' in many. We will indeed see much, but we want to experience the places we visit more as spiritual travelers than as consumers. Indeed, our goal is to first see things through the eyes of believers, and then from other perspectives; such as historical, architectural, sociological, as tourists, etc. Consequently, the maximum number of people we'll take will be 16. More than that would begin to impact the basic philosophy we wish to follow.”

For more information click on the picture below from their 2009 pilgrimage: