Born in 1303.
Her mom died when she was only 12. Her aunt then took over the care of Bridget.
When she was fourteen (16 in other texts), she married an 18 year old young man named Ulf.
Together, they had eight children–four girls and four boys. Their youngest child has also been canonized, St. Catherine of Sweden.
Her husband and she made resolutions to be a holy couple.
During their married life, she cultivated friendships with a number of learned and virtuous people, took charge of feudal estate affairs, became a lady-in-waiting for the queen of Sweden and established THE intellectual center for Sweden.
Her husband died in 1344.
Despite fears of the Black Plague in southern Europe, she left Sweden in 1349 because she refused to support the king’s war on Latvia and Estonia.
She made pilgrimages to holy sites, such as the holy places of St. Olaf’s shrine, Compostela, Rome, and Assisi.
She had many personal revelations, such as the need for court members to convert, the need for the Pope to return to Rome, and the need to build religious houses. Since she was unsure whether or not her visions were from God or from the devil, she became haunted by fears until she met a spiritual guide who knew the worthiness of her visions. Her revelations and prophecies had to do with religious and political problems of her day.
Her wisdom often brought her slander and persecutions from those who didn’t want to hear it.
She did not fear to admonish even the Pope when he stubbornly refused to return to Rome (St. Catherine of Siena finally convinced him in 1376, three years after St. Bridget’s death in 1373).
She helped her family through many problems, such as supporting her oldest daughter who had a riotous husband, her youngest son’s death, and her married son Charles who became entangled in a messy affair with the infamous queen of Spain who was already married—they wanted to marry each other secretly while being married to others—he died of a fever before that could take place.
*Info cited under “Authentic Femininity, Lived” tab
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