|
|
|
Vincent de Paul was born into a peasant family on 24 April 1581, in the village of Pouy in south west France. He studied theology at the University of Toulouse, was ordained a priest at 19, and completed a further year of studies in Rome, before returning to Paris late 1608.
 |
|
Here, Vincent came under the influence of a wise spiritual guide, Pierre de Berulle, who gradually caused him to see that helping others was more important than following personal ambitions. For a few years Vincent worked as a parish priest in Clichy near Paris. In 1613 he tutored the children of the general of the French galleys and in 1617 became chaplain to the galley slaves. He was concerned for all the peasants on the general's properties because of the terrible conditions in which they lived. By 1625 he had influenced a number of young men, some of them priests, to join him in forming a religious group to be called the Congregation of the Mission often known as “The Vincentians". Vincent and his friends worked with the poor people of the countryside near Paris, teaching them about Jesus Christ and the Good News of the Gospel and helping them obtain food and clothing. |
Vincent was a great "net worker" and collaborator. He formed many associations of wealthy lay people, notably the Ladies of Charity, originally in Paris and then throughout France. Vincent persuaded them to dedicate some of their time and money to helping the poor. He started several hospitals, including one in Marseilles for convicts sentenced to the galleys. Several times he was asked to act as a mediator in the wars of religion that were tearing France apart. With Louise de Marillac, a talented and sensitive friend, he started the first religious group of women dedicated entirely to works of charity outside the cloister, a group called the Daughters of Charity.
Vincent was a man of action rather than of theory. He was a pragmatist and his spirituality was simple, down-to-earth and practical. He looked to Christ as his leader and tried to translate the Gospel message into concrete results.
Besides being a practical organiser he was also a man of deep faith; a man of prayer and a mystic. The immense range of services he set up for the poor were more than mere philanthropy. They were rooted in the Gospel vision of Matthew 25 where Jesus tells us:
"Whatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters you do it to me"
Vincent died on Sept. 27, 1660, and was canonized a saint in the Roman Catholic Church in 1737.
|
|
|