Page:A Dictionary of Saintly Women Volume 1.djvu/448

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434 ST. JANE at Migetie, a conyont of the Order of St. Clara. After she had spent ten years* there, the Abbess of Tart resigned her office, and Jeanne de Ponrlan was con- strained by her superiors to become her successor. The first fervour of the Cistercian Order had long ceased to animate this community, and its discipline was seri- ously relaxed. The nuns had abandoned the appointed abstinence and religious exercises of their rule. They dressed in silks, with gold and silver lace and jewellery. They held intercourse with secular persons and entertained them, until their abbey had become almost an hotel. They were anxious only to admit ladies of noble blood. The new abbess was determined to see these abuses remedied. With dis- cretion and patience she enforced the observance of the rule of St. Benedict ; but the difficulties to be overcome were almost insuperable. The abbey had no cloister, no yrille, no private choir. The nuns rebelled against her strictness, and were supported by their noble relatives and even by ecclesiastics of the order. She was tempted to give up the struggle in despair, but at this crisis the Bishop of Langres came to her assistance. His eloquence, joined to the efforts of the abbess, won over to the side of reform five of the inmates of the abbey. In May, 1G23, these all ^removed to the neighbouring town of Dijon. They left at Tart, eight nuns still opposed to reform, of whom three afterwards joined the little band of reformers. The bishop wished to unite this community with that of Port-Royal, which observed the same rule, and the Abbess Jeanne spent five years at Port- Royal. Troubles, however, arose when her superiors tried to appoint her Abbess of Port-Royal, and she returned to Dijon in 1635, where she was three times re- elected abbess. She had herself been the means of making the office triennial. She died May 8, 1651, at the age of sixty. Helyot. Migne, Die. des Ordres Beli- (jieux. Guerin. St. Jane (21) of Denmark, 17th century. Beguine in 1662. Represented with a crucifix and a rosary. GneDebaoli Stadler. B. Jane (22), Feb. 22, March 1 and 6, + 1670. Giovanna Bonomi, a native of Yioenza, nun in the Benedictiiie monastery at Bassano, was remarkablB for humility and miracles. Her Life by Gkirzadoro was published at Padoa, 1675. A,B,M. Migne. St Janilla) Jonilla. St. Januaria (l), July 17, + 2<n One of the twelve Scillitan martyn, seven of whom were men and five were women ; the other women were GEXSBos.i (2), Vestina or Vestigia, Don at a, and Segunda. They lived at Scillita, a town of proconsular Africa, and were brought prisoners to Carthage to be tried as Christians in the reign of Severus, before the great general persecution begun bj him in 202. Their acts were transoribed from the public registers, and are said, both by Cuperus the Bollandist and by Butler, to be of undoubted authenticity. They contain no long speeches and no miracles. St. Speratus spoke for them all, saying they had not broken the laws or defrauded Uie revenues or committed any crime, but that they were Christians and willing to die for their faith rather than renounce it. The women wero asked severally whether they were de- termined to adhere to their religion. They were all offered a delay of some days to decide, but they de<dined and were put to the sword. Jannaria and Gonerosa were not natives of Scillita, although reckoned among the Scillitan martyrs, because tried and executed with them. BM. AA.SS. Butler. SS. Januaria (2-30), MM. in various places during the persecutions in the early centuries. St. Januariana or Januaria, Oct 20, M. at Pozzuoli. AA,SS. St. Januarissa, Jnne 3. Roman martyr. AA.SS, Janviere, French for Januakia. St. Jappa, Fappa. St. Jeanne, Jane. St. Jehohanan, Joanna, wife of Chuza. St. Jeonilla, Jonilla. St. Jeremia, Hieuemia (2). St. Jeronyma, Girolabia.