No. 194 - NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2008 Publication date: January 2009“The Kingdom”

The Victory of LoveJust as the tulip pierces

winter’s cold mantle with its corolla and scents the air with its fragrance, thus sig-naling the return of spring, so too is opening in a sort of anticipated blossoming upon the winter of the world, the Year of the Covenant, so rich with many promises, at a time when we will soon be celebrating the arrival of the New Year.

This Year of the Covenant, already so weighed down by the torrents of light waiting to break through the celestial dikes, is being given to us so that all peoples may be flooded with graces. There-fore, let us prepare ourselves to receive these cascades of beauty through a fervor that is revitalized every day by carefully preserving the crystals of love which the very beautiful feast of Christ-mas, recently commemor-ated, will have procured us. Permeated in this manner by the peace of the Nativity and absorbed in the adoring silence of the Virgin Mary so as not to be distracted by anything except God, we will be better able to concentrate all the strength of our soul on the spiritual preparation that ought to render us en-tirely open to welcoming the gifts our heavenly Father will soon pour forth upon human-ity as a whole.

It is with such an elan of fervor and love that we wish each one of you a wonder-ful Christmas season that is always so conducive to meditation in order to predis-pose us to receive the great graces God holds in store for the world with a view to its regeneration.

In the upheaval on the earth that cries out its dis-tress from all sides at being submerged once again in a sea of universal corruption, there returns once more the pure and white dove to bring peace to the world with its sweet olive branch, as

by Sister Andrée-Anne CARON

it did in Noah’s time, being the messenger of life for the survivors of the ark. Yes, the Sanctifier, the Peacemaker, is coming! The True Holy Spirit is very close to us, He who will flood the earth once again, not with the devastating torrents of the

divine Wrath which, in times past, obliterated all trace of life here below, but rather, through a deluge of graces with which He will cover the countless remains of dead souls because they have been cut off from God, by causing Life to pour forth.

That is the victory of Love! It is the ineffable magnifi-cence of God’s forgiveness being offered once more to sinful humanity. It is the re-sounding and everlasting outpouring of joy of the uni-verse in response to the Work of the Co-Redemption which is henceforth accomplished and has united Heaven and Earth so that they will never again be separated.

While he was still in the ark, sensing the return of light upon earth after having spent many long months in complete darkness, Noah released a dove three times to see if the waters had re-ceded within their confines. But it was only on its second outing that the dove, having found a place to set its feet, returned to Noah with, in its beak, the branch of hope. Now, in this time of the end which we have reached, an end but also the prelude to a new era which is already looming on the horizon with its golden rays, uplifting in sentiments of rejoicing the hearts of the men and women of good will, God Himself is the one sending His white Dove over the cor-rupt waves of the world, be-ing assured that it will find no more favorable place where to rest its wings than on the sacred ground of the Heart of His Spouse. In fact, while she is the Holy Ark, Mary is

2 “THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008

nonetheless the immacu-late Ground upon which the divine Dove can descend from Heaven as it comes to expose to us, like a banner before the face of the earth, the palm of victory which has been so dearly won by the Co-Redemptrix.

In rereading the passage of Genesis that speaks of the deluge, a sentence from Holy Scripture caught our attention, taking on a very special meaning. We can read there that, the occu-pants of the ark having no sooner left it and tread upon the ground purified of all its sins, Noah, in the company of his sons, received this order from the Eternal One: “Be fertile and multiply and fill the earth.” (Gn 9:1) Today, as the light of “the new heavens and the new earth” (Is 65:17) is progressively replacing the night of the times, does it not seem to us that we can hear, in turn, the pressing invitation of God to His sons and daughters through the

voice of the Lady: “Be fertile and multiply, filling the earth with saints to people the Kingdom”? And it is upon you, in particular, gener-ous parents that befalls the very noble task of working in God’s garden in order to present to Him, through your children, a flowerbed of holy souls that will give glory to Him for the thousand years to come.

As the hour now draws nearer for our Mother’s departure for the Father’s house, but also for the com-ing of the True Holy Spirit in the second and universal Pentecost so long awaited, this exhortation of love is be-ing addressed to us, an ex-hortation which the disciples, in former times, heard at the time of Our Lord’s Ascension when He said to His Apos-tles: “The Holy Spirit, the Sanctifier is about to come and you will be replete with Him. Ensure that you are as pure as everything that is to approach the Lord.... Now,

the advice of God is such a sublime thing, that it is ne-cessary to be prepared for it with a heroic will of a perfec-tion that may make you re-semble your Father and your Jesus... Therefore, perfect charity and perfect love in or-der to be able to understand the Love and receive Him on the thrones of your hearts. Get lost in the eddy of con-templation. Strive to forget that you are men and strive to change into Seraphim.” (Maria Valtorta, The Poem of the Man-God, vol. V, pp. 870-871)

So, let us prepare our-selves with a heroic will of perfection that will render us like unto the Immacu-late, so that the Holy Spirit may abundantly spread His graces upon the men and women whom He will find completely clothed with the perfect holiness of His divine Spouse. Thus, through the Lady’s Heart and following the example of her Life of Love, may we have “perfect charity and perfect love in or-

der to be able to understand Love and receive Him on the throne of our heart!” (Id.)

And finally, in this time of waiting, may we stay more than ever in the Holy Ark which is the Immacu-late’s womb in order to be sheltered from the tempest raging on the outside where everything rumbles as a re-sult of the fury of hell, and we will reach the shores of the Promised Land of the Kingdom, strengthened and irradiated by the gifts of the Divine Paraclete.

Come, True Holy Spirit! Come, beautiful Dove of Love! Come and enkindle with your fire the dark skies of the earth by illuminating it with the new rainbow of peace which will henceforth be the sign of the reconcilia-tion of man with God through the triumph of the Immacu-late. O come, Spirit of Love, our heart is calling out to you! Come, your hour has arrived!

Sr. Andrée-Anne Caron

exist in the Kingdom. There, harmony will reign; first and foremost, there will be harmony within each individual and that will then have repercussions on the harmony between men.

This harmony will be the result of long and painful efforts, for which men will have worked with perseverance in order to dominate the upsurges of the psychic body. As a reminder, the psychic body is our mortal soul or the inferior soul which we have in common with animals. It is the body of the emo-tions, desires and affections. During our life, it is the place of battle between good and evil, a real battlefield.

During those long and hard battles, Satan also comes into play. He sets traps so that our souls may succumb. He uses our desires, our affections and our emotions to cause us to stray. For example, anger is a disequilibrium of emotion; passion, that of affection; cu-pidity, greed and miserliness, that of desire. And the devil can exert an influ-ence on us in those areas.

However, if we fight courageously by relying on God’s grace, our psychic body finally ends up by submitting it-self, that is to say, our desires, emo-tions and affections are controlled by our will. During that time, our spiritual body (the immortal soul) has been strengthened by prayer. Besides that, Christians benefit from the very blessed opportunity of being able to have re-course to the sacraments.

Thus, Satan loses power over us more and more until the day when he

will no longer be able to do anything to us. All those who will en-ter into the Kingdom of a thousand years (of the Seventh Day) will be present there with their three bod-ies living harmoni-ously together, and Satan will have been put in chains in each one of them be-cause he will not be able to do anything to them.

That is how Satan will be put in chains in the abyss for a thousand years, for that will be the length of time of the Terrestrial Kingdom.

That is how apostles of the Work, having received special lights in this regard, explain to us what is meant when Satan is put in chains. Accord-ing to them, the enchainment of Satan does not seem to be an event in which “humanity would suddenly be delivered from him by a dazzling miracle, but as a reality that could be qualified as ‘per-sonal’ or even ‘interior’ to each one.” (White Book II, p. 160)

If we are finding the fight leading us to this new earth arduous, let us remain confident in Jesus whose promises never deceive. And let us remain confi-dent in the Immaculate Co-Redemptrix, to whom God has given the power to crush Satan even before giving us the possibility of doing so in our own per-sonal lives.

Father André Viens

In this season of Advent, Saint John describes what will happen to “those who had been be-headed for their witness to Jesus and the word of God, those who had never wor-shiped the beast

or its image nor accepted its mark.” He explicitly mentions that they will “come to life again and reign with Christ for a thousand years.” (Cf. Apoc 20:1-4,11-21:2) Does that not remind us of the Kingdom of the Seventh Day?

Similarly, Satan, the Adversary from the very beginning, has been put in chains for this period of a thousand years. Saint John saw “new heavens and a new earth”. According to cer-tain authors, Saint John is designating here a renewed creation here on earth, where we would live heaven on this earth. Would this represent the univer-sal earth of the Kingdom of the Sev-enth Day, according to Raoul’s phrase (L’Apocalypse, vol. II, p. 299), also referred to as the terrestrial millennium?

Everything leads us to believe that on this new earth, there will be harmony; there will no longer be any chaos, any dissoluteness. If Saint John tells us that “the sea is no longer” on this re-newed earth, that is because the sea is synonymous with chaos and dissolute-ness; thus, such disorder will no longer

John the Apostle

Fr. André Viens

“THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008 3

Children for the KingdomOn September 13, 2008,

during the day of prayer in honor of motherhood, Pauline Carrier Bouffard gave us a glimpse of the life of her family, blessed twelve times by the birth of a child. Here is her testimonial.

AN EXEMPLARY MOTHERBefore sharing with you

the main events of our life as a family, I wish, first of all, to pay hom-age to my mother, Mrs. M a g e l l a Carrier. I come from a family that has been marked by her un-shakeable faith which was reflected in her day-to-day actions. Five years ago, hav-ing to face the amputation of one leg and possibly both of them, she said calmly: “If the good God needs it, then let Him take it; and if He needs both, that’s okay too!” In spite of various sufferings, her heart was always turned to prayer, without rebelling, and always continuing to smile at life. That legacy has been the most important inherit-ance I received: to accept the crosses of this life with-out feeling sorry for myself.

THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE AS A COUPLE

On August 3, 1974, Alain and I were married. The next day, on the way to the Gaspé region where we were go-ing for our honeymoon, we stopped for Sunday Mass at the basilica in Saint Anne de Beaupré. As I placed my bouquet of newlywed at Saint Anne’s feet, we entrusted our marriage to her, asking that she protect both of us as well as the children heaven would want to entrust to our care. At that time, those who got married chose to invest in a house, in their careers, but we were going against the current. We loved each other and we were not going to wait to have everything before beginning a family. Alain, being the only boy in a family of eight living children, always did his best to sup-port his father whose health was failing because of heart problems. He worked out-

side the home to earn money for his own needs, and all his free time was spent helping his father on the farm, while I completed my studies. We were beginning our life as a couple with the bare min-imum. With good will and believing that God would provide for all our needs, not in the sense of an attitude of carelessness, but rather in accordance with the saying, “help yourself and Heaven will help you”, we advanced in life with confidence.

A LITTLE FAMILY DEVELOPEDSo it was that on May 24,

1975, Janick was born, to our great joy. After his birth, I gave up my job as a nurse, believing that it was important for the mother to be at home. Although far from being an ideal and perfect mother, my heart wanted what was best for my child. I believed that in staying home, I could more easily teach him our values, all the while supporting my husband in his work on the farm.

Then on November 11, 1976, Marie-Ève was born. In 1977, I had a tubal preg-nancy and a fallopian tube was removed. After that oper-ation, the doctor warned me that I would be lucky if I could give birth one more time. But Providence had other views for our family. On May 6, 1978, Pierre-Alain was born, and then there was Benoît, Myriam, Jean-Philippe, Pas-cal, Hélène, Gabriel. After that, I had two miscarriages and on August 15, 1991, our youngest daughter, Sylvie, was born.

“HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE BLESSED VIRGIN!”

On December 8 of that same year, Alain had a mas-sive heart attack. As I drove him to the hospital on that stormy night, I kept saying Hail Marys and the prayer to the Lady of All Peoples with him, as one who cries out to one’s mother when in dan-ger. Nothing was under con-trol and the medication was not working as it should. On that Sunday, a meeting of the Army of Mary was sched-uled. The Knights supported us with their prayers, but the big news was that someone had informed Marie-Paule who sent us a message by fax, saying: “Have confi-dence, the Blessed Virgin has cured others!” What a consolation that was for all of us, for I knew, from that moment on, that Alain would regain his health.

When he left the hospital, the cardiologist warned him that it would be hard for him to work now. Marie-Paule asked Alain to promise that he would not work with his arms until she would tell him he could do so. How happy I was to see that she exacted this of him, for she was the only person he religiously obeyed with regard to his health. I know he suffered from seeing the children work hard in his place.

During Alain’s lengthy stay in the hospital, the older ones looked after the farm very well. Marie-Paule sent Sister Cécile, Alain’s moth-er (who entered Commun-ity after having raised her family) to help me with all the

work. The Knights of Mary took turns to send a meal a day to the house while I was with Alain at the hospi-tal. We felt much love from our families and friends. Many of them had all kinds of thoughtful gestures in our regard, gestures we deeply appreciated.

“THAT HEART IS GOOD!”In February 1992, we went

to the Expodrome in Mont-magny for a Marian meet-ing. At the end of the cere-mony, Marie-Paule placed her hand on Alain’s heart, saying to him: “That heart is good; you can start to work.” With all the confidence he had in Marie-Paule, she did not have to say it twice. How happy he was to be able to work again! That spring, the cardiologist came to the sugar house and he was surprised to see all that Alain was doing. Based on the medical results, he should have had before him a man who was unable to work.

Life followed its course for the best, thanks to God. On April 7, 1993, Jean Sébas-tien was born, and then Robert, our youngest, came along on May 5, 1996. Dur-ing all those years, we bene-fited from the help of both our families.

FEWER CHILDREN, MORE LOVE?...

What I found most diffi-cult while our children were growing up was to see that the moral values instilled in the home were constantly being tested as soon as our children set foot out the door. While we were so happy to give souls to God, with each birth a comment we often heard hurt me: “We prefer to have only one or two children and be able to give them more love.” That annoyed me, but, with time, I understood that the children can give this love to each other. Also, the older ones help us teach the younger ones, and believe me, the reproaches made by broth-ers or sisters are better ac-cepted than those coming

by Pauline CARRIER BOUFFARD

Christmas Day 1994 - Pauline and Alain Bouffard, sur-rounded by their 11 children at the time, celebrate Christ-mas Day in the joy of their family home. Robert, the young-est in the family was born in 1996.Magella

Carrier

Sr. Cécile Bouffard

4 “THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008

from the parents. I will never forget Janick’s attitude while his father was on pilgrimage. It was in the fall. During the day, someone came to cut the corn field. After school, Janick and Pierre-Alain worked on various tasks out-doors while I prepared sup-per. At supper, Janick, who was about 11 at the time, asked Pierre-Alain (8 years old): “Why did you take the tractor and the trailer to drive around the field?” Pierre-Alain replied: “I wanted to pick up the cobs that were left...” – “And if daddy had been there, would you have done that?” – “No,” replied Pierre-Alain. So Janick sim-ply said to him: “Then do as you would if he were there.” I did not have to add another word.

RESPONSIBILITIES THAT BUILD SELF-ESTEEM

The more children there were, the more projects were born in Alain’s mind. He was never still and he still isn’t, with the fifteen grand-children who are our pride and joy [a sixteenth grandchild has been born since then]. At a very early age, our children had responsibilities, either in the house or on the farm, for this built up their self-esteem. When they reached adolescence, their respon-sibilities increased and each one discovered his talents and his aspirations, so that a better use was made of their leisure time. And thus it was much easier to get through the adolescent crises. At times, it was difficult, for it is painful for a mother’s heart to have to refuse a child per-mission, knowing that this is for his own good. We realize how fortunate we are that our children believed in the importance of the sacrament of marriage.

THE HEART IS ACTING UP AGAIN

In this year 2008, Alain

has once again faced the trial of illness. On the evening of February 29, he was out of breath and he had one bout of angina after the other, with only a few minutes of respite between each.

About a week and a half earlier, he had received a diagnosis indicating a blocked artery. The cardi-ologist who saw him that day told him that his case was urgent but that he could only get an appointment for him in two weeks. He suggested that Alain go to emergency in order to get in more quick-ly, but Alain refused. So on this Friday evening, faced with the very sharp pain, he accepted to go to the hos-pital. He had always been warned that he could not have a second heart attack, for it would be fatal. Knowing him, I was aware that he has an unusually high tolerance level to pain. On route to the hospital, with Marie-Paule’s picture in his pocket, it was even difficult for him to men-tally say his act of contrition. As I prayed, I hoped that Heaven would intervene in his favor. At emergency, at about 10 p.m., he was im-mediately looked after. The very sharp pain forced them to administer strong doses of nitro and morphine. At about 2:30 in the morning, the pain subsided a little. After speak-ing with the cardiologist, he told me I could leave, that they would watch him and operate on Monday. At about 5:00 a.m., the pain increased again and the medication seemed to have no effect. The cardiologist and the doctor in emergency wanted Alain to undergo the angio-plasty as soon as possible, but they had to control the pain, first of all. Early in the morning on that first Satur-day of the month, I called my sister-in-law, Danyelle, who got in touch with her mother, Sister Cecile. And Sr. Ger-trude informed Marie-Paule

who wrote to my mother-in-law:

“Yes, dear Cécile, as soon as we received the news about Alain, we prayed for him. And I said to Mary: ‘Alain must not die right now. He has a large family and a lot of work, and it is really a very wonderful family.’ He will die much later. All the many prayers were effective. Let us give thanks to God.”

SOMETHING MIRACULOUSSo on March 1, Alain was

taken to the operating room at about 8:30-9:00 a.m. He was conscious. At the end of the procedure, the nurses mentioned to the cardiologist surgeon that he had done something “miraculous”.

The next day, when the doctor went to see Alain, he said to him: “What the nurses said yesterday is true: I did something I was not suppos-ed to do and that procedure was totally successful.” And his regular cardiologist con-firmed this.

THE REAL MEANING OF LIFEI was always very happy

to give birth, even if it ex-acted renunciations. Ma-terial goods come and go, but it is with our children and grandchildren that the

real meaning of life is to be found. It is not always easy to work with fourteen differ-ent temperaments, but, with interior reform, it is possible. However, we are very fortun-ate to have known the Army of Mary, for that is where we

Montmagny, May 30, 1999 - Pauline and Alain Bouffard’s family and the grandmother Sister Cécile (in the center) are all members of the Family of the Sons and Daughters of Mary. Grandmother Carrier is also a member of the Family but is not on this picture.

Pauline and Alain Bouffard’s five grandsons born between November 2007 and February 2008.

found the spiritual resources required to form our children. The Work’s spirituality has always corresponded to our deepest aspirations, and our family would not have been the same without the Army of Mary. It is thanks to Marie-Paule who remained faithful to her mission that we are practising Catholics today. When we became members of the Army of Mary in the 1980s, that was for us a life-saver because our moral val-ues were declining. We owe so many thanks to Marie-Paule, especially for Alain who benefited from two mir-acles. He is still here today to watch over our family and to love us.

“A PEOPLE OF PRIESTS, A PEOPLE OF KINGS”

In closing, the last word will be given to Marie-Paule who wrote to us following the triduum in May 2008 during which she had made known the indication from Heaven concerning five of our grand-children, five boys born since the day given over to motherhood last September.

“Dear Pauline and Alain,

“What a joy to see you again and be able to frater-nize. Mary has united us to such an extent, you and all the generations to come in the course of the time of the Kingdom.

“ ‘A people of priests, a people of kings.’ How beauti-ful that is! And those beauti-ful little babies who have a place of honor on my desk. God will see to everything in His own good time. Some will marry, others will become priests. Some are required in the various vocations so that it can all multiply.

“Be forever blessed dur-

ing the thousand years of the Kingdom.

“Everything must be paid for, and the joys are so tre-mendous. Have confidence always!”

Pauline Carrier Bouffard

“THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008 5

After her mother, Marie-Ève Bouffard shared with us her experience of life within their large family which, for her, is a most precious inheritance. May her testimonial strengthen the courage of many other young people nurturing the same ideal. Her hus-band Neil accompanied her with their children.

While the birthrate was declining, our family kept constantly increasing; while atheism was growing more rampant, religion was the center of our life; while all things must be planned, structured, controlled and legislated, we would call on Providence to see to all our needs; and while women were liberating themselves, mother accepted, without complaining, the work that increased over the years. Ours was a life always going against the current.

Those major points de-scribe the upbringing we received and our life as a family, of which I am the second of twelve children and the eldest of the girls.

A SENSE OF RESPONSIBILITY, VERY YOUNG

Because we lived on a farm, we shared in the vari-ous tasks at a very early age. So we quickly developed a certain sense of responsibil-ity which, for us, was abso-lutely normal. I looked after making meals, alone, at a very early age while mother helped with outdoor work, depending on the season. I also have two grandmothers who are edifying examples of the giving and forgetting of self, with an unshakeable faith in spite of the difficulties they had to face, without ever feeling sorry for themselves. When I was young, they often came to lend a help-ing hand at home, and that frightened us, for we knew we would have to help them and that we would have no respite. We wondered what they ate that sustained them so much.

I admit that during my youth I did not have much merit in practising our reli-gion. Of course, we would grumble, sometimes, when there were meetings of the Work and the weather was

nice, or when we had to go to the catechism courses while our friends went to dances on Friday nights, but mother would always tell us: “The time you give to God is never lost or wasted.”

In my adolescence, I had the opportunity to participate in pilgrimages to Europe. The beauty of the cere-monies, the singing and the brotherhood that was found there strengthened my at-tachment to the Work.

In 1991, when I was 15, my father had a heart at-tack. Since I had no difficulty learning, I stayed home a few days a week while mother went to the hospital. Janick, my older brother, who had finished school, looked after the animals and the other tasks on the farm.

GRADUAL DETACHMENTSGradually, I detached my-

self from my girlfriends, for our interests were no longer the same, and I was not par-ticipating very often in the weekend outings, although I still deeply respected them. Then it was time to register at the Cegep [college stud-ies prior to trades or univer-sity studies]. Knowing that there was much work to do at home and that I could lend a helping hand there, that is what I decided to do. Some of my teachers let me know they disagreed with my de-cision, as did my escort who wrote in my graduation book: “It’s a shame to waste a great mind.”, as though good grades were the only

thing that could describe a good mind.

For six years I did a little bit of everything: helping in the house during sugar time, helping with seeding or haying, during the calving season and with gardening, even helping out with winter chores in the woods. In the summer, I worked as a wait-ress, so as a result there was not much time for leisure ac-tivities or outings, which I did not really miss. We have a love of work and we like to work together. Nonetheless, misunderstandings did arise at times, as is the case in all families, but we learned to transcend them and to mu-tually help each other. During all those years, our parents taught us, through their ex-ample, to trust in Providence without, for all that, remain-ing inactive when faced with problems or difficulties. They put into practice the saying: “He who gives birth, feeds!”

When I met with friends, I sometimes had moments of inner rebellion as I saw them working towards their careers, and I had to explain to them that I was working on a farm without a salary, but my mother would tell me that what we do for others is repaid a hundredfold.

“THE GOOD LORD HAS A GOOD MAN FOR YOU!”

As the years went by, my ideal of marriage grew, as did my desire to have chil-dren. I dated a few boys, some of them very good and whom I sometimes rejected

somewhat tactlessly.

The years came and went. From time to time, I would go over in my mind all the boys I knew or had met and I asked my-self which one was meant for me; but that was discour-aging.

At one of the ceremo-nies of the Army of Mary, I had an opportunity to meet Marie-Paule. Like a mother who can probe one’s heart and without my having said anything whatsoever to her, she took my hand and said to me: “The good Lord has a good man for you!” And that filled my heart with hope.

At 19, I began a weekend job in which I looked after two young children for an English family. That is when I met my future in-laws who had just adopted their two grandchildren living in Costa Rica, in order to help their daughter who was ill.

DATING?... DIFFICULTIES...There I met Neil, their son,

during a family gathering. At that time he was studying in North Carolina. Having com-pleted his studies, he came back to work in Montreal. He would come to spend his weekends in the country, and gradually his visits be-came more frequent. I was still unaware of his feelings, for the thought of dating him had not even crossed my mind. However, this became more obvious to me when he started coming to our house unannounced and with various excuses, using as a pretext that he wanted to get in shape by pitching hay, etc. We began to date and I had a growing affection for him without, however, my giving in to it, for I knew that we would have to face up to our differences, namely, our family backgrounds and our religion, for Neil was a non-practising Protestant. I was afraid to mention the subject of the Army of Mary with all that this implied, even if our family values seemed to be similar.

In spite of their great kindness and their warm welcome, I could hardly see myself coming into this well-to-do family with my few cattle and my “rototiller”, for the father, having emi-grated from Scotland, man-aged investments for insti-

by Marie-Ève BOUFFARD RIDDELL

Spiri-Maria, September 13, 2008, on the day dedicated to motherhood with Marie-Ève Bouffard and Neil Riddell - Left to right: Alain Bouffard (grandfather), holding baby Henry in his arms; Neil Riddell, with his daughter Gloria; Marie-Ève Bouffard and, to her left, Charlotte the eldest; and Pauline Bouffard (grandmother) with Joseph.

Marie-Ève Bouffard

6 “THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008

tutions and well-established families, while the mother worked in the financial re-search field, occupying the position of executive director or president of various com-panies, but they were won-derful examples of simplicity, modesty and loyalty.

After each one of Neil’s visits, I would say to myself that I would leave him the following weekend and I kept putting it off for a month. Finally, on New Year’s Eve, I thought that everything was simply beginning to go too fast, so I decided to leave him, believing that our differ-ences were unsurmountable. A few weeks later, after hav-ing sought an explanation from me, Neil convinced me, and we began to date again.

I was increasingly charmed by his qualities, especially his honesty and his upright-ness of spirit. He attended the meetings of the Work and he would question me.

DIFFERING BELIEFS BRING ABOUT CONCESSIONS

Our discussions on con-traception indicated that we did not have the same ideas on the subject. We seemed to have reached an im-passe. I explained to Neil that I could not comprom-ise on this aspect, and on the recommendation of a priest, we broke up. I hurt but I could not go against my beliefs. I could already imagine Neil thinking: “Why be so concerned over this girl with whom I would have to abstain when there are so many others who would be willing to do just the oppos-ite.” He was to attend a wed-ding in Arizona, and, to my great surprise, he called me twice to tell me that a plane ticket was waiting for me so that I could join him. He also told me that this separation had made him realize I was the woman for him. I refused to join him, explaining to him that he would have to agree with me on this subject. Upon his return, Neil accepted that renunciation and we decided to get married.

MUTUAL RESPECTMy parents, confident in

the Lady of All “Peoples”, but wishing to be reassured, informed Marie-Paule of our plans. (My brother Janick was also getting married in September with a young lady belonging to another religious confession.) Marie-Paule replied:

“Two children will get mar-

ried soon. Two adult children so devoted, accustomed to working, capable of ac-complishing so many things. Under the circumstances, I know that you must have passed through ‘a whole gamut of emotions and un-certainty’, which is normal. But there are Protestants with good intentions just as there are Catholic with bad intentions. And if God is per-mitting these unions, that is because He has His views. Can we understand why two people, sometimes so dif-ferent, are bound together? Different also on the human level in their upsurges or their beliefs, which will require a mutual respect. Gentleness, understanding and the ex-ample that attracts will be required and not persuasive words that rebuff.

“In all things, the spiritual aspect is entrusted to the Lady of All Peoples. Your two children, who have done so much, with you, for her Work of love, will certainly benefit from her maternal goodness. Let us have confi-dence. Let each one be free and patient! Beautiful graces must be paid for.

“What counts is not to ‘vanquish but to convince’. However, I prefer writing: ‘it is not to vanquish but rather to attract by the beauty, har-mony, peace and joy of the heart and soul.’

“We must respect our Protestant brothers and sis-ters, love them and under-stand them. I know that you are capable of imposing nothing, except of course, the same freedom for Janick and Marie-Ève to practice their religion. Let us be con-fident! God sometimes has astonishing ways.”

We continued to journey together, and we were mar-ried on October 7, 2000, on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, during which I asked the Lord that our children be sensitive to the suffering in the world and that they ap-preciate simplicity.

During our honeymoon to Scotland and Portugal, we went to Fatima where I en-trusted our marriage to the Virgin as well as my good husband’s soul. A few days later, Neil’s father called to tell us that he would be undergoing emergency surgery for cancer of the esophagus, an illness he was aware of shortly before our marriage but which he wished to keep secret until

our return so as not to place a damper on our happiness. We immediately boarded a plane in order to be there for the operation.

THE JOYS AND SUFFERINGS OF MOTHERHOOD

A few months later, his cancer was in remission, and to our great joy, I was pregnant. It did not take long before I began experiencing nausea and vomiting, which lasted until the birth. I of-fered everything up for the little one’s soul and for its health. During that time, Neil and I would sacrifice some-thing, such as chocolate, and we have done the same with every pregnancy. My father-in-law had a relapse, the cancer spread and he passed away three weeks before the birth of our first child. The baby’s arrival was a balm in our bereave-ment and brought joy to our home.

We are now the blessed parents of four children: Charlotte (6 years old), Joseph (4 years), Gloria (2 years) and Henry (8 months).

The ceremonies during last September’s triduum, and especially the one in honor of motherhood, deeply moved me and gave me new vigor since I was carrying our youngest child at that time.

Since I had not had any complications during my pregnancy, I wanted to give birth naturally, which I was able to do, offering every contraction for the soul of the little one whom we were so anxious to caress.

During the night of Nov-ember 11, which was also my birthday, we went to the hospital. It was the birth which appeared to me to be the most painful, but I also had to offer something up for the Co-Redemption, so when I would get discour-aged, my thoughts went out to Marie-Paule, offering her

this pain and asking God to grant her a few hours of res-pite while I took over for her, without for all that, my want-ing to compare my suffering to hers, knowing that hers is much greater, but I wanted to do my little bit. I gave birth to a healthy boy weighing nine and a half pounds.

WHAT A CHALLENGE IT IS TO BE A MOTHER!

We decided to live in the country because of the pace of life there, and, for us, it was just normal that I stay home to look after the children. I am enjoying the time spent with them, which brings me great satisfaction, something which so many mothers who could do so are depriving themselves of be-cause they do not feel they have been fulfilled in the eyes of others, a suffering that women among themselves inflict upon themselves, alas. What a challenge it is to be a mother, and to be the one who forms these little souls lent us, without being cer-tain that we will succeed but by abandoning ourselves to Providence and having Mary as a model.

During an end-of-the year program in which each stu-dent had to tell us what he or she wanted to become, while many wanted to be doctors, princesses, firemen, etc., our daughter Charlotte said that she wanted to become a mother. In her innocence, she had understood the importance and extent of motherhood.

I ask the Lady to guide me in my role as a wife and mother so that these little ones and we ourselves may always be faithful to her, as well as the generations to come, and that, after the example of Marie-Paule, we may all abandon ourselves to God’s will.

Marie-Ève B. Riddell

– Deepest gratitude for all the spiritual beacons given us by the paper Le Royaume through its inspired and providential writers! All the articles bear witness to the depth, grandeur and au-thenticity of the mission of the Co-Redemptrix and of the painful birthing of the Church of John. Thank you so very much! D. Lemoine

– I cannot find words that are strong, rich and power-ful enough to express my ad-miration for the gem of the paper. I wish to congratulate the entire team for the won-derful presentation and the truth that rejoices and nour-ishes our heart every two months. May God be blessed and glorified for this forever.

Lucie Dubois

“THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008 7

The Joy of Being a MotherDuring the day of pray-

er in honor of mother-hood, Véronique Desbiens and her husband, Mario Plamondon, who already have two little boys, gave us their testimonial of generosity and self-aban-donment, following the birth of identical twin girls who fulfilled all their expectations. Here is what Véronique told us at that time.

I had the good fortune of growing up in the Army of Mary, belonging to it for twenty-seven years now, that is to say, from my birth. What a gift my parents gave me by instilling in me solid Christian and spiritual val-ues. I can now evaluate all that this implied and its im-pact since I, in turn, have become a mother. I am the young mother of four chil-dren: Jean-François (4 years old), Matthieu (2½ years old) and my twin girls, Léa and Suzie, who are now 3½ months old.

ONE MORE SOUL FOR GOD?...Last year, my husband

and I wished to have a third child. Already having two little boys, I dreamed of hav-ing a little girl. I had always thought that two boys and two girls would be the per-fect family for me. But, as time went by, and especially with my first two pregnan-cies which had been rather difficult, I preferred to wait until the spring of 2008, so that my boys would be a little older, and this time, I had the firm resolve that this pregnancy would be the last. But now I think God wanted one more soul in His King-dom. My husband, Mario, kept repeating that it would be good if the baby came at the beginning of the summer

because then he would be able to take three months off from his work on paternity leave. That way, he said, we would have the summer together and we could rest. I must admit that I was a little reticent with regard to his suggestion.

The weeks passed and September came along. We had the joy of participating in the triduum in honor of the Triumph of the Cross. Saturday was given over to motherhood and my parents gave me a beautiful gift by offering that I go up to the chapel to listen to the confer-ences. That is rather difficult to do when we must stay in the basement with our young children in order to keep an eye on them and especially to keep them busy so that it does not seem too long for them. So, during that day, I was able to listen to the very beautiful testimonials of those courageous mothers. I was particularly touched by the one given by the mother who gave birth to twin girls, one of whom immediately

went to join the angels. I was not the only one to shed many tears that day. How I found her attitude through-out her trial to be marked by that love which is giving and abandonment. Of course, the loss of her little loved one deeply moved me, but as I listened to her testimo-nial, my heart was edified by the beauty of her soul, and at that moment, I too wanted to be able to abandon myself to God’s will in such a beautiful way.

A few days later, I happily accepted to give a third little soul to the Lord. I prayed God in my heart saying that,

if this was His will, I would like to have a little girl. Most cer-tainly, my pregnancy would be difficult, physically, but I accepted in advance what-ever would come, simply hoping that the baby would be in good health. My prayer was heard, for, two weeks later, we found out that I was pregnant.

THERE MIGHT BE TWO?...There were very many

bouts of nausea in the first few weeks of pregnancy, and I who had hardly ever had any nausea, had a double dose of it this time! My abdomen increased at the blink of an eye. At about the tenth week, I felt the baby move for the first time. An in-describable joy for a mother, that first contact with the little being forming in her. At twelve weeks, I felt it moving again, but this time, on the other side of my belly. I was perplexed because given its size, that was absolutely im-possible. As the days went by, I felt more and more little kicks but really in two very different places. At that mo-ment, I thought there might be two, but I quickly rejected that idea, for there are no twins on either side of the family and also because I had always thought that hav-ing two babies at the same time would be a catastrophe! Twice as many diapers and bottles, twice as much crying and tiredness.

ANOTHER LITTLE HEART IS BEATING

At sixteen weeks, I had an appointment with my doc-tor, for the weighing of the mother to check her weight gain and listening to the little one’s heartbeat to see if it was doing fine. My doctor advised me to watch what I ate since I had taken on more weight than in my two previous pregnancies. That is when it clicked in my mind. We listened to its heartbeat and then I suggested to my doctor that he listen on the other side of my belly to see if there was not another little one hidden behind. We were quite surprised to hear an-other heartbeat that was just as strong. I was filled with an immense joy, and I instantly forgot my fear of having two babies at the same time. I immediately offered them

to the Lady of All Peoples that she might guide them to Jesus and Mary, hoping all the while that they would be in good health.

My first ultrasound re-vealed that one of the two babies was a girl, while, the other having stayed hid-den, it would be a surprise. Already in my heart I knew that they would be two little rosebuds. What a grace God bestowed upon us by giving us not one, but two, little pearls to enliven our home and balance out our family. Later it was confirmed that they were identical.

A GIFT FROM GOD: IDENTICAL TWIN GIRLS

I, for my part, had no doubts that it was not my body that had played tricks on me by simultaneously producing two ovum, which would have given two non-identical twins, but truly the Lord who, in His great kind-ness, had heard my poor prayer. God always grants our desires, but according to His will and not ours. I was hoping for a girl, offering in advance all the physical suffering that would come, and, in return, I received two little girls with twice the de-mands. Yes, my pregnancy was difficult. I had many contractions which began during the fourteenth week. This forced me to spend al-most eight months in a semi-reclined position.

PROVIDENCE WAS WATCHING...

Twin pregnancies being at risk, we most certainly did not want them to arrive too prematurely or to have serious health problems. There again, divine Provi-dence was watching over me and my little ones, since I received all kinds of help. Already, much organiza-tion was required and they were not even born yet. My husband was an incredible help. In spite of his work

Véronique Desbiens and Mario Plamondon, accom-panied by their four chil-dren during their testimo-nial at Spiri-Maria.

Véronique Desbiens, Mario Plamondon and their four children: Jean-François (4 years), Mathieu (2½ years) and the twin girls Léa and Suzie (3½ months).

Reminder of the testimo-nial given by Marie-Hélène Couture at Spiri-Maria in September 2007. She is seen here after the birth of her twin girls. Her eldest daugh-ter Anne-Marie is holding Marie-Jeanne, while she is holding little Gabrielle who died a short time later.

8 “THE KINGDOM”, No. 194, November-December 2008

Triduum of September 2008Pearls of Great ValueThere are

moments in life that we cannot for-get, precious instants, the undefinable aroma of which has imbued the soul to the

point of saturating it with its fragrance, so that it retains these instants in the depths of its heart to meditate upon them and allow them to per-fume its route, day after day, as it mounts to the summits of love. These minutes of our existence that shine bril-liantly like pearls of great value in the depths of each being make him relive, with the same intensity as he experienced them the very first time, undying memories which, at their mere thought, render more wonderful the daily joys while at the same time revitalizing one’s trust and courage in the more dif-ficult hours.

Is that not precisely what one can remember as we recall in our hearts the testi-monials heard during the day dedicated to mother-hood during the triduum of September 2008? If time passes, unperturbable, in its frenzied course, it cannot, for all that, pick off the soft petals of the flowers of grace gathered throughout those days of assembly at Spiri-Maria. That is because the bits of beauty that color the heaven of our destiny and which are so full of richness because they express the inexpressible, deposit in our hearts, by calming its thirst, a drop of this nectar of Life that will quench it everlast-ingly.

That is why it is still quite

timely to look back over the triduum in spite of the months that have passed be-cause the celestial fragrance of those days of grace goes well beyond the confines of time, being situated much more in the timeless present proper to the things of God, for that is what they really are. These arrows of love that pierce the darkness of this world with a beam of incandescent light bring a song of hope to this desolate earth upon which everything passes, by rendering less painful the exile of its in-habitants who have willingly accepted to live here below this suave but yet so bitter martyrdom brought about by the unappeased desire of the soul to not be able to reach without delay the bea-tific vision of our heavenly dwelling place.

VÉRONIQUE DESBIENSThus there quickly comes

to mind the eloquent account of the young Véronique Des-biens, a moving echo of love of the just as touching testimonial given by Marie-Hélène Couture in Septem-ber 2007, and which entered our hearts like a ray of celes-tial light by immersing us in sentiments of thanksgiving to God for His so very won-derful works.

Who could ever fathom the secret of love exchanged between God and the heart of this young mother, Véro-nique, in that instant when she accepted the prospect of another pregnancy with all its demands and this, in spite of the rather difficult pregnancies she had had in the past? Knowing that “a soul is worth a world to

God,” we have every rea-son to be amazed at Véro-nique’s generous yes as she accepted to forget herself in order to give life, thus letting God give to this couple not only one more soul to en-hance their home, a treasure which is already so ineffable and always exceptional with each new birth, but really two gems of love that will adorn His Paradise for ever.

And Providence was watching over this family which increased with the arrival of these two identi-cal beings like two rose-buds opening on the single stem receiving them. In fact, thanks to the devotedness of those around her who helped her during this rather demanding period, without forgetting the incomparable support of her good hus-band, everything worked out admirably well so as not to overwork this happy mother, fulfilled in spite of the con-cerns and hesitations ex-perienced at first. Yes, how great is our Father in all He does!

There you have a won-derful testimonial revealing God’s wisdom and showing those hearts that are afraid to give too much, to de-sire too much that He only waits upon our generosity to shower us with His graces and thus realize His plans of love for humanity which is still so far away from the path set out for it in the Eter-nal One’s thought but which will soon find its way again, that path of light thanks to the total giving of virtuous couples who, little by little, will raise generations of saints through the sublime giving of life, making of them

co-creators next to God and the Immaculate.

To crown this beautiful story of love, what better wish could we formulate for these children than that they bring to full bloom that seed of ideal which their mother has already sown in their hearts through her desire to see them become great saints.

PAULINE AND ALAIN BOUFFARD

A passage of a life that also deeply touched us, like the rose window of a marvelous masterpiece of glassworks which catches our attention more by the additional light it radiates, was without a doubt the re-markable example of the Bouffard family.

Before the richness of such a life, words lose their power and fade, given the splendor that shines from it, and by this very fact, re-ducing to nothing the temp-tation of carrying on with empty words, and immers-ing the soul, instead, in a contemplative and adoring silence which, alone, can express the excess of our feelings at the sight of the wonders God works in the depths of hearts and that He takes pleasure in reveal-ing in order to enflame souls with a renewed fervor.

Thus, it is not necessary to describe at great length the impression of grandeur and beauty that enveloped souls throughout the testi-monial of this exemplary family, a testimonial given by the mother Pauline, in order to be able to measure its im-pact. In fact, who could not see in her, from the very first words she said, the strong woman of which the Gospel speaks, “a worthy wife, her value is far beyond pearls. Her husband, entrusting his heart to her, has an unfailing prize” ? Cannot this passage from the Book of Proverbs be, in all honestly, perfectly

by Sister Andrée-Anne CARON

which was very demanding, he was always there for me, looking after the children and doing the housework as best he could. In spite of the fact that she had a young baby, my sister offered to help me by taking one or other of my boys home with her several mornings a week to lighten my load. She also cooked delicious meals for my little family. My mother also gave

unstintingly of her time, trav-elling by bus from Quebec to Victoriaville every week to give me a bit of rest, to clean the house and prepare a few meals. What a beauti-ful example of that love that is giving, and of charity this was for me, following the example of what our dear Mother has taught us by her Life of Love.

THE BIRTH OF THE TWINSLea and Suzie were born

on May 26 by Caesarean at thirty-six weeks of gesta-tion and they were in perfect health. Yes, there are twice as many feedings, twice as many diapers to change, of cries to console and fatigue to endure, but I know that grace will always be there so that, in turn, I may teach them to love God and Mary

and prepare them to face life by always accepting the crosses they will find along the way. In that way I hope that, along with their broth-ers, they may become great saints and be strong in their faith. What happiness to watch them both grow up with their older brothers who are so proud of them.

Véronique Desbiens

Sr. Andrée- Anne Caron