Maximin Giraud
Encyclopedia
Pierre Maximin Giraud
Pierre Maximin Giraud (26 August 1835 Corps, Isère
, France
- 15 December 1875 Corps, Isère
, France
) was a French
member of the Corps
of Papal Zouaves
and Marian visionary.
Shortly after, Germain Giraud, a wheelwright
by trade, remarried Marie Court. Maximin lived with his father and received little attention as his father was at his workshop or at the bar. His new wife was reportedly not interested in Maximin.
Maximin grew up in haphazard fashion, spending much of his time with carefree abandon in the company of his dog and goat as they roamed the streets of Corps en Isère.
Attendance at school was not compulsory and so he never frequented classes. The same was true with regard to religious instructions.
Maximin spoke the Vivaro-Alpine (Dauphinois
) dialect of the Occitan language, as did everybody in town, but he did learn a few words of French as he circulated among the wagon-drivers and travelers at the stage coach relays. He was 11 years old in 1846.
On September 19 1846 he had, together with Mélanie Calvat
, an apparition of the Virgin Mary in the mountains of La Salette
, France
, during the cowherding. Our Lady transmitted a public message to Maximin and to Mélanie, and a personal message to Maximin alone.
Maximin had a difficult childhood. During the three years following the apparition his halfbrother Jean-Francóis, his stepmother and his father all died. His mother's brother, called oncle templier, a rough and calculating man, became Maximin's guardian.
The apparition was approved by Mgr. Philibert de Bruillard, Bishop of Grenoble November 16 1851 under the title of Our Lady of La Salette
. Both secrets were written down by the visionaries and sent to the pope in the same year.
After the apparition, he was placed as a boarder in the Sisters of Providence School
in Corps en Isère, where an inquiry concerning the apparition took place. His progress in school was slow, hampered by constant pressure from pilgrims and other curious people.
Against the advice of the parish priest and defying the orders of the bishop of Grenoble, Royalist partizans brought the boy to Ars to meet Saint Jean Baptiste Marie Vianney
three times, to be questioned by him upon the apparitions. Maximin reportedly did not enjoy their company but enjoyed the ride and the chance to see new sights.
He thereafter moved from place to place. He entered Rondeau
minor seminary
, afterwards moving to the abbey
of the Grande Chartreuse
. From there, he travelled to Seyssin, and then to Rome
, and thence to Dax
, Aire-sur-Adour and Vésinet, then to Tonnère, to Petit-Jouy-en-Josas near Versailles
, and finally Paris
. Maximin tried his vocation
as a seminarian, and after that, he worked as a nursing-home employee and a medical student. Failing the state examinations, he got a job in a pharmacy.
Finally, Maximin became a member of the Corps
of Papal Zouaves, who were responsible for the defense of the Papal States
and the protection of the Pope
. After six months of service, he ended his contract and returned to Paris.
The newspaper La Vie Parisienne
published an attack against la Salette and the two children. Maximin protested and the newspaper printed a correction. In reaction towards this, in 1866 he published a short work called Ma profession de foi sur l'apparition de Notre-Dame de La Salette.
It was during this time that the Jourdain family, a couple devoted to him, brought a measure of stability into his life, and, at financial risk, cleared his debts. Maximin then entered into a partnership with a liquor dealer who used his now-famous name to increase sales. The improvident Maximin was fraudulently abused by him and failed to profit from the association.
In 1870 he was drafted
by the Imperial army and assigned to Fort Barrau in Grenoble. Following this he returned to Corps and was joined there by the Jourdains. The three lived poorly and were helped by the fathers of the shrine with the approval of the bishop.
In Novemberof 1870 Maximin made a pilgrimage to the shrine. In the presence of a rapt audience he repeated the story of La Salette as he had done on the very first day. This would be the last time he would do so.
In February 1875 he visited the parish church, also for the last time. On the evening of March 1 Maximin received the sacrament of Penance and Holy Communion, drinking a little La Salette water to swallow the Eucharist. Shortly thereafter he died, not yet 40.
His remains lie in the cemetery of Corps, but his heart rests within the La Salette basilica. He wanted to underscore once again his love for La Salette and solemnly proclaimed:
Maximins's secret consists of two elements. A first element is the text of the message he received. A second element of the secret are the moral confidences related by Maximin to various persons, concerning elements of his secret, thus further developing and explaining the secret.
Pierre Maximin Giraud (26 August 1835 Corps, Isère
Corps, Isère
Corps is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-Geography:Corps is situated in the Alpes mountains and borders on the frontier between the départments of Isère and Hautes-Alpes.-See also:* Our Lady of La Salette* Mélanie Calvat...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
- 15 December 1875 Corps, Isère
Corps, Isère
Corps is a commune in the Isère department in south-eastern France.-Geography:Corps is situated in the Alpes mountains and borders on the frontier between the départments of Isère and Hautes-Alpes.-See also:* Our Lady of La Salette* Mélanie Calvat...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
member of the Corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...
of Papal Zouaves
Papal Zouaves
The Papal Zouaves were an infantry force formed in defence of the Papal States.-Origin:The Zouaves evolved out of a unit formed by Christophe Léon Louis Juchault de Lamoricière...
and Marian visionary.
Biography
Maximin Giraud was born in Corps en Isère. His mother, Anne-Marie Templier hailed from this same region. His father, Germain Giraud was from a neighboring district. The mother died leaving Maximin, then 17 months old, and a daughter, Angélique, who was eight years of age.Shortly after, Germain Giraud, a wheelwright
Wheelwright
A wheelwright is a person who builds or repairs wheels. The word is the combination of "wheel" and the archaic word "wright", which comes from the Old English word "wryhta", meaning a worker or maker...
by trade, remarried Marie Court. Maximin lived with his father and received little attention as his father was at his workshop or at the bar. His new wife was reportedly not interested in Maximin.
Maximin grew up in haphazard fashion, spending much of his time with carefree abandon in the company of his dog and goat as they roamed the streets of Corps en Isère.
Attendance at school was not compulsory and so he never frequented classes. The same was true with regard to religious instructions.
Maximin spoke the Vivaro-Alpine (Dauphinois
Dauphinois
Dauphinois is a dialect of the Arpitan language, which is spoken in Isère département, roughly formerly Bas-Dauphiné, in France. The extreme South of the Dauphiné is within the area of the Occitan language....
) dialect of the Occitan language, as did everybody in town, but he did learn a few words of French as he circulated among the wagon-drivers and travelers at the stage coach relays. He was 11 years old in 1846.
On September 19 1846 he had, together with Mélanie Calvat
Mélanie Calvat
Françoise Mélanie Calvat called Mathieu was a French Roman-catholic religious sister and Marian visionary. As a religious, she was called Sister Mary of the Cross....
, an apparition of the Virgin Mary in the mountains of La Salette
La Salette
La Salette is a small mountaintop village near Grenoble, France. It is part of the commune of La Salette-Fallavaux, which is situated in the Isère-département in the Rhône-Alpes-region....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, during the cowherding. Our Lady transmitted a public message to Maximin and to Mélanie, and a personal message to Maximin alone.
Maximin had a difficult childhood. During the three years following the apparition his halfbrother Jean-Francóis, his stepmother and his father all died. His mother's brother, called oncle templier, a rough and calculating man, became Maximin's guardian.
The apparition was approved by Mgr. Philibert de Bruillard, Bishop of Grenoble November 16 1851 under the title of Our Lady of La Salette
Our Lady of La Salette
La Salette is a small mountaintop village near Grenoble, France. It is most noted for an apparition of the Virgin Mary that was reported in 1846 by two shepherd children, Mélanie Calvat and Maximin Giraud, followed by numerous accounts of miraculous healings....
. Both secrets were written down by the visionaries and sent to the pope in the same year.
After the apparition, he was placed as a boarder in the Sisters of Providence School
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
in Corps en Isère, where an inquiry concerning the apparition took place. His progress in school was slow, hampered by constant pressure from pilgrims and other curious people.
Against the advice of the parish priest and defying the orders of the bishop of Grenoble, Royalist partizans brought the boy to Ars to meet Saint Jean Baptiste Marie Vianney
Jean Vianney
Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney , commonly known in English as St John Vianney, was a French parish priest who in the Catholic Church is venerated as a saint and as the patron saint of all priests. He is often referred to as the "Curé d'Ars"...
three times, to be questioned by him upon the apparitions. Maximin reportedly did not enjoy their company but enjoyed the ride and the chance to see new sights.
He thereafter moved from place to place. He entered Rondeau
Rondeau
Rondeau is a surname with French origins. Some notable people with this name include:-People:*Jane Rondeau, the wife of Claudius Rondeau, an English minister in St Petersburg in 1720-1739...
minor seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
, afterwards moving to the abbey
Abbey
An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...
of the Grande Chartreuse
Grande Chartreuse
Grande Chartreuse is the head monastery of the Carthusian order. It is located in the Chartreuse Mountains, north of the city of Grenoble, in the commune of Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse , France. Originally, the château belonged to the See of Grenoble...
. From there, he travelled to Seyssin, and then to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and thence to Dax
Dax, Landes
Dax is a commune in Aquitaine in south-western France, sub-prefecture of the Landes department.It is particularly famous as a spa, specialising in mud treatment for rheumatism and similar ailments....
, Aire-sur-Adour and Vésinet, then to Tonnère, to Petit-Jouy-en-Josas near Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
, and finally Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Maximin tried his vocation
Vocation
A vocation , is a term for an occupation to which a person is specially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity.-Senses:...
as a seminarian, and after that, he worked as a nursing-home employee and a medical student. Failing the state examinations, he got a job in a pharmacy.
Finally, Maximin became a member of the Corps
Corps
A corps is either a large formation, or an administrative grouping of troops within an armed force with a common function such as Artillery or Signals representing an arm of service...
of Papal Zouaves, who were responsible for the defense of the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
and the protection of the Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
. After six months of service, he ended his contract and returned to Paris.
The newspaper La Vie Parisienne
La Vie Parisienne
La Vie Parisienne was a magazine in France founded in 1863 and popular at the turn-of-the-twentieth century. It was originally intended as a guide to upper class and artistic life in Paris , but it soon evolved into a mildly risqué erotic publication...
published an attack against la Salette and the two children. Maximin protested and the newspaper printed a correction. In reaction towards this, in 1866 he published a short work called Ma profession de foi sur l'apparition de Notre-Dame de La Salette.
It was during this time that the Jourdain family, a couple devoted to him, brought a measure of stability into his life, and, at financial risk, cleared his debts. Maximin then entered into a partnership with a liquor dealer who used his now-famous name to increase sales. The improvident Maximin was fraudulently abused by him and failed to profit from the association.
In 1870 he was drafted
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
by the Imperial army and assigned to Fort Barrau in Grenoble. Following this he returned to Corps and was joined there by the Jourdains. The three lived poorly and were helped by the fathers of the shrine with the approval of the bishop.
In Novemberof 1870 Maximin made a pilgrimage to the shrine. In the presence of a rapt audience he repeated the story of La Salette as he had done on the very first day. This would be the last time he would do so.
In February 1875 he visited the parish church, also for the last time. On the evening of March 1 Maximin received the sacrament of Penance and Holy Communion, drinking a little La Salette water to swallow the Eucharist. Shortly thereafter he died, not yet 40.
His remains lie in the cemetery of Corps, but his heart rests within the La Salette basilica. He wanted to underscore once again his love for La Salette and solemnly proclaimed:
- I believe firmly, even to the shedding of my blood, in the famous apparition of the most Blessed Virgin on the holy mountain of La Salette, on September 19, 1846, the apparition that I have defended in word and suffering. ... It is with this spirit that I give my heart to Our Lady of La Salette.
Text of the secret given to Maximin Giraud
First element
What follows is the integral text of the secret given by the Virgin Mary to Maximin Giraud, as written down in a letter to Pope Pius IX in 1851, and published by René Laurentin in his 2002 book 'Découverte du secret de la Salette':- On September 19, 1846, we saw a beautiful Lady. We never said that this lady was the Blessed Virgin but we always said that it was a beautiful Lady. I do not know if it is the Blessed Virgin or another person. As for me, I believe today that it is the Blessed Virgin.
- Here is what this Lady said to me:
- If my people continue, what I will say to you will arrive earlier, if it changes a little, it will be a little later.
- France has corrupted the universe, one day it will be punished. The faith will die out in France: three quarters of France will not practice religion anymore, or almost no more, the other part will practice it without really practicing it. Then, after [that], nations will convert, the faith will be rekindled everywhere.
- A great country, now Protestant, in the north of Europe, will be converted; by the support of this country all the other nations of the world will be converted.
- Before all that arrives, great disorders will arrive, in the Church, and everywhere. Then, after [that], our Holy Father the Pope will be persecuted. His successor will be a pontiff that nobody expects.
- Then, after [that], a great peace will come, but it will not last a long time. A monster will come to disturb it.
- All that I tell you here will arrive in the other century, at the latest in the year two thousand.
- Maximin Giraud
- (She told me to say it some time before.)
- My Most Holy Father, your holy blessing to one of your sheep.
- Grenoble, July 3, 1851.
Second edition - August 11 1851
The edition of July 3 1851 was reproduced on request of Benjamin Dausse, a friend and trustee of Maximin.Third edition - August 5 1853
A new edition was produced on request of Jacques-Marie-Achille Ginoulhiac, the new bishop of Grenoble, who was unacquainted with the secret.Fourth edition - February 2 1866
A written rebuttal of allegations against the apparition was made by Maximin and published.External links
- La Salette at the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1911.
- La Salette at www.christ-roi.net (French).
- The story of Our Lady of La Salette as a comic strip.
See also
- Our Lady of La SaletteOur Lady of La SaletteLa Salette is a small mountaintop village near Grenoble, France. It is most noted for an apparition of the Virgin Mary that was reported in 1846 by two shepherd children, Mélanie Calvat and Maximin Giraud, followed by numerous accounts of miraculous healings....
- Order of the Mother of God
- Order of the Apostles of the Last DaysOrder of the Apostles of the Last DaysThe Order of the Apostles of the Last Days is a Roman Catholic religious order proposed by the visionary Mélanie Calvat claiming guidance from Our Lady of La Salette at a private apparition on 19 September 1846 on the mountain of La Salette in France....
- Missionaries of La SaletteMissionaries of La SaletteThe Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette are a religious congregation of priests and brothers in the Latin Church one of the 23 sui iuris churches which make up the Catholic Church which is led by the Bishop of Rome. They are named after the apparition of Our Lady of La Salette in France La...
- Mélanie CalvatMélanie CalvatFrançoise Mélanie Calvat called Mathieu was a French Roman-catholic religious sister and Marian visionary. As a religious, she was called Sister Mary of the Cross....
- Gilbert Combe
- Paul Guion
- Armand Thiéry