Juan Collell Cuatrecasas

The ministry of Juan Collell took place in the context of the Industrial Revolution in Catalonia, marked by a massive rural exodus to urban centers. He was deeply affected by the situation of distress, exploitation, and unsanitary conditions in which the young female workers lived in the textile factories of the Vic region. After completing spiritual exercises in Manresa in 1890, he conceived the project of opening shelters and training centers for these young women. On September 8, 1891, with the help of two young collaborators, Pía Criach Genestos and Carme Soler Paracolls, he founded the Mínima Congregación de Siervas del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús (the Servants of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Vic) in Vic. The main objective of the institute was to "form Christian workshops where young female workers could find material bread and the bread of the heart." The religious sisters, locally nicknamed the "sisters of the workers," opened boarding houses near the textile factories, took care of the workers' meals, created daycare centers for their children, and provided evening classes to promote their social and intellectual advancement. In 1895, facing initial difficulties, the Bishop of Vic suggested a merger with the Trinitarian Sisters of Madrid, but this attempt failed. Juan Collell then drafted specific constitutions for the institute, which were approved by the bishop on December 31, 1896. The first religious sisters took their vows on December 17, 1898. Pía Criach was elected the first superior general of the congregation, which quickly founded more than ten communities in Spain. In 1902, Juan Collell left his teaching duties at the seminary to devote himself fully to the work and received a modest benefice at the church of La Piedad in Vic. At the end of 1912, he traveled to Belgium to study social and worker assistance initiatives in order to draw inspiration for his own foundations.

From April 1919, Juan Collell's health deteriorated severely due to cancer. He endured the illness with great patience and offered his sufferings for the Church and his foundation. On August 15, 1921, he celebrated his last Mass. That same day, he fulfilled a youthful vow by being authorized, through a special privilege, to pronounce his vows in the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) into the hands of Father Ramón Creixans. He passed away holily on October 5, 1921, in Vic, at the age of 57. His death stirred deep emotion among the local population, who already considered him a saint. The newspaper La Comarca de Vich wrote at the time: "He was not a vulgar soul, but a privileged spirit. In a weak and less robust body hid a great soul, a heart valiant and bold for the things of God... Dr. Collell was a saint."

The cause for the beatification of Juan Collell Cuatrecasas was introduced in the Diocese of Vic. The diocesan informative process opened on June 27, 1950, and closed on April 30, 1951. The decree on the validity of the informative process was issued by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints on September 27, 1984. The Positio on his heroic virtues was published in 1989. Following the favorable opinion of the theological consultants (September 27, 1994) and the ordinary session of cardinals and bishops (May 2, 1995), Pope John Paul II promulgated the decree recognizing the heroic nature of his virtues on June 11, 1995, conferring upon him the title of Venerable.

Juan Collell's spirituality is deeply Christocentric, nourished by assiduous contemplation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and a tender Marian devotion. His social commitment, particularly innovative for his time, stems directly from this spiritual experience: he saw in the faces of exploited female workers the wounded dignity of the children of God. He knew how to combine a life of intense prayer and personal austerity with concrete and structured social action, anticipating the main lines of the Church's social doctrine. Today, the Mínima Congregación de Siervas del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús continues its mission. The institute received the decree of pontifical praise on June 8, 1957, under the pontificate of Pius XII. The sisters are currently present in Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Mozambique, Paraguay, and Uruguay, where they continue to accompany young people, workers, and families through schools, university residences, daycare centers, and various social integration projects.