Jacques Maritain and his dear friend Raïssa Oumansoff were students at the Sorbonne. Their searching intellects, however, were frustrated by the fact that they could find no truth that would satisfy their restless minds. At that time Jacques was without any religious belief, and Raïssa was a self-declared atheist.
In her 1942 memoir We Have Been Friends Together, Raïssa spoke for herself and Jacques when she stated: “I wanted to know whether existence is an accident, a blessing, or a misfortune; I scorn that resignation and renunciation of the intelligence of which we have so many examples around us.” They could not continue to live in a world that had no meaning.
In near despair, they planned to commit suicide if they could not find any meaning to life over the course of the following year. “It was then,” writes Raïssa, “that God’s pity caused us to find Henri Bergson.”
Bergson’s brilliant lectures answered the couple’s intellectual needs. Other friends entered their lives which led them to become Catholic. Jacques became the leading Thomistic philosopher of the 20th century and a prodigious writer, while his supporting wife, Raïssa, authored several works of her own, including Adventures in Grace and Saint Thomas Aquinas: For Children and the Childlike.
Their story serves as an inspiration for anyone who is diligently searching for life’s meaning. God’s grace is ever available.
Extraordinary as the Maritain’s story is, it is not exceptional. We turn to another story that parallels that of the Maritains—an encore, so to speak, of divine grace. It is the remarkable story of Michael Pakaluk and Ruth Van Kooy.
Ruth arrived at Harvard as a brilliant student and a pro-choice atheist. Michael had been an atheist, himself. The two met as sophomores in the late 1970s. They shared a deep determination, like the Maritains before them, to find meaning in life. Harvard, like the Sorbonne, offered them little help.
Their intellectual gifts were combined with a certain honesty that allowed their mutual discussions to lead them in the right direction. They seemed to have been made for each other. They were married at the end of their sophomore year. Eventually they found their way into the Catholic Church. But they were anything but Sunday Catholics.
Michael became a university professor and a prolific writer in defense of life and common sense. Ruth became President of Massachusetts Citizens for Life. She was such an effective defender of life that abortion rights activists often refused to go up against her. The well published philosopher, Peter Kreeft has bestowed high praise on Ruth: “I have read and debated much about abortion, but I have never seen a clearer and stronger pro-life argument than Ruth’s.”
Michael’s book, The Shock of Holiness (Ignatius Press, 2025) is subtitled, “Finding the Romance of Everyday Life.” Here we find how well we can fit into the life that God has created for us. It is a never-ceasing experience of the unexpected gifts that He brings to us on a daily basis. Unlike many philosophers in the modern world, Pakaluk acknowledges both the existence and presence of a loving God. His message is clear: Christian sanctity is far nearer and far more beautiful than we think.
Over time Michael and Ruth found spiritual guidance with Opus Dei. Their marriage was blessed with seven children. Her demanding family life, however, did not prevent her from being active in her community. As her husband recalled, “She was like ‘Mother of the Neighborhood’.”
Sadly, she lost one of her children. His name was Thomas Matthew. He died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome in 1989 at six weeks of age. His passing produced a mother’s grief that could be assuaged only by Ruth accepting the evangelical conviction, “blessed are those who mourn.”
Death struck again. This time it was Ruth who contracted breast cancer. She passed away seven years later at age 41. Her life was deeply spiritual and an inspiration for everyone who knew her.
Her cause for canonization is currently moving forward. Her life as a devoted and selfless Christian is documented in her book, The Appalling Strangeness of the Mercy of God.
The extraordinary life of Michael Pakaluk continued. In 1999, he married Catherine Hardy, also a graduate from Harvard. Their marriage has produced eight children. Michael Pakaluk has become the father of fourteen (six from Ruth and eight from Catherine). He and his second bride are both teaching philosophy at Catholic University.
Catherine has gained considerable attention with her book, Hannah’s Children: The Women Quietly Defying the Birth Dearth. It is a study of the motivation expressed by American women who are open to having large families. The phrase, “Hannah’s Children” refers to the Book of Samuel. Hannah had been barren, but God answered her prayer with Samuel, and then with three more sons and two daughters. Dr. Catherine’s narrative reveals women in America who see children as their greatest purpose and blessing.
This divine encore, no doubt, is repeating itself, though in most instances, unrecorded, in many places throughout the world. God’s grace and how He answers prayers is the common and reassuring denominator. “Ask and you will receive.” Life is a gift. Children are a blessing. Marriage is a sacrament. These are the simple truths that American society must re-learn. The Maritains and the Pakaluks, each in their own distinctive fashions, are showing the way.
Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash
