Charles de Condren, Cong. Orat., a Doctor of the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

(15 December 1588 - 17 January 1641), was a French mystic of the 17th century, and is considered a leading member of the

French School of Spirituality The French School of spirituality was the principal devotional influence within the Catholic Church from the mid-17th century through the mid-20th century, not only in France but throughout the church in most of the world. A development of the Cat ...

Early life

Condren was born on 15 December 1588 in Vauxbuin, near

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital o ...

. His father, governor of the royal castle of Piles near

Meaux Meaux () is a Communes of France, commune on the river Marne (river), Marne in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, Franc ...

, had converted from Protestantism to Catholicism. He sought to instill in his son an attraction for military life, and had the boy outfitted with a military uniform when still very young. Charles was tutored by M. le Masson, a canon of Soissons, and displayed a remarkable memory even at a young age. Charles had a decisive spiritual experience at the age of eleven and half and decided to become a priest. He studied in the secondary school of Harcourt from 1603 till 1605, but because of an illness returned to his family for several months. His father was still determined that Charles should join the army either at Calais or in Holland, but perceiving the serious of the illness, agreed that should his son recover, he could enter religious life.

The French Oratory

He continued his studies at the Sorbonne and was ordained to the priesthood in 1614, receiving his doctorate from the Sorbonne the next year. He gave up his family inheritance, which by the law of primogeniture was his, and entered the house of the

French Oratory The Congregation of the Oratory of Jesus and Mary Immaculate (french: Société de l'Oratoire de Jésus et de Marie Immaculée, la, Congregatio Oratorii Iesu et Mariæ), best known as the French Oratory, is a society of apostolic life of Cathol ...

founded by the Abbé (later Cardinal) Pierre de Bérulle on the

Rue Saint-Honoré The rue Saint-Honoré is a street in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. It is named after the collegial situated in ancient times within the cloisters of Saint-Honoré. The street, on which are located a number of museums and upscale bou ...

in Paris, having thought before that of becoming a

Capuchin friar The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...

. In 1615, Condren participated in the foundation of a new house of the Oratory in

Nevers Nevers ( , ; la, Noviodunum, later ''Nevirnum'' and ''Nebirnum'') is the prefecture of the Nièvre department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in central France. It was the principal city of the former province of Nivernais. It is sou ...

and in 1619 was in

Langres Langres () is a commune in northeastern France. It is a subprefecture of the department of Haute-Marne, in the region of Grand Est. History As the capital of the Romanized Gallic tribe known as the Lingones, it was called Andematunnum, then ...

for the opening of a seminary, in conformity to the decrees of the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation, it has been described a ...

. He returned to Paris in 1620 to open a new house of the Oratory in Poitiers and in 1624, one at the former Abbey of St. Magloire, which doubled as a

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

. In 1625, he returned to the house in the Rue de Saint-Honoré. In 1627, he became the

confessor Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways. Confessor of the Faith Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.Prince Gaston of France, ( Monsieur), brother of King

Louis XIII of France Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

. He brought about a reconciliation between the king and his brother, who had been estranged, on 18 April 1630 in Troyes. Condren also bore the responsibility of being the confessor of Bérulle.Lear, H. L. Sidney. "Charles de Condren", ''The Revival of Priestly Life in the Seventeenth Century in France'', Rivingtons, 1877
/ref> After Bérulle's death in 1629, Condren succeeded him as Superior General of the Oratory. Condren was elected very quickly to avoid intervention by Cardinal Richelieu. The Oratory had 71 houses in 1631, but Condren was discouraged and came near to resigning in 1634. He was also a member of the

Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement The Company of the Blessed Sacrament (french: Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement), also sometimes referred to as the Company of the Most Blessed Sacrament, was a French Catholic secret society which included among its members many Catholic notables of the ...

. The work Condren had most at heart was the foundation of seminaries after the Counter-Reformation model mandated by the

. The Catholic Church felt that its success in its own renewal lay in the thorough and systematic formation of the clergy through their education in these schools. Condren gathered a few young ecclesiastics around him for that purpose. The missions in which he employed them were meant to impress on their minds the religious needs of the country. A disciple of both

Vincent de Paul 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. In 1622 Vincent was appointed a chaplain to the galleys. Afte ...

, and Condren, Jean-Jacques Olier took part in "missions" organized by them in France. Condren was Olier's confessor, and counseled him not accept an appointment to a bishopric;"A Brief History", Society of the Priests of Saint-Sulpice, Province of Canada
/ref> instead Olier went on to found the Society of Saint Sulpice whose main purpose was the education of priests. In 1638 he created the

College of Juilly The College of Juilly ( French: ''Collège de Juilly'') was a Catholic private teaching establishment located in the commune of Juilly, in Seine-et-Marne (France). Directed by the French Oratorians, it was created in 1638 by the congregationis ...

, where, at his death, he was laid to rest in the chapel,Ingold, Augustin. "French Congregation of the Oratory." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 7 January 2019 next to the tomb of Cardinal Bérulle. His first biography was published in 1643 by a member of the French Oratory,

Denis Amelote Denis Amelot (or Amelote, or Amelotte; 1609 – 7 October 1678) was a French biblical writer and scholar who is notable for his French translation of the New Testament (4 vols. 1666-170). In his translation he quoted Greek minuscule manuscript ...

(reviewed in 1657).

References

External links

Charles de Condren
(2005)

– LA VOIE MYSTIQUE * ttps://archive.org/stream/eternalsacrifice00char#page/n5/mode/2up Charles de Condren. ''The Eternal Sacrifice'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Condren, Charles de 1588 births 1641 deaths People from Aisne 17th-century French Roman Catholic priests 17th-century Christian mystics Roman Catholic mystics Burials in Île-de-France French Christian mystics French school of spirituality French Oratory mystics

Early life

The French Oratory

See also

References

Further reading

External links