on her property. With the rise of Napoleon in 1800 the Revolution ended and Lamourous (now 46) was able to move back and forth from Bordeaux freely. Return to Bordeaux Before the Revolution Jeanne Germaine de Pichon, a good friend of Lamourous, had begun a ministry of rehabilitating prostitutes (called filles) who wished to leave that way of life. This need was even greater after the Revolution, when de Pichon approached Lamourous to take over this ministry. At first Lamourous was horrified at the thought as she had been raised to believe that these women were entirely disgraceful. Her friend and spiritual director, the priest Chaminade, was at first opposed to this, as he wanted Lamourous to help with his Sodality; but he left the decision up to her. Lamourous visited the filles. While there she experienced a profound sense of calm, peace, and joy. She found the women pleasant and comforting. However upon leaving her feelings of reproach and uneasiness returned. After an illness, and a very bad dream about the future of the filles, she agreed to visit the house again, absentmindedly grabbing her nightcap as she left. On January 2, 1801 she toured the house, again met with the filles, and again was filled with the same warm feelings from before. As the day drew to a close, she escorted de Pichon and Chaminade to the door, and saw them out saying “I will stay here.” She became the Bonne Mère (Good Mother) to the filles (daughters) and the work was called La Maison de La Miséricorde (The House of Mercy). Lamourous chose Our Lady of Mercy as patron of the house. The Miséricorde This was to be Marie Thérèse's major focus and work for the rest of her life, but getting started wasn't easy; the women were of varied ages and came from all walks of life, bickering, fighting, and accusations were a part of everyday life. To combat this, and to help form the women into virtuous, dedicated, sincere Christians, Lamourous wrote a strict daily schedule for the house, divided strictly into prayer times, meal times, work periods, and recreation periods. The Miséricorde was unique because the staff (called directresses) and the filles shared their lives entirely, they slept in common dormitories, dined in common, worked alongside each other, and prayed in common. Over the years the Miséricorde grew from the original 15 women, to