“Treat the children with much gentleness and kindness”

  • Regina Justel, student at the Sacred Heart High School in Mexico City
    Regina Justel, student at the Sacred Heart High School in Mexico City

A student from the Sacred Heart High School in Mexico City writes a letter to St. Madeleine Sophie for the Feast of St. Madeleine Sophie, relating how her legacy, her values and her educational philosophy are positively impacting students, even two centuries later.

Mexico City - May 25, 2022

Dear Madeleine Sophie,

I am writing to you as a student of what you called your life's work: thanks to you I have grown as a person and I have cultivated my morals, knowledge and desire to help others, thanks to you, I have gained experiences that have changed me for life, I have made mistakes and my tutors and classmates have helped me learn from them and get up again; also, I write and thank you as a woman because I have found a safe space in a fraternal institution, as well as a friend in my classmates and a counselor in my teachers and professors. 

You, born during a fire in France, who listened to God from an early age and followed His will, you who had the initiative to restore a post-revolutionary France, you, who supported Philippine in taking a ship to America, so that others could "Discover and manifest the Heart of Jesus", guiding them to make their hearts like His; you, Sophie, are the reason for the joy of many women and students, who live for the Sacred Heart, who take pride in being a part of it and who practice these values so joyfully learned; empathetic, astute, and eloquent students, future leaders who care about their surroundings, their peers, their tutors and themselves. Thank you Sophie, and know that all you worked so hard for has come to fruition; I would love to be able to show you how the Congregation of the Sacred Heart has changed lives around the world. In my last year of high school, and having been a student at Sacred Heart for about ten years, I can say that I have found a home in the school, where I feel safe and happy. If I had to describe the school using one of your phrases, it would be about how we relate to and view our teachers and/or educators: "Treat the children with much gentleness and kindness, guiding them to goodness, encouraging their efforts, sometimes excusing their faults".

Thank you Sophie, for having made Sacred Heart my second home.

Regina Justel, student
Sacred Heart High School in Mexico City

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