Biography of Louis and Celia Martin
louis martin
louis martin He was born in Bordeaux in 1823 and grew up at the pace of the mobility of his father’s work, who was a military man, however, after a while his family managed to settle permanently in alencon (France), where he did his schooling. From his youth he felt the desire to consecrate himself to God in the monastery of the Great Saint Bernard, but he was forced to abandon this project to undertake a course in watchmaking. In 1850 he opened his own watch and jewelry store in Alençon; Luis Martin was a hard-working man who was involved in social work with the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul. Before getting married, Luis spent his free time fishing and meditating.
Celia Guerin
Celia María Guérin was born on December 23, 1831 in Gandelain (France), where her father was a military man. Celia studied at the Perpetual Adoration Convent and soon felt the desire to become a nun, however the mother superior did not accept it, so the young woman dedicated herself to professional training and learned the first rudiments of the famous Alençon point, one of the most famous lace of the time. Celia proved to be very talented in this field and she opened her own workshop for the manufacture of this lace and hired several women, who provided her services; Ella celia treated them like members of the family and practiced all the virtues of the Gospel with them. In addition, the quality of her work was excellent and the workshop was highly recognized.
The Martin couple
Luis and Celia met for the first time in alencon, on the bridge of San Leonardo and were married a few months later, on July 13, 1858. The Martin couple were united by deep affection and a keen desire to please God, especially by practicing abstinence before marriage. The cards of Celia reveal the great love she felt for her husband, from the beginning: “Your wife who loves you more than her life.” Luis and Celia Martin had nine children, four of whom died when they were still very young, so the couple had to live to the rhythm of these births and deaths, joys and sufferings. Regarding her children, Celia wrote in a letter: “I love children madly, I was born to have them.”
The Martin parents were good educators and strove to raise their children in holiness: the Eucharist and daily prayer were the pillars of their lives. Both had a living faith of which they gave testimony to their family and those around them, through their participation in social works. They were good workers and very brave, which helped them run the lace factory that Celia had founded. In 1865, Celia developed breast cancer and confidently passed through this ordeal, saying: “If God wants to heal me, I will be very happy because, deep in my heart, I want to live; what is hard for me is leaving my husband and my daughters. But, on the other hand, I tell myself: if I am not cured, it is that, perhaps, it will be more useful for me to leave”. In this context, the couple was marked by the long ordeal of illness and then the death of Celia, which occurred on August 28, 1877. After her death, and after 19 years of marriage, Luis Martin moved in with the five daughters of the A Lisieux to live with his in-laws, the Guérin family. He remained attentive to each of his daughters and open to his religious life plans. With the passage of time, and shortly after Teresita entered the Carmelite convent, Luis fell ill and from 1888 he began to be treated at the hospital. Bon Sauveur de Caen, but was paralyzed and then died on July 29, 1894.
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Beatification and Canonization of the Martin couple
Already in 1946 the Bishop of Lisieux He wanted to initiate the causes for the beatification of Luis and Celia Martin, known for being the parents of Saint Therese of Lisieux. In this way, the processes of both spouses were carried out in parallel in two dioceses. Later, it was Pope Paul VI who wanted to unite the two causes into one, which was a first in the history of the Church.
In 1994, the year of the family, John Paul II recognized the heroic virtues of Luis and Celia Martin and declared them venerable. Later, Pope Benedict XVI recognized the first miracle which consisted in the healing of little Pietro Schilirò, born in Milan, which allowed the ceremony of beatification in Lisieux, in 2008. In 2015, Pope Francis recognized the second miracle: the healing of little Carmen in Valencia.
The canonization of the couple (a first in history) was proclaimed by Pope Francis on October 18, 2015 in Rome. This canonization, which took place during the Episcopal Synod on the mission of the family in the Church and in the worldhighlights marriage as a path to holiness.
The spiritual influence of Luis and Celia Martin
Luis and Celia Martin give us an example of a life dedicated to following in the footsteps of Christ, which is why they are a very special model of holiness: they became a model of holiness being both laymen, although each of them wanted to be religious at the time .
Luis and Celia were exemplary in different aspects of their lives: they worked bravely, shared their income with the poorest, overcame trials, put the Lord first, bravely accepted illness and offered their children to God. Due to the above, today canonization It is a reminder for all Christians that holiness is within everyone’s reach, it is conjugal, it is family, it is lived daily in trials and joys… They have been a support and a model worth imitating for thousands of couples.
relics of Luis Y Celia Martin they have been traveling the world since 2015. They allow the people who receive them to present their partners, families and all difficult situations to the Lord. Lastly, the book Louis and Celia Martin, la saintete a portée de main (Louis and Celia Martin, Holiness within everyone’s reach) written by Odile and Sylvain Delye allows us to discover the life of this extraordinary couple.
Prayers to Saints Luis and Celia Martin
Prayer to ask for thanks
“God, our Father, we thank you for having given us Luis Martin and Celia Guerin. In the unity and fidelity of marriage they offered us the testimony of an exemplary Christian life, fulfilling daily tasks according to the spirit of the Gospel. Educating a large family, through trials, deaths and suffering, they manifested their trust in You and generously accepted your will.
Lord, let us know your plans regarding them and grant me the grace that I ask of you with the hope that the father and mother of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus may, one day, be proposed by the Church as an example to the families of our weather.
Amen.”
prayers for marriage
Prayer I
“God, our Father, we thank you for having given us Luis Martin and Celia Guerin. In the unity and fidelity of marriage they offered us the testimony of an exemplary Christian life, fulfilling daily tasks according to the spirit of the Gospel. Educating a large family, through trials, deaths and suffering, they manifested their trust in You and generously accepted your will.
Lord, let us know your plans regarding them and grant me the grace that I ask of you with the hope that the father and mother of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus may, one day, be proposed by the Church as an example to the families of our weather. Amen.”
Prayer II
“God of eternal love, you have given us in the spouses Luis and Zelia de Martín a beautiful example of holiness lived in marriage. Both kept their faith and hope in the midst of life’s trials and difficulties, and raised their children to become saints. We ask you to grant us to live the marriage vocation like them and to be able to take all our families to Heaven. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.”
Prayer III
“God, our Father, we thank you for giving us Luis Martin and his wife Zelia. In the unity and fidelity of marriage, they offered us the testimony of an exemplary Christian life, fulfilling daily tasks according to the spirit of the Gospel. Educating a large family, through trials, deaths and sufferings, they manifested their trust in You and generously accepted Your Will. Grant us marriages as holy as they are so that they may be light in today’s world. Through Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.”