St. Rose Philippine Duchesne (1769–1852) was a French nun of the Society of the Sacred Heart who, at forty-nine, crossed the ocean to the American frontier, opened the first free school west of the Mississippi River, and at seventy-one went to live among the Potawatomi people, who called her “the woman who prays always.” Her missionary dream took decades to come true and brought her more hardship than visible success, but she never gave up. Pope St. John Paul II canonized her in 1988, and her feast day in the United States is November 18. Below are her story, what she is the patron saint of, and prayers to St. Rose Philippine Duchesne.
A short prayer to St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, written for this page:
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, you waited years for your mission and never lost heart.
Pray for me when my plans fail and my work seems fruitless.
Teach me to pray always, to persevere, and to trust God with the results. Amen.
Who was St. Rose Philippine Duchesne?
Philippine Duchesne was born on August 29, 1769, in Grenoble, France, into a wealthy family. As a girl she heard Jesuit missionaries speak about Louisiana and the Native peoples of America, and she longed to be a missionary. She entered the Visitation convent near Grenoble, but the French Revolution closed it and scattered the sisters. During the Terror she nursed prisoners and helped hide priests. In 1804 she joined the new Society of the Sacred Heart, founded by St. Madeleine Sophie Barat.
In 1818, at forty-nine, she finally sailed for America with four companions. Bishop Louis William Dubourg sent them up the Mississippi to St. Charles, Missouri, where she opened the first free school west of the Mississippi. She founded several schools and convents in Missouri and Louisiana despite poverty, cold, illness and her own difficulty with English. In 1841, at seventy-one, she joined the Jesuit mission among the Potawatomi at Sugar Creek, Kansas. Too old to learn their language, she spent hours each day in prayer in the chapel, and the Potawatomi named her Quah-kah-ka-num-ad, “Woman Who Prays Always.” She returned to St. Charles and died there on November 18, 1852, at eighty-three.
She wrote from the frontier: “Poverty and Christian heroism are here, and trials are the riches of priests in this land.”
Canonization
Pope Pius XII beatified her in 1940, and Pope St. John Paul II canonized her on July 3, 1988. Her shrine is at the Academy of the Sacred Heart in St. Charles, Missouri.
What is St. Rose Philippine Duchesne the patron saint of?
St. Rose Philippine Duchesne is the patron saint of:
- Perseverance in the face of adversity and apparent failure
- The Diocese of Springfield–Cape Girardeau and the Archdiocese of St. Louis region
- Missionaries and teachers, especially in difficult places
Prayers to St. Rose Philippine Duchesne
Written for this page.
For perseverance
St. Rose Philippine, your dream was delayed for decades and your work often seemed to fail.
Pray for me to persevere in prayer and in the work God has given me,
and to remember that He sees the fruit even when I do not. Amen.
For Native American peoples
Lord, bless the Native peoples of this land.
Through the prayers of St. Rose Philippine, St. Kateri and St. Katharine Drexel,
heal old wounds, protect their families and cultures, and draw them ever closer to you. Amen.
Feast day
The feast of St. Rose Philippine Duchesne is November 18, the day of her death, an optional memorial in the United States.
Frequently asked questions
Who was St. Rose Philippine Duchesne?
A French nun of the Society of the Sacred Heart who brought the society to America in 1818, founded the first free school west of the Mississippi, and served the Potawatomi people.
What did the Potawatomi call her?
“Woman Who Prays Always.”
When is her feast day?
November 18.
More saints
- St. Kateri Tekakwitha prayer
- St. Katharine Drexel
- St. Frances Xavier Cabrini
- St. John Neumann
- Feast of the Sacred Heart
- Saint of the day
Texts and sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), “Philippine-Rose Duchesne,” by Catherine M. Lowth, public domain (Wikisource), including her letter from St. Charles.