Flora Cantábrica

SAINT VINCENT DE PAUL

Tweet

SAINTS

SAINT VINCENT DE PAUL
Saint Vincent de Paul
SHARE

September 27
Saint Vincent de Paul
Founder
Year 1660
May the Lord God, who is so good, continue sending many Vincents like this into the world, for the benefit of all those in need.
Blessed is he who has compassion on the poor.
God will bless him (Psalm 41).
Vincent means «Victor, victorious.»
Saint Vincent was born in the small village of Pouy, France, in 1580. He spent his childhood in the countryside, helping his parents tend their sheep. From a very young age, he was extremely generous in helping the poor.
His parents sent him to study with the Franciscan Fathers and later to the University of Toulouse, and at the age of 20, in 1600, he was ordained a priest. The saint says that at the beginning of his priesthood, all he cared about was a brilliant career, but God purified him with three very severe sufferings.
1. Captivity. Traveling by sea, he fell into the hands of Turkish pirates who took him as a slave to Tunisia, where he spent the years 1605, 1606, and 1607, suffering constantly.
2. He managed to escape from captivity and reach France, where he stayed with a friend. However, the friend lost 400 silver coins and blamed Vincent, accusing him of being a thief for months to everyone he met. The saint remained silent, only responding: «God knows I wasn’t the one who stole that money.» Six months later, the real thief appeared, and the whole truth was revealed. Later, Saint Vincent, recounting this incident to his disciples, said: «It is very beneficial to have patience and know how to remain silent and let God defend us.»
3rd. The third test was a terrible temptation against the faith, which he accepted so that God would free a friend of his from it. This caused him unspeakable suffering and was for his soul «the dark night.» At the age of 30, he wrote to his mother telling her that, embittered by human disappointments, he planned to spend the rest of his life retired in a humble hermitage. He fell at the feet of a crucifix, consecrated his life entirely to charity for the needy, and that was when his truly glorious story began.
He made a vow or oath to dedicate his entire life to helping the needy, and from then on, he would think only of the poor. He placed himself under the spiritual direction of Father Berule (the future cardinal), a wise and saintly man, made several days of spiritual retreats, and launched himself into the apostolate that would make him famous. The saint says, «I realized that I had a bilious and bitter temperament, and I became convinced that a harsh and harsh attitude does more harm than good in the work of souls. And so I resolved to ask God to change my sour manner of behaving into a kind and gentle attitude, and I resolved to work day after day to transform my harsh character into a pleasant one.» And indeed, he succeeded, so much so that several years later, the great orator Bossuet would exclaim: «Oh my God, if Father Vincent de Paul is so kind, how kind are You?»
Saint Vincent told his disciples: «Three times I spoke when I was in a bad temper and angry, and three times I said outrageous things.» That’s why, when they offended him, he always remained silent, as silent as Jesus in his most holy Passion.»
He decided to read the writings of the kind Saint Francis de Sales, and they did him much good and made him meek and humble of heart. He and this saint became very good friends.
Vincent became friends with the French Minister of the Navy, who appointed him chaplain to the sailors and prisoners working on the ships. And there he discovered something he had never imagined: the horrific life of galley slaves. At that time, to ensure the ships could move quickly, large oars were placed in the lower part of the ship, and there, in the underground chambers of the vessel (called a galley), the poor prisoners were forced to move those heavy oars in a stifling environment, amidst the stench, and suffering from hunger and thirst, and constantly whipped by the foremen so they wouldn’t stop rowing.
Saint Vincent was horrified to witness this horrifying situation and obtained from the Minister, Mr. Gondi, that the galley slaves would be treated with greater kindness and less cruelty. And one day, he even rowed himself to replace a poor prisoner who was exhausted from fatigue and weakness. With his many gifts and favors, he gradually gained the sympathy of those poor men.
Minister Gondi appointed Father Vicente as chaplain for the large regions where he had his estates. And there, our saint discovered with horror that the peasants were completely ignorant of religion. That the few confessions he made were sacrilegious because they kept almost everything to themselves. And that they had no one to instruct them. He found a group of priest friends and began to preach missions in those towns and villages, and the success was resounding. People came by the hundreds and thousands to hear the sermons and became