Maria Euthymia Üffing

On November 1, 1931, Emma began training in home economics at St. Anne's Hospital in Hopsten, managed by the Sisters of Charity of Münster (Clementine Sisters). Inspired by the superior Sister Euthymia Linnenkämper, she entered the postulancy on July 23, 1934, following the death of her father in 1932. She received the name Sister Maria Euthymia on October 2, 1935, and took her temporary vows on October 11, 1936. Assigned to St. Vincent's Hospital in Dinslaken, she became a nurse there in 1939 and took her perpetual vows on September 15, 1940. During the war, starting in 1943, she cared with heroic dedication for prisoners of war and forced laborers suffering from infectious diseases in the isolation ward, which earned her the nickname "Angel of Love." After 1945, she was appointed head of the laundry in Dinslaken, then transferred in 1948 to Münster to manage the laundry of the motherhouse and the St. Raphael Clinic, fulfilling this exhausting task in perfect obedience.

In July 1955, Sister Maria Euthymia collapsed from exhaustion in the laundry room. Examinations revealed intestinal cancer. She endured her sufferings with admirable serenity and resignation, offering herself to the divine will. After receiving the Anointing of the Sick, she passed away on September 9, 1955, in Münster at the age of 41. From the moment her death was announced, her reputation for holiness spread. The following day, a nun from her congregation, who had been seriously injured in the hand by an ironing machine, was instantly healed after praying before her open casket. This first sign of intercession attracted many pilgrims to her grave at the Central Cemetery of Münster.

The cause for beatification was introduced on January 9, 1976, under Pope Paul VI. After the diocesan inquiry in Münster (1976-1985), the file was transmitted to Rome. Pope John Paul II declared the heroism of her virtues on September 1, 1988, conferring upon her the title of Venerable. The miracle of the healing of the nun's hand was validated by a medical committee on March 4, 1999, and then by theologians on October 22, 1999. Pope John Paul II signed the decree recognizing the miracle on July 1, 2000, and solemnly celebrated her beatification on October 7, 2001, in Saint Peter's Square at the Vatican. Her liturgical feast is set for September 9.

The spirituality of Blessed Maria Euthymia rests on the silent offering of self and the search for the divine will in ordinary tasks. She liked to repeat that the Lord could use her as a ray of sunshine to brighten the day. Her legacy remains alive in Germany, particularly in Münster where her tomb is a frequented place of pilgrimage. The Clementine Sisters have set up the Euthymia Center (Euthymia-Zentrum) in their motherhouse, where more than 150,000 letters of prayer and thanksgiving have been received, testifying to the popular fervor.