Homily: Feast of St. Vincent DePaul

Feast of St. Vincent DePaul (Lk 9:51-56) “From Irascible To Humble”

St. Vincent DePaul was born in 1581 in Pouy, France. He came from a rather humble background. His family farmed and he was a herdsman early in life. He showed himself to be proficient in academics.

He earned various degrees and was determined to be a priest. He was ordained at 23 but his ordination was controversial because the Council of Trent had said that one must be 24 years old. What happened next is not clear. But he left France for a while and then came back. Some say he was sold into slavery and later escaped, but that has never been verified.

His goal as a young cleric was to attach himself to a wealthy patron and to live a life of leisure. He secured such a position working for the Gondi family. He was described as an irascible person. He was cranky with others and generally angry. The plight of the poor in France in his time was terrible. There were few safety nets.

One night he was called to the bedside of a poor man. His interaction with this man and what he saw changed his whole life. He became more sensitive to the needs of others. He resolved to serve the poor the rest of his life. He started various organizations and two religious orders one for men and the other for women. The orders are known as the Vincentians.

St. Vincent DePaul also challenged lay people to work with the poor. This was an important stride toward greater lay ministry in the church. Everyone was to be responsible to the needs of those in most need not just the religious and ordained.

St Vincent said once:

“We cannot better assure our eternal happiness than by living and dying in the service of the poor, in the arms of Providence, and with genuine renouncement or ourselves in order to follow Jesus.”

Reflection Questions:

1.    Do I view serving the poor as essential to my Christian Walk? Why or why not?

2.    How do I feel about sharing what I have? Do I give from surplus or from what I may need?

 Dear Parishioners,

           On this feast of St. Vincent DePaul, we remember that we have a St. Vincent DePaul Society in our parish. This ministry started just a few short years ago. COVID 19 slowed down the work we have wanted to do, but the dedicated members have picked up the work again.

          Every so often someone will call our office and ask for help paying their rent, or their light bill or they have some other material need. Two of our St. Vincent DePaul members will visit with the family that is in need and see if they can offer some help. The visits are very important as the St. Vincent DePaul members try to show compassion to those who are poor.

          If you would like to help with this great work just call our office and we can put you in touch with Angie Rule, our St. Vincent De Paul chair.

          May Our Lady of Peace intercede and bring peace to our violent world.

          Fr. Mark