Stories of St. Anne II

More exerpts from:

"Good St. Anne"

How the Saints Honored St. Anne

It would be impossible to enumerate the many Saints who practiced great devotion to St. Anne. St. Augustine, the illustrious Doctor who illumined the Church of God with his profound wisdom, practiced an ardent devotion to St. Anne. Every year on the Saint's feast, he preached on her virtues and dignity with an eloquence which encouraged and inspired his numerous hearers.

 St. John Damascene, another Doctor of the Church, not only most ardently venerated Mary, but St. Anne as well. He preached many sermons in her honor and composed books that treated of her glory and dignity. "St. Anne," he declares in his writing, "is a generous mother, a compassionate mother, a gracious mother, because the word 'Anne' means 'generous, merciful, gracious.' "

St. Thomas Aquinas, hailed as one of the greatest of intellectuals, a prodigy of learning, a pillar of Holy Church, an angel of wisdom and one of the most eminent Doctors of the Church, was a fervent client of good St. Anne. His example ought to strengthen our confidence in this privileged Saint and urge us to venerate her most fervently. He frequently refers to St. Anne and sets forth reasons for honoring her dignity and power. He assures us that the privilege of aiding man in every distress has been given to good St. Anne.

 St. Teresa of Avila, the seraphic virgin and reformer of religious discipline, entertained a tender love of St. Anne. This highly gifted teacher of prayer delighted to speak of St. Anne's dignity and power, and she inspired those under her care with a fervent affection for Our Lady's mother. In all convents of the Carmelite Order, she introduced special devotions to St. Anne. The same was done by St. Bridget in her order.

Anne Catherine Emmerich, who bore the sacred stigmata in her body, said, "In desperate cases of need, I always invoke the holy mother Anne."


Nihil Obstat: William J. Blacet, J.C.L.
Censor Librorum
Imprimatur: +J. John P. Cody, S.T.D.
Bishop of Kansas City-St. Joseph
December 4, 1957 
Originally published by the Benedictine Convent of Perpetual Adoration, Clyde, Missouri in 1958.