Having first-hand knowledge of the harvest to which he was called to dedicate himself, he promptly applied the best of his talents and gave his entire life to others, in pure and genuine charity.
“Madame, had it not been for this Confession I would have been condemned!” exclaimed the dying man. Hearing this admission provoked a shudder of surprise in the Countess of Gondi.
A devout and magnanimous woman, she had taken advantage of a family visit in the region of Picardy, in northern France, to visit residents on their properties in Folleville, bringing them material and spiritual aid. Her private chaplain, Fr. Vincent de Paul, accompanied her. On that day, early in 1617, the priest had been asked to visit a poor, sick man in the village of Gannes. After spending considerable time with the man, the priest beckoned those waiting outside the room to enter, including the illustrious benefactress. It was then that the dying man chose to reveal the sad state of his soul to everyone present. He had spent years making lukewarm confessions and was tormented with remorse, to the point of losing the hope of salvation. Only now, thanks to the firm and kind exhortation of the confessor, had he found peace of conscience and confidence in God’s mercy.
The noblewoman immediately grasped the reality behind this testimony, and told the priest of her concerns: if such was the experience of this respected farmer, what of the other folk of the area? There, just as in other parts of the country, one could sense the spiritual misery of the people of the land, most of them abandoned to the mercy of pastors lacking in both zeal and formation. There were even priests who did not know how to celebrate Mass, each one improvising his own liturgical ceremony, and many that neglected to use the formula for absolution. Immediate action was necessary to aid the flock and, above all, to form those who should guide and serve as an example for it. How was this serious need to be met? Fr. Vincent was pensive…
Urged by the Countess, he ascended the pulpit of the church of Folleville some days later and preached to the people on the importance and usefulness of a general Confession, encouraging the faithful not to pass up the opportunity. He obtained excellent results, as he himself said: “God cast such a benign gaze upon the ardent confidence and faith of this lady—for the number and enormity of my sins would have frustrated the fruit of this action—, that He blessed my discourse, and those good people were so touched that they all flocked to make their general Confession.”1
With the assistance of the Jesuits of the Diocese of Amiens, he set about hearing the Confessions of the local populace and giving them religious instruction, and with this task completed, he proceeded to the neighbouring villages, following the same method and attaining similar success. In this manner, scouring the countryside in search of lost sheep, the humble Fr. Vincent, then 36 years of age, sowed the first seeds of his masterpiece: the Congregation of the Mission. Its members—known as Lazarists for having first gathered in the former leprosarium of Saint-Lazare in Paris—spread the “the Kingdom of the Divine Master even to places where His glory was buried, as it were, His vineyard fallow and fruitless for lack of labourers.”2
In his desire to imitate Our Lord Jesus Christ the founder defined the goal of this institute around three points that sum up the glorious Vincentian epopee: “First, working towards one’s own perfection, continually striving to practice the virtues that this Sovereign Master deigned to teach us with His word and example; second, to preach the Gospel to the poor, particularly to those who work the land; third, to help the clergy acquire the knowledge and virtues necessary for their state.”3
A charitable Saint…
This brief biographical sketch of St. Vincent de Paul might leave us wondering where certain works of art draw their inspiration—images that present the Saint as smiling and tenderhearted, carrying a sleeping child in his arms, and compassionately welcoming another youngster who takes refuge under his mantle… It is easy to find the explanation if we compare his life to a multi-faceted gemstone. Looking at it closely, we will observe that such images reflect one facet—undoubtedly one of the most beautiful—of his rich personality; nevertheless, we also see that there are many other facets, lesser known, which are equally worthy of admiration by the faithful.
As for the aspect represented in these pious images, one can never sufficiently praise this man, who truly merits the title of father of all those in need. Thanks to him, at the height of the seventeenth century, the good odour of Christian charity spread throughout France and then to the entire world, stimulating the generosity of the rich and powerful in favour of the humbler classes. Abandoned children, the sick, elderly, mentally ill, wayward youths, prisoners, slaves and victims of war, among others, make up the host of sufferers upon whom rested the protecting hand of St. Vincent.
Neither natural gifts nor academic preparation—which, nonetheless, he had in abundance—were the secret to the efficacy of his apostolic activities, but rather his love of God, the sole font of true love of neighbour. His works were born under the sign of this virtue, and by its ardour were consolidated and spread throughout the world, showing that the solution to social problems begins by placing God in the centre of hearts. Vincentian initiatives are stamped with this noble ideal, as the following words confirm: “I must love my neighbour as the image of God and as the object of His love, and do everything so that, in their turn, men love their Creator who knows and considers them as His brothers, whom He has saved; and to strive so that, in mutual charity, they love one another for love of God, who so loved them as to hand over His own Son to death for them.”4
According to this same spirit, St. Vincent modelled the Institute of the Daughters of Charity, which he founded together with St. Louise de Marillac. In one of his conferences to the young sisters, he clearly defined the priority to be sought in caring for the sick: “The goal of Our Lord in founding your Company was not just to care for the body, for there are never a shortage of people to do this; His intention was that you care for the soul of the suffering poor […]. A Turk and an idolater could just as well lend them physical help, and Our Lord would not have instituted a Company just for this, for such is an obligation of nature itself. Nevertheless, the same cannot be said regarding [the care of] the soul; not everyone can do this, and thus God chose you, especially, to teach them the things necessary for their salvation. Consider this carefully and ask: ‘Have I cared for the poor in a merely corporal manner? If I only concern myself with giving them food, medicine, and other things related to the body, I have not fulfilled my duty.’”5
And this is the distinctive note of the work of the Confraternities of Charity as well—parish associations of women, men, or both, formed under his impetus and guidance—, as read in the rule of the Confraternity of Joigny: “The Association of Charity is instituted to honour Our Lord Jesus Christ, its patron, and His Most Holy Mother; to provide for the needs of the poor, whether sound or sick; to ensure that they receive catechetical instruction and frequent the Sacraments; to feed them and to care for the infirm; to help those who are approaching the end of their lives to die a good death, and those who are cured to resolve to never again offend God.”6
…and a combative one
Besides the battle waged against misery, our Saint was also at the forefront of a more transcendent combat whose stage was mid-seventeenth century France, an age when Vincentian works had reached a peak of fruitfulness and expansion. The enemy was not an ostensive one; on the contrary, it was so subtle that it did not even declare itself as such: Jansenism. It was then that combativeness, another facet of this adamantine soul, shone in a special way.
In face of the icy blast of bad doctrine, St. Vincent’s fidelity to the Church was expressed not only by vigorous rejection, when the Jansenists sought to ensnare him in their sophisms, but also in skilful opposition as a defender of the Faith, after the example of the ancient Fathers. Occupying a privileged position on the Council of Conscience of the queen regent, Anne of Austria, he carefully guarded the breaches by which the heresy tried to infiltrate, prevented its propagators from being granted dignities, and took measures to keep them from the pulpits. Making use of his considerable influence in various ecclesiastical sectors, he gathered and manoeuvred Catholic forces to bring about the triumph of the truth, and he personally guided the three Catholic doctors sent by the French clergy to Rome, to petition Pope Innocent X for the condemnation of the insidious heresy.
When, finally, the pontifical sentence was published in the Bull Cum occasione, of May 31, 1653, the Saint commemorated the victory with the detachment typical of true heroes, revealing that “although God had given him the grace to distinguish error from truth, even before the definition of the Apostolic Holy See, he experienced no trace of vain complacency for having judged in conformity with the Church, recognizing that it was purely the effect of God’s mercy, to whom all glory should be given.”7
This humility was, in fact, the foundation upon which the Almighty built the monumental castle of St. Vincent’s virtues. As we proceed to observe, he perfectly fulfilled his own counsel to missionaries: “God does not tolerate emptiness; therefore, when we divest ourselves of self, He will fill us with Himself.”8
Long preparation
Such a vitally important mission could not be the fruit of superficial and fleeting enthusiasm, but of a long path of preparation, which the Saint faithfully travelled.
Vincent de Paul was born on April 25, 1581, in the hamlet of Pouy, located in Landes, in the south of France. Nevertheless, the blood running through his veins was Spanish. Both from the paternal as well as the maternal side, his family came from Tamarite de Litera, a city of the province of Huesca, in Aragon. If his birth in Gallic lands was a considerable qualification for the fulfilment of his vocation, enabling him to act with full liberty in all spheres of French society, his Aragonese origin was an equally important element, for from it he inherited the decisive and pertinacious character with which he carried out the daring undertakings that God destined for him.
His childhood unfolded without major upheavals, in the tranquil routine of leading the family’s flock to pasture. He never lost an opportunity to help the poor whom he encountered along his daily route, giving them everything he could. His father approved of these endeavours, and soon perceived that the child was called to a higher office than shepherd. Although mixed with human interests, the paternal decision was well directed in guiding his son toward an ecclesiastical career.
Young Vincent was ordained a priest on September 23 of 1600, before he had reached 20 years of age. This can be explained by the lack of structure at the time—something that he would later strive to correct. Like many of his contemporary clerics, he desired to work for the Church and to save souls; but he also aspired to particular offices and privileges, and exercised his ministry in this wise for almost a decade.
Meanwhile, the Lord desired him for Himself and, in order to purify him, sent him a painful trial. For three or four years, he underwent a terrible dark night of the soul, having offered to God to endure, in place of a certain theologian, the temptations against faith which the latter had confided to him.
At last, the hour of Providence arrived: when, moved by grace, Fr. Vincent resolved to dedicate himself to the service of the poor for love of Jesus Christ, his interior darkness vanished and his soul became filled with light. This was the first step on his glorious trajectory as an apostle of charity.
Obeying the instructions of his spiritual director—Fr. Pierre de Bérulle, founder of the Oratory in France—, St. Vincent renounced the prestigious office of chaplain of Queen Marguérite de Valois and became parish priest of the village of Clichy, on the outskirts of Paris. It was May 12, 1612. Soon afterwards, Bérulle appointed him as tutor of the sons of Philippe Emmanuel de Gondi, general of the galleys and royal lieutenant, whose spouse was Marguérite de Silly, Lady of Folleville. It was during this sojourn in the castles and lands of this noblewoman that Fr. Vincent became acquainted with the harvest to which he would dedicate his life, and he promptly applied his best talents to it, as we observed at the outset of these brief lines.
Marked by pure and genuine charity
After a long and fruitful life marked by the most pure and genuine charity, St. Vincent de Paul surrendered his soul to God on September 27, 1660. In giving his final blessing to his spiritual sons, he said to them: “God bless you; qui cœpit opus ipse perficiet — Bring to a good end this work which He has begun.”9
Until the end of time, his example of holiness will remind the world that “true charity is not the sentiment that has its origin in natural, transitory, and capricious affections of men for one another, but rather the love that, proceeding from the deepest recesses of the human heart, rises up to God, and from there, in a limpid and crystalline stream, descends, as from the height of a mountain, upon all creatures.”10 ◊
Notes
1 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL. Conferência, apud HERRERA, CM, José; PARDO, CM, Veremundo (Org.). San Vicente de Paul. Biografía y selección de escritos. 2.ed. Madrid: BAC, 1955, p.99.
2 HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.202.
3 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL. Reglas de la Congregación de la Misión. § 1, apud HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.800.
4 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL. Conferência, apud HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.654-655.
5 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL, apud HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.884.
6 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL. Regulamento da Caridade mista de Joigny [Rules for the mixed Charity of Joigny]. In: HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.687.
7 HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.572.
8 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL. Aos missionários [To the missionaries]. In: HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.797.
9 ST. VINCENT DE PAUL, apud HERRERA; PARDO, op. cit., p.608.
10 CORRÊA DE OLIVEIRA, Plinio. A verdadeira caridade [True Charity]. In: O Legionário. São Paulo. Year V. N.76 (8 Mar., 1931); p.3.
