St Vincent de Paul  -  A Brief History

Written by: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica 

  St Vincent de Paul
  Born: 24 April 1581, in Pouy, (now Saint-Vincent-de-Paul), France
  Died: 27 September 1660, aged 79, in Paris, France
Feast Day 27 September  -  Canonized 1737
 

French saint, founder of the Congregation of the Mission (Lazarists, or Vincentians) for preaching missions to the peasantry and for educating and training a pastoral clergy. The patron saint of charitable societies, St Vincent de Paul is primarily recognized for his charity and compassion for the poor, though he is also known for his reform of the clergy and for his early role in opposing Jansenism.

Educated by the Franciscansat Dax, France, he was ordained in 1600 and graduated from the University of Toulouse in 1604. He was allegedly captured at sea by Barbary pirates and sold as a slave but eventually escaped. He spent a year in Rome to continue his studies and then went to Paris, where he remained permanently. He placed himself under the spiritual guidance of the celebrated cardinal Pierre de Bérulle, who entrusted him with the parish of Clichy.

After founding the Congregation of the Mission in 1625, Vincent de Paul established in and around Paris the Confraternities of Charity - associations of laywomen who visited, fed, and nursed the sick and the poor. The wealth of these women, many of noble family, aided him in establishing the foundling and other hospitals. With St Louise de Marillac he co-founded the Daughters of Charity (Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul) in 1633. The association was patterned after the Confraternities of Charity and was the first noncloistered religious institute of women devoted to active charitable works.

The Society of St Vincent de Paul, a Catholic charitable organization dedicated to the service of the poor, was founded by Blessed Antoine Frédéric Ozanam in 1833.
 

(For further reading click the blue text links  in the article above)

Saint Vincent de Paul Society members from the churches of 

St Chad's, Sedgley, and St Peter's, Lower Gornal, 

offer friendship, company and support.

We make regular visits to those living in their own homes, 

in residential care or in hospital.

If you or anyone you know may appreciate a visit

please contact any member below:

Many thanks to all members for your continued support.

SVP National Contact Information
 

Your SVP contacts are:-

Vivian Clarke 01902 897768
Denis Cody 01902 687638
Sandra Oliver 01384 274600
Jo Tinsley 01384 256673
Maureen Fletcher 01902 885753