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Mary Ward was born on January 23rd 1585, in Elizabethan
England, at the time of the great religious intolerance.
She was a victim of the persecution of Catholics and woman
of great faith that she was, saw the need for a sound
religious education for young women who would assume
responsibilities in society and in the church, for, as she
said, ‘women in time to come will do much’.
In
1609, she left her homeland and with a small group of
companions, she opened a school at St. Omer, Flanders
where girls were taught reading, writing and sewing, as
well as the principles of Christian life. This work
expanded over much of Europe while she travelled there and
later in England. She had a passionate love for Integrity,
Justice and Freedom and she consistently endeavoured to
live out these qualities.
Mary Ward, died at York in 1645.
The inscription on her tombstone sums up the life
of a woman ‘Wholly God’s’:
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