Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) Feast Day 27th September

Saint Vincent de Paul was an Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor.I

In 1601 he was ordained as a priest and became the chaplain at court for
Henry 1V of France. He became the tutor for an aristocratic until he was accused of theft. He remained silent for 6 months until his innocence was proved. Conversion dated from this date.

For the rest of his life he combined his working with the rich and fashionable and with looking after outcasts, the sick and poverty stricken, galley slaves and abandoned children.

He founded the* Cgngregation of the Mission or the Vincentians. He was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy for when the local clergy’s .morals were flagging. He was a pioneer in seminary education.

He founded the* Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent of Paul

He was renown for his compassion, humility and generosity.

He is the namesake of the Vincentian Family of organisations.

Vincent was beatified in 1729 and canonized in 1737.

In 1883 Pope Leo X11 named patron of all charitable societies.

He is now venerated as a saint by both the Catholic Church and Anglican Communion.

Note ‘occitan’ is a romance language spoken in Southern France

Sources
Wikipedia
The Encyclopedia of Saints by Howard Loxton
*Saints Over 150 Patron Saints for Today * editor Elizabeth Hallam