Marie Durand – Faithful Resister

It is hard for us to imagine in our day that we could spend years, let alone a few months in prison because we will not recant our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In fact, what is really sad is that most Christians in our day won’t even deny themselves many things that are considered luxuries rather than admit to their faith. Most modern church-goers won’t give up their movies, cars, television sets, or sports entertainment in order to live a life that is truly pleasing to God.

On any given Sunday, probably only 37% of those who say they love God attend church. The rest are spending the day the way they feel they have “a right to”. They think that God is blessing them so much, surely He means for them to relax and enjoy “their day”.

I don’t really like to think about persecution. I am thankful that we still have a lot of religious freedom in our country. It is slowly slipping away as lazy Christians allow lawmakers to pass legislation which puts us in a corner. For example, you cannot say out loud in a public place that homosexuality is a sin without facing possible arrest for a “hate crime”. That should not stop us from proclaiming the truth, but I am afraid that most Christians would rather not give up their freedom to go to sporting events, movies, or bars in order to take up their crosses and follow Christ. The apostles Paul and Peter, and many other martyrs counted it a privilege to suffer for Christ.

One such person who lived her life in such a way as to be an inspiration to us all was Marie Durand.

Marie was only a fifteen-year-old girl when she was arrested and put in prison because she would not recant her faith. During the time in which she lived, many were arrested, tortured, imprisoned, hanged, or burned at the stake.

Her story took place during the French Civil Wars between Protestants and Catholics following the Reformation. For a time there had been some peace between the two factions when the Edict of Nantes was passed in 1598, which stopped the persecution of the Huguenots, or French Protestants. But in 1685, the Edict was revoked by the French King Louis XIV. He reinstated Catholicism as the only authorized religion in France. Persecution of Protestants began again.

In 1715 when Marie was born, Louis XIV died. The Huguenots did not know what might happen, but hoped for the best. Unfortunately, Louis XV was even more severe against the Protestants. They were not allowed to flee the country. So they began to meet in secret.

During the 1720’s, Marie’s family home provided a secret place for worshippers. Her mother was arrested and died soon after. Her father was arrested in 1728, and then Marie herself in 1730, along with her new husband. She was put in a separate prison for women, and never saw her husband again.

Because Marie would not renounce her faith, she remained locked in the infamous Tower of Constance for almost thirty-eight years. Originally a military lookout and lighthouse, the Tower of Constance had been converted by King Louis XIV into a women’s prison in the 17th century.

The female prisoners were kept in the upper room. Very little light and air came through narrow windows. In the center of the floor was an opening onto the guardroom below. The authorities saw this as the perfect place to hold and torture those they considered to be heretics. But at least one prisoner refused to yield. Inscribed on the wall is the slogan “Resister,” meaning “Resist!” The authorities continually promised her freedom if she would recant, but she never would!

During her time of imprisonment there, it is reported that Marie was a great encouragement to the other women with whom she was imprisoned. When Marie entered the Tower, which was really very cold in winter and then extremely hot in summer, it was as if a ray of sunshine had penetrated its darkness and despair. She served the other women in many capacities, including nurse and spiritual leader for the next thirty-eight years. She read psalms, sang hymns, and prayed daily. She also acted as an official correspondent, writing letters for those who could not write and sending petitions to government officials to inform them of the prison’s horrible conditions. Many of her letters still exist today and are a testimony to Marie’s tireless efforts. Thanks to her efforts, the prison officials allowed a copy of the Psalms to be given to her. Eventually, they even allowed the women to occasionally take some air on the rooftop. She never wavered in her strength or faith. In spite of all of the hardships, she never recanted her faith.

In 1767, Prince de Beauveau, the governor of Languedoc, perhaps moved by one of Marie’s letters, expressed his disapproval of the horrific conditions the women endured inside the Tower of Constance. In any event, he was disgusted by the conditions at the prison. Against the will of Louis XV, he ordered the release of the women, and in 1767 Marie and her fellow captives began a new life outside the tower walls.

Marie returned to the home of her family, though by then she was the only surviving member of the attack that had been mounted against the Protestants over thirty years before. Her husband and father were dead. She lived at her childhood home, supported by a church, until her death in 1776.

God uses people like Marie to show that His church will be triumphant. It is very selfish and shortsighted of Christians to go on living as if God didn’t care about His saints or His church. God does care, and He has shown that He will allow persecution if that is the only way to wake His people up and get them to live as they are supposed to. If we will not glorify God in our daily lives, thankful for the freedom we enjoy, He will be glorified in other ways. My prayer is that cold Christians will study history and see what God has done. It is not too late to learn the lessons from the past. May we take inspiration from Marie’s life to be faithful to our calling.