Hail, Vincent, Priest

St. Vincent de Paul

Today we celebrate the feast of St. Vincent de Paul (1580 AD - 1660 AD).   From a peasant family in Gascony, Vincent was an exceptionally intelligent youth who entered the seminary at Toulouse and was ordained in 1600.   Though he would spend his life in service to France's orphans, widows, and poor, found hospitals for the galley slaves of Paris and Marseilles, reform seminary training in France, and found two religious congregations, perhaps the most remarkable and telling episode in Vincent's life occurred shortly after he'd been ordained.  Travelling by sea from Toulouse to Marseilles, Vincent was captured by Turkish pirates and sold as a slave in Tunis.  Two years later, Vincent escaped from Tunis with his master, whom Vincent had converted.   The following account of these years comes from the life of St. Vincent compiled in 1748 by the Bishop of  Rodez:

By resignation to the divine will … .and ... meditation on the sufferings of Christ, [St. Vincent] learned to bear all his afflictions with comfort and joy, uniting himself in spirit with his Divine Redeemer, and ...copy[ing] in himself his lessons of perfect meekness, patience, silence and charity. [Vincent was sold] to a renegado Christian who came from Nice in Savoy. … This apostate had three wives, of which one, who was a Turkish woman, went often to the field where Vincent was digging, and out of curiosity would ask him to sing the praises of God. He used to sing to her with tears in his eyes, the psalm, Upon the rivers of Babylon, &c., the Salve Regina, and such like prayers. She was so much taken with our holy faith, and doubtless with the saintly deportment of the holy slave, that she never ceased repeating to her husband, that he had basely abandoned the only true religion, till, … without opening her own eyes to the faith, she made him enter into it himself. Sincerely repenting of his apostacy, he agreed with Vincent to make their escape together. They crossed the Mediterranean sea in a small light boat which the least squall of wind would overset; and they landed safe at Aigues-Mortes, near Marseilles, on the 28th of June, 1607, and thence proceeded to Avignon. The apostate made his abjuration in the hands of the [papal] vice-legate, and the year following went with Vincent to Rome, and there entered himself a penitent in the austere convent of the Fate-Ben-Fratelli, who served the hospitals according to the rule of St. John of God.

St. Vincent de Paul, pray for us.

Hail, Saintly Apostle to the Poor and Founder of Religious Congregations

Today is the feast of St. Vincent de Paul (1580 AD  - 1660 AD).  Through energetic devotion to the Gospel, St. Vincent accomplished good works sufficient to fill the lifetimes of a dozen saints.  From a peasant background, St. Vincent studied for the priesthood at Dax and Toulouse.  While travelling by sea from Marseilles, where he'd gone to collect a legacy, St. Vincent was captured by Turkish pirates and sold as a slave in Tunis.  St. Vincent's mild goodness converted his master, and the two fled together to France.  His wisdom and ability led to St. Vincent's appointment as chaplain and tutor to several noble families, but with the approval of his employers, the saint left these positions in order to evangelize the poverty-stricken country people of France.  St. Vincent preached missions amongst the country people, but found that the good thereby accomplished did not last without  priests to carry on the evangelization permanently.  St. Vincent founded the Congregation of Priests of the Mission (known as the Vincentians) to do this work.  In order to train his priests, St. Vincent established minor and major seminaries throughout the country.  By the time of the Revolution, one third of the seminaries in France were directed by the Congregation of the Mission.

St. Vincent also wished to care for the poor, and to this end, with Louise de Marillac he founded the Daughters of Charity.  Through hospitals and other charitable enterprises, the Daughters of Charity provided food and other care to thousands of France's poor.  St. Vincent's efforts on behalf of the poor were not confined to France: members of Congregations he founded also relieved the suffering of the poor in Italy, North Africa, Scotland, Poland and other places.

St. Vincent also wished to care for the convicts in France's galleys, who suffered under appalling conditions, both physically and morally.   In addition to laboring amongst the galley convicts himself,  St. Vincent exerted influence upon the noble families of his acquaintance to obtain appointment from King Louis XIII as Royal Almoner to the galleys.  This position permitted St. Vincent to construct  a hospital for the galley convicts, and see to their care in many other ways.  St. Vincent also looked after their spiritual health by preaching a mission to the galley convicts.

In addition, St. Vincent was quick to note the dangers of Jansenism, and was instrumental in combating this heresy.  St. Vincent also encouraged and assisted in the reform of many religious congregations, including the Benedictines, Cistercians and Augustinians.

St. Vincent de Paul was canonized by Clement XII in 1737 AD.

St. Vincent de Paul, pray for us.