Julia Greeley Secret tothe Angel Poor MAURA ROAN MCKEEGAN GINA CAPALDI
Under the direction of Romain Lizé, CEO, MAGNIFICAT Editor, MAGNIFICAT: Isabelle Galmiche Editor, Ignatius: Vivian Dudro Proofreader: Kathleen Hollenbeck Layout Designer: Gauthier Delauné Production: Thierry Dubus, Audrey Bord © 2022 by MAGNIFICAT, New York • Ignatius Press, San Francisco All rights reserved. ISBNMAGNIFICAT 978-1-63967-014-7 • ISBN Ignatius Press 978-1-62164-583-2
Julia Greeley Secret tothe Angel Poor MAURA ROAN MCKEEGAN GINA CAPALDI
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n old woman with a floppy hat and flapping shoes hobbled down the street, pulling a little red wagon behind her. In the wagonwere a sack of potatoes, a pile of children’s coats, and a patched-up old doll. The old woman pulled her wagon up to the fire station. Two firemen were coming out the door, heading for home after working the night shift. They waved as soon as they saw her. 5
iss Julia!” the first fireman said. “What brings you here so early?” Julia smiled. “The good Lord has work for me to do today, Mr. James, and it ismy joy to do it.” She showed thema handful of coins. “I’d like to buy some coal, but I’m short on change. I’d be obliged if you could help.” Both firemen reached into their pockets without hesitation and emptied their change into Julia’s open hands. “Anything to see you smile, Miss Julia,” the second fireman said. “Thank you, gentlemen,” Julia said with a grin. She put the money safely into her big black handbag, then pressed into each fireman’s hand a small badge with a picture of a crowned heart printed on it. “May the Sacred Heart of Jesus reward you for your kindness.” “ 6
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iss Julia pulled her wagon along until she reached the steps of Sacred Heart Church. The parish priest was coming up the sidewalk. “Morning, Miss Julia,” he said, glancing into the wagon. “That’s a nice doll. Who’s it for?” “I found it in the road last week, Father Barry,” Julia answered. “It was badly broken. I brought it home and fixed it up, so I can give it to a little girl I know.” She parked her wagon beneath an oak tree and climbed the steps to enter the church, just as she did every morning. As she went to kneel in the front pew, two ladies approached Father Barry in the back of the church. ather, I’m concerned about Old Julia,” one of them said in a low voice. “What do you mean?” Father Barry asked. “Well, last night, I looked out my window, and I saw her walking down my street. I could hardly believe what I was seeing. It was pitch dark, and she was carrying a mattress on her back!” “It’s all very strange, Father,” the second woman broke in. “She pulls that little red wagon everywhere, collecting old things. She has that dreadful-looking eye. And she’s here at Mass every morning, right in the front pew. Can’t you make her sit in the back?” “
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s long as I’m pastor here, Julia is going to keep her pew,” Father Barry replied sternly. “She can sit any place she wants. And while she might look dreadful to you—to me, she has the face of an angel. Do you want to know how her eye was injured?” “I heard it was some sort of accident,” the first woman answered. “It was no accident,” Father Barry replied. “A slave owner’s whip hit her in the eye when she was just a child.” Father Barry looked over at Julia. Her head was bowed in prayer, and her hands clasped the beads of a rosary. “That’s right,” the priest continued. “She grew up in slavery. She wasn’t allowed to learn to read and write. Yet she is more knowledgeable in the ways of God than anyone I’ve ever known. To tell you the truth,” he said, his eyes still fixed on her, “I believe that woman is a saint.” “ 11
The women followed his gaze over to Julia. “Andthatmattressshewascarryingonherback last night came from me,” the priest said. “She asked me for it yesterday, and I gave it to her from an extra bed in the rectory. A poor old man was sick, and he had no bed. Julia wanted him to have a comfortable place to rest.” Father Barry cleared his throat and nodded slightly. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to get ready for Mass.” He left the women standing in the back of the church, watching Julia. She didn’t look like any saint they had ever seen. But they didn’t yet know the greatness of her love. They didn’t know that she had heard every word they had said or that as they watched her now, she was asking Jesus to forgive them and to help them know the love of his Sacred Heart. 12
Background to This Story • Julia Greeley was born into slavery and later freed. • She didn’t know how old she was. •Since slaveswere forbidden to read and write, Julia was mostly illiterate. •Her right eyewas injured by a slave owner when she was a child. • People called her—and she called herself—“Old Julia.” • She limped from severe arthritis. •Sheworeabig, black floppyhat and shoes that flappedwhenshewalked. •Her parishwas SacredHeart, where she went to Mass every morning. •The priests at Sacred Heart helped Julia with her charitable works. • One priest who supported Julia was named Fr. Edward Barry. When some women complained to him about her sitting in the front pew, he defended her with the words used in this book: “As long as I’m pastor here, Julia is going to keep her pew.” • Although very poor herself, Julia spent most of her money buying things sheknewothersneeded.What she couldn’t buy, she begged for. • She pulled a little red wagon f illed with food, fuel, and clothing for the poor, and she made her deliveries at night so that families wouldn’t be embarrassed. • Julia was once seen on the streets at night carrying a mattress on her back. • She asked people to donate their old baby buggies for poor families. • Her employment consisted of cleaning houses and taking care of children. She also cleaned the church. • She worked for a woman named Agnes Urquhart and cared for her daughter, Marjorie. Julia taught baby Marjorie to pray on her rosary beads. Agnes gave donations to Julia’s charitable collections. •Julia once comforted and cared for a little girl who lost her mother. • Some people were startled at the sight of Julia, especially because of her eye, but her charity made them forget her appearance. They said her smile was beautiful and unforgettable. 38
Postscript This fictionalized story is based on true events in the life of Julia Greeley, who was born sometime between 1833 and 1848. (She never knewher birthday.) After so many years of pouring out her life for the love of Jesus, Julia fell ill onherway toFirst FridayMass on June 7, 1918—the feast of the SacredHeart—and was taken to the hospital. She died that night. Since she had no known relatives, the parish priests arranged her funeral. WhenherviewingwasheldatSacred Heart Church, huge crowds lined up for hours to honor her. Only then did people begin to realize howmany lives she had touched with her humble charity and secret deliveries. Her cause for sainthood was introduced in 2016. Acknowledgements and many thanks to Fr. Blaine Burkey, O.F.M. Cap., whose book, In Secret Service of the Sacred Heart: The Life and Virtues of Julia Greeley, is the source for this biography. • If Julia received apples, oranges, or other gifts at one house, she would put them in her big black handbag and distribute them to the next people on her rounds. • She loved children, delighted in giving them gifts, f ixed up broken dolls for them, and was known to pickup the sidesof her longskirt and join the children as they sang and danced and laughed in the streets. • She had a fervent devotion to the Sacred Heart. As she worked, she prayed and sang hymns to the Sacred Heart. • She regularly visited Denver ’s f iref ighters, and gave them Sacred Heart badges, and they supported her charitable collections. • She once asked a boy to knock on the door of a house where she had left potatoes so that they wouldn’t freeze and spoil overnight. She told him not to dare say Old Julia had sent him.
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“ Marcel Van was a 20th-century Redemptorist Brother who was martyred for his Catholic faith. Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, his story is always filled with joy. Following the example of his special friend, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, Van invites children on his path to holiness, encouraging them to speak directly to Jesus and his Mother Mary, entrusting them with all the hopes and fears of their daily lives. Also in this series: Van, Little Brother of Vietnam Julia Greeley Secret Angel to the Poor An old woman with a oppy hat and apping shoes hobbled down the street, pulling a little red wagon behind her. In the wagon were a sack of potatoes, a pile of children’s coats, and a patched-up old doll. The old woman pulled her wagon up to the re station. Two remen were coming out the door, heading for home after working the night shift. They waved as soon as they saw her. “Miss Julia!” the rst reman said. “What brings you here so early?” Julia smiled. “The good Lord has work for me to do today, Mr. James, and it is my joy to do it." AGES AND UP Julia Greeley, a former slave, was an angel of mercy to the poor of Denver, Colorado—a bustling, growingWestern town. She was very poor herself, but whatever she received, often by begging, she shared with those who needed it more than she did. Filled with the joy of loving Jesus, she lifted the spirits of everyone she met.
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