Also available in High Definition quality on YouTube

„Pan przychodzi aby władać ziemią. Prawo i sprawiedliwość podstawą Jego tronu” rozpoczyna swoje przesłanie na Boże Narodzenie dla całej Rodziny Wincentyńskiej, ks. Gregory Gay CM, Przełożony Generalny w prezentowanym wyżej filmie świątecznym. Do życzeń O. Generała przyłączają się Asystenci Generalni i inni członkowie wspólnoty Kurii Generalnej. Każdy z nich kieruje do nas swoje słowa w ojczystym języku co daje okazję nie tylko zobaczyć poszczególne osoby i je poznać, ale także posłuchać różnych języków, również egzotycznych. Film zawiera napisy po polsku i angielsku przy wszystkich wypowiedziach.

You may also watch this Christmas video in other languages following these links:

English only subtitles; French and  Spanish.

Watch also another Christmas video prepared by the personnel of the General Curia, both Vincentians and lay personnel. This is first ever such presentation. Warning! This video does not contain subtitles, except for two moments. Original languages only.

Watch this film: Christmas Greetings from Curia Personnel

We recommend you another video message from the Curia -
Christmas Message from the Superior General and the Curia

✔ DOWNLOAD – SUPERIOR GENERAL ADVENT LETTER 2011 (PDF)
✔ POBIERZ – LIST PRZEŁOŻONEGO GEN. NA ADWENT 2011 (PDF)
✔ EBOOK VERSION AND OTHER LANGUAGES

Iconography in the altar in the Church of Nativity, Magadan, Russia

The Season of Advent, 2011

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5

To all members of the Vincentian Family:

May the grace and peace of Our Lord Jesus Christ fill your hearts now and forever!

The above scripture, taken from St. John’s Gospel, is an appropriate way to begin our Advent reflection. At this time of year, much of the world moves from long, bright days to shorter, darker times. The year’s end approaches, giving us pause to reflect not just on what has passed, but on what lies ahead for us. The reality of change is palpable both in the weather and on the calendar, but also deep within the horizon of our hearts.

That is why, I believe, the Church gives us Advent: in seasons of change, it reminds us of God’s enduring love. Through the incarnation of Jesus, God assures us of his abiding presence in our world. In Jesus, we have a God who always accompanies us in times of light and darkness, in the settled center and uncertain edges of our lives. Yet, it is on the edge, the “outer limits” of life, that the Lord Jesus is often revealed to us.

The Advent stories show us lives lived on the edge: Mary’s stunning annunciation to be mother of the Lord; Joseph’s noble struggle to accept this awesome reality; Jesus’ birth in the simplicity of the stable; the shepherds’ humble homage; the sudden uprooting of the Holy Family to escape the wrath of Herod’s hands; all these Advent stories show us a God, though centered in Trinitarian love, who “emptied himself” (Phil 2:7), by becoming human. In choosing to live at the edge, Jesus ushered in the Reign of God, and paradoxically drew us closer to the center point of God’s love.

As Superior General, I have the privilege and responsibility of visiting with my Vincentian confreres, the Daughters of Charity, and members of the Vincentian family world- wide to spread the charism of St. Vincent de Paul. When doing this, I offer my support and encouragement to those who leave their safe, secure world to go to the edge and outer limits and serve the poor. I am edified by so many of my confreres, Daughters of Charity, and Vincentian Family members who courageously enter the world’s dark corners to illuminate them with the light of Christ. Let me share some examples to illustrate how they live the Advent journey of light and hope.

In the Republic of Chad, one of Africa’s poorest countries, Daughters of Charity from Spain serving with Vincentians from Cameroon, Madagascar, and Kenya work in a remote, rural area without any Church presence. Their “mission church” is a wooden stage with a makeshift tent, protected by large mango trees. In this neglected region, they bring Jesus and our charism to a people whose hunger and thirst is satisfied by the Word of God and the charity of Christ.

In the United Kingdom, I met with Vincentians in Partnership, a coalition of service providers for the poor made up of ten core and thirteen affiliated groups. We prayed, reflected, and discussed ways to imbibe and impart the Vincentian charism of love of God and service to the poor. Their work is with the urban poor, homeless youth, mentally ill, and addicted; in short, those on the margins of society. Their reach of care and compassion goes beyond their borders to Ireland, Eastern Europe and the USA. A descriptive website tells their story: http://www.vip-gb.org

After an eight-hour flight from Moscow, I arrived in Magadan Russia, a place which seemed to be geographically at the end of the earth. This mission is staffed by Daughters of Charity from the USA and Poland. Once in Magadan, I was transported into a forgotten world of closed prison camps, meeting people who were subject to decades of inhumane treatment. In the Stalin era, Magadan was the final stop for hundreds of thousands of Soviet citizens, labeled “enemies of the people”.

The Daughters accompany the survivors (called “the repressed”) of the prison camps, assisting in their healing by helping them to “tell their stories”. Along with the presence of the region’s only Catholic Church, these former prisoners now have a welcoming community of faith. The beauty of the Church of the Nativity with its Martyr’s Chapel, which honors untold numbers of people who perished in prison camps, and actual stories of surviving prisoners, can be seen on their web site: http://magadancatholic.org

Each of these three experiences – Chad, Vincentians in Partnership, and Magadan – hold a place in my heart as we celebrate the season of Advent. They remind us that the light of Christ overcame the darkness of a world filled with sin and suffering. The four Advent Sunday Gospels all help us focus on what is essential for Christian discipleship: being “watchful for Christ” (Mk. 13:33); “preparing the way of the Lord” (Mk.1:2); trusting that “nothing is impossible for God.” (Lk.1:35); and “testifying to the light” (Jn.1:7). Taken together, these Gospel stories provide a formula for putting faith into action all year long.

This Advent way, a watchful, willing, trusting, and testifying gospel faith, was pivotal in the life of St. Vincent de Paul, who found Christ where he least expected: on the edge, the “outer limits” of life. In his two pivotal conversion experiences; hearing the confession of a sick man, and successfully exhorting his flock to provide food and medicine for a desperately ill family; both experiences led Vincent to Christ in the poor. Once he entered the world of the poor, it transformed his life. From that time on, he organized and inspired his followers to do the same:

“Do not limit your vision any longer to yourself, but see the Lord around you and in you, ready to put his hand to the work as soon as you ask for his help. You will see that all will go well.” (Coste III, English Edition, p. 143, 19 December,1646,)

As we prepare heart and home for the Christmas coming of the Lord, let the words of Jesus and the charism of St. Vincent de Paul resonate more deeply in your hearts and lives. The Advent and Christmas stories vividly remind us of One who was born, lived, and died on the “edge”. John’s Gospel poignantly reminds us that Jesus “came to his own and his own did not receive him.” (Jn.1:10) This was true for the Holy Family. Often portrayed in paintings and holy cards as sedate and serene, in reality they trod the path of poor, vagrant refugees.

That sad reality continues today. The Christ who was poor lives on in the poor, who often possess little more than the clothes on their backs, lacking food, shelter, and human dignity. Yet, as St. Vincent said, the poor have the “true faith” as can be seen their unwaveringly, steady trust in God. Their lives and those of the Vincentian Family who accompany them tell the Advent story of hope every day.

I suggest each of us carve out some time from our busy schedules in these Advent weeks to reflect on the scriptures and the life of St. Vincent, so we may be “watchful, willing, trusting, and testifying” disciples of Jesus, true to our vocation as members of the Vincentian Family. As we take time to encounter the Lord in prayer, scripture, and the Eucharist, we will gain courage, as did St. Vincent, to ask the Lord to direct us to his poor, often unnoticed and on the edge of our lives. In doing so, we will enter into solidarity with them as our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Let me close with a powerful image appropriate for Advent. As I noted earlier, the Church of the Nativity in Magadan offers a community of healing and hope for former Soviet camp prisoners and the poor. This small Church is a feast for the eyes: a stunning, symbolic Martyr’s Chapel, the Stations of the Cross, striking stained-glass windows, and iconography too vivid to forget. Yet, the icon of the Nativity (which is reprinted at the beginning of this letter) above the altar is most striking when one first enters the Church. Its placement there is certainly liturgically appropriate.

But for me, this icon illustrates so much more. It shows us how discipleship with Jesus and the Vincentian charism bear witness to the power and presence of God in our world today. Despite Magadan’s death- dealing past, both the icon and the Church of the Nativity confirm that Christ is born again. The Church of the Nativity and all the works of the world- wide Vincentian Family are daily living reminders to us that “The light shines on in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

May the Lord be born in you anew this Christmas and bless you in this coming year!

Your brother in Saint Vincent,
[--] G. Gregory Gay,
C.M. Superior General

You can view, download or share the Letter directly in Scribd.com:

[ENGLISH] ADVENT LETTER 2011

[POLSKI] LIST NA ADVENT 2011

Letter for Advent 2011

As you know, earlier this month our website went mobile increasing the comfort of viewing it on mobile devices. Along, we released a tiny, and simple application for smartphones which brings news from our Province directly to your mobiles. In the same time Famvin.org released another three similar applications called VinFeed and available in English, Polish and Spanish.

Number regular users of portable devices, smartphones, tablets and ebook readers is growing rapidly. Recognizing this situation, as we did earlier in the Lent, Superior’s General Advent reflection was prepared in ePub format which is used in ebook readers. Many other devices can handle it, too. However some device will require installation of additional plug-ins or apps to use this kind of files. As they are lighter in volume, they open faster on portables. All eight ePub versions of the Letter can be downloaded from the links below.

DOWNLOAD  «ePUB» FILES

❦  Advent Letter – ENGLISH
❦  List na Adwent – POLSKI
❦  Carta para el Adviento  - ESPAÑOL
❦ Lettre pour l’Avent – FRANÇAISE
❦  Lettera per l’Avvento  - ITALIANO
❦  Carta para o Advento – PORTUGUÊS
❦  Letter für Advent – DEUTSCH
❦  List pre Advent – SLOVENČINA

Online sharing services like SCRIBD.COM give us enormous opportunity to share our documents, presentations, publications. Once uploaded it can be viewed directly and embedded in your ministry websites or shared by email, Twitter, Facebook or sent to your mobile. You can download the files in user and printer friendly formats like PDF (printer-friendly and universal) or DOC (Word), PPT (if slideshow) or as formatted text file (RTF). Some online services allow Apple’s iWork formats, too. The table below invites you to view the Advent Letter in one of these languages: English, Polish, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, German and Slovak. Hover and click on the chosen edition and it will open on your screen.

“…I write to you in order to present some comments with regard to the Vincentian Family Day of Prayer which will take place on the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul…” Its proposed theme is «Harvest the fruits of the Jubilee Year!»

Rome, July 19, 2011

To all the members of the Vincentian Family

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

May the grace and peace of Jesus Christ be always with us!

With this fraternal greeting I write to you in order to present some comments with regard to the Vincentian Family Day of Prayer which will take place on the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul.

I realize that in different parts of the world the Vincentian Family engaged in many activities as they celebrated the 350th anniversary of the death of Saint Vincent and Saint Louise.  We, the members of the Executive Committee of the Vincentian Family, have decided to take advantage of this important moment in the life of the Vincentian Family and propose that on the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul, September 27, 2011, we pause and reflect on the meaning and significance of the different celebrations and projects that were engaged in during the Jubilee Year (especially those activities undertaken on a local level).  In other words, our hope is that we internalize in a positive manner the richness of all the reflections, celebrations and work that was done during the Jubilee Year.

Thus we propose the following theme for the Day of Prayer on the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul (2011): Harvest the fruits of the Jubilee Year! May the different associations share their reflections so that on the feast day these reflections can be shared with others during the celebration of the Eucharist.  At the same time the different groups and associations can express in some manner during the Eucharist the commitment that resulted from this shared reflection.  The objective here is to celebrate and deepen the meaning of the fruits of the Jubilee Year, discerning the invitation of the Lord’s Spirit to deepen our roots.  As we do this we also seek to insure our acceptance and growth in the challenge “Charity-Mission” so that we might better serve people who are poor.

This year we prefer not to send out any formal outline with regard to the celebration of Saint Vincent’s feast.  We leave this to the creativity of each National Council and local group of the Vincentian Family.

Before the Day of Prayer we invite the different branches to come together and reflect on a local level or to come together and reflect with other members of the Vincentian Family in your area.  We then invite you to send your reflections and conclusions to the national leadership team.  If the Vincentian Family is organized in this manner in your country, we ask that these National Councils then send a synthesis of these reflections to the office of the Vincentian Family of the General Curia of the Congregation of the Mission in Rome (famvin@cmglobal.org).  It is important to send beforehand your reflections on the Jubilee Year so that this might be made known to the International Vincentian Family.

After the Day of Prayer it is also important that you share the actual celebration of the feast day: content, program, videos, the different shared reflections, the creative ways of celebrating the feast, etc.

In this way we can share all of this with the rest of the Vincentian Family through the different means that we have at our disposal, especially the web page of the Vincentian Family.  I am convinced that if we share the different ways in which the Lord has spoken to us during the Jubilee Year and share the ways in which we can deepen the fruit of the Jubilee year during the celebrations of Saint Vincent’s feast, then we can become more united and more grounded in our evangelization and service as a family.

Dear sisters and brothers of the Vincentian Family, the Jubilee Year was not some event that began and is now ended.  Rather it was an event that had an impact on our lives … an event that gave us new energy to serve Jesus Christ faithfully and creatively today.  We extend to you our embrace and our prayers as you prepare to celebrate the feast of Saint Vincent.  May we be renewed in our commitment of mission and charity and may we move forward in a creative way as we continue this commitment.

Your brother in Saint Vincent,

G. Gregory Gay, C.M.
Superior General

Read the Letter in other languages

Przeczytaj list po polsku:

Przełożony Generalny – Dzień Modlitw Rodziny Wincentyńskiej

«« 2010 ADVENT LETTER OF THE SUPERIOR GENERAL (PDF) »»

Advent 2010

To all the members of the Vincentian Family

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

May the grace and peace of Our Lord Jesus Christ fill your hearts now and forever!

“In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, and to guide our feet on to the road to peace” (Luke 1: 78-79).

The images of darkness and light, night and day, despair and hope, death and life, hell and heaven are images that often come to mind in our reflection and prayer during the time of Advent that we are privileged to begin again. These contrasting images are ever present and surround us in the world in which we live. The prophet Habakkuk cries out at one point, “Why do you let me see ruin: Why must I look at misery? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife and clamorous discord” (Hb.1:3). As I heard that text proclaimed some weeks ago in the Sunday Eucharist, it struck me that still today we are surrounded by the same violence and destruction, whether because of natural causes or human causes.

There is destruction of so much human life because of natural disasters. I think of the recent outbreak of cholera in Haiti; hundreds of people died of it after having survived the earthquake. They continue to suffer; they continue to pass through what literally we may call hell. In Pakistan, hundreds of thousands of people vanished recently in the typhoons that have hit the Asian areas; how many people have lost their lives, their health, their homes? Human causes include border violence that is experienced between Mexico and the United States, where since 2006 more than 30,000 people have been assassinated because of drug conflicts. So much violence before our eyes. Advent is a time to turn that darkness to light, that experience of hell to heaven, the despair to the hope that a decent life can be a reasonable goal.
I entitle my reflection this year, Christmas: A Story of Living Without Frontiers. As we read through the various Scripture passages that the Church presents for our reflection during this time of Advent, we encounter the theme of a God who is for all, a God of all nations. In one sense it is ironic because Jesus, when He was born into this world, was born into a corner, a place where no one would live, a shelter for animals. And yet the contrast is that, even though being put into this limited place for survival, He has become for us, the God of life for all, a God who knows no boundaries, a God who came among us breaking down barriers that did not allow people to draw close to each other, whether they come from another nation, such as the barrier between the Samaritans and the Jews or because they were well-to- do and educated, never wanting to mingle with those who were considered outcasts of society; breaking down that barrier of the so-called unwanted people: lepers, beggars, blind, crippled.

In His birth into poverty Jesus, by his word and deed, filled people’s lives with richness, peace, goodness, health, reconciliation and healing, leading them from darkness into light, from despair into hope, from death into new life. This past August I had the opportunity to visit Project Juan Diego, an apostolate of the Daughters of Charity on the US-Mexican border. It spoke to me of the gift of new life, the opportunity to be truly born that we receive at Christmas,. The Daughters of Charity have trained a staff of lay people and volunteers and have become a dynamic community. They reach out to those who have lived in darkness, those who have known the depths of despair, giving them light and hope for new life. I experienced that personally when I visited some of the people whose lives have been touched by Project Juan Diego. They are people touched by the volunteers, the staff and the Sisters who have entered into their lives and given them the opportunity to live a new life.

I heard that from the witness of a man of my age who had literally closed himself off from the world, living only in the confines of his small room, unwilling even to step out to his yard to relate to others who might be passing by. After a gradual gentle yet firm process of accompaniment and presence, this gentleman came to discover his true self. Given the opportunity to live for the first time in his life, he now lives with the enthusiasm and desire to go out from the confines of his own home to meet with others and to encourage them to live a new kind of life that he himself discovered. The witness of this one gentleman is just one of many stories of people who have been given new life once they were able to pass beyond the limits that they had imposed on themselves. They have come to recognize the gift of life that God is for each and everyone. This gift has been deposited in us and is part and parcel of what Christmas is about: the gift of God Himself, the Incarnate Jesus entering into our lives, helping us to discover our own giftedness and encouraging and moving us beyond ourselves in order to give that gift, helping others discover it in themselves.

Not very far from this neighborhood where the Daughters of Charity have been a sign of new life and have shared that life with others, there is another group of Daughters of Charity who also give life, but in a very different way. You might say that they live in an experience of hell. This community of Daughters of Charity lives just the other side of the border in a town that is ravaged by violence and destruction because of drugs, poverty, greed, and ignorance. The Sisters crossed the frontier and joined with the Daughters of Charity of Project Juan Diego as we celebrated together the Eucharist which is the culmination of our life, the source of our strength and the very experience of God’s gift of Himself among us.

In talking with the Sisters from the Mexican side, and listening to the stories of horror and suffering on a daily basis that they recounted, in the midst of suffering and violence that they experience, I was struck by the contrast of the presence of the Sisters on one side of the frontier as compared to the presence of the Sisters on the other side of the frontier. And yet, even though one might be considered an experience of heaven and the other an experience of hell, their graced presence among these poor brings forth the possibility of hope and new life.

It is in both experiences that I sense clearly what God says to us in Zacharias’ canticle: “In the tender compassion of our God, the dawn from on high shall break upon us, to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death and to guide our feet on the road to peace” (Luke 1: 78-79). That tender compassion of our God is the gift of Jesus Himself, the dawn from on high that has broken upon us, the gift of Jesus in his birth at Bethlehem who through his life, death, and resurrection continues to shine on those who dwell in experiences of darkness, despair, death and hell. And through His instruments of love they are guided on the road to peace.

As members of the Vincentian family, my brothers and sisters, in this time of Advent we are called to be close to those whom we call our lords and masters when they live in situations of darkness and despair, being for them instruments of hope and life. Together as a Vincentian Family, and with our lords and masters, we are called to be builders, builders of solidarity with love as its foundation, not builders of walls that divide humanity. We are called to live the life of Jesus, that life that came to us the day He was born. He invites us to go beyond the limits, the boundaries, the frontiers that many times we have constructed ourselves, or that have been constructed by the society in which we live. Oftentimes they are the traditions that we have learned, or prejudices that we have simply adopted.

I would like to share a prayer that I came across as part of a service composed by the Commission for Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation, of the Union of Superiors General for the celebration of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The prayer, called The Beatitudes for Social Engagement; has been adapted for our situation as a Family.

✥ Happy are you when you remain available, sharing in simplicity what you possess.
✥ Happy are you when you weep over the absence of happiness around you and throughout the world.
✥ Happy are you when you opt for gentleness and dialogue even when this seems long and difficult.
✥ Happy are you when you creatively devise new ways of donating your time, your tenderness and gems of hope.
✥ Happy are you when you listen with your heart to detect what is gift in others.
✥ Happy are you when you strive to take the first step, the necessary one to attain peace with brothers and sisters throughout the world.
✥ Happy are you when you keep in your heart wonderment, openness and free questioning of life.
✥ Happy are you when you take seriously your faith in the Incarnate Christ.

I ask you throughout this time of Advent to pray this prayer individually and with those with whom you share your lives. We have many experiences in our own lives of living without frontiers. These are experiences of the Story of Christmas, experiences of the presence of Jesus among us. May our own witness in the world be a sign that helps people leave the night and enter the day, walk from their darkness into a new light, lift them from despair and fill them with hope, pass them from death unto new life and out of hell into heaven. We can do that if we truly live the gift of the Incarnate Christ, the gift of His life, the gift of His love, the gift of His peace. We can do so, not only for those who are close to us, but for those who are far from our reach.

Your brother in Saint Vincent,
[--]
G. Gregory Gay, C.M.
Superior General

Dokument jest również dostępny po polsku:
“Opowieść o życiu bez granic” – List Przełożonego Generalnego na Adwent 2010

On Friday, September 24 at 9:00 a.m. local time Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints presided at the Eucharist in the Hall of Institutum Patristicum Augustinianum in Rome (Via Paolo VI 25).  After the Mass he opened the conference “Mission and Charity” which took place in the Augustinianum, too.  In his speech Cardinal Martins said:

»They were pages of the Gospel lived with intensity« and continued, »they were two great masters of charity because they were primarily two great masters of spiritual life.« Next, Cardinal pointed out that »charism is a gift of the Holy Spirit granted to the Christian community which has the courage to evangelize, teach and heal but above all also to witness and love… In the seventeenth century, to respond to hunger for God, the Holy Spirit gave birth to St. Vincent and St. Louise who engaged in building a new society based on solidarity and charity. They were able to involve everyone in high-class and poor, king and queen, from large to small,« added Cardinal Saraiva Martins and continued, »they did not experience poor as something bulky but as someone to love in Christ as we love ourselves. A love that comes from a paternal sense, prophetic insights having worked with courage, their commitment to living as a real need for faith…« Addressing hundreds of members of Vincentian Family present in Sala dell’Augustinianum Cardinal added, »the Church and the world needs your work« and concluded his speech saying, »Vincentian charity, is not to surrender, but to resist.«

The conference, “Charity and Mission” continued with series of lectures delivered by

• Professor Barbara Negruzzi titled “France of the Great Century”;
• Father Luigi Mezzadri CM, “A new way of being priests: St. Vincent and the priesthood”;
• Father Nicholas Albanian CM, “Christ, the Rule of the Mission”.

Later on the day another lectures came from

• Professor Yvonne zu Dohna, “The Poor in Arts”;
• Professor Giuseppe De Rita, “Towards the New Culture of Charity: The Poor, »My Burden and My Pain«”;
• Father Erminio Antonello CM, “The Church, the Body of Christ, the Home of the Poor”; Father Jean Landousies CM, “The New Way of God Speaking To Men: St. Vincent and Evangelization”.

Meanwhile between first and latter series of lectures participants of the gathering were given ability to watch the latest documentary on Vincentian charism, “VINCENT DE PAUL CHARITY’S SAINT”. The film was prepared by DePaul University earlier this year to commemorate 350th Anniversary. (It can be ordered online from DePaul University Bookstore HERE )

On Saturday morning, September 25, the conference resumed. Another lectures were delivered by

• Professor Gabriella Bruna Zarri talkin on “Women in 1600s”;
• Doctor Marina Costa, “St. Vincent, St. Louise, Vincentian Volunteers and the Challenges of Poverty”; and finally
• Sister Evelyne Franc DC, Superioress General, “Saint Louise, spiritual guide”.

Then, at 17:00 local time, there was a highlight of the day, the Jubilee Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica attended by all Conference participants and numerous pilgrims from various countries and places as well as other people. It was presided by Cardinal Franc Rodé CM, the Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. In his homily the Cardinal said,

»the demand for love is as urgent today as it was in the seventeenth century, indeed perhaps more… To be a Vincentian today,« said Cardinal, »is once again to follow Christ, the Evangelizer of the poor and His mission; to be a missionary, to “inflame” human hearts with simple, humble, gentle, mortified lifestyle.« In this sense, he concluded, »a Vincentian must have a surplus of love and knowledge of the poor; the true Vincentian knows Christ, puts Him in the center, knows St. Vincent, St. Louise and Vincentian Saints and knows the poor. It is left to him to evangelize and change them, act and work for them. A Vincentian, first and foremost is all for God and for the benefit of all«.

Finally, earlier today, at 9:00 a.m. in Rome there was another Holy Mass in the Sala dell’Augustinianum presided by the Superior General, Father Gregory Gay CM.  Father Corpus Delgado CM delivered speech on “Saint Louise and the devotion to the Holy Spirit”. All participants of the “Charity and Mission” conference attended as well as most of the pilgrims who came to Rome for  closing of  the Jubilee Year of 350th Anniversary.

At noon, in Castel Gandolfo, Pope Benedict XVI in his Angelus message, as part of the reflection on service to others, recalled that Monday is the feast of St. Vincent de Paul, a priest whom he said 350 years ago in France knew how to organize stable forms of service to marginalized people.  The Pope said:

»In this Sunday’s Gospel (Lk 16:19-31), Jesus tells the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The first lives in luxury and selfishness, and when he dies, ends up in hell. The poor, who eats the leftovers from the rich man’s table, his death is carried by the angels in the eternal abode of God and the saints. ”Blessed are you the poor – had proclaimed the Lord to his disciples – for yours is the kingdom of God” (Lk 6:20). But the message of the parable goes further, it points out that, while we are in this world, we must listen to the Lord who speaks through the Scriptures and live according to his will, otherwise, after death, it will be too late to repent. So this story tells us two things: the first is that God loves the poor and relieve their humiliation and the second is that our eternal destiny is conditioned by our attitude. It’s up to us to follow the path God has shown us coming to life, and this street is love, not meant as feeling, but as a service to others, in the love of Christ.

By a happy coincidence, tomorrow we will celebrate the liturgical memorial of St. Vincent de Paul, patron of Catholic Charities, which marks the 350th anniversary of his death.  In France of 1600, he touched with his hand the sharp contrast between the richest and the poorest. In fact, as a priest, he was able to attend both the aristocratic circles, campaigns, as well as the slums of Paris. Driven by the love of Christ, Vincent de Paul was able to organize stable forms of service to the marginalized people, giving rise to so-called “Charitées”, the “Charity”, ie groups of women who put their time and their property available to more marginalized. Among these volunteers, some chose to devote themself completely to God and the poor, and thus, together with St. Louise de Marillac, St. Vincent founded the “Daughters of Charity”,  the first women’s congregation to live their consecrated lives  ”in the world”, among the people, the sick and needy.«

[compiled from RadioVaticana,
Italian edition of  ZENIT.ORG of September 23 and September 26
and the website of the Holy See]

St Louis is the birthplace of the Vincentian Family in North America. Fr. Felix de Andreis CM and Fr. Joseph Rosati CM were the first priests from the Congregation of the Mission who arrived to American soil in 1816 invited by bishop Dubourg. In 1818 they settled in Perryville, Misouri. In 1826 Rev. Joseph Rosati, CM was named the first Bishop of St. Louis (1826-1843). The Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph (Daughters of Charity since 1851) from Emmitsburg, Maryland arrived in 1828 to staff DePaul (Mullanphy) Hospital; a few years before the cholera outbreak in 1832. Both the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (1845) and the Ladies of Charity (1857) began their United States foundations in St. Louis. In 1859 Guardian Angel began and in 1907, St. Vincent’s School in Perryville where National Shrine of Miraculous Medal is located, too.

Today there are nearly 3,000 members of the Vincentian Family in the region. Most numerous are 2,600 members of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in 143 conferences in St. Louis. The Society and the Daughters of Charity minister in East St. Louis and Belleville. Vincentian priests, Ladies of Charity, Society of St. Vincent de Paul and Vincentian youth minister in Perryville, St. Vincent’s Parish in St. Louis and St. Catherine Laboure Parish in St. Louis County. Ladies of Charity national head office and residence of  CM Western Province is in Louis, so is for West Central Province of Daughters of Charity. They are engaged in ministries with children, youth, families, elders and in administration of the Province. They are sponsors of Ascension Health. In recent years, the charism of Vincent and Louise has found expression in the works of Affiliate, Vincentian Service Corps, Gateway Vincentian Volunteers, Vincentian Marian Youth and Former Daughters.

The day of service – Saturday, August 21. It will be celebrated at more than a dozen sites across the St. Louis area and East St. Louis, Illinois, including St. Vincent Children’s Home, Cosgrove Soup Kitchen, Our Lady’s Inn, Our Little Haven, St. Elizabeth Mother of John the Baptist Parish in North St. Louis, St. Vincent de Paul thrift stores, St. Patrick Center and Holy Angels Shelter, among other locations. Complete list of locations can be found at www.famvinstl.org.

The day of liturgy – Sunday, August 22. At 2:00 PM Archbishop Robert J. Carlson of St. Louis will celebrate Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis (Lindell Boulevard and Newstead Avenue in the Central West End). Concelebrants include Superior General, Father Gregory GayCM, Auxiliary Bishop of  St.Louis Most Rev. Robert Hermann; Rev. Msgr Joseph Pins, Rector of Cathedral Basilica, Father Perry Henry CM, Provincial of the Western Province of the Congregation; and other priests. The Archdiocesan Choir under the direction of John Romeri (organist of the Cathedral) will provide the music.

Watch the video from the Anniversary Mass
(including homily by Most Rev. Gregory Gay CM)

Special collection will be held dedicated to ZAFÈN (in Creole “it’s our business”) — the microfinance project in Haiti supported by international Vincentian Family. The project allows individuals to invest online to support projects that are administered by Haitians. A special collection at the liturgy will support the work of ZAFEN. Visit their website for more details and how you can join the project.

Wednesday, July 14

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Reverend Father Gregory Gay
Superior General of the Congregation of the Mission
and Reverend Mother Evelyne Franc
Superioress General of the Company of Daughters of Charity

„Whoever loves God, must also love his brother” (1Jn 4:21)

With these words of Apostle John, I would like to join in thought and prayer the entire Vincentian Family, as it celebrates in thanksgiving the three hundred and fiftieth anniversary of death of Saint Louise de Marillac and Saint Vincent de Paul. These words were lived out in the luminous way in the lives of your Founders. It is because they believed in charity they put themselves in the service of their brothers and sisters. May this same faith be your light and strength in your ways of service to the most abandoned and lowly in our so often heartless societies!

By placing this jubilee under the motto „Charity and Mission”, indeed, you have wished to indicate what is the heart of heritage which you have received. As I wrote in my first Encyclical, figures of saints such as Vincent de Paul, Louise de Marillac „stand out as lasting models of social charity for all people of good will. The saints are the true bearers of light within history, for they are men and women of faith, hope and love.” (Deus Caritas Est, 40). This is what I encourage you to be, in a daring way amongst the men and women of our time, so that your involvements in favor of human person be in fact the revelation of the love of God and simply the expression of humanism and philanthropy.

The intuition of Vincent de Paul in getting the priests, consecrated persons and laity to collaborate is a precious good in to which the Vincentian Family rightly engages itself to develop better service of the Church’s mission. So, you will ever be more effective in proclaiming the Gospel to all, so that each person might recover their dignity as Children of God in the world, in unity and solidarity. May God help you always to remain faithful to the heritage you have received to live it out with faith and generosity!

Entrusting you to the intercession of Saint Vincent de Paul, Saint Louise de Marillac and all the saints and blessed of the Vincentian Family, I give you all a full heart an affectionate Apostolic Blessing.

at Vatican, 14 June 2010

Benedict XVI