Jeanne-Germaine Castang

Jeanne-Germaine Castang (24 May 1878 – 30 May 1897) – in religious Marie-Céline of the Presentation – was a French Roman Catholic nun from the Poor Clares.

[1] Her childhood was marked with lameness and she suffered a noticeable limp for the remainder of her life after contracting the disease in 1882 and an operation for pain relief in 1891.

Her desire for the religious life began in her childhood and after being turned from the Sisters of Saint Joseph she managed to be admitted into the Poor Clares where she soon became ill with tuberculosis.

The girl came home with some friends but one suggested that all go paddling in an ice-cold stream; she was eager to join them but felt unwell afterwards and a serious leg problem arose not long after this incident.

[2] However she continued her education which first came from her parents and then from the Sisters of Saint Joseph where she was noted for her pious nature and for her strong devotion to the Eucharist.

[2] Castang prepared for and received both her First Communion and Confirmation in Bordeaux and spent an extended period of time as a boarder with the Sisters of Nazareth from 1892 until 1897.

The Mother Superior discerned in her a remarkable vocation and she was admitted into the convent on 12 June 1896 where she took her vows on 21 November 1896 under the religious name of "Marie-Céline of the Presentation".

The process for a miracle attributed to Castang took place in France in 1946 and it received validation from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints on 20 February 2004.