August 21, 1567 • The Faith, Hope and Love of Francis de Sales

aith cannot be automatically transmitted from generation to generation. In each age it must be learned anew. And yet faith can be contagious. The de Boisy family were people of faith. They proved this in more than one trying circumstance. For example, during famine they fed 500 poor a day. When seeking a child, Mme. de Boisy prayed earnestly and promised to train the child solely for God's use. She gave birth prematurely on this day, August 21, 1567, in a chateau near Geneva. While all those around her fretted, she remained calm.

It was not immediately apparent that her son Francis would survive. He was taken the next day to the parish church to be baptized. For several months his life was in danger. Yet he survived the perils of premature birth and grew to manhood. Surely the faith of his faithful mother had much to do with the development of his own character which became a shining example of faith.

Nonetheless, as a young man, he lost hope and almost despaired of salvation. Although he was more truthful and obedient than most children, his sensitive conscience told him he must be doomed to hell. At last he fell to his knees one day and cried out, "Lord, if I am never to see you in Heaven, at least grant me this: that I may never curse or blaspheme your holy name. If I may not love you in the other world--for in Hell none praise you--then let me at least every instant of my brief existence here love you as much as I can." His prayer was granted. His contemporaries said they had never known another man who demonstrated such a holy life as Francis.

We know him as Saint Francis of Sales. He studied with the Jesuits and preached with great power in the region of Chablais, near Lake Geneva, where, by his life and his words, he enticed many Calvinists back to Roman Catholicism. His father had resisted this appointment, believing his son would be killed. Indeed, the work at first seemed fruitless. It was also dangerous. Several times he barely escaped assassins. Once he was treed by wolves and only the kindness of a Calvinist couple saved his life. He wrote and copied little tracts by hand which gradually won over the people.

Francis de Sales insisted that sanctity was possible in everyday life; his two books Introduction to the Devout Life and Treatise on the Love of God detail the potential of perfect Christian life and are still read. He preached as simply as he could so that everyone could understand him. "The measure of love is to love without measure," he said. He was known for his mercy to sinners. However, one looks in vain for a clear explanation of the Gospel in the Introduction to the Devout Life, although there is much about making resolutions.

Perhaps because he was so gentle and had dearly-loved his mother, Francis' work was especially fruitful among women. With the help of Jane Francis de Chantal he founded the Order of the Visitation, a retreat designed for women who were too weak to undertake austerities. Its main requirement was that time be used to the fullest. Gradually it grew into an educational order, transmitting Sales' faith.

Bibliography:

1. Burton, Harold. Life of St. Francis of Sales. New York : P. J. Keenedy, 1925-1929.
2. Butler. The Lives of the Saints. Various editions.
3. “Orders.” Encyclopedia Americana. Chicago: Americana Corp., 1956.
4. Liptak, David Q. 101 Saints. Milwaukee, Bruce Pub. Co. 1963.
5. Sales, Francis de. Introduction to the Devout Life; edited and abridged by Msgr. Charles Dollen. New York: Alba House, 1992.

Last updated April, 2007.