Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660), commonly known as Saint Vincent de Paul, was a Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the

poor Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little

income< ...

. In 1622 Vincent was appointed a chaplain to the galleys. After working for some time in Paris among imprisoned galley slaves, he returned to be the superior of what is now known as the

Congregation of the Mission , logo = , image = Vincentians.png , abbreviation = CM , nickname = Vincentians, Paules, Lazarites, Lazarists, Lazarians , established = , founder = Vincent de Paul , fou ...

, or the "Vincentians" (in France known as "Lazaristes"). These priests, with vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and stability, were to devote themselves entirely to the people in smaller towns and villages. Vincent was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy at a time when the local clergy's morals were flagging. He was a pioneer in seminary education and founded the Congregation of the Mission and the

Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul The Company of the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul ( la, Societas Filiarum Caritatis a Sancto Vincentio de Paulo), commonly called the Daughters of Charity or Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent De Paul, is a Society of Apostoli ...

. He was renowned for his compassion, humility, and generosity. Vincent was canonized in 1737 and is venerated as a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

in the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion.Attwater, Donald (1982) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Saints'' p 337, Aylesbury

Early life and education

Vincent de Paul was born in 1581 in the village of Pouy, in the Province of Guyenne and

Gascony Gascony (; french: Gascogne ; oc, Gasconha ; eu, Gaskoinia) was a province of the southwestern Kingdom of France that succeeded the Duchy of Gascony (602–1453). From the 17th century until the French Revolution (1789–1799), it was part o ...

, the Kingdom of France, to peasant farmers; his father was Jean and his mother Bertrande de Moras de Paul. There was a stream named the "Paul" in the vicinity and it is believed that this might have been the derivation of the family name. He wrote the name as one word – Depaul, possibly to avoid the inference that he was of noble birth, but none of his correspondents did so. He had three brothers – Jean, Bernard, and Gayon – and two sisters, Marie and Marie-Claudine.''Butler's Lives of the Saints'', (Michael Walsh, ed.), (1991) p 304, HarperCollins Publishers, New York He was the third child. He demonstrated a talent for literacy early in life, but also worked as a child, herding his family's livestock. At 15, his father sent him to seminary, which he paid for by selling the family's oxen. For three years, Vincent studied at a college in Dax, France. It adjoined a monastery of the Friars Minor, where he resided. In 1597, he enrolled in theology at the University of Toulouse. The atmosphere at the university was rough. Fights broke out between various factions of students which escalated into armed battles. An official was murdered by two students. Nevertheless, he continued his studies, financing them by tutoring others. He was ordained on 23 September 1600, at the age of nineteen, in

Château-l'Évêque Château-l'Évêque (; Limousin: ''Lo Chasteu'') is a commune in the Dordogne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. Château-l'Évêque station has rail connections to Bordeaux, Périgueux and Limoges. Population Castle The ...

, near Périgueux. This was against the regulations established by the Council of Trent which required a minimum of 24 years of age for ordination, so when he was appointed parish priest in

Tilh Tilh is a commune in the Landes department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. Population See also *Communes of the Landes department The following is a list of the 327 communes of the Landes department of France F ...

, the appointment was appealed in the

Court of Rome The papal household or pontifical household (usually not capitalized in the media and other nonofficial use, ), called until 1968 the Papal Court (''Aula Pontificia''), consists of dignitaries who assist the pope in carrying out particular ceremoni ...

. Rather than respond to a lawsuit in which he would probably not have prevailed, he resigned from the position and continued his studies. On 12 October 1604, he received his Bachelor of Theology from the University of Toulouse. Later he received a Licentiate in Canon Law from the University of Paris.

Abduction and enslavement

Traditional biographies of Vincent describe his capture and enslavement during two years away from France, from 1605 to 1607. More recent biographies, starting with

Antoine Rédier Antoine Redier (7 July 1873 – 27 July 1954) was a French writer who was leader of the far-right Légion organization in the 1920s. Early years Antoine Redier was born on 7 July 1873 in Meudon, the eldest of eight children of Jean Rédier and h ...

's ''La vraie vie de Saint Vincent de Paul,'' doubt this narrative. The biographer Pierre Coste, who wrote ''Monsieur Vincent'', a comprehensive biography based on correspondence, interviews, and documents, publicly confirmed the accuracy of Vincent's captivity and enslavement. According to Rédier, Coste held the opposing view in private, and questioned the reliability of the two letters supporting the account of Vincent's enslavement.Poole, Stafford C.M. (1992) "The Formative Years of a Saint: Vincent de Paul: 1595–1617,"
Vincentian Heritage Journal: Vol. 13: Iss. 2, Article 1, pp. 98. To avoid scandal and possible backlash, Coste kept his doubt of the slavery narrative private. Skeptics agree that the letters themselves were written by Vincent, but question Vincent's account of the events of 1605–1607. There is no alternative account of Vincent's life during these two years, but Pierre Grandchamps and Paul Debongnie argue that the captivity narrative is implausible. According to the letters, in 1605, Vincent sailed from

Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

on his way back from Castres where he had gone to sell property he had inherited from a wealthy patron in Toulouse. He was taken captive by

Barbary pirates The Barbary pirates, or Barbary corsairs or Ottoman corsairs, were Muslim pirates and privateers who operated from North Africa, based primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli, Libya, Tripoli. This area was known i ...

, who took him to Tunis. De Paul was auctioned off as a

slave Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, and spent two years in bondage. His first master was a fisherman, but Vincent was unsuitable for this line of work due to sea-sickness and was soon sold. His next master was a

spagyric Paracelsianism (also Paracelsism; German: ') was an early modern medical movement based on the theories and therapies of Paracelsus. It developed in the second half of the 16th century, during the decades following Paracelsus' death in 1541, an ...

al physician,

alchemist Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscience, protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in Chinese alchemy, C ...

and inventor. He became fascinated by his arts and was taught how to prepare and administer his master's spagyric remedies. The fame of Vincent's master became so great that it attracted the attention of men who summoned him to Istanbul. During the passage, the old man died and Vincent was sold once again. His new master was a former priest and Franciscan from Nice, Guillaume Gautier. He, Gautier, had converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

in order to gain his freedom from slavery and was living in the mountains with three wives. The second wife, a Muslim by birth, was drawn to and visited Vincent in the fields to question him about his faith. She became convinced that his faith was true and admonished her husband for renouncing his Christianity. Her husband became remorseful and decided to escape back to France with his slave. They had to wait ten months, but finally they secretly boarded a small boat and crossed the Mediterranean, landing in Aigues-Mortes on 29 June 1607.

Return to Europe

After returning to France, Vincent went to Rome. There he continued his studies until 1609 when he was sent back to France on a mission to King Henry IV. Once in France, he made the acquaintance of

Pierre de Bérulle Pierre de Bérulle (4 February 1575 – 2 October 1629) was a French Catholic priest, cardinal and statesman, one of the most important mystics of the 17th century in France. He was the founder of the French school of spirituality, who could coun ...

, whom he took as his spiritual advisor. André Duval, of the Sorbonne introduced him to Canfield's "Rule of Perfection".O'Donnell C. M., Hugh. "Vincent de Paul: His Life and Way", ''Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac: Rules, Conferences, and Writings'', (Frances Ryan and John E. Rybolt, eds.), Paulist Press, 1995
Vincent was by nature a rather irascible person, but he slowly learned to become more sensitive to the needs of others. In 1612 he was sent as a parish priest to the Church of Saint-Medard in

Clichy Clichy may refer to: In Paris Region, France * Canton of Clichy, an administrative division of the Hauts-de-Seine department, in northern France * Clichy-sous-Bois, commune in the Seine-Saint-Denis ''département'' * Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, comm ...

. In less than a year, Bérulle recalled him to Paris to serve as a chaplain and tutor to the Gondi family. "Although Vincent had initially begun his priesthood with the intention of securing a life of leisure for himself, he underwent a change of heart after hearing the confession of a dying peasant." It was the Countess de Gondi who persuaded her husband to endow and support a group of able and zealous missionaries who would work among poor tenant farmers and country people in general."St. Vincent de Paul", Franciscan Media
On 13 May 1643, with Louis XIII dead, Queen Anne had her husband's will annulled by the Parlement de Paris (a judicial body comprising mostly nobles and high clergymen), making her the sole Regent of France. Anne nominated Vincent de Paul as her spiritual adviser; he helped her deal with religious policy and the Jansenism question.

Foundation of religious congregations

In 1617, Vincent contacted the Daughters of Charity and they then introduced him to poor families. Vincent then brought them food and comfort. He organized these wealthy women of Paris to collect funds for missionary projects, founded hospitals, and gather relief funds for the victims of war and to ransom 1,200

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used ...

slaves from North Africa. This participation of women would eventually result in, with the help of Louise de Marillac, the

(french: Filles de la Charité), a Society of Apostolic Life for women within the Catholic Church. In 1622 Vincent was appointed a chaplain to the galleys. After working for some time in Paris among imprisoned galley slaves, he returned to be the superior of what is now known as the

, or the "Vincentians" (in France known as "Lazaristes"). These priests, with vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and stability, were to devote themselves entirely to the people in smaller towns and villages. Vincent was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy at a time when there was great laxity, abuse, and ignorance among them. He was a pioneer in clerical training and was instrumental in establishing seminaries. He spent 28 years serving as the spiritual director of the Convent of St. Mary of Angels. Vincent died in Paris on 27 September 1660.

The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul

Vincent is the patron of all works of charity. A number of organizations specifically inspired by his work and teaching and which claim Vincent as their founder or patron saint are grouped in a loose federation known as the Vincentian Family. The 1996 publication ''The Vincentian Family Tree'' presents an overview of related communities from a genealogical perspective. Among these organizations is the

Society of Saint Vincent de Paul The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP or SVdP or SSVP) is an international voluntary organization in the Catholic Church, founded in 1833 for the sanctification of its members by personal service of the poor. Innumerable Catholic parishes have ...

, a charitable organization dedicated to the service of the poor, established in

1833 Events January–March * January 3 – Reassertion of British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands (1833), Reassertion of British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic. * February 6 – His Royal Highness Prince Otto ...

by French university students, led by the

Frederic Ozanam Frederic may refer to: Places United States * Frederic, Wisconsin, a village in Polk County * Frederic Township, Michigan, a township in Crawford County ** Frederic, Michigan, an unincorporated community Other uses * Frederic (band), a Japanese r ...

. The society is today present in 153 countries.

Veneration

In 1705, the Superior General of the

requested that the holy process of Vincent's

canonization Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of ...

be instituted. On 13 August 1729 he was declared

blessed Blessed may refer to: * The state of having received a blessing * Blessed, a title assigned by the Roman Catholic Church to someone who has been beatified Film and television * ''Blessed'' (2004 film), a 2004 motion picture about a supernatural ...

by Pope Benedict XIII. He was canonized nearly eight years later by

Pope Clement XII Pope Clement XII ( la, Clemens XII; it, Clemente XII; 7 April 16526 February 1740), born Lorenzo Corsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1730 to his death in February 1740. Clement presided over the ...

on 16 June 1737. Vincent's body was exhumed in 1712, 53 years after his death. The written account of an eyewitness states that "the eyes and nose alone showed some decay". However, when it was exhumed again during the canonization in 1737, it was found to have decomposed due to an underground flood. His bones have been encased in a waxen figure which is displayed in a glass

reliquary A reliquary (also referred to as a ''shrine'', by the French term ''châsse'', and historically including ''wikt:phylactery, phylacteries'') is a container for relics. A portable reliquary may be called a ''fereter'', and a chapel in which it i ...

in the chapel of the headquarters of the Vincentian fathers in Paris,

Saint Vincent de Paul Chapel Saint Vincent de Paul Chapel is a Roman Catholic chapel in Paris, 6th arrondissement, 95 rue de Sèvres. It is dedicated to saint Vincent de Paul (1581–1660) where his remains are venerated in a silver reliquary (made by Charles Odiot) above th ...

, rue de Sèvres. His heart is still

incorrupt Incorruptibility is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox belief that divine intervention allows some human bodies (specifically saints and beati) to completely or partially avoid the normal process of decomposition after death as a sign of their ...

, and is displayed in a

in the chapel of the motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity in Paris. Wincenty à Paulo (relikwie)

In 1737, Vincent's

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

was included in the Roman Calendar for celebration on 19 July, this date being chosen because his day of death was already used for the feast of

Saints Cosmas and Damian Cosmas and Damian ( ar, قُزما ودميان, translit=Qozma wa Demyaan; grc-gre, Κοσμᾶς καὶ Δαμιανός, translit=Kosmás kai Damianós; la, Cosmas et Damianus; AD) were two Arab physicians in the town Cyrrhus, and were r ...

. The new celebration was given the rank of "Double", and was changed to the rank of "Third-Class Feast" in 1960. The 1969 revision of the General Roman Calendar transferred his

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

to 27 September, moving Cosmas and Damian to 26 September to make way for him, as he is now better known in the West than them. Vincent is honored with a

Lesser Festival Lesser Festivals are a type of observance in the Anglican Communion, including the Church of England, considered to be less significant than a Principal Feast, Principal Holy Day, or Festival, but more significant than a Commemoration. Whereas Princ ...

27 September Events Pre-1600 *1066 – William the Conqueror and his army set sail from the mouth of the Somme river, beginning the Norman conquest of England. *1331 – The Battle of Płowce is fought, between the Kingdom of Poland and the Teutoni ...

in the Church of England. The Episcopal Church liturgical calendar honors him together with Louise de Marillac on 15 March. One of the feasts celebrated by the French Deist Church of the

Theophilanthropy The Theophilanthropists ("Friends of God and Man") were a Deistic sect, formed in France during the later part of the French Revolution. Origins Thomas Paine, together with other disciples of Rousseau and Robespierre, set up a new religion, in w ...

was dedicated to Vincent.

Legacy

Niagara University Niagara University (NU) is a private Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition in Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. It is run by the Congregation of the Mission and has 3,300 undergraduate students in 50 academic programs. Appro ...

in Lewiston, NY,

St. John's University St John's University may refer to: *St. John's University (New York City) **St. John's University School of Law **St. John's University (Italy) - Overseas Campus *College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University, St. Joseph, Minnesota and Col ...

New York, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Uni ...

, and DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois were founded in 1856, 1870 and 1898, respectively, by the

in the United States. Parishes are dedicated to Vincent in Los Angeles; Washington, DC; Syracuse, New York; Chicago, Illinois; Omaha, Nebraska; Mays Landing, New Jersey;

Mt. Vernon, Ohio Mount Vernon is a city in Knox County, Ohio, Knox County, Ohio, United States. It is located northeast of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus. The population was 16,990 at the United States Census 2010, 2010 census. It is the county seat of Knox County. H ...

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

; Delray Beach, Florida; Wheeling, West Virginia, Coventry, Rhode Island,

Churchville, New York Churchville is a village in Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monr ...

, Peryville, Missouri,

Lenox Dale, Massachusetts Lenox Dale is a village in Lenox, Massachusetts, United States at the border of the town of Lee, along the Housatonic River. It is a small village, but a village nonetheless with its own post office (zip code 01242), school, two stores, and Ca ...

Girardville, Pennsylvania Girardville is a borough in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States, northwest of Reading. Anthracite coal deposits are in the region. Coal-mining provided employment and incomes for many of the 3,666 people who lived there in 1900. In 19 ...

Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...

, Denver, Colorado, and elsewhere. Schools are also dedicated in Vincent's name. High schools, DePaul College Prep, affiliated with DePaul University, in Chicago, Illinois and DePaul Catholic High School, in Wayne, New Jersey; Los Angeles St. Vincent de Paul Village, a mission-style campus of affordable and supportive apartments is dedicated in Vincent's name in San Diego, CA. In New Zealand, the Society of St Vincent de Paul was founded in July 1867 by Father Jean Baptiste Chataigner, a Marist priest (Society of Mary). It is a lay organisation working towards a "more just and compassionate society". A long-term care 1,200 bed facility for elderly people is dedicated to St. Vincent de Paul in Malta. In the Philippines, a church is dedicated to him located in Ermita, Manila,

Adamson University Adamson University ( fil, links=no, Pamantasang Adamson) also referred to by its acronym AdU is a private, Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution run by the Congregation of the Mission in Manila, Philippines. The univers ...

and San Juan de Dios College adopted him as their Patron Saint after the Vincentian Priests took over the University and College. The example of Vincent de Paul and the Lazarists inspired

Charles Fuge Lowder Charles Fuge Lowder (22 June 1820 – 9 September 1880) was a priest of the Church of England. He was the founder of the Society of the Holy Cross, a society for Anglo-Catholic priests. Early life Charles Lowder was born on 22 June 1820 a ...

to found the Society of the Holy Cross in the Church of England.Trench, Maria. ''Charles Lowder, A Biography'', Kegan Paul, Trench & Co., London, 1882. A 1983 ''

St. Vincent Saint Vincent may refer to: People Saints * Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr * Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia * Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305) ...

'' statue is exhibited in Indianapolis, Indiana.

References

External links

* *
Founder Statue in St Peter's BasilicaVincent on Leadership: The Hay Project
De Paul School at Kethepally was established in the year 2001. {{DEFAULTSORT:Paul, Vincent de 1581 births 1660 deaths 17th-century Christian saints 17th-century French Roman Catholic priests 17th-century French writers 17th-century French male writers Vincentians Founders of Catholic religious communities French male non-fiction writers French religious writers French Roman Catholic saints Catholic chaplains Counter-Reformation French chaplains Vincentian saints Incorrupt saints Anglican saints People captured by pirates People from Landes (department) Slaves from the Ottoman Empire 17th-century slaves Venerated Catholics Canonizations by Pope Clement XII Beatifications by Pope Benedict XIII Slavery in Tunisia