(1601-1680) John was a farmer’s son in France and was ordained a priest at 24. He served plague victims and preached missions, becoming known as the greatest preacher of his time. He founded seminaries and sought to improve virtue in the clergy. Saint John Eudes founded the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity to aid reformed prostitutes, and he promoted devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Saint John was convinced, and showed in his own life, that trust in God and immersing ourselves in His heart are the keys to a life lived well. In recovery, this means a strengthening of our Step 2 and Step 11. “Enter the immensity of his great Heart…and lose yourselves in this abyss of love” (Saint John Eudes, Coeur admirable, III, 2).

“O Heart all lovable and all loving of my Savior, be the Heart of my heart, the soul of my soul, the spirit of my spirit, the life of my life, and the sole principle of all my thoughts, words, and actions, of all the faculties of my soul, and of all my senses, both interior and exterior. Amen” (Saint John Eudes).

Reflection by Brad Farmer