A portrait of St. Zélie Martin
St. Zélie Martin
December 23, 1831 – August 28, 1877
Feast
July 12 · XIX c.
Patron of
Married couples · Mothers · Parents of large families · The bereaved · Those who have lost children
Order
Laywoman / Mother of St. Thérèse
French lacemaker, businesswoman, and mother of nine children, four of whom died in infancy. She and her husband Louis raised their five surviving daughters — including the future St. Thérèse of Lisieux — in a household of extraordinary faith and joy, where ordinary married life was lived as a path to holiness. She died of breast cancer at age forty-five, leaving behind a treasury of letters that document the daily sanctity of a Christian family. With Louis she is the first married couple canonized together in modern history.
Life & Times
Also known as: Marie-Azélie Guérin Martin; Mother of St. Thérèse · Born: December 23, 1831 · Died: August 28, 1877 · From: Saint-Denis-sur-Sarthon; Alençon, Normandy.
Patronage
St. Zélie Martin is invoked as the patron of married couples, mothers, parents of large families, the bereaved, those who have lost children. Those in these callings or circumstances often turn to this saint in prayer.
“I want to become a saint; that will not be easy at all. There is much wood to chop and it is as hard as stone.”— Letter to her brother Isidore Guérin (1865)
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Devotional items honoring St. Zélie Martin, from our Sancta Lumina collection and beyond.
About Catholic Saints
Catholic saints, including St. Zélie Martin, are Christians whom the Catholic Church has formally recognized as having lived lifes of heroic holiness and who now dwell with God in heaven, offering an example of faith for those still on their earthly journey. Catholics don't worship saints, but ask them to pray to God with us and for us — much as one might ask a trusted friend to pray for them — trusting that those closest to God can join their voices to ours before Him. Discover more saints in the Catholic Shop Saints section.