Elija Mission

Joan withstood the terrible ordeal of interrogation, the harassment she endured at the hands of the English guards, the harsh conditions of her imprisonment, and the judges’ attempts to convict her of heresy. Not even the threat of torture caused her to falter. Supported by her saints, she remained unyielding. She told those who threatened her with torture: “Truly, even if you were to break my limbs and sever my soul from my body, I could say nothing else to you. If you force me to speak, I will say that you made me speak by force.”

As the pressure mounted, she heard all the charges brought against her and was repeatedly ordered to submit to the judgment of the Church. She appealed to God and said she should be taken to the Pope.

Joan testified: “I asked my voices for advice on whether I should submit to the Church because the clergy were pressing me fiercely. They answered that if I wanted our Lord to help me, I should entrust myself to Him in everything.”

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In Rouen, the conditions of the Virgin’s imprisonment worsened. Although she should have been held in a church prison under the supervision of women, English soldiers guarded her instead.

The priest Jean Massieu of Rouen described her conditions of imprisonment as follows:

“Joan was imprisoned in the citadel of Rouen in a room on the middle floor of the tower, accessible via eight flights of stairs. There was a bed where she slept, as well as a large wooden block to which an iron chain was attached and used to shackle her. Her feet were shackled. She was chained to a lock mounted on the wooden block. Five despicable Englishmen were assigned to guard her. They desperately wanted Joan dead and mocked her incessantly.”

During the trial, Joan repeatedly complained about this and held Bishop Cauchon responsible. She also often had to defend herself against the assaults of her guards, especially at night.

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After her capture, it became clear what the English intended to do with her. Joan was not merely a prominent prisoner; with her, English military dominance in France had come to an end. They therefore believed they knew what had caused their defeats. In their view, a witch—and thus a woman influenced by the devil—had brought about this turn of events to their disadvantage.

With Joan’s setback in Paris, as it was widely interpreted, the aura of invincibility surrounding the Virgin was lost in the eyes of her opponents. Her capture before Compiègne confirmed this further. The Burgundians handed Joan over to the English king in exchange for a substantial sum of money. What Joan had feared came to pass. She was now in the hands of her enemies.

It quickly became clear how the English intended to proceed. Treating her as a prisoner of war was not enough for them; she was to be tried as a witch by an ecclesiastical court. Their aim was to undermine the authority of the French king. If the Church condemned the Maid as a witch and heretic, all her deeds, including the king’s coronation and the French victories, would be seen as having been accomplished with the devil’s help. They worked toward this goal.

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After Charles VII was crowned in Reims, the king began negotiating with the Burgundians. On the day of the coronation itself, Joan wrote to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, on behalf of Charles VII. She pleaded with him in the name of God: “May the King of France and you conclude a good and lasting peace that will endure for a long time. Forgive one another completely with sincere hearts as faithful Christians.”

She was serious about achieving true peace, even as she simultaneously warned the duke against taking up arms against the king. She sought Christian reconciliation and hoped to help unite the French, for after the devastating French defeat at the Battle of Agincourt (1415), the Burgundians had allied themselves with the English. An Anglo-Burgundian alliance was formed.

In her letter to the Duke of Burgundy, Jeanne’s God-given authority was evident once again. She wanted to make a good and lasting peace, founded on their shared faith. However, she was also aware of the strength of the French army, which had gained the upper hand in the war through her intervention. This would have been the negotiating position needed to continue the work God had begun through her. The victory over the English and the subsequent coronation of Charles VII were signs that everyone could have read to draw the right conclusions.

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After the city of Orléans had been relieved of its siege, Joan felt compelled to fulfill her next prophecy: to lead the king to Reims for his coronation. She knew from her visions that she did not have much time to complete her mission, and she had to seize the moment. The English were weakened, while the French soldiers were encouraged.

The Count of Dunois reports:

After the liberation of Orléans, we—the Maid, myself, and others—went together to the king, who was at the castle of Loches, to request new troops from him for the recapture of the fortresses and towns along the Loire, especially Meung, Beaugency, and Jargeau, so that he might operate more safely and undisturbed in the future all the way to Reims for his coronation. Joan implored the king, urging him tirelessly to act quickly and warning him against hesitation. From that moment on, the king acted with all possible haste and dispatched the Duke of Alençon, other military commanders, and me—together with Joan—to capture those towns and castles. And indeed, they were once again brought under the king’s rule—through Joan’s help, I believe.

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From this moment on, the tide of the war turned in favor of the French crown. The decisive event had taken place: the Dauphin, Charles VII, had received Joan and had been convinced that she was sent by God, and the Church authorities had agreed as well. Thus God could carry out His plan.

Joan’s arrival in Orléans was eagerly awaited not only by the besieged population but also strengthened the king’s soldiers in particular. The presence of the Maid, with her unfailing confidence, gave the French army new strength and awakened them from hopelessness.

Joan herself carried no weapon and killed no one. Yet her courage and determination—being at the head of the army even in seemingly hopeless situations—continually lifted the soldiers’ spirits. This happened even when military undertakings at first seemed unlikely to succeed but were ultimately brought to a successful conclusion.

Instead of a weapon, the Maid had a banner made, as her confessor Jean Pasquerel reported, who accompanied her at her request until her later capture in Compiègne. He recounts:

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With conviction and courage, Joan sets out on the arduous eleven‑day journey to Chinon. She knows she is on a mission from God, and therefore fears no obstacles. She continually encourages her companions as well. Two of them later testify about this journey during the interrogation that took place as part of the rehabilitation trial for the saint.

The knight Bertrand de Poulengy:

It was an exciting ride, but Joan urged us not to be afraid, for the noble Dauphin would receive us kindly once we reached Chinon! And I assure you, I was completely inspired by her words, for she truly seemed to me to be sent by God; I have never been able to see the slightest evil in her. She was as good as a saint… So we arrived together without hindrance at Chinon, where the king was staying—who was then still the Dauphin (heir to the throne); it was there that we presented the maiden to the nobles and followers of the king.

The knight Jean de Metz:

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Joan was born on January 6, 1412, in Domrémy, France, the fourth child of Jacques d’Arc and his wife Isabelle. She grew up in humble peasant circumstances, could neither read nor write, learned to spin and sew, and sometimes tended to the household. Her parents were considered devout Christians. Her mother instructed her in the faith.

When, in 1456, as part of the process to vindicate Joan (King Charles VII had ordered an investigation into the truth of the church trial against Joan), witnesses from the village of Domrémy were questioned about her, they gave unanimous testimony in her favor. She was regarded as a devout girl who enjoyed going to church and helping others. May the testimony of the farmer Simonin Musnier from January 30, 1456, stand for many similar testimonies:

“I grew up with Joan, whom they called the Virgin. I lived near her father’s house. Truly, I know how good she was, how simple and pious! She revered God and His saints. She often and gladly went to church and to holy places, comforted the sick, and gave alms to the poor. I experienced this myself: when I was little, I was unwell, and Joan came to comfort me….”

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It was May 30, 1431, in Rouen, France, one day after the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity.

A large crowd had gathered that morning in the old market square near the Church of Our Savior. In addition to the gathered people and clergy, many soldiers were present. However, these were not French soldiers. They were English, as Rouen was still under English rule during the Hundred Years’ War between France and England.

A scaffold had been erected, and standing on it was a young woman, nineteen years old. The people had gathered to see this woman—both clergy and laymen.

All eyes were fixed on this young woman.

Who was she? Why was she standing there?

Then Nicolaus Midi, Doctor of Sacred Theology, delivered a sermon to the entire assembly on verse 26 of the First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians, chapter 12:

“If one member suffers, all suffer together.”

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