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Legion of Mary
Our Lady Spouse of the Holy Spirit Regia
Serving the State of Michigan
Venerable Edel Quinn
Legion of Mary Envoy to Africa
Born September 14, 1907
Died May 12, 1944
Cause for the Canonization opened in 1952
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Edel Quinn was born on the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, September 14, 1907 at Greenane in the parish of Castlemagner near Kanturk, County Cork. Father Greene, the parish priest of Castlemagner, baptized Edel on the 18th. Her father, a bank employee, was transferred often. This meant many moves for Edel, her three sisters, and brother; the family finally settled in Monkstown, County Dublin in 1924.
Like the rest of her family, Edel adored sports. An avid rugby supporter, she played tennis and cricket. She loved to cycle, especially at high speeds – and to dance; many who knew her, spoke of her exuberant nature and cheerful outlook.
On completing her education in Ireland, she went to boarding school in England for a brief spell. On her return she undertook a commercial course. At age twenty Edel was working as a secretary proving to be most efficient and conscientious. At this time the spiritual side of her life was becoming more dominant. She joined the Legion of Mary in Dublin.
Edel’s destiny was to be linked to the Legion perhaps more than she knew. In 1932 when about to join the poor Clare Convent in Belfast, a contemplative order, it was discovered she had advanced tuberculosis of the lungs. This would eventually end her life. An eighteen-month stay in a sanatorium followed. Towards the end of 1933 she went back to her office job and her beloved Legion. She spent time visiting the sick and the needy.
In 1936, with her health still failing, Edel responded to a call to go as envoy to Africa. Understandably the central council of the Legion was reluctant to agree. “How could this slight, waif-like creature possibly have the stamina required for extensive travel throughout Central Africa?” A determined Edel remarked that she was going in with her eyes open and didn’t want to “go on a picnic”.
In November 1936, she arrived in Mombasa, Kenya. Within 14 days she had set up the first praesidium, Legion group, called “The Immaculate Conception”. Like everything else she had tackled previously, Edel threw herself into fulfilling her role, which was to bring Catholics of all ethnic backgrounds to work together through Our Lady.
Within five months, Edel had founded the first Curia, (a governing council of the Legion for guiding praesidia).
Sheer necessity brought about the purchase of a six year old Ford V8
coupe. When her newly acquired driver proved unreliable, in true Edel fashion she learned to drive. Harrowing journeys, in her “Rolls Royce” as she called it, were all part of the job – “She was utterly undaunted” Frank Duff, the Legion’s founder once said of her, “Just laughed her way through obstacles that would have beaten almost anyone else.”
In the period 1937 – 1940 she introduced the Legion to Uganda, Tanganyika (Tanzania), Nyasaland (Malawi) and Mauritius in the Indian Ocean.
She organized the translations and printing of prayers in several different languages and dialects. During her many hospital spells she continued her work through correspondence.
By 1943, the tuberculosis was well advanced and even Edel had to admit she was slowing down considerably. Yet she still continued her travels.
By November 1943, her hard labor had paid off. Hundreds of Legion groups were thriving on African soil thanks to this single-minded Irish woman.
The disease, fought for so long, finally defeated Edel on May 12, 1944. Receiving the last rites at the Convent of the Sisters of the Precious Blood in Nairobi, she spoke her last words: “What is happening to me? Is Jesus coming?”
She was 36 years old.
In 1963 the process of her canonization was opened in Nairobi and Dublin.On December 15, 1994 Pope John Paul II issued the decree affirming her heroic sanctity giving her the title "Venerable". A vast number of people have reported favors, some very remarkable, which they attribute to her intercession. And she appears to have a universality of appeal which of itself is an indication of the purity of the supernatural light she radiates. Since then, The Pope has confirmed a vote of the Cardinals and Archbishops of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints affirming the outstanding holiness of Edel Quinn. One miracle, attributed to her intercession, is still required for her beatification. If an adequately attested miracle is forthcoming the beatification should follow quickly. The Pope has asked the Congregation to give priority, as far as possible, to processing the Causes of lay people.
What are the virtues and qualities that marked Edel as a holy person fit for Canonization? Why was she so different from others of her time who may have been holy persons yet were not mentioned for Canonization? What were some of her virtues which made her so different?
Everyone who knew her, including her parents, her three sisters and a brother, describe Edel as having been totally unselfish, giving herself to others without consideration of herself. Edel had a concern for everyone and shared in their sufferings, but never revealed her own. She was truly patient in her suffering, which was considerable, but she never gave evidence of pain or worriment. She was always cheerful, even when she was in intense pain or extreme discomfort.
Those persons who knew her speak of her natural simplicity, her generosity, and her fearlessness. To Edel her Legion work was sacred. With an extraordinary ability to organize, she gave her time, her talents and her toil to the Legion, without ever counting the cost. But you might say, is that all that set her apart as a candidate for official sainthood? We know that there has to be more than all the above virtues and qualities.
One of the virtues that will help Edel towards Canonization was her extraordinary love of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist. Any day that she could not attend Mass and receive her Lord in Holy Communion was considered by her as incomplete - as a lost day. Her greatest joy of the day was to be in union with her God in Holy Communion.
Edel Quinn - Role Model
Edel was an idealist, a quality rare enough in people. We find lots of ambition and materialism, but idealism not so much. Yet deep in every human heart is the desire to emulate those persons with lofty ideals. There is a quotation by John Oxenham (English novelist and Religious Poet) in the Handbook of the Legion of Mary which reads:
“To every man there openeth
A way, and ways and a way.
And the High Soul climbs the High Way
And the Low Soul gropes the Low,
And, in between, in the misty flats,
The rest drift to and fro.
And to every man there openeth
A High Way and a Low,
And every man decideth
The Way his soul shall go.”
She chose the “High Way” and stated “an idealist who does not put his ideal into practice is not worth much.” Edel’s ideals were generated by her strong, unclouded Catholic Faith and her totally unselfish nature. Edel’s ultimate goal was to attain to an eternal loving relationship with God. Her life plan was to get to know Him, the Object of her Desire, to reciprocate His love for her.
Edel was called by God to lead a contemplative life in the midst of intense activity as a family member, a working girl, an active member of the Legion of Mary, as a patient in a sanatorium and finally as an envoy of the Legion of Mary on Africa. Her life plan remained constant. The Church in declaring her Venerable has confirmed that she achieved the ultimate goal.
How inspirational is Edel Quinn for people today? Her mother stated that Edel never knew fear. She was a very strong character with great wisdom and a vibrant sparkling personality. She was courageous, unselfish, compassionate, sensitive, a capable leader and organizer. She was not knocked off course by change of plans or ill health
What guidelines has she got to offer to young people, so many of whom become discouraged and depressed with the prevailing attitude that materialistic success is the only thing worth having. Seeking to escape the pressures they resort to abuse of alcohol, drugs, sex and tragically some end it all by suicide. Let them “tune in” to the source of Edel’s strength and joy. Her strength came from the life of grace, nourished daily. Some spiritual notes found in her possessions give us an insight into this.
“We must prove our love by fidelity to prayer.”
“Meditation each morning for one hour if I have the strength for it.”
“I could never refuse Our Blessed Lady anything I thought she wanted.”
“I could assist at Mass all day long.”
“Without the Eucharist what a desolation life would be.”
"Mary loves Jesus in me, caresses and compassionates Him for all His wounds. But, above all, she speaks her gratitude for the Eucharist, and gives thanks to the Eternal Father for that Gift. Without the Eucharist, what a desolation life would be! "
"We can find Him, at every free moment, on the Altar. Be with Him there. Better than all books! "
"Thank the Trinity over and over again for this Gift."
"Rest in His presence, and my Guardian Angel will adore Him for me. Silence."
"At Mass I united myself to the victim Christ, through Mary’s hands, for the glory of the Trinity, in thanksgiving for everything, and on behalf of souls. At Mass always to have special intention of offering and hearing it on behalf of those who cannot hear it themselves by reason of sickness, distance, work or war. Place this intention in Mary’s hands."
Favors received through the intercession of Venerable Edel Quinn
Out of many favors received and recorded in the International Center of the Legion of Mary, these are but a few…
Cyst suddenly disappears
I wish to report a favor I received through the Ven. Edel Quinn. A large cyst on my back was very badly infected. My doctor said he would not touch it and told me I would have to go to hospital. I had to wait a week before admission. I prayed to Edel Quinn that week so very hard. One morning when I woke up the cyst was gone. I thank Edel for all her help. (N. Ireland).
Throat Cancer disappears
I wish to inform you of a very interesting fact about Edel Quinn. A friend suffered from a cancer of the throat that was very advanced. In her first visit to the doctor, he said to her: “Madam you will never talk again as long as you live”. On hearing this, a number of us prayed with great faith to Edel Quinn. Still unable to eat after three weeks, she went to receive Holy Communion saying to herself: “Jesus Christ will certainly open the way for food.” Slowly the cancer began to diminish. Today she is perfectly well. She again visited her physician who with great surprise said: “Madam we see no trace of your disease, you are perfectly cured.” Glory to God and to Edel Quinn! (Canada).
Double cure of Arthritis
Last October I was very worried about the use of my right hand which was badly afflicted with arthritis which I also have in my spine. I gave up going to doctors and using medication, as this was useless. At that time I was given a leaflet with the prayer for the Cause of Venerable Edel Quinn, and I stared praying for a cure, if it was God’s will. Now, not only is my hand back to normal, but I notice that the arthritis, in general does not worry me. To me this is nothing short of a miracle and I will continue to pray for her Cause. (Ireland).
Miracles, Signs and Favors
Some of the favors attributed to the intercession of the Servant of God Edel Quinn
Edel on O'Connell Bridge
In the course of her office work in Dublin Edel Quinn met and befriended a young married woman who had a lot of domestic and financial trouble. Edel was a constant source of strength and encouragement and also of material help: "I could write a book on all that she did for me and my family," wrote the friend later. When Edel left for Africa she missed her greatly, and though she did not forget Edel's assurance that God was with her in her suffering she frequently became very down-hearted. One day, in May 1944 Edel's friend was crossing O'Connell Bridge in a state of such deep depression that the sight of the river suggested the thought of doing away with herself. Then suddenly she saw Edel standing on the pavement a short distance ahead. She saw her quite clearly and was certain of her identity. She was about to approach her when her attention was momentarily distracted and when she looked again there was no sign of Edel. She was puzzled but thought that Edel mustn't have seen her and had moved away in the crowd of pedestrians. Disappointed, but thrilled by the fact that Edel was back in Dublin she went home and told the good news to her husband. Two days later she read in a newspaper that Edel had died in Nairobi shortly before she had seen her, as she firmly believed, on O'Connell Bridge. From then on she constantly prayed to her and received many blessings which she attributed to her intercession. Among these was the conversion of a close relative who had seemingly lost the faith and obstinately refused to see a priest even on his deathbed. She besieged Edel to intercede for him and almost immediately he spontaneously asked for a priest and died in peace with God. In her old age, Edel's friend gave an impression of great peace and happiness and loved to talk about Edel Quinn's holiness, and her kindness to herself and her family.
(Ireland)
Edel Forestalls the Surgeon
In October 1988, Mademoiselle X underwent a major operation for an abdominal tumor in a French hospital. Following the operation, an ulcer (fistula) formed on the pancreas, with continuing discharge of pus. The patient was extremely ill, suffering great pain and frequent vomiting. Unable to eat or drink, she had to be fed artificially. Things went on like this for six weeks and then the surgeon (a professor of surgery) informed her that, as the ulcer showed no signs of healing, another operation would be necessary. Mlle. X pleaded that she was too weak to face up to further surgery. However, on the surgeon's insistence that it was her only hope of recovery, she agreed to the operation and it was fixed for the two days later. During her stay in hospital, Mlle. X had learned about Edel Quinn from some Legion of Mary visitors from whom she also received a prayer leaflet. The legionaries joined with her in earnest prayer for a cure through Edel's intercession. She herself had great confidence in Edel's power with God and kept calling on her day and night, and now all the more earnestly with the operation so near. Then the extraordinary thing happened. On the morning of the day preceding that fixed for the operation, she felt vastly improved and examination disclosed that the recalcitrant ulcer had healed overnight. The surgeon came to visit her and when he saw her new condition he exclaimed, "This is fantastic, it is a miracle! This is the best gift you could give me" (alluding, apparent, to his imminent departure to take up a post overseas). After this spontaneous reaction, he added that two years of non-recurrence would be needed before the cure could be confirmed. The proposed operation never took place and Mlle. X s general health steadily improved. At the end of 1990 she underwent a thorough medical examination which resulted in an excellent report.
(France)
Blind Child Receives His Sight
Not long after the birth of a little boy his parents observed that he gave no sign of being able to see. A few months passed and now seriously worried, they consulted a doctor who confirmed that there was absolutely no response to light. They then took the child to a specialist who examined him very thoroughly and declared that the child, in his opinion, was suffering from incurable blindness; there was no trace of an optic nerve. The parents were in great distress. A few days later they went to visit some friends in Ireland and brought the child with them. One of the friends advised them to have recourse to Edel Quinn on the little boy's behalf, and introduced them to a priest who had a relic of Edel in his possession. At the parents' request, the priest blessed the child with the relic praying that, through the intercession of Edel Quinn, he might be given his sight. The next day, to the amazement and joy of the parents, the child seemed to be following some moving object with his eyes. Subsequent days made it perfectly obvious that he was able to see. It was some weeks before the parents were able to bring him back to the specialist. The specialist was completely astonished when, on examination, he found the child's eyes perfectly normal. He said he couldn't understand how he had failed to detect the optic nerve on the previous occasion. He suggested that perhaps there had been a delayed development of the nerve but didn't offer any explanation of the fact of the whole process taking place so suddenly. The parents were quite satisfied with their own explanation and remain full of gratitude to Edel Quinn. (s.r) completely unexpected cure of severe ulcer following a superficial injury, Fr. Robert Hilton, a priest on the teaching staff of an English seminary, developed a very bad ulcer on the side of his knee which steadily grew worse in spite of careful treatment in hospital and in the infirmary of the seminary. At the end of three months a nurse who dressed the ulcer described it as "very angry and like a real hole in the knee." Three months later a different witness said it was "a deep hole into which one could put one's finger; the wound was full of pus and very raw. The doctor described it then as being "one and a half inches in diameter with a sloughing base extending to the lower tissues;" he warned that it would take a long time to heal. The ward sister of a hospital where the priest spent some weeks, also at that time, was fully convinced that the ulcer would take perhaps up to a year to heal if, indeed, it ever healed. The patient left the hospital to be cared for by .the very competent infirmarian of the semmary, a religious sister. A few days later, seeing that the ulcer had defied all medical treatment and was continuing to deteriorate, she began to pray earnestly for a cure through the intercession of Edel Quinn, and was wholeheartedly joined in her prayer by Fr. Hilton himself. Very soon after the start of this prayer the ulcer began to show improvement and within two weeks the heavy discharge of pus had completely ceased while the ulcer was seen to be healing from the base deep down. The prayers continued and each day showed a further improvement. By another ten days the ulcer was completely healed. The doctor subsequently made a statement describing the cure as a most extraordinary phenomenon and entirely unexpected. He was personally convinced that the cure should be attributed to the invocation of Edel Quinn and not to the medical treatment which, in this case, had proved of so little avail. (U.K)
Cure of Nervous Disorder
A Dublin client of Edel writes: "I wish to state that for the past ten years I have prayed solely to Edel Quinn to intercede with Almighty God for a close relative now in her fifties who had suffered a succession of nervous breakdowns and mental illness, was unable to hold any employment or face any responsibility for very long without deteriorating. Since the start of praying this relative not only has improved so much but has twice been promoted at work in those ten years. I have recently started praying for three other people I know who have had breakdowns and they are all making remarkable recovery so far. I am so grateful to Edel Quinn for the intercession to Almighty God and His wonderful answers to my prayer." (Ireland) Man Suddenly Hears After Years of Deafness "I wish to inform the Legion of my remarkable hearing recovery, which I attribute to the intercession of Edel Quinn. Previous to my experience I had been deaf for many years and found it necessary to wear a hearing aid. During the year, I became interested in the life story of Edel and decided to offer up a Novena that she would intercede and cure my loss of hearing - this she did. On August 4 last, while watching television, my hearing aid suddenly failed to function. On pulling it out, I discovered that I could hear very clearly. The aid was no longer necessary. There is absolutely no medical explanation. All this I owe to Edel Quinn." (Ireland) Hand Saved from Amputation A Dublin man writes: "A friend of mine received a bad cut in his hand with an electric saw. It had been stitched but when the stitches were removed the cut opened again. The hand became swollen and black and there was a very bad odour from it. The doctor said he would have to amputate. I called to see my friend who had resigned himself to amputation. I suggested that we start a novena to Edel Quinn and promised to lend him Edel's relic which was then on loan to someone else. We started the novena that night. The next day he was due to see the doctor and arrange to go into hospital. On his way up to the Mater Hospital he says he suddenly felt light and as if he had enormous strength. When the bandage was removed the swelling, blackness and odour had disappeared and there was no talk of amputation. He continued to improve and although he expected to have an ugly finger, it is back to normal. We believe this to be Edel's doing." (Dublin) A Vocation Saved in Thailand "On the day of the Mass commemoration of Edel Quinn a sister from the Congregation handed in a letter to the Superior General expressing her desire to leave the convent for good. The latter accepted the letter and had a talk with the sister. Everything was set for her departure but the Superior asked her to think again before leaving. The Superior placed the letter under the portrait of Edel Quinn and asked her for her intercession to change the mind of the sister. On May 12 (Edel's anniversary) the sister returned to the Superior and withdrew her resignation. So she is back in the Congregation and has promised to stay for good." (Thailand)
Edel Quinn
