IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 ^Ui tii ^^s Itt 1^ ■2.2 11.25 iu I |L6 I^iotDgraphic Scmces Carporation ^ ^. V -8^ 23 WIST MAIN STRUT WiiSTiR,N.Y. 14SM (716)S72-4S03 v\ CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIM/ICIVIH Collection de microfiches. CaiMdian Inttitut* for Historical Microroproductiom / Institut canadion da microraproductiont historiquas "^^ ^T5S»|! Technical and Bibliographic Notas/Notet tachniquas at bibliographiquas The Institute ha* attempted to obtain the best original copy available for filming. Features of this copy which may be bibliographically unique, which may alter any of the images in the reproduction, or which may significantly change the usual method of filming, are checked below. D Coloured covers/ Couverture de couleur I I Covers damaged/ D Couverture endommagAe Covers restored and/or laminated/ Couverture restaur^ et/ou pelliculAe I I Cover title missing/ Le titre de couverture manque I I Coloured maps/ Cartes gAographiquas en couleur □ Coloured ink (i.e. other than blue or black)/ Encre de couleur (i.e. autre que bleue ou noire) I I Coloured plates anJ/or illustrations/ D D D D Planches et/ou illustrations en couleur Bound with other material/ ReliA avec d'autres documents Tight binding may cause shadows or distortion along interior margin/ La re liure •wrie peut causer de I'ombre ou de la distortion le long de la marge intArieure Blank leaves added during restoration may appear within the text. Whenever possible, these have been omitted from filming/ II se peut que certaines pages blanches ajouties lors d'une restauration apparaissent dans le texte, mais, lorsque cela Atait possible, ces pages n'ont pas At* filmtes. Additional comments:/ Commentaires supplAmentaires: L'Institut a microfilm* le meilleur exemplaire qu'il lui a Ati possible de se procurer. Les details de cet exemplaire qui sont peut-Atre uniques du point de vue bibliographique, qui peuvent modifier une image reproduite, ou qui peuvent exiger une modification dans la mithode normale de fllmage sont indiqute ci-dessous. 1 ti I I Coloured pages/ Pages de couleur Pages damaged/ Pages endommagAes Pages restored and/or laminated/ Pages restaurAes et/ou pellicuMes Pages discoloured, stained or foxed/ Pages dAcolortes, tachetAes ou piqudes Pages detached/ Pages dAtachtes Showthrough/ Transparence Quality of print varies/ Qualit* inAgale de I'impression I I includes supplementary material/ D D Comprend du materiel supplAmentaire Only edition available/ Seule Adition disponible Pages wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc., have been refilmed to ensure the best possible image/ Les pages totalement ou partieliement obscurcies par un feuillet d'errata, una pelure, etc., ont M filmAes A nouveau de fa9on A obtenir la meilleure image possible. This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ Ce document est filmA au taux de rAduction indiquA ci-dessous. 10X 14X 18X 22X J 2tX 30X 12X 16X »X aAX 2tX 32X "^^ .^TS»i|»m Th« copy filmed h»n has b««n r«produe«d thanks to th« ganaroaity of: L'axamplaira film* fut raproduit grica A la g^nArositi da: Univereity of Windsor University of Windsor Tha imagaa appaaring hara ara tha baat quality posalbia consldaring tha condition and laglblllty of tha original copy and In kaaping with tha filming contract apacif Ications. Laa Imagaa sulvantaa ont 4ti raproduitas avac la plua grand soin, compta tanu da la condition at da la nattatA da l'axamplaira film*, at •n conformity avac las conditions du contrat da flimaga. Original coplaa In printad papar covara ara fllmad baglnning with tha front covar and anding on tha laat paga with a printad or llluatratad Impraa- aion, or tha back covar whan appropriata. All othar original coplaa ara fllmad baglnning on tha first paga with a printad or llluatratad Impras- slon. and anding on tha laat paga with a printad or llluatratad Impraaaion. Laa axamplalraa originaux dont la couvartura an paplar aat imprimia sont filmto an comman9ant par la pramlar plat at an tarminant soit par la darnMra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'Impraaalon ou d'iliuatratlon, soit par la sacond plat, aalon la caa. Toua las autras axamplairas originaux sont filmis an commanpant par la pramlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'Impraaalon ou d'illuatration at an tarminant par la damlAra paga qui comporta una talla amprainta. Tha laat racordad frama on aach microfloha ahall contain tha aymbol •-»• (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha symbol ▼ (moaning "END"), whichavar appllaa. Un daa aymbolas suivanta apparaftra sur is darnlAra imaga da chaqua microflcha, salon la caa: la aymboia -^ signifia "A SUIVRE ", ia aymbola ▼ aignifia "FIN". plataa, charta. ate., may ba fllmad at diffarant raductlon ratloa. Thoaa too larga to ba antlraly Includad In ona axpoaura ara fllmad baglnning In tha uppar laft hand comar. laft to right and top to bottom, aa many framaa aa raquirad. Tha following diagrama illuatrata tha mathod: Laa cartaa. planchas, tabiaaux, ate, pauvant Atra fiimAa i daa taux da rMuction diff Arants. Loraqua la documant aat trap grand pour Atra raproduit an un saul clichA, il aat filmA A partir da I'angla aupAriaur gaucha, da gaucha A droita, at da haut an baa, an pranant la nombra d'lmagaa nAcaasaira. Laa diagrammas suivanta IHuatrant la mithoda. 1 2 3 1 2 3 ,■*. 4 S 6 THE LIFE OF' St. Francis de Sales BY ROBEKT ORNSBY, M.A. P. J. Kenedy and Sons PBINTKRS TO THB HOLY APOSTOLIC SBB No. ^A BARCI.AY STRK«T, N. Y. t ^ CONTENTS. X* Kuly ttfc and •dnoillon of nrmeli de SaIm 1 IL Bit Tooatioii to the eocledutiod itate, ■ad fband»- Uou of the Confraternity of the Holy Crow . 10 nL Hie miision in the Chftbhde; iU ewly difficnltiea . 17 IV. Onduel change in the itatr of affidn, and final ooaTersionoftheChablaia 88 T Appointment of Francis de Sale* to the ooadjntor- •hip of Genera; his Tisit to Rome . . 57 TI. Foundation of ** tho Holy Honse ;** Visit to Parie . 81 TH Franeb de Sales as Bishop of GenoTa . . 78 nn. Visit of Francis de Sales to Dijon ; his direction of Jane Frances de Cbantal ... .81 IX. Oipudsation of the Order of the Visitation . 108 X Foundation of the Florimontane Academy; his Tre^ tises of The Iniroduetim and The Love tfOod 117 XL Vldt to Fluris with the Cardinal of Saroy; last yean ofFranoiBdeSalAo lie Xn. Death of IVanolad» Sales iif XIZLCharaoterofStFffaabitdoSalsa . l« v\ '47/52 'it % ^t PEEFACl. QoD B«nr makei two tfaingi alik«. It ii «■■ of the pri?ilegei of Omnipotence to ihow thaty in adhering to the laws which It hai Itielf created, it it ttill those kiwi* Marter. We, on the other handy mually play the part of a machine. We can hat repeat ounelyef, and he the predie eopy- isti of our own feehly-conceiTed and defecti?elj* executed originab. We multiply repetitiona of our worki with the lervile accuracy of a me- chanical apparatua. We fint derise hy the aid of the line, the rule, and the aquare i and then we can but return again and again w our fint pattern, ▼arying it only throuj^h infirmity, and counting ourselTet moct sucoetsfiil when we have reproduced it with a moft pamfiil geometric mi- nutencM. But He who created the world and the lawa within whole limiti we toil ii ai infinitely laried in the detaili of Hb worki ai thoie works them- lelvei are infinite in number. The itara diifer taa eae another in gloiy. Of the UMOwited mMttofiflirm^BotwDnsalilnb laalltht bewildflfiaf otjiiads of the \mwm of « fbi«it» orm onrooaiM peiteptioni can dotoet loaio 4glU fi^ rbtkiiif in fomi. Ertrj fettura in natnio^ fron •n Alpine pvadpiee to n eEyitaUiied fingmont, if nnliko anj other. SuefaiithenlijMoftliewiidoBi of God in the enation of the organiied uniTene. The Mune myiterioni tariety ia found to pr» fail, not only in onr own eountenaneea and figures, in onr intelleeti and emotiona, aa we are by nature, but in the moat perfect worka of DiTine Gh»ee» It ia eurioua to think how different the "Sainti** are from what they would haTo been if they had been all faahiooed on a type invented by human ingenuity. It makea one imile to think what ringnlar phenomena would have been turned out from a humanly-conducted laboratoiy, when con- trasted with the actual Saints, such aa Almighty God has Himself made them. In matters of right and wrong, atrictly speaking, we have all of ui been taught by Almighty God; and consequently our h$mhid§al of a *' Saint** implies the presence of all Tirtnea in the heroic degree. But when we eome to the outward clothing which this heroic sanctity ahould wear, it ia certain that if we had the work to do, we ahould fiibricate Saints aftei a fraUon wonderfully unlike that which haa of* I PBBFAOB. S tiB beoi adopted by Eternal Wisdon . No donbt we thould produce a good many varietiei, ac- cording to our national and personal ideas of the KmKoictiffa$6v,^^** the good, the beautiful, and the «rue.** The Englishman's Saint would be different from the Frenchman's, and the Frenchman's from the German's or the Italian's ; and all these again from the Negro's, or the Saint of the Japanese. Still, it may be assumed as an undoubted truth, that we are generally more or less sur- prised to find that the emtemalt of sanctity are so different from those which we should hare anticipated. With all that we say — and believe also— on the subject of " hidden Saints," and of the essentially retiring and modest nature of sanctity, there are few persons who do not ex- pect that the heroic virtue of a real Saint should show itself in some quiet way or other, so as to be cognisable by an ordinary Christian of fair good sense and piety. Still more do we expect that Saints shall have nothing about them which, as the saying is, shall ** run into us." We look for iuch an absence of infirmities in those things which are solely and entirely natural, that the Saint may at once interest and please the Chris- tian, and silence the sUly ill-nature of the un« beli«Tar* 11 I W1mb9 thfB» w« tan to ih« Mtiud lifM €f tb« fldaliy it ii ftiiking to find how leldom they hk^^ hma nupeeted to be Sainti e?en by the general mk of good Githolici, and ttill less by the common erowd* Sonotimea their extraordinaiy gracei have been known to ao few, that it may be aaid that they pere almoit literally unknown. So far as the ex- temali of life were concerned, they have been for the moat part like other men. Orace left nature, in all thingi but tin, pretty much aa it would have been if they had been nothing more than sim- ply good Christiana. And accordingly they hare taried from one another in just the same varie^ which preTaib among those who are not Sainta. Not only their circumstances, rank, and influence have ^*jen very different in different cases, but they haye been gifted with yery different degrees of what we may call ** attractiveness,*' as other persons so singularly differ in that peculiar gift. Nor is it any disparagement to the perfection of the work of God in them, that one Saint is of such a character as to attach to his memory a fat larger number of devout clients than can ever be gained by another. Some men are made to bf universal favourites in daily life, wherever they go. Others, quite their equab, sometimes theii wofmAang in eveiy important quality, compaita ttfdy lUuid apart, mbefiriended tad aleaa* lUi if a remit of that boundleii Tarietj whieh «iiali in the natural eharacten which Oo'i haa gheii to Of, following nil own impenetrable wiidom. And 10 it ii with the Sainta. There ar» tboif to whom interceiiion ia daily made bj tens ol thousanda of Chriatiani ; while oihen are known only by their plaee in the calendar* and are hoD oofod by a derout mle rather than by the per* ■Qoal choice of the individual Chriitian. We all hare onr " faTourite Sainta." It it often dificnlt to lay why we prefer to haye reconne to one imtlMr than to another, at it is hard to say why we enjoy one man*s society, and care little for that of an* other. But so it is, and so it will be as long aa the world lasts, and both the Saints, and we who honour them, are what we are. The Samt whose life has suggested theit fa- marks is perhaps — next, of course, to tha Qnaas of Sainto— nualem, is describea as a gallant caraliflr of tho olda dajB. There were two sisters: Gaspardei married te the Lord of Comilloiiy a worthy lady, who followed the noble ezaSnples set by her brotners; toad ** Mademoisdk Jeanne/* ^o died very young, afW affording greal promise from her innocent and Tirtaooj character. Altogether it was a noble household, fit to be headed by a saint Francis was sent in early childhood to the ooDem of La Roche, and afterwardls to that of Anneoj. fie was from the first marked out among his youn^ eomf panions for his superior manliness and grayity of d^ meanour. Whilst the rest rambled about in iohoonMy fi»hioc, hatless and unbuttoned, amnm'Tig themselyei with boyish pursuits, he was always carerally dressed; and, instead of joining in their amusements, would stay at home and read to the old lady at whose house lie boarded. He was, howeyer, well trained in all the ac- complishments wluch in those days were oonsidered essential to the rank of a young noble ; he was taught to dance, to fence, and to ride; and these ezerdsei he learnt wall, being always particularly noticed for that flracefril, dignifiea, and easy deportment, which is sel- dom attained without such traming in early lift. He was five years at the college of iumeey, and leained there the Latin lang^a^e, and ** made notable prog w ui In the humanities;" by which phrase, now getting antiquated, the old school meant that general euhiya- tion in polite literature which informed and moulded the mind so as to be well furnished with the habits acd ideas peculiarly belonginsr to ''the ioholar and the Ctleman.'* He was a nara itodent, an early riser; moderate in sitting up at ni^|ht At the age of eleyen he entreated permission of hu fiither to take the tonsure, haying at that early age deekied to adopt the ecclesiastical life. M. de Boisy by no meani deiiied this, for his ambition was that his ddest son fhoaU ■ake a great figure in the werid; Iwt with thai iorl el I r I P k §T. FmAVOIf »■ SALM. wmgoiMnt which men of great experience often pre- Sir to fiolent measures, he permitted him to do as he ^eased. The
> ▼ered with notices of the divisions and subdiTinoni, with the various heads of proof, and form, as it were^ an analysis of the whole work; finally, one reoogniaei tliroughout not only the orderly mind which doei every thing well, but also the logical mind which clas- sifies its ideas, and furnishes itself with a clear and pre- cise account of them." One study, unusual in that age^ to which he addicted himself, was tJie Hebrew language^ which he learned imder a celebrated teacher of the day, Genebrard, who afterwards became Archbishop of Aix. His scriptural studies were very profound, as we find continually exemplified in his tiveological treatises, where he frequently illustrates the meaning of texts oy reference to the Septuagint. His private tutor fm this period, and indeed for the rest of his education also, was the Abb6 DSage, a good man, but addicted to hold the reins of discipline rather tightly; which brings out some amusing scenes, where his ill>temper. and yet the affectionate love with which he regarded his charge, contrasts with the heroic humili^ of the young noble. At Paris one of the most remarkable and ^tical events of his life took place, a terrible tempta- don to despair, which came on suddenly and lasted for a consideraole time, but from which he was ri4eased in a wonuerful manner. He was about the age of seven- teen when the idea took possession of his mind that he was not in a state of grace, and that consequently there was a frightful probability of his being etemallT lost His soul was overwhelmed with fear, which he m vain tried to reason away. When he represented to himself tHe promises of Almighty God to nelp those who call upon Him, the consciousness of his own weakness came on to stifle the rising hope. He might fall into mortal sin ; feeble as he was, it seemed to him certain he would do so if a dangerous occasion occurred. The g^ oi hell thus seemM to open before him at the very tima ^Im wiroely a delibemta Ttnial sn had ftaioM !■:, I iP 1 •T. VEAllOll DB IA: Tei ftt the reiy time he waa going through this airfbl oooflioty he gaye the moet heautifu anawen to the tamptetiona which assailed him. < i^ed there, and virtue was in great danger. On two jGcasions he was brought into tne very fivnace of trial |l party of his fellow-students resolved to put his purity CO the test, and made a regular conspiracy for this wicked purpose; taking him to what they pretended was the nouse of a newly-arrived professor oi jurispru- dence, where they had engaged a courtesan to allure him to sin. They introduced this miserable woman to him as if she were a lady of the family, and then left the room on one excuse or other. Presenuy she changed her manner, and attempted to entice him by immoaest gestures. The moment he perceived her real character, he rushed out of the room, spitting in her fieuse when she attempted to detain him. Thus the temptation which these instruments of Satan had prepared to de- stroy his soul, only redounded to his glory, and covered them with shame. On another occasion, whilst at Padua, a lady of the loftiest rank of the nobility con- eeived a violent passion for him, and sought to lead hin astray from the paths of virtue, bribing one of his fel low-students to try to further her wicked designs by his persuasions. The holv yonth treated the propoid wiih honor, aharply rebdnd tbs htm mmmnga, tai % ««Urad him oat of his pesenoe. The instantvMoii ^ignitf of hoUiMW wi^ wnioh he repelled these tempte- tioofy ihowed what a treasure of grace he had acqiured tt that early and oritioal age. Whilst at Padua he made a plan of life for himself, whieh oontains many remarkable points, and is well worth the itody of everr young' man engaged in the ioad em i e oaroer. It is nardly necessary to say, that vsgnlaiil^ in meditation and m hearing the holy Mass are the leading rules which he adopts. The chief biographical interest which attaches to tnem is to observe at what an early period he had developed in his mind the ipiritiial method which pervades the IntrodueHon to a Dewmt ]Afe» He lays ^at stress on what he ealls "theeieroise of preparation." His words are: *' I will always give the preference above every thing else to the exercise oi preparatumy and I will perform H once at least in the day, viz. in the morning." He divides it into five parts : the invocation of the Divine help; the imagination or anticipation of what he has to do; the arrangement of it; ^.*:e making a resolution of not offending God; and finally, the recommendation of his afhirs to the Divine goodness. On the second head he says : '' I will simply think of all those things which may occur to me; of the companjr in which I may be oUiged to remain ; of the affairs which may arise ; of the places in which I must be; of the occasions which may 4i;mpen to take me off my guard; and thus, by the help of the Lord, J will meet difficulties wisely and prudently." Then as to the arrangement of Lis ^ ( tions . " I will consider and diligently inquire what aretbe li^'st means of avoiding falls; I will see what it is ' \ i' 7' to do, in what order I must proceed in this or tnat aiiair; what X ought to say in society. I will decide as to my dress aad demeanour, and determine what I must seek and win;^^ T must avoid." The rules, which are in Latin, are sriMet;xi?.es clngularly expressed. Thus the passa^ where ^e ih^v^ given the word *^ society" is, *^quid t% 9Qmmhtilim m$t§ A^^ktm»** InFnnoii*sowniiNr«neb h ••1 •V. WmAMOW D* SAJ.] 11 BK \ \ \Hi§j^d§e0f%t$JedirmmemMfagnisJ* Medi- Mob he oaUs, bj a highljrefinea ififMiaphory "th« sleep of tiie ■ool,'* beoAiue it refreshes the mind a» rest does ths body ; tnd again, as ia bodily sleep the operatiooi of the Mdj do not act oejoAd themselves, but aro restrained wiibin ^6 limits of the body, so, says the voutlifiil saint, ** I will keep fdl my spiritual faculties witliin the limits rf ^>h« spirit." This is a passage full of the most sug- ^-aftiTe wisdom, and containing one of the choicest rules m meditation, inoulcatinff that drawing-oif the minu fiom thmffs of sense wmch St. Catharine of Sienna aalled the ouilding of a cell within her heart; and which another holy person, D. Leonardo Fattore, signified by thb expression, ''the land of faith." ''The land of ftdth*' was a certain state of the soul, calm, equable and penetrated with the conviction of the truths of religion, m which he placed it occasionally when in the midst of the business and trials of life. To return, however, to IVancis. If he cannot find time at the usual hovtr for this " most vigilant sleep of the soul," he resolves to deprive himself of a portion of his bodily sleep in order to it, either by remaining awake after ne goes to bed, or rousing himself after his first sleep, or rising earlier than usual. He provides beautiful thoughts far himself firom the sacred Scriptures if he chances to wake during the night : " I will rouse my heart with the words : Medid node clamor factua est : Ecce tponaua vmUt, exite obviam ei; 'At midnight there was a cry made : Behold the Bridegroom cometh, go ye forth to meet Him.' Then, from the consideratioo of the darkness outside of mo, passing on to the inward darkness of my soul and of all sinners, thus I will pray daring the nignt : llluminare his qui in tenebrisy &q. ; 'To enliffhten them that sit in darkness and in the sha- dow of iwath, to direct our feet into the way of peace.* " He adds: " But since nightly terrors sometimes hinder the note of inch devotion, if I chance to be seized with than, I wiU d^ver myself fum them by thinldnpp 9imj •Dfal»giiaidiao, Mymg, Dominut a dtxtrii mmt J m •T. rRAMOU DB 8ALK1. ui, n$ iommavmr; which some doctors hare inter- preted of the angel-guardiaii.'' We may illustrate this eorions passage from a letter of his, in which he says to the religious sister to whom he writes : ** The} tell me, my very dear daughter, that you are airaid of ffhosts. The supreme Spirit of our God is ever* whL, without whose will aiid permission no spirit stirs. He who fears that Divine Spint ought to fear no other spirit. L when I was young, was touched hy this fan* tasT ; and to rid myself of it, I forced myseUf, little by little, to go alone, my heart armed with confidence in God, into places where my imagination threatened me with fear; and at last I strenfifthened myself so, that the darknesses and solitude of the night are a delight to me, because of that omnipresence of God which one enjoys more at will in that solitude. The good angels are around you like a company of soldiers on watch. This assurance will be acquired oy degrees, as the grace of God shall grow in YOU." (X«t^ 407.) The subjects whicn he marks down tor meditation, though not differing from those to be found in ordinary books (which, inde^, have ever since his time been mucn coloured by his writings)^ are expressed in a highly ori- ginal manner. Thus he resolves, when he has an oppor- tune time for this *' holy quiet,'' to recal the pious emo- tions, longings, desires, resolutions, sweetnesses, and inspirations, which he has formerly received from the Divine Majesty; and also to call to mind how ^at hit obligation is to Almi&^hty God, " in that in His mercy He nas at times weakened my senses by some diseasei and infirmities, which have been of no little advantage to me." There is also a short and admirable reflection on the excellence of Christian virtue, " which sanctifies a man, which chang-es him into an angel, which makes him a Uttle God (deulujn), which in this life confers paradise on him." Lastly are some w mderfrd thoughts on the at- tributes of God. " I wiU contomplato," he says, ** the in- finite wisdom, omnipotence, and inoomproheosible good* MM of God; bntl willfpMuIljaimtttthiiyluiwthMv «-J fr. VEAVCIl Bl MALI •zoaUent attaribates shine forth in the sacred mjstenflt of the life, death, and passion of our Lord Jesus Christ , in the most eminent holiness of our Lady, Blessed Harj; and in the imitablo perfections of tne faithfai servants of God. Passing from hence to the emnjrean heaven, I will mai-vel at the glory of paradise, tne un- faiUnff felicity of the angelic spirits and of the souls of the blessed; and how the most august Trinity, in thf eternal rewards wherewith It remunerates this blessed multitude, shows Itself powerfii], wise, and good." There is also a set ot rules for his conduct in society, so highly curious and interesting, that v shall give them almost at full length. They are wi en in sin- gxdar and rather difficult Latin, of which tiie following seems to be the result, expressed in the language of the present a^e and in the third person, but, with that limi- tation, acmering as closely as possible to the phraseology of the writer : 1. He first distinguishes between general society {congrewus) and intimate friendship (consuetudo). In the foimer, we see people only for a short time, and without any particular aemotistrations of affection ; in the latter, we often meet, we show familiarity, entertain affection, and visit our chosen friends, in order to live in a praisewoithy manner, and mutually advise with each other. 3. He resolves never to despise, or to give indi cations that he absolutely avoids the SDciety of any one whomsoever ; for this gives one the character of being proud, high, severe, arrogant, censorious, ambitious, and excessive in the expression of these feehngs. In society, he resolves t« be very carefid not to appear as the "great ally" of any one (ne cum aHqtio sociiim Maam)f not even witli his most intimate friends, if any cnance to be present; for this would smack of levilTf tt those who observe it. He will not allow himself ixk any mipropriety of 6]>eech or action, lest, by too ready €a- milianty, he get the character of Jbeing impertment. 4boy« aU, he resolves to avoid saying biting, pnngemt. iT f "1 V I II fT. nUHOIf SB lALHi «r lowitie thingB against people; for it it mere itupi jitj to think we oan laugh at people who have no re» wm for bearing with ns, and yet not incur their hatred. He reeolvei to pay every one the honour due to him, to ohsenre modetty, to speak little and well, tlmt the com- pany may retire rather with a desire to have more of nis society than &tigned with it. If the meeting is but momentary, and he has hardly time to say more than ** How do you do?" (^uamvis a salutaHone non aiiud dieerem,) he will do so iu a hberal, polite, and well-rMnplated manner, neither austere nor gloomy. 8. Then, as to his intimate friends, thrae shall be fenff qoody and hmomdble (because it is extremdy difficult to succeed with many, or to avoid being oor^ mpted by associating with the bad, or to be honoured except by the honourable). The grand precept he re- solves to observe, both as to ^neral society and inti- mate friendship, is this : Amtcu* omnilmsy fam^iarit paueit. Judgment and prudence is every where needed. There is no rule without an exception, but that one rule which is the foundation of all the rest : Ifihil contra Deum, With his intimate friends he resolves to be modest without impertinence, easy without austerity, fir eet without affectotion, pliable without contradiction (unless there be good reason for it), and cordial without dissimulation n)ecause men like to know those with whom they act). But he wih open himself more or less to different friends, according to the degree of intimacy which exists between them. ''There are melancholy persons, who are delighted when any one reveals to them his defects ; but from such characters one ought rather to hide oneself; for their imagination being strong, they will philosophise for ten years or more on the most trimi^ imperfection. Further, why reveal imperfect tions f are they not visible enough of themselves ? B j no means, therefore, is it expedient to make them mam- feat; but it is good to confess them.'* He thua regu- lates hii demeanour with reffard to these three cilaisM, ijbt bufmiamt, the libanl or fntknai^f tad tha I. L] fT. VmANCIf ]>■ lALll. ll vdaneholT : ''To the impertment I will absolutely aide myself. To the liberal, if only they fear God, I riU absolutely reveal myself, and speak to tnem with •a open heart. To the melancholy I will merely show myself, as the proverb has it, exjeneitrd, from behind Uw latriee ; that is, I will partly open myself to tliem (because such people have a great curiosity to see mto the hearts of men, and where they see one too much restrained, they are suddenly suspicious); and I will partly conceal myself (because sucn persons are accus- omed too closely to watch and philosophise on the cha- ftoters of those who associate with them)." 4. As he finds himself, for the most part, obliged to meet persons of very various ranks, he wishes to ad- nut his manners accordingly. To his superiors in age, profession, or authority, he resolves to show an ex- quisitely pdiished demeanour (nonnisi exquisitum oS' tendenavm e»t)\ to his equals, ^ood manners; and a sertain indifiference towards his mferiors. The reason he gives for this distinction is, that great and wise per- ions are fond of thst exquisite polish which he resolves o use towards the first class, whilst the second would July think it afifec ation, and the third a disapeeable rravity. If he fnds himself brought into mtimate nendship with tht great, he will then be particularly jtizioQS (for tbr/ may be compared to fire, a good hinff to approa^ii sometimes, but not to approach too jearly). Th^.efore, in their presence, he will show treat modesty, tempered with an honourable freedom (because tb4 great luce to be loved and to be respected; and love eauees freedom, and modesty respect). It is therefore arood to use a little freedom in the society of the great, out not so as to omit respect; and the respect must be greater than the freedom. Amongst equals, freedom and respect must be equal ; towards inferiors, freedom must be greater than respect; but the oon- traiT must be observed with ^reat and superior persons. Such were the wise maxims which this youth of flf htetB «r trmtj laid dowa for hii oonduot in th* T y'l 1$ trr, vmxdom »m li iia. I i- J fi - i k world. Not graater iiuiffht into the human heart ii difplajad in an assay of Lord Bacon's, or a chapter of the rhetoric of Aristotle; no^^ more refined or subtle ap- preciation of society ia to he found m Chesterfield o** La Bniydre. People are too apt to imagine that this acuteness and pohsh cannot be conjoined with devu- tion or simplicity. They should study the character of Francis, who in these rf^solutions shows how completely the true Cathciic, nay even the heroic and saintly de- ▼otee, may more than rival the comtier and the states- man in good breeding and the most fin/jshed politeness. These mftTima of Francis de Sales became known to his firienda in the university, and they obtained copies of them, in order to guide tiieir own manners on the pat- tern of his. Whilst at Padua, he was attacked with a violent hftr, which brought him to the ?)rink of the grave, throuffhout which illness he showed ohe most heroic re- funation. One very singular instance is recorded of hia charity on this oo/asion. Wlien asked by his tutor what were his wishes with regard to his ^neral, he re- plied, that he had only one request to make, which was, that his body might be given to the medical students for dissection. When the Abbd D^age exclaimed in horro? at this proposal, the holy youth replied, that he would feel it a great consolation to think that, having been so useless during life, he should at least be of some service after he was dead, by supplying the medical students with a subject not purchased at the cost cf quar- rels and murder. The fact was, that in the University of Padua the most terrible scenes used to occur in conse- quence of this difficulty. The medical students, in their eagerness to obtain subjects for dissection, used to rifle the churchyards; the townsmen rushed, with arms in their hands, to prevent this, and sanguinary conflicts &ni the bitterest feelings were the results. There was, there- fore, real wisdom in this proposal, which at first might hare been thought the vaen extravagance of delurium. Bt WM pnfteti^ Mriow i» 16 ; aid ua norifioe wooii ea.!.] •T. FEA Vm Bl lALl ir |irolmbI J htT« done mucb to brings aboat fomo bettor r»* giilation : however, it was not needed ; for he soon after recovered, almost miraculously, at the moment when ha was thought to be in the very af^onies of death. Ha oompletea his education at Padua with eztraordinarj distinction : and the ceremony of conferrinj^ on him the dep'ee of doctor of laws was celebrated with the moit unusual pom)), and in a manner ^vhich showed that ha was looked ui>on as the very brijiflitest ornament of tht university, it tuok place on September 5, 1591, when Francis was twenty-foiu* years of aee. Forty-eig^ht doctors assembled on the occasion ; and Ptmcirolus ure- sided and conducted the examination. The candiaata answered in the most brilUant manner ; after which Pan* cirolus addressed him in a s])eech, in which he compli* mented him in the highest terms on his admirable career, alluding not only to his learning, but to tha astonishing example of purity, goodness, and charity which he bad alforded to the university. In the midft of a luxurious city he had preserved himself unstained ; like the fountain of Arethusa in the old Grecian fahla, which mingled its waters with the sea without contract- ing aught of their bitterness. ^ Francis de Sales rephed in an elegant oration, m which, after alluding to tha benefits he had derived from his studies in the Univefi- sity of Paris, — where, he said, *' the very roofs and wallf seemed to speak philoso})hy,'* — he expressed his deep sense of the ouligntion he was under to the University of Padua for the legal wisdom which its schools alforaed, mentioning three professors to whom he was in par* ticular indebted, Pancirolus, Menochius, and Matnea* ceus. He concluded ))y rendenng thanks to Jesus Christ, to our Blessed Lady, to his angel-^iardian, and to his holy patron, St. Francis of Assisi, — eujut nomine (said he) vocnri plvrimum deleetor. He then received from Pancirolus the doctor's cap and ring, amidst the applauses of all present ; and was conducted to his house by the entire assembly, the city itealf r»> Nudng it ha paiMd b J. Tha effect which bin ohtiMl^v i i ■m tr. FBAHOn dm iALM^ •foi St «nii Terf earlj a^, prxxliioed upon all wlio null Urn, ii one of the most sinmilar proofs of his ^reatneM. We read that there was sudi a charm ahout his appear* tnoe, something so sweet and noble, that people used to watch in the street for an opportunity to see him ai he passed by. The greatest things were expected from him eveu at the very earliest stage of his career. Heqditted Padua towards the end of the year; and, preyious to returning home, he made the pilgrimage to Rome and Lcititto, visiting also Venice, Milan, and •ther citiM of particular interest in the north of Italy. At Rome he fed his devotion with continual visits to die varioiks sanctuaries and relics of primitive antiquity. A. long li^t is given by his earliest biographer of the ohurcheis &nd other places which he r'jsited with most devotion. These were the Coliseum, and the churchei of SS. Peter and Paul, St Mary Major's, Santa Groce, and SS. Sebastian and Laurence, every whera honour- mg the holy relics which were p.«eseiTed in these placet resfiectively. He also thoroughly inspected all tne re- mains of Roman ^prandeur in the ISterral City ; the chief imnression he derived from w'lioh was, the transitorineas ana emptiness of earthly greatness, and its intrinsie weakness as opposed to the dominion of the Church which has overtnrown it. Wliilst at Rome he had a remarkable escape : he had been obliged to leave the lodgings he had taken, in consequence of the arrival of some noblemen of high rank, to whnm the landlord was tempted to give the preference ; the very next night, the nouse and all who were in it were swept away by a sudden inundation of the Tiber. At Loretto his devo- tion was extraordinary ; and the Abb6 DSage, who saw him whilst he was praying in the Holy House, was so' struck with his demeanour and appearance, that ever after he regarded him with a degieo of reverence which M)proached to veneration : his face appc politan lady and her suite bad engaged it; but tbi master of tne ship was willing also to take Francis and bis party. When the lady uiew of this, she, in a pai* sionate manner, forbade the ship-master to take tnest additional passengers. Francis remonstrated with bii usual high-bred courtesy, but in vain; the lady obliged the captain to set sail without them. Strange to say, before the ship had proceeded very far, and wnile Fran- cis was yet watching it, one of those sudden squalli common in the Mediterranean came on ; the ship was engulfed, and every soul on board perished. Franoia took the next opportunity to sail for Cattolica, a little town between Ancona and Venice. On this voyage hi himself had a very narrow escape from shipwreck, but arrived safely at Cattolica, and from thence proceeded to Venice, where he remained some time. This com- pleted his travels. He returned homewards, passing by Pavia, Milan, Turin, and arriving at bis tatbeM ooAtMii of Ia Thuille in the spring of Jie year 1598i !i 11 n OBAPTIB n. ■■ TOOATKW TO TB> BOOUIBTAtTKUL Vtk' tH» oomrmATunrr or thb bolt cboml FsAircis DB Sales was now twentyfive yean Oid. •nd perhaps one of the most finishen grentlemen mm learned jurists of his age, as most certainly in holineti he was surpassed by no one. By his father's order he tow took tiie title of Seigneur de V^illarooret, this being •ne of the lortiships in the [Mssession of the family ; the title of which, as was customary at the time, was borne by the eldest son. He took an early op{>ortunity, after kis return, to call upon the venerable Bishop of O^ neTa, Claude de Ornnier,-— a visit which coloured the whole of his subsequent career; leading, as it did, firet to his beinneva, next to that of coadjutor to the bishop, and Bnally to his own elevation to the •ee of Geneva. The aged prelate receivjd him with the utmost distinction. He had from the very first n tresentiment, which he did not hesitate to ex|)re8s to lis clergy, that this young nobleman would live to be lis successor in the episcopate. The idea even haimted lis dreams ; and the old man saw, in prophetic vision, the career of the future saint prefigured by mysterious emblems. He imagined he saw him engaged in the chase in the mountainsof Savoy, slnuglitering the wolves^ bears, and ether fierce animals, which fumished but t the ground. He noticed, each time on rising, that his 9word had fallen out of the scabbard, and tlie scaubaid horn off his bald rick; and that all three times the sword and the scabbai-d had formed an exact cross on tlie ground. Francis, though the least superstitious of mtink'nd, was much struck by the circumstiince, which, tiitlu^g as it was, seemed to have a divine significance, when his thoughts wera already so strongly setting- in the direction of the sacred ministry. lie decido I on entering the ecclesias- tica! state; but did not iintn«vdiat4ural)le op]K)itunity. Such an occasion very soon afterwards occurred. M- de Bois\ believed that he had secured a nio^t favourable matcL for the youthful advocate. Mademoiselle de Vegy, tha kdj OB whom hA EimL bii ohoioe, balom;ad t* mm df I ' ■Si •T. nUHOIf DM BALWk At icUmiI ftnilkf ill flfttoji wm waahhT^ snd k flfoy WAj Jkslj to bftTa promoted his ton's worldlj nppmeM. Francii seized the opportunitj to deolaio to his father the fixed purpose which he had formed of beooming a priest The Idnd-hearted but somewhat ambitious old noble was deeply grieyed at this resolu- tion. Whilst he was vainly endeavouring to combat ity another ciroumstanoe arose which added to the painfiil- BflSi of the sacrifice M. de Boisy was now called upon to makoi as it showed very cleiEU'ly that he was by no means mistaken in the lofty estimate he had formed of his son's prospects of success. The court of Savoy offered, and even pressed upon the young lord of Vil- laroget to accept the office of senator in the couit of Chaimb^. It was the highest distinction in the power of the government to give, and such as a man of the world oould not have sacrificed for his son without •ente mortification. The friends of Francis sought to soften the blow to M. at> fioisy by obv.^icdng for lus son the ecclesiastical offi je of provost of the cathe- dral church of Geneva. This Francis accepted in the month of May 1693, and expressed to his father finally tiiat his mind was made up. A scene ensued which was exquisitely distressing to flesh and blood. M. de Boisy was completely overcome, but at last reconciled himself generously to the will of Almighty God, and Eve his unreserved blessing to his son upon entering I new career. However overwhehning the saorifioo might be at the time, it was soon made up to him ■ thousandfold ; and the public joy with whicn the whole dty of Annecy received it was a type of the gladness which the episcopate of Francis de Sales was oestined to difinse over the whole Church. He received the minor orders on June 8th, 1698; and four days after, on the eve of Trinity Sunday, he was raised to be sub-deacon ; on the 18th of December of the same year he was raised to the dignitr of tht priesthood. From the very first he oommenoed a most Mlif o miaiiQMiy ]i£i| and Ail biognphj •! (hia pmod il -i^ '!:^ M. ii*J ir. nuiroii di ialu. IB IkUhk intratfaig in a partioular nuuuMr, it iffiBid* lag Tsluabla detaili of a oonfraternity wbioU he foundad tlffonghoat tha diooesa of Oeneya. He relied lerj mnoh on tha adTantages of these institutionsi as ena- bling, hj the force ofoombmation, the weak to resist temptationi and affording to all the means of making rapid progress in grace. The association which ha founded was called the " Confraternity of Penitents of the Holy Cross, of the Immaculate Conception, and of the Apostles St. Peter and St. Paul.'' the idea of it waS| tnat the members should do continual penance for their own sins and for those of others : and as thej wars living in a heretic country where the Holy Crosi was continually outraged, it was to be an especial devo- tion with them to repair these insults by uieir adora- tion and love. The selection of the title of the Im- aiLCulate Conception of the Blessed Virgin is one of tha many instances of the far-reaching character of i^rancis's views. Every Catholic has heard of the im- mense tide of miraculous graces and favours which haf attended in our own times the establishment of a con* fratemi^ under the same invocation. The principal ndes of the new Confraternity of the Holy Croit were tha following. The members were to communi- cate on the Feasts of the Invention and of the Exalta- tion of the Holy Cross, of the Conception of the B.Vii of the Apostles SS. Peter and Paul, and on the second Sunday of every month. On these festivals the Blessed Sacrament was to be exposed all day ; and there wert always to be two brethren enppaged in adoration for tha space of an hour for oertam special objects, among which were the preservation of the Faith and the con- version of heretics. Thus we see that he m some mea^ sore anticipated the idea of the Confraternities of Per petual Adoration. We find ales, in the rules which ha established, traces of another d&votion now greally &• voursd in the Church. Once a day they were to ra- oita five PaUrs and five Av6a in hcnour of tha fiva fwdaafofliawltkiiriiiig and with haad ! I ^l 'lit '|i wh&Niw9r th«j htppoMd to be, eren in thu ftiMti m EfaUo plMet. llfln, on the feitiTali we have men* ned tbere wai to be a public prooeHion of the brethren, chanting prayen or reciting the chaplet Tlie Tinting of the iick, and the accompanying of the Blesseti Sacrament when it was brought to then. , the veoonciliation of such of the bretliren as were at ran* tncp or at law with each other,— were among the actire works of mercy they were enjoined to perform. We lee in the general spirit which pervades thene rulea. that practical, and at the same time that tender and eonsiaerate cliaracter, by which all the inttitutioni and views of Francis were penetrated. No austeritiea ■re appointed^ nothing that need alarm even the meet ■ickly and innrm ; but a considerable sacrifice of human respect, the oractice of the works of mercy, and the ha- bitual use of certain devotionr, which long experience has shown to be the most calculated to advance souli i long way in a short time. Ilis^ cheerful and kindlr •pirit id beautifully displayed in the history of a pil- grimage which he and his confraternity made to Ail m Savoy, where a relic of the true Cross had for agei attracted the devotion of the faithful. Never was the ▼alue of this holy practice of p*!^mages more strik- ingly shown than on this occasion ; in the joy with which all the devout penitents joined in the ioumeTy tinging litanies as they went ; in the order wiiich tne wise director established throughout ; and in the hospi- tality afforded them by a holy and religious nobleman, the Baron de Cusey. It was a fair and lovely picture ef the antioue Catholic life, which in our own days, at places hke Fouvidres and La Salette, has been restored with such advantage and edification to the faithful. It is scarcely necessary to say that Fmncis applied himself with extraordinary diligence to all the duties of the secular priest, ministering ot the destitiste, preach- ^, and hearng confessions inoessuntly. We shall ia » Uter portion of this volume wdeavour to charaeter> ti kim kk tktM MjMcitiaei u thia pUoa wa ahatt I i mlj mentioB tn uiiiiiing aneedoto^ in which the old Bobleman, hii father, ezprested nil cpinion of tho modem itjle of preachings, which Francis de Salai WM amongp the nnt to introduce. Francis himael^ manj yean after, taid to the Bishop of Delley : ** 1 had the best father in the world ; but he had passed i rt part of his life at court and in military sendee^ manims of which he knew better than theology. Whilst I was nrovost, I preached on every occasion, af well in the cathedral as in the parish-churches, and even fai the humblest confraternities. I knew not how to refuse, so dear to me was that word of our Lord's^ Omni petenti H te tribtte — spve to every one that ■sketh thee (Luke vi. 30). My good father, hearing the bell ring for the sermon, asked who preached; they laid to him. Who should it be but your son ? One day he took me aside, and said to me: 'Provost, vou preach too often ; I hear even on working-days the Dell ring for the sermon ; and they always say to me, It if the provost, the provost. In my time it was not so ; Sredieations were much more rare; but also, what pre- ications they were I God knows they were learned well studied ; they spoke marvels ; they quoted more Latin and Greek in one of them than you do in ten; •very body was deli|>rhted and edified with them ; they ran to them in crowds ; you would have said thev were going to gather manna. Now-a-days you make thif exercise so common, that nobody regtirds it, and ther let no value on you.' Do you see (remarked Fmncish this good father spoke as he understood, and with all freedom; he spoke according to the maxims of tho world in which lie had been brought up: but the evan* Eelical maxims are altogether of another stamp; Jesus hrist, the mirror of {terfection and the model of preachers, did not use all tliese circumsipections, any more than the Apostles who followed His st€^)8. Be- lieve me, people can never preach enough : nun^uam tatit dieitur qttod nuni{uam iatis dutcitur; above ally •0ir-*-- pulation, that he remained but a short time, and re* tuiiied quite in despair of effecting any thing undei existing circumstances. Upon this the bishop, aftei some delav, called together an assembly of his clergy in the cathedral of Annecy, and asked their advice and assistance. His harangue, although recommended by his gentle piety and venerable old age, seemed likely to mil of resimnse. The clergy remained in moumiiU •ilenoe; mucu like the Israelites of old, terrihf^d by the iMtfiBaliiMi of tbt daoff en wluoh bdMt i m.] •r. FKAiroif Da ialh. into the promiBed land. A more disconrag^fi^ proroee< ^ indeed, it would have been difficult for them to oaTt pictured to their minds. A population which for liz^ years had been alienated from the faith ; amonsr whoa Calyinism was regularly estabUshed ; close to UeneT% the very head-quarters, " the Rome of heresy/' af Francis caUs it, and identifying its urofession of ueresy with the political independence oi which it had just been deprived. Every thing seemed agiiinst success; and the clergy might have thought that had St. John the Baptist risen from the dead, he had better have turned Lis supernatural energy to any undertaking for the glory of uod rather than to this. Ou? man there was m tliat assembly, the youthful provost of Geneva, who gave way to no such discouragements. Francis de S^es felt his whole soul enkindle at the pros})ect from which the othera shmnk, and oHered to lead the enterprise himself: he advised that the bishop should remain at home to help them, like another Mnses, by his prayers, and enter on the Held only when the har- vest was ready to be reaped ; for himiself, he asked foi no assistants at present but his cousin Louis de Sales. The bishop gladly granted his request. Others •eem to have considered it a Quixotic sort of enter prise; and Francis had to resist not only the advice aiM^ commands of his father, but the angiush which he v» hemently expressed on seeing his son engaged in whtt he believed an imprudent, aud ])erhaps even alarming enterprise, in whicu his life might at any moment be lacrinced to the fury of an heretical mob. Even to those of his friends who did not view the matter in thii light, one can easily imagine how the highly-boro ecclesiastic must have seemed to be ^' throwing himsell away" in going to evangelise the narrow-minded magis- trates and uncultivated ponulntion of a country-town and its vicinity ; among whom, as the result showed, M. de Boisy was quite right in anticipating his son'i life might be endangered. Notwithstanding all tmpo* litkni liowefer^ Fn»6ia and Louia de Siia^ on oepi h^ [ '■ 'M 1.1 i fl]|» (594, Mt out from Annacrf , lod proeeecM ibit ti the eoatean of Sales^ which la^ in their road. Here thej rt a few days, during which they had to encountef constant remonstrances of M. ae Boisy. In spite of all this vexatious opposition, thej made full prepara- tions for their great undertakinsp bj fasting, prayer, mortifications, and a general confession. On the even- ing of Sept Idth, Francis bade farewell to his mother, who, unlilce his father, said nothing to discourage her son from his heroic mission. They spent a large part of the night in prayer in the castle chai)el, and started early on their march next morning, toe Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. The^ travelled on foot, in apostolic fashion, imencumbered with any luggage that could be spared, and canying no books but the jBreviary, the Bible, and Bellarmine's Controversies. Francis ae Sales was dressed in somewhat secular attire, wearing his hair short, and his beard thick and bushy, in the fitfhion of the day. He found this gave him access where a more ecclesiastical garb would have alarmed people ; and he was not a man to sacrifice winning souls to the Church for any feeling on matters not of vital importance. They arrived at Allinges, a fortress on the frontiers of the Ohablais, by which the Duke of Savoy kept the whole duchy in submission. It was commanded by a brave captain, the Baron d'Hermance, an old mend of the house of Sales, who received the chival* rous missionaries with great kindness, in obedience both to the orders of the Duke of Savoy, and from a regard for M. de Boisy. He led his guests to the platform of the castle, and showed them the scene of their future labours. On every side of the beautifiil land ieap«> the Reformation had lefb traces of its baleful eonr^ over regions which were then fresh from the hands of the spoiler. Churches in ruins, crosses over- tomed, castles and villages laid waste,—- such were the dreary tokens of the sway of the enemy whom Franoie WM letting out to combat. At the aistance of time hndved jewi| the delioatt finger of time liai i&?«ta4 Itl.i •r. WMMMCm M lALMl Bonaftie ndm with a wnt of lentimental oharm, d leut to Jimdf wh^ l«ok only at the exterior. No nioh chum oonld poflnnbly have existed in 1604, whea penMiDf were sdll living who could recollect the time when those fair abbeys had resounded with the praises of the Lord, and the kneeling faithful worshipped afi ihoie crosses. The ruins were but the raw ana oleed- ing wounds of the Spouse of Christ. Francis could not restrain his tears at the sight, and broke out into some of those mournful exclamations with which the ancient prophets bewailed the ruins of the holy city. They then debated on the plan of'^action to be jnir* ined. The baron drew a discoimiging picture of^the population Francis de Sales was undertaking to con* ▼ert. Ther were good sort of people on the whole, but ftupid audi slow; of the class into whose head it if aqiudly hard to get an idea conveyed, or, once con* reyed, to drive it out again : their whole temporal in- terests too were involved, or they supposed them to be •0^ in keeping good friends with their neighbours oi Geneva; and they regarded their liberties as co-existent with the exercise of the Calvinist religion. The baron teoommended ihe missionaries to go warily to work, tad with the utmost caution. He gave them letters to the magistrates of the town; and the two mission* ■riiiii want forward on their arduous mission, unao* eompanied by any escort. He said that they coula oot safely skep m the town, but must return every aight to the castle ; that, for the present, they ougM oot to attempt more than preaching at Thonon, for it would be oseless to say Mass there; and he recom- mended them to say it either in the castle chapel, or at Harin, a place still Catholic, on the other side of the river Drance, or in an old chapel of the monks of St Bcnard on Uie borders of the lake. On arrivmg at Thonon, they found, on inquiiy^ that there were out seven Catholic familifs in the place^ Anonntmg to not more than fourteen or fifteen soula IImit aiieaiblid tlmi tflOTthwi and Fnnoii MLdzmid 1; 'i Mi it !/?' ■ Hi^ V u J "i y V tr. Fiuirois in fiuik Aim with boly exhortations, umoimoing IiimMlf ti tlMir pastor ; and inviting them in future to assemhlt at the church of St. Hippolytu&, which had been d** dared common for the service of both reUgions. TL0J then presented their letters to the magistrates, and in the evening returned to AlUnges. They returned nait day, and so continued ; preaching daily either in the town or the neighbouring villages, whither they went always on foot, and stan in hand, like the disciples of our Lord. It does not Rp|iear that at first they had to contend with more tlian complete indifference on the part of the Protestant inhabitants of Thonon. It was, mdeed, reported that the ministers of Geneva were cla- mounng to have the missionaries whipf>ed out of the town ; but it is not likely any thing ot the kind would have been thought of by the fieople of Tlionon, with the castle of A Hinges at the distance of only six miles. On several occasions, however, it is certain that Francis was in imminent danger of assassination. On Jan. 8 1695, a fanatic (who afterwards was converted to the fiuth) made three unsuccessful attempts to shoot him and afterwards |X)8ted other assassins in various placet ;o intercept him, from whose hands he miraculously reaped. Similar attempts we shall have to record brtuer on. At present, and long afterwards, the holy mission- vies had much anxiety for want of money. M. de Boisy, angry at what he considered his sod's pertina^ lity in going on with the mission, would not assist diem; and it was only by stealth Madame de Boisy X>uld send them supplies. Francis thought of learuing A trade, Hke St. Paul, but goodhumouredly said he was ioo dull to make any thing, except mend his clothes % httle. Of the isolation in which they Uved, Francis ^ves us an idea, by playfully comparing a Catholio ^ady of Thonon, connected with his own family, 10 Ra- !kabf except so far as regarded her character. Lilrt ftahsb, she sheltered the spies of tlie oeoule of the iMK M \hM midft of a waole dtw tuA ^ I. in.] tT. WmAHCiS Torn fALIt. Thwj Bade litde projj^ress in gBining^ the etr of tht people by their sermons. In a letter written in the fpnng or 1505, after he had been for seven months fesidinff in Thonon itself, he says that he had preached Knerally every festival, and very often on week-days, t only three or four Hup^enots on four or five occa- sions had attended his sermons ; that it was wonderftd to see the hold which tem|)oraI interest had on theii minds,— an evil which seemed to admit of no remedy ; for talk to them of hell, and thev sheltered themselves under the mercy of Ood ; and if fiiither pressed, took themselves off at once. In short, they were cold, timid and imnincticahle. Notwithstanding' all this, whilil at Aliinffes he walked regularly every day to Thonon and back again, two long leagues, in the severest wea- ther, just as punctually as if he had the most flou- risliing mission on his hands tiiat ever rewarded the toils of a Catholic pnest. If we miglit be allowed to illustrate religion from politics, and to compare indivi- duals the most dissimilar it is possible to imagine, wo are reminded of O'ConnelFs persisting in holding hii meetings; gravely moving and seconding resolutions, and hffving reimrts drawn up for tlie papers, wiien only two or three stragpflers were present. He knew weU enough that he had resources in himself, and that a party would be sure to grow with his energy and per^ severance. So he surveyed the half-empty hall with the utmost cheerfiilness, till in a fnw years lie was able to cover whole miles of the country with multitudei from every nuarter. ' Ulie metliod of controversr adopted by Francis de Sales rested on a few prio. pies which, in these days, it is well to recal. One was, to avoid ail abusive terms of the heretics or their doctrine. To use his own meta- phor, he concealed the lancet in wool, and inflicted the salutary wound almost before the application of the instrument was felt Another was, that he persuaded those with whom he discussed to admit this very rea> iDBftbU pnlimiaary,-— (hat tho d«bat« ihould tiinL, aol »•> M •T. FKANOIt Dl lALM. on thingff they themselves allowed to be moiffcrent, mr onljr on points really essential ; and such as alone cruld justify their separation from the Catholic Church, sup- posing their view to be right. He further demanded two other conditions, which were emially fair, viz. that they should not accuse Catholics for supposed conse* Quences from doctrines, when these consenuences wero oisavowed by the Catholics themselves ; ana lastly, that the authorities referred to for Catholic doctiine should not be any private authors, but simply the recognised tfixt-books of the Catholic Church herself, the Cate- ehism and other formularies of the Council of Trent. No Protestant would venture to refuse these conditionsy if he cared to profess himself a fair disputant, or se- riously intended a controvei'sy for the sake of arriving at truth. He not only preached and conversed inces- ■antly, but wrote at every spare moment he could find, and caused his papers to oe distributed every week •mong families, or posted up in the streets in the form of placards. These papers ne nerer lived to publish in % collected form ; though he intended to have based on Jhem a work on ** the method of converting heretioi by holy preaching." Writing to his friend the Arch- bishop ot Vienne, on this design, he observes: ** I would employ in it several meditations made during five vean in the Chablais, where I preached without other books than the Bible and those of the great Bellarmine.'* The Mss. were lost sight of for a Ion? time alter hii death, but were discovered, in 1658, oy Charles An* guste de Sales, in an old deal box in the ch&teau of lit Thuille, and were edited under the title of Contro* verses de 8. Franqois de Sales, They are divided into four parts, treating respectively of mimrnS; of the rale of faith, of the Sacraments, and of purgaicry ; ana though they have only reached us in an imperfect form, furnish a most interesting study to the popular contro- ▼ersiahst. Hiey are often characterised oy a certain archness, which is amusing, and which belongs to tho MtioBti tomporunont of 8aToy. On liis kaoinodft cf '• ii . III.] •T. 'mAWOIt BB lALM. 8D Chflir temperament, and consequent srmpatlij with the people among whom he laboured, Francis appean to have relied much. He twice alludes to it m tht Ereface to the Cantroverses. " Its method and style/ e remarks, " will not displease you, for it is altogethei Savoyard ;" and again, very beautifully, " Although you may have seen several books better made and oetter adorned, let your attention rest a little on this, which will, perhaps, be more agreeable to yo^ir humour than the others : tor it is altogether Savoyard ; and one of the most salutary receipts and latest remedies is th§ -§tum to on^s native air. Still, with all his gentleness, he knew the import- ance of using at times a little parade and display of the strength of the Catholic argument. Thus, at a later period of his mission, when the ministers flinched from meeting him in controversy, he writes to Favre ' ** I promised that in my next sermon I would demon ftrate the dogma from the Scriptures more clearN than the light of noon-day; ana would maintain .i with such a weight of reasoning, that not one of my ipponents shall be ignorant that he has been blinded oy the thickest darkness, unless he has bid farewell to humanity and reason. They rightly perceive that bj these rhodomontade propositions they and their under- •tandings are challen^ea to the combat, at the risk, if they do not come, oi being thought utter cowards for drmdinff the onset of any Catholic, of however small account?' But "we are anticipating triumphs, of which there was for many a weary monw no visible indica- tion. Francis kept making his dally pilgrimages to Thonon, notwithstanding great suffering from the cold of an Alpine winter. Kemarkable occurrences are re- corded, which showed his fortitude and trust in Diviv Providence. On one occasion, when the missionaries l\\\^ delayed their departure from the little town till near nightfall, thejr lost their way in returning to AUinflpei, and were denied admittance at every door of a Pro- iMtanft yil^pt tluroii((h wUdi Umj fumd^ tht peoplt fl '!i; i' Id ft. FSAvon db saiMi luiTing ft raperstitioivi dread of them inAued into iMr minds bj the minf^ten, who gave out that the Cft- tholie miwionariei were eorceren, and had dealingi with the devil. They only escaped beings in all pro- bability frozen to death, by fortunately finding shelter In the Tillage bakehouse, the oven of which was still warm. On another occasion, just as they were goinr out of the gates, a Huguenot, who had been struoK with the contrast between the a{K>8tolic patience and gentleness of Francis, and the conduct of the minister! of his own sect, enti'eated to have a talk with him. Francis could not refuse, though there awaited him the dangerous journey through the forest to be traversed by night. The result of the conversation is not known; but the biographers of the Saint give a most picturesque description of his return by night to AUinges, accom- panied only by his cousin and a servant. Tliey lost their way m the thick darkness ; the howling of wolves and bears it heard all around ; the travellers at length| the moon breaking forth, see a large ruined building at ft distance, which proves to be one of the many ancient churches which tue Calvinists had overthrown. The missionaries take refuge in it; and whilst his com- panions slept, Francis, Kke another Jeremias, poured rorth his lamentations on the desecrated temple. What makes one more admire this heroic endurance is, that he had at the same time so hard a fight with the opposi- tion of friends. }Iis father used ^1 his entreaties and authority to make Francis resign what he considered a hopeless and dangerous undertaking, in which at best he was throwing himself away; and ror a moment he evim induced the Uisho]) of Geneva to consent to recal him. Antoine Favre visited Thonon to see how he got on ; and on his return writes a letter, in which Le hints to Francis that, notwithstanding ^lie extraordinary admiration en- tertained for his cliaruoter, there was a general notion be was casting pearls before swine. About this time Francis wrote a noble letter to Favre, in which, after lilliBf him thai tht Iftftdimg mtaau, not traftJi^ (Mr i M '«■. IIL] M*. WtLAMCU 01 lALM. & bdiTidual resolution to ayoid him, hid bound them- •elves by a mutual engagement never to hear Catholie lennons, be adds, ** I believe I see the object of theM wretched men : they want in a manner to compel us to go away, by aestroyiug all hu]>e of doing any thing : but wti, on the other hand, 80 long as the treaty and the wiU of the ecclesiastical and secular princes shall permit, have wholly and most resolutely determined to apply to the work, to leave not a stone unturned, to en- treat, to rebuke, in all the ])atience and devotion God has given us. But in my opinion, if we are to fight in this arena, we must have, not preaching only, but the Htcrifice of the Moss as soon as possible, that the enemy day feel that he is not so much abatmg as increasing •ur courage by his arts; but I see that gi mi prudflnoe is requirel in that maitor/* If •V. VSAWOII Dl lALl I Si I ft, V > .ui ■! I ii I CHAPTEB IT. •SABVAL OBlirOI IK TBI STATB OV AWWXnt, AVC WAft ooxTsasioii or tiu obablais. Mant months passed with as little encouragement at «Ter. At leng^ a turn took place in the state of affairs; and at first, as often happens, in an indirect manner. Tha garrison at Allinges haa oeen remarkable for its excessei^ especially in blasphemy, drunkenness, and duelling. Francis made the reformation of these poor soldiers his by-work in the midst of his grand undertaking of Thonon. AUinges, as we have seen, was his head- auarters, whither at first he returned every night after be labours of the day among the thanldess citizens. Tired out as he might be with preaching, arg^g, and walking so many miles, in all weathers, over mountain- .oads and through forests, he still heard the confessions df the soldiers; and ^;ained such an ascendency over them, that the whole garrison became changed, and irjstead of being the terror of the surrounding districts, was now its wonder and edification. A beautiful story is told of his method of dealing with these rugged hearts. One of the soldiers, who had been touch ->! by a sermon of the apostolic missionary, came and n^ade his confession to hmi in agonies of remorse. All the penance Francis SBve him was an '' Our Father" and a **■ Hail Mary.'' The penitent expressed his amazement ait what seemed to him extreme mdulfreoce. Francis in reply bade him trust in the mercy ci God, which was greater than all his iniquities, and said that he would bind himself with the surplus of his penance. The soldier was so struck by this angelic chanty, that a few weeks after he entered religion and became a Carthusian. We know of no more instructive instance of what all must often have ktif viii tht tttraotdinaiy geoAroiity of Um Catholif am. iT.j ST. rmANoit db salbs. m Ghoreh. In h«r there are no upbraidingi. The linner does penance, and the Precious Hlood washes away hia lini ; the simplicity )f the satisfaction leaving tJbe soul in a kind of tranquil amazement, and deeply imbued with the feeling that to sin af^n, when forgiveness haa been accorded with such lavish, such infinite love, M'ould ■dd to the stain of sin an element of new and stupendoua ingratitude. To retiun, however, to our chief subject. The change wrought by Francis on the garrison of Allinges, of course, was not long in producing its effect on the hearts of the people of Thonon; and though, even •fter this, Francis still had his patience tried for many months, nrom that time might be dated a new epoch in his mission. The next advantage gained was the conversion of an aged gentleman in the neighbourhood, whom Francis prevented fighting a duel, and in whom he effected a thorough alteration, not only of his mode of life, but of his whole character. This gentleman's house became lort of rendezvous for those who wished to hear abou« the Catholic religion ; and there Francis held regular eonferences, which soon began to have powerfiil effect. He had a particular gift in winning people by conversar tion, in whioh his persuasiveness arose, first, from that real sweetness and kindness of heart, whioh may be said to be almost irresistible ; and secondly, from an absence of any thing like empressement ; that is, he would never be over hasty or eager, nlways be ready patiently to hear what people had to .say, and quietly to wait the proper opportunitv for saying in his turn what wai nttmg ; and finally, he would never pursue an advan- tage too far, but knew liuw to leave off just at the righ^ mom«it. A man who had unrivalled charity, humibty, and confidence in God, would naturally show those cha- facteristics in conversation. The gentleness of his method of conducting contro- versy, and the unexpected manner in which he brought out atrongly principles which the Calvinists thought pMidiarlj th«r awn praptrtyy onaad gratt inriinM; 111 Id iT. nUHOIt 1» lALl 4 f;l A' I.'-, I I •T8B ts in onr daj Proteitants are astonished to find Thomas k Kempis or Rodriguez so ''' evangelical/' Plow eould one, brought up in " the darkness of popery/' naj more, who was moving heaven and earth to oring that supposed darkness again upon the Chablais, sprak so bMutiliillv of the mediation of Christ? Some tried to explain this, however, by supposing that Francis had improved his views by being so much with the Calvin- ists ; and others contended that he was disguising the real tenets of the Catholic Church. Francis put out a pamphlet on the subject of the conferences, in which was shown that what he taught was simply the doctrine of the Catechism of the Council of Trent^ and that no one would argue that the Council did not know what Catholic theology was. He conchuietl by challenging the ministers to a disputation either by writing or in public discussion. I'hey shrank, however, Irom accept* mg the challenge, and did not venture a rnply to nia pamphlet The fear with wliich he inspired them was made apparent soon after bv a conspii-acy to assassinate (he gentleman at whose house the conferences were held. His presence of mind and his gi'neitMity, how* ever, were such, that the matter only endetl in the con- version of the man who had intended to take his hfe: the Catholic movement again took a fresh impulse; and ^i»le came in crowds to hear Francis de Sales, in siiita of tue rage and the prohibitions of their ministers, 'lliey now nlotted to take the life of Fiiuicis himself; and •n July 18th, 1695, two assassins actually waylaid him in the forest, as he was returaing as usual to Alhnges, with a very few companions. Francis behaved like our Lord, when St. Peter drew his sword to d«»fend Him against the band of soldiers headed by the traitor. Ha forbade his attendants to use their weapons ; and ad- vancing towards the assassins, he said, ''^ My fiiAnds, you are mistaken. You surely would not act thus to- wards a man who, far from having offended you, would yield up his life for you wit\{ all his heart" lliis heroic MNB^J •IdaBMBOV mbdllid Um Mf ^^ BMA w^ M ni n •r. FBAirOIf OB lAUM. ■tttioiied «*Qi8elye8 there to murder him. T^uj ra- mained 8tu]ufied for an instant, and threw themselvet at his feet, protesting that for the future he should hava no servants more devoted to him than they. The holj missioner spoke kindly to them, and baoe them taka care how they fell in the way of the Baron d'Hermanoe^ who would not be so indulgent to them as he was. Soon after this Francis decided on removing^ to Thonon; the number of converts increasing* so fast required him to be continually on the spot, and he could no longer afford the time for his daily journeys. To reside in tha place was, however, still a great risk ; and the Baron d'lleimance urged him still to remain in the castle, ai n.en who had attempted to miu'der him by daylight on the road would be likely to find means of carrying theii evil purpose iLio effect if he lived among them by night as well as day. Francis, however, jtersisted, and wai received at Thonon by his C holic flock with great v>y. One of his biogitinhers thus descrfbes the moda o^life led by Francis ana his faithful |)eople : '* Nothing (he remarks) could be so like the early Church as the little church of Thonon ; the same charity for the brethren, the same zeal for the faith, an exactly similar purity of murals : for Francis made little account of a man's relintpushing his errors, if he did not change his life, — if grace did not su])eral)ound where sin had abounded; and the )>enediction which God had attached to his ministry went at once to enlighten the mind and to change the heait. But notliing so )N)weriully struck such heretics as were not entirely hardened, as to sea the way in which the poor and the sick were succoured. Francis used to employ all he had to live upon in this; so that afler having fed others, he was bimseli often reduced to suffer hunger: he kept continually loliciting his relations and fhends to help the pom fiiithfiil of tlie ChaMais. He often received sums con* •iderable in themselves, but which were trifling when measured by his charity. The CathoUcs seconded hi» ml to fuh an «sttitt tf to oontaU thomitLyat mtnij fT. FBANOIS DB lALM. widi what was neoessaiy; and a holy economy was to prevail among them, which had no other ohiect it ▼iew but the relief of the destitute." Qilarsollier's lAf of St, Frauds de Sales, book ii.) One is indeed re minded here of Catholic ways in times yery widely apart. The heathen said: '* See how these Ghristianff loTe one another!" In a beautifid chapter of the Trea Use on the Love of God, Francis relates how St. Paco- loiasy when yet a Pagan, received his first impulses of admiration for the faith by seeing the charity of the Christians in furnishing provisions for the distressed soldiers of Maxentius. In our own times, an exact ob server tells ns that the half-pagan population of Lon don are led to entertain a special respect for the Catholit religion from observing that poor CathoHcs in adversity are so often set on their legs again by the charity of their brethren. (Vide London Labour and the London Poor.) The malignity of conscious and wilftd heresy is, however, extraordinary. The jealousy and hatred of the ministers increased m proportion to the way which Francis was making among me people, and they once more idotted against his hfe. Late one night his house was Mset by a party of armed men ; the holy missioner, ac- cording to his custom, was at prayer, ana heard the clash of arms and the noise of voices talking in an under-tone - he just had time to conceal himseU^ when they forced open the door, and ransacked the house to lull him His hiding-place, however, seems to have been as weL chosen as some of those " priests' holes" they show is
I I'm li^ ' 1 {'! I -r!5. m their fiu^" to serve as the bitsis of disoQiiion with him. '' Toe business is now safe/' he triumphantly re* irks ; ** for they have begun to parley, and, as the pro- verb has it, will next come to suiTender." Hm est in tuto:jam enim ad cdlloquia descenduntf moXf ut ear pro- verhio, ad deditwttem venturi. A veij interesting reply om the Daron d'llermance to hold Vie disfiutation; but th^y alleged fuither idle excuses, and qTiitted the town without daring to face their formidania opponent. Two great and leading conversions followed ■oon after ; one of them, that of an advocate of distino" tay uuDid Ponoati tha oUmt, tbt •hof^iiainirf hum . IT.J •T. rSAllOIt SB tJLLWM. W d'AfuIlj, wlio Iwcame moet ^iseful to Franeie by bit aid •nd suf^^tions in carrying on the work of catholioisinff the province. Francis considered this conversion of sucS great importance, that he made a special commemo- ration of it once a year, on the 4th October, as long ai be hved. In the present day, when Protestants are so fond of adopting the system of passing over in silence most convincing treatises on the Catholic side, of ** ig- noring*' them, as the ])hra8e is, it is interesting to oo* ■erve that the Swiss Calvinists in Francis de Sales' time used precisely the same stratagem towards him ; imitating tlie silly bird ir the fable, who, so long as it bides its head li'om the i wler, thinks that its body is lecure. A controversial ^uper, written by Francis at D'Avully's request before his convei'sion. was sent to the ministers of Berne and Geneva, ana met with no ■ort of notice. Such a mode of procpeding of course only tended the more to o])en D'AvuIIy's eyes to the weakness of the Calvinistic bei'esy, and to the strength of the Catholic argument, from which tliey could only take refiige in stupid inaction. One instance, indeed, occr:n*ed, which showed that had they entei-ed into either controversy or discussion, the result would have been the same. D'Avuily pi-suaded Francis to call on La Faye, a celebrated minister at Geneva, with whom he baa a long conference at his own house. As in many such debates, the minister kent continually shifting bis ground when pressed on one point, immediately flying to some other objection, and ending in a torrcn:. M the most outrageous invectives, which Fi-uncis bore with his usual serenity. Conversions now began to be numerous, and the snccess of Francis's mission l)ecanie the object of gene- ral interest and applause. Poi)e Clement VIII. him* self wrote to ex])ress his approbation of the zeal and diligence which Francis hud shown ; and the Duke of Savoy oi-dered him to crime to Turin to advise with him on the means of completing tJie great work which WW 10 bappilj hmiiUL It waa to L« azpeotfld aoat i> r.'t ;;t i m M 0T. FBAWOn DB lALIS. wool J ooeur in the midst of such a eareer of fiie- ' d there happened one of a kind particularly tryinf j ^ character like that of Francis. Just when lie hiuu received his order from the Duke, a hrief, dated October 1, 1596, arrived from Pope Clement VIII., in which his HoUness intimated to Francis de Sales, that he had commissioned a Capuchin friar. Father Esprit de Baume, to acquaint him with a great design which he desired him to undertake. This was no other than to attempt the conversion of the celebrated hei-esiarcb Beza, wh^ resided at Geneva, as the successor of Calviii, and chief of his sect. Beza was now verv old; and the Holy Father probably thouopht that Fiancis's unrivalled powers of persuasion, combined with that tenderness towards early recollections which Beza mig'ht be ex- pected to have (for he had been a Catholic till long past his early youth), would be not unlikely to work a change. At a distance, the undertaking* seemed invit- ing' ; but had his Holiness been on the spot, he woula have perceived that the time was not yet arrived fo* Francis to turn his attention to any thing but carrying* on the vast work he had in hana. It was the most critical moment in the conversion of the province; it was very doubtfrd whether the Duke could be induced Vrmally to establish the Catholic reliction in the pro- lince; and if this op{)ortunity were lost, the chance might never occur affain. Beza, though a neat man, was but an individual ; and the salvation of thousands depended on the decision of the Duke. Francis saw very distinctly that, although in appearance obedi- tnce prompted him to go to Geneva, liis real duty, which ^he Holy Father himself would have enjoined had he been present and known the facts, was t? pro eeed with the mission before him. He was in the pa«d- tionof an officer at a distance frt)m his general, reoeiy- fflg orders which the general himself would reverse if he were at hand ; he therefore boldly took the respon- •ibility of acting ain<^ in such a position, it would have been into]era)>le if a handhd of fanatics had been al- lowed to check the Catholic tendencies of the bulk of the Dopulation, ur to restrain them in the fi'ee exercise of ttiut religion which had been forcibly dispossessed of its ancient rights httle more than half a century before. Fmncis retiuned to llionon, and after ordering prayei's for the good success of the arduous undertak- mgy took measures for the opening of the church of St. Hi))i)olytus at the approaching Christmas of 1590. llie annoinicement was the signal for an alarming sedi- tion, which was favoured by the magistrates themselves. The Calvinists closed the gates, to prevent assistance coming to the Catholics fi'om the country, surrounded tlie church of St. Hippolytus, and thraatened to bum Fmncis de Sales alive m the midst of the town. The Carbolics, on their part, put themselves in a state of defence, occupied various strong points, and placed a piiard at the house of their beloved apostle. The crowd having dispersed at nightfall, Francis at once sent work* men into the church. Disturbances agam broke out b the morning ; and the two parties were on the point ol coming to blows, when Francis, with that serene couragt for which he was so remnrkabb came between, and aildressed the Calvinists in a firm but conciliators fipeeoh; assuring them that it was no part of the Didce • plan to deprive them of the liberty of conscience they injojed, but thtl hi vai ditennimd th« Oatholir .ill; ¥.. ) ■ i: W- |l 'v *• i ■ it! ^' ! * ifflt f I'' V •i I I- i / ■" 1' i ' i-^ ■■ '■ ? ■■ 1' i i 1 ' ".' ji. IV IT. nUKcit Dl lALM. •honld at leait have one ohuroh in whieh to ttiatHm their leligim, and tbut he was merely putting the C»> iholios in possession ot i»hat had been their own foi many centuries. The CHlvinists hesitated ji dnd at leogfth %gree4 to a compromise, by which Francis was allowed to p-Qcee(L pendms^ an ap})eal from both parties to the Dv^e. Havingp tnus made good his footing in the church) Francis worked with inconceivable dihgence to get it ready, so as to celebrate Christmas with all the splendour possible under the circumstances. He effected tnis great triumph ; all the Catholics from the neigh- bouring country poured in to witness the sacred mva- leries, which had for neaily two generations been oa- nished from the desecrated temples; eight hundred people received holy communion from his hands ; and m tne course of the octave, the inhabitants of three tU- lages came en mcuae to abjure their heresy in his hands. The little spark he had been fanning so long was now indeed kindling into a flame ; the harvest of conversions was now so abundant he could hardly gather it in ; and the amoimt of labour in '' sick-calls" became propor- tionately ffreat, as Thonon and the rest of the provmoe were ^raaually becoming Catholic, and no priests to attend to them but Francis, his brother, and a very few assistants. He preached, he taught, he conversed, he traversed the district incessantly, dischargmff even the duties of legal adviser and physician as weD as priest to his poor people, for whicn nis education at Fadut had made mm highly con^petent. The day was nut sufficient for his toils: for he preferred to carry the Blessed Sacrament to the sick by night, lest the heretios ihould insult It in the day-time, and so compel him to have recourse to secular assistance, which he was always K> anxious to use as Httio as possible. He lay down for but a short time, most frequently in his clothes, and ^mt the rest of the night in prayer, or in preparing tus instructions for the next day. Work like this told apoo his constitut'on in the end. In one of his letters m nmukBf that joung people an apt to think tlufy CH. IT.] ST. VllNOIl SB SALIft. §. mn bear long^ watches, but that they suffer fo? them tf a later period ; aud he will not allow his penitenu t» lit up to meditate. Wlien, however, he knew the ser* Tioe of God retjuired it, he waa not the man to span himself. " It !s not necessary," he said, ** for me t live ; but it is necessary for the Church to be served.*' The following year, 1697, another fiehi was opened for his zeal and prudence, similar to that which he had worked so well m the earl^ days of his mission in the castle of A I lingoes. A re^ment commande cepts which Francis gave them, especially relating t| temptations that they should guai'd against hereuter. tliat, at their entreaty, he nut them into writing, ana added a set of rules tor a (Jhristian life adapted to ti^ military state. It would be most interestmg if thif were still to be found among* his writings. Matters were now so far settled at Thonon, that Francis thought himself able to undertake the tasi assigned to lum by the Holy Father, luid endeavour ti convert the great heresiarch of Geneva. It waf> adiffi* cult business even to get access to him ; for Be«a wa» then an old man, and his house 'k as daily so throngeir' by his adherents, that it was hardly possible to hav» an interview with him without attractmg observation Francis, however, resolved to make the attempt, an« prejiared for it, as he did for all arduous offices, by much fasSng and prayer, and by writing to his Bishop and chapter, and to all virtuous persons he knew who wer« fit to bt intanftod with the eeoreti to aik theii IB tr. vmAiroit di ialh. pmjen for the htppy terminatioii of the entarprii^ After several ineffectual attempts, he succeeded in ob- taining an interview with Beza on Easter Tuesdaji 1597. The old man received him with much courtesy ; and was ^atly agitated during a part of the confer^ ence, particularly when Francis pressed upon him tiie miestion whether it was possible to be saved in the Ca- tnolic Church; which Beza, after a severe stnigpgle with himself, was obliged to admit, notwithstanding the ob- vious consequence that the Protestant schism was inde- fensible. 1 hey had two other intemews, in the last ol which Beza showed himself much softened, having had a remarkable dream, in which it appeared to him ne was brought to the judgment-seat or God, and that he ob- tained a respite for penance by the intercession of the Blessed Vu-gin. He also was deeply grateful for the prayers which the venerable Bishop of Geneva had for years offered up on his behalf. But the iron fetters in which his position held him were too strong to be broken by tliese last impressions of grace. The here- siarch, whom a saint had laboured to convert, diea as Ve had lived, an alien to the true fold. During this year, an act of extreme cruelty and injustice on the part of the Protestante contributed to streng^lien the cause of Francis. A poor minister of *Jie name of Galletin, ashamed of the shuffling of his orethren when challenged by Francis to meet him at Geneva, came to Thonon himself, and held many con- ferences with the Saint, which ended in his conviction of the truths of Catholicity, though not in his couvei- non. He had admitted, nowever, too much to be for- given by his co-religionists, who, on his return to Berne, as it is generally stated by the historians, procured his condemnation to death. Francis de Sales now had three energetic assistant! sent him by his bishop ; two of them Capuchins, Father Chenibin of Maimenne, and Father Esprit de Baume, ppjviously mentioned, and a Jesuit from Chamb^rT| ahmed Saunier. With theie eoclejiiitici andhii ooom ! U 9tL IT.] ST. FBANCIf !»■ SALBt. 6ft Louif de Sales, he held a council, to deliberate on hit plan of action, at Anneaiasio, a place on the Lake of Ueneva, about eighteen iiiilon from Thonon, which had always remamed faithful to Catholicity. Here, in Sep- tember of the same year, 1597, he celebrated a solemn Quarant' Ore, to which no fewer than 30,000 peo) > ; resorted fi'om all the vicicity. Francis himself, m sur- plice and stole, accompanied a grand procession, in which they caiiied the cnicihx fro li Thonon to Aime- masse, sin^ng litanies and hymns as they marched, and being joined at each yillage by fresh bands of con- verts. On this occasion he restored ua ancie:^t cross on the high-road from Annemasse to Geneva, which 7 ^d been overthrown by the heretics, and attached t<» i^ • •arolli with the following verses written by Hinuelii'* ** Ce n'est la pierre ni le bois Sue le Catnuiiciae adore i ait le Roi aui, mort en oroix, De ton sang la croix honor*." It may be interesting to mention, that among ikm means he used to attract the feelings of a simple azid onlettered population, was that of the old mystery- plays. He made his cousin the Canon de Sales and nis brother Louis compose a dramatic ])iece of this kind on the sacrifice of Aoraham ; and when it was acted, ae himself took the part of iha B*>emal Father. This, of course, would strike Protestu .'bS as irreverent; but it is an accusation they ought to be slow to bring against Francis de Sales. He deubtless felt in this, as in every thing he uttered, that he was speaking for God's greater glory, and to do Him service. In the oegimiing of 1598 the Jesuits were esta- blished at Thonon, and all went on with the utmost activity. During a short internal, when Francis was absent at the casUe of Sfkles iL eonsequonce of an attack of fever, the ministers ventured on holding a confer- ence with the Catholic clergy he left at Thonon; but mi his ratom, disgraotfullj shrank from i*ft"t*«*iiiT*g tha 1 1 M •T. nUMCIt DB fALIi. 4 1 si I! ''i I1 if 't i ■ . ■ ( . i hi disputations. The treaty of Veryins, ratified on Mai 2d of this year, by which the possession of the Chablav and the bailiwick of Tcmier were ceded by France tc Savoy, constitutes un c> och which brinf^ us nearly t( the close of this great act in the career of Francis As this treaty removed all fearb of these provinces fall- inp^ into the hands of the Protestants of Beme, the Bishop determined to celebrate a Quarant' Ore at Tho- non by way of thankspvin^. After several delays, this solemnity was celebrated with sreat rejoicing on September 2(rth; duiing ^he whole time it lasted, pro- eession after procession entered Thonon from the neigh- bouring villages, composed of converts who wished pub- licly to renounce their heresy, and be received into the Catholic Church. Conversions on such a scale had probably never been witnessed since the miracles of Pentecost. Pontifical Mass was celebrated by the Bishop of Geneva in the choreh of St. Augustine, and the Blessed Sacrament wait iien carried in triumph tbrough the principal streets. On the first day there •rrivM successively bands of penitents from Taninge, Bellevauz, Bo^ge, St. Cergues, Fessy, and Perrigny, dad in white, and most or them seeking to be recon eiled to the Church. On the following day came similar processions from Cluses, Sallanches, and the mountain- districts of Faucigny ; then a procession from Bonne- fille: *.hen a procession of the nobili^ of the Chablaii^ ■notiier from Evian, and, lastly, one from Temier. On September SOth, the Duke of Savoy and tht Cardinal ae Media (afterwards Pope Leo Xl.), who had been the chief negotiator m the treaty of Vervins, •rrived m Thonon ; and the Quarant' Ore was solemnly fenewed on October 1st, in the church of St. Augus- tbe, the duke and cardinal, with all the nobles of the Wurt, assisting at the ceremonies, which were conducted with extraordinary splendour. There were processions 9t the Blessed Sacrament through the streets, which wera riohly adorned with tapestry and Terdure; and •wisof mihlmnitiial azhiVtoBi. m tht i^la of Urn .0 d If b d I CB. XT.] fT. nuncu db salss 81 tff«y were rot r p tc express the popular sense of thanlci- Svin{^. Himlreds oi people kept flocking to make eir abjuraticn; and the Quarant Ore terminated with ihe inaug^uration of a cruciAx in a street called, in Ca- tholic times, " Cross Street," from a remarkable crucifix which had been overthrown by the heretics. Francia de Sales preached the sermon on this joyful occasion: and thenceforward the Chablais might oe conridered once more, what it has continued ever since, a Catholio eountry. The very few heretics who remained either yielded to the very moderate and reasonable exercise of the civil power, which at last the Duke thought it his duty to put forth, and which simply amounted to the establishment of Catholicity as the state religion, to the exclusion of Protestantism; or else sought refuge ir the more congenial atmosphere of Berne and Genevi^ The spiritual conquests acliieved by Francis, in the con- ▼ersions we have recorded, were commonly reckoned tc •mount to 72,000 souls. The holy missioner now retired to take rest for • •hort time at the castle of Sales. His father had Ions ■ince acquiesced in his son's heroic undertaking, and the castle had become a general refuge for those of tht converts of Francis who were thrown upon the world Whilst he was on this visit, the venerable Bishop o! Geneva earnestly pressed him to accept the coadjutor* ihip, which he had long destined for him. Francis, like most of the saints who have been called to the episcopal dignity, long resisted ; and it was only after rehement entreaties on the part of the bishop, hii dergy, and all his friends, that he at last perceived it was the will of Almighty God he should midertake this dreaded responsibility. Shortly tf»r this, he fell sick of a fever, from wmch, after nis life for a time was despaired )f, he wonderfully recovered. During part of this iUness he was afflicted with terrible temptations against the faith; especially with a particular omectioa against the Real Plresenoe of Jesus Corist in the Blessed flaavamanL th^ fflhitily to which ha did O0t find osl |?i'-i^ di mr m ?•> m i». nuiroit tm ULmk dl after bu raooTory. This temptation he at the •vercame by frequent acts of faith, invocation of th« Holy Name of Jesus, and the use of the sign of the Cross. He always revised to tell any one what this temptation was, except his cousin Louis de Sales, under a promise of secrecy, — fearing lest weaker minds might pMoeiye ^iie difficulty more readily than thay could ita ■ H 'i t.l •t. f lUHOM hU tALtii OHAPTEB T AVKoumom or vbahois db iaum to nu ooapjiiiimi hi «r OSmTA— HU VISIT TO Bom. On hit recoyery, Francis de Sales started for Rome, in Feb. 1609, alon^ with the Abb^ de Chiss^, nephew and ▼icar*general otthe Bishop of Geneva. Havii^p arrived at the Holy City, he visited with the utmost ardour of devotion most of its great sanctuaries ; and, in particu- lar, his visit to the catacombs was noticed as having filled him with extraordinaiy sentiments of charity and consolation. On one occasion, the Abb6 de Ghiss^ found him in the catacombs in such an ecstasy of prayer, that he scarcely perceived what was passing or who addressed him; he was shedding tears so proiuselyi that for a moment his iriend thou&ht that he must have had some bad tidings from home. This deep emotion in visiting the catacombs constitutes a remark- able iK)int of simirarity between the spirit of St. Philip Neri and St. Francis de Sales. The holy founder of the Oratorians used to spend whole days in the cata- combs, in order to penetrate his whole soul with th« atmosphere of the primitive ages of the Church; and it was there that Francis learnt to become the very image of the life of the early bisliO])s and doctors. The visit to the catacombs which we have described was on the 13th of March; and it wa« on the following daj^ that Francis was fii-st presented to the Po})e by Cardi- nal de Medici, who, in introducing him, called him by the title of " the Apostle of tlio Clmblais." In this in- terview Francis presented to the Holy Father a great number of requ<)sts on the pait of his l)ishop, of which the most intei'esting was a ]ietition for the separation of the benefices of the Chablais from the military order •f fiCL MasriM and Lasarui. Ai tha tiinn mam Um W fT. VKAVOII DB SALIi, mtj >if Omera ezpelloci its Bishop, aud Calviiusni i flf^iftbliehed throug'hout the province, Gregory XI IL bad adopted a very bold but sagacious expeaient fof keeping the ChvLnih property out of the hands oi the Protestants; he ti^isi'erred it provisionally from the elei^ to the Knights of SS. Maurice and Lazarus: their energy and determination not bei*ig likely to jrield to the cupidity of the Protestants. They were to give np the pro{)erty, if ever the Catholic religion should be restored, ana meanwhile to pay the 8ti|)ends of the ■mall number of priests who were required for the di- minished Catholic po])ulation. The measure, in the end, was completely successiiil ; but for a time, as we •hall see, the selfish desire of the knights to detain the property after all reason for their provisional ten»u« r* it hod ceased, gave a great deal ot trouble. By other trticles in his petition, the Bishop asked leave to devote % portion of the tithes, offerings, and other revenues, to make up for the deficiencies in the stipends of the cur^ end to support a certain number of ecclesiastics, to bt called canons-theological, whose services in preaching would be especially necessary in a country like the Chablais, newly recovered from heresy. Various powerk of dispensation were asik.v'Ml for, in consideration of the great distance and poverty of the inhabitants. The most curious, however, of tne articles, to the eye of an •ntiauarian, is one in which the Bishop demand^ powor to aoolish the exaction of certam servitudes from the eubjects of the diocese, which appeared insulting and painful alike for a Chnstian bisuop to exact, and for Lie subjects to render. One of these was an old oue- tom by which the inhabitants on the bordera of the lake were obliged to keep watch to hinder the frM;i from croaking, and thereby disturbing tlie rest of toe prelate. This was a relio of the feudal simplicity of the middle ages, which the times of course nad long outgrown^ and which had become only an irritating ■ouxoe of annoyance and humiliation. Among otiur fwratkiM outome wm tlie right of tho Biibflp to kt i; m,r.] •T. rm^wotf D« tALM. 69 lole h«ir U* testators who died childlem. It wu the influence of Francit* which brought about the remoTtl of these and similar burdens. At another interview, the Abb6 de Chiss^ |ire- iented to the Holy Father the Bishop's demand that Francis should be Lis coadjutor, with the right of 8iio> cession. This was granted in the most cracious tertnf, and March the 22d was appointed for his examination. Francis, as usual at all great steps of his life, prepa.xd for this event by long meditations at the foot of the crucifix, by s})ending almost the whole night in prayeft and by saying Mas^^ for that intention. In his nnu prayers on this occasion he made the heroic petition to our Lord, that, supposing he would be a useless senrant in the episcopal omce, he might pass a bad examina- tion ana be overwhelmed with confiision. The exa- mination, indeed, was of a kind to appal any one not possessed of considerable firmness as well as learning. It was held in a hall of the pontifical |f/idace, in the presence of the Pojie, seated on his throne and sur- rounded by an august assembly of Cardinals, among whom were Frederic DoiTomeo, Baronius, Borghesa, and Medici. Bell&rmine was also present, and a number of less known but still important persons of the day. Such an effect had this grand sight upon a Spaniih prelate, who was to be examined on the same occasion, that he fainted, and was obliged to be taken out. The ntmost kindness was shown nim, and leaTe wai giveL for him to be consecrated without the usual exami- nation; but he actually expired within a few hours. Francis de Sales was examined by the Pope himself and by the other great theologians whom we have named. TKirty-five (j^uestions were put to him on Tan- ous subjects of the civil and canon law and of theology, only two of which have been preserved. The fint of these was asked by Bellaimine, and turned upon tha Formal cause of the beatitude of the Saints, ir regard to (rhioh Francis adopted the opinions of those who mam- Min that it bahnffi to tha iatallMi «ad tht wOl^ plMii^ I 1 ^1 ^jl^MMMMMMM* Mr ST. FftAHOIt DB lALBB. H in the ^ore of the superior good which is won, mA ia the Tision of the Superior Being Who is loved. The other, which was asked hy the Holy Fatheis reia^d to the powers of dis|tensation enjojea by Bishops, in which rraucis expressed a view which his Holineu Gorreoted, and which Fi-ancis at. once modestly with- drew. The highest admiration t^ is felt by all at the manner in whion he passed the exaraiitation; and at itf conclusion^ Clement VlII., descendir? irom his throne, embraced the holy bishop electa and BViid in a lour ▼oice ; BihefMi fn«, aqiuitn de cisteifid tud^ etjiamta fnitei tin ; tisriventur fontes tui joragj et in plateis aguat iuas dic^de (Pjot. ▼. 16, 16). " Drink, my son, water out j)f thv own cistern, and the streams of thy own well : let thy fountains oe conveyed abroad, and in the streets divide thy waters." The bulls appointing Francis de Sales Bishop of Nicopolis and coac^utor of Geneva were expedited on March 24tli ; and the Holy Father sanctioned all the arrangements proposed by the holy prelate with reference to the anaii-s of the diocese, and the reconstruction of the religious esta- blishment of the Chablais. In this case, therefore, the delay habitual to the conduct of business in Home was not extended very far ; though, indeed, Francis praised that slowness, not only as a proof of the wisdom of the Holy See, but as giving time to strangers to satisfy their devotion in the sanctuaries of the Holy City. Wliilst at Rome, Francis contracted intimate friend- ship with several of the great men then livin|!; there, such asBellarmine, Bai'onius, and Giovenali Ancma, the last* mentioned of whom afteiwards became Bishop of Sa- hizzo in Piedmont, and was visited thei-e by Fiuncis. Ancina, like Bnronius, was among the most eminent dis- ciples of St. Philip Neri; and from them Francis imbibed much oi the spint of the Oratory, which he calls in his letterSf preeclarum viuenili modttm. He left Rome on March 31st, and returned to Piedmont, takmg Loretto in his way, where he ^ain paid deep and ardent homafft IP tin Biassad Yirgm in tha Hdj Housa of Ifaiara^ OB. T.J IT. VRANOIS Dl lALIt. fl where her most favoured children have reoeited lo man} rraces, and offered up so many tows. He also Tisited Milan, where he obtiuned the " life" of St. Charles Bor- romeo, to whom he always had a great devotion, and by whose example he very much ffuided himself. On arriving at Annecy, the first affair he had to transact was the difficult and thorny undertaking oi transferring the Church-propei'ty of the Chahluis and the adjoining bailiwicks n-om the knights of SS. Laza- rus and Maurice to its original destination. Though the fact tliat these districts were now almost entirely converted to the Catholic faith was patent and undem- able, and cense(]uently no excuse could be offered for maintaining wiitit ti'om the firat was only a pravisional state of things, yet the knights pertinaciously insisted that they j)rovided yearly payment for a sufficient num- ber of priests; when it was evident that the Catholic population required far more than they allowed. In the spirit of a mere corporation, they offered the most vexatious opposition; and no less than two years elapsed before even the unwearied patience and wonderful tact of Francis de Sales were able to carry out the arrange- ments, for which he had obtained the sanction both of the Holy See and of the government of Savoy. Another favourite scheme he had devised was, to remove the seat of the bishopric from Annecy to Tho- Qon; a change which would nrobabl^ have had a great effect in strengthening the raith of the newly-revived population. So many difficulties, however, attended the cari'ying out of this idea, that he was obliged to give it up. He succeeded, however, in founding a very remai'k- aole institution, which he had meditated for a long time^ and the plan of which he had placed before the Holy See in his visit to Rome. This was an establishment, which, under the name of the " Holy House," was in- tended to assist those of the converts in the Chablaii whose reconciUation to the Church had placed them in temporal difficulties, as well as for other purpoMt whioh «• ihall pNMiitly OMorib* m. ■v. fiAvon Di lAim CHAPTIB YL iM wwnmATum ov ** thb holt Hocn"— tuit to faiis. It is obyioTis that when such a number of converrioni had been effected in the manner we have related, casei of great individual suffering must often have occurred. Had the whole population oeen simultaneously recon- ciled to the Church, matters would, of course, havt gme on after the conversions as they did befora ut the movement, although ultimately taking in the entire people, was, as we have seen, a very gradual i^bir, extending over a number of years. ConvertS| hereiore, from time to time were tlm)wn out of em- [doyment, and families broken up ; so that an amount of distress was commonly witnessed of a similar kind to what has taken place in England during the last ten years. Francis de Sales assisted the poor eon- rerts to the utmost of his power, and was in the habit ti raising money from his wealthier friends for the •ame purpose. The necessities, however, which were daily mcreasing, required some larger and more per- manent means of relief than private and occasional charity could supply. There was another reason also which made it very important that some means of em- ployment should be opened, adequate to provide for the oonverts, and in the city of Thonon itself. The con- tinual communication with Geneva, for the sake of traffic, service, and business in genei^l; was attenHrd with great danger to the faith of the pooi converts of Thonon. The lower classes resorted thither for mer- chandise, or to obtain places as servants, and the higher ranks of society (or education. The authorities ot Q«> neva, moreover, put a sort of premium on apostasy, bgr holding ovt every kind of civii advantage at tot OB. n.J VI. FR41fOIl Ol lAbSa* flt rawtrd of abjuring^ the Catholic religion. On the oiher hantli the peraeoution to which those inhabitants of Q*> odva were aubjectod who embraced Catholicitjr, droTt many into ezue, or plunged them into the depths of poverty. It was therefore desirable, as far as possible. to break the connection between the newly-redaimoa Srovinees and those head-(}uarters of hos^^tj to tht athoUo Church, by providing for the new converts tlie means of livehhood at home. Lastly, it was now an object of the most pressing importance, to educate olergr for the spiritual provision of the thousands gathered indeed into the fold, but who were without any thing like a sufficient staff of pastors to take care of ^em. The number brought over by Francis and his three or four assistants required a large body of clergy through- out the province ; and this, even wnen the difficult of endowments was overcome, could not be supplied nn- laii an extensive seminary were created. Tne institn* tion which Francis de Sales founaed to meet this pur- pose has been comparatively lost sight of in the lustra of the great religious order with which his name is associatM. It was, nevertheless, one of the most in- teresting kind, and fiill of hints which may be studied Irith graat advantage in our own times. "The Holy House," which name he probably ■§- siffned to it from a devout remembrance ofthe joy with which he bad virited the hallowed shrine of lioretto^ was a sort of combination ofthe universi^, the religious oongregation, and the mechanics' guild. As a umver- sity, it was to supply the means of education which had been sought for at Geneva; as a religious congrega- tion, it was to train up a body of priests qualified xoi eanying on the great missionary work which he had begun ; and as a mechanics' g^iild, it was not only to teach various trades to those who might be out of em- ployment, but also to furnish a market for their laboum In this respect, the idea of it reminds us of one of tna most interesting ofthe numerous institutions ofCathdie Fs«Boa at tha praM&t day,— wa alluda to the (Bmr$ di ,'l ift -■: 'K 1 ■0 ! ;; M ST. nUNOM OB fALIIb S, Nicola* at Paris, where poor bojs are taught handi< eraft trades; and with sucu sunc698, that the institute itself is not only self-supporting, hut is effeoting won« ders for the amelioration of what are called the dan gerous classes. The }loly House, moreover, was it speneral to furnish a refuge for those converts who mi^ht be thrown upon tlie world, till some permanent situation oould he found for them. It were much to be ing at the ringing of the Angelus. There were to ht two almoners charged with the distrihution of relief to the poor. The second department was devoted to preach- mg, tnd consisted or a certain number of Capuchin fhars, who were to go about and assist the secular clergy in that way. The educational department was at m«t placed under the care of the Jesuits ; afterwai'ds lay teacners held it for a time, but managed the busi- ness very indifferently. The Damabites were finally engaged for those duties, and in their hands the college prospered exceedingly. The remaining department of the college was devoted to the new converts, or to per- sons desurous of instruction. Here the poorest were taught trades and handicrafts, and put in the way of gaining their Uvelihood. Whilst Francis was thus engaged in the very thick of negotiation and practical labours, his pen was not idle. In the early part of the year 1600 he completed a g^reat controversial work, the Standard of the Holy CroUy in reply to a pamphlet, in which tfie Calvinist minister Lafaye had poured out abuse against the homage Catholics pay to the symbol of our redemption. The book is richly himished with authorities from the Sacred Scripture, from the fathers fu^d doctors, and is an excellent storehouse of arguments io* the Catiiolic reasoner; though less know^ curonfi! . TI.] •T, FRANOIf Dl BALU. I dreauTille; who received her first impressions in faTow of CathoUcity from a sermon preacU by Francis on the Last Judgment, without the introduction of any controversial matter at all. Henry IV. himself, one of the most sagacious observers of his time, was exceed- ingly struck with the holy prelate, and always snoks or him in terms of the utmost admiration. '^ M. de Gendve," said he, "is the very phoenix of prelates. The rest have almost always their weak side : m one it is learning, in another piety, in others birth ; whereas M. de Gendve unites all in the highest degree, both illustrious birth, and rai'e learning, and eminent piety." He pressed him to accept a bishopric in France, which ^*Vancis refused ; playfully observing, that he was already 4ian>ied to a poor wife, and must not forsake her for q licher one : he had taken the see of Geneva, distressed IS it was, for better and for worse. Such was the de- lire of the French king to secure him, that he repeated •he offer no less than five times, and in vain brought in the influence of others to induce Francis to accept it. Had he done so, effects mi^ht have followed that are little thought of. Henry J V. seiiouslv entertamed the idea of sending him into England, with the view of at- tempting the conversion of James I. ; and at a later period, when it was known that that monarch had be- stowed high praise on Francis' treatise On the Love of Ood^ and wished he could become acquainted with its author, the holy prelate eagerly cauffht at the prospect of his conversion, and would probably have taken the English mission, but for the Buke of oavoy^i refusal to allow of his departure. Tlie influence which Francis exercised on French society was, however, so great, that his six-months' visit to Paris left a greater impress on it than other men could have given in a lifetime. He became the friend and adviser of the persons most distinguished at ihat time for vrtue and religion; such as the Cardinal de B6ruUo, founder of the French oratory, Madame ^.Mrie (iiterwa^'l£> Siftter Mary of the Inoamatioii, w\m ^:L if) ^^ IT. FRAirOIS DB 8AL1S, was beatified by Pius VI.), the Duchess de Lonf^ttw'diB, the celebrated Arnaiild, and others of that stamp. It was at this period that several of those friendships wert formed, to which we ewe seme of the most beautiful and valuable portions of his correspondftnce ; such, for examule, as that remarkable letter he addressed, shortly after nis return, to the abbess of the Hotel Dieu, a con- vent m which the aristocratic spirit of the ag'e had allowed distinctions to creep in, to the niin of the mon- astic spirit of }K)veity ; and which he points out with unrivalled delicacy and kindiinss, and sug-g-ests the means for accoin})lishinp;' the diihcult undeitiikins' of a retui-n to the ancient rule. Jt will Ije perceived that we have mentioned .. uonjif his friends in the religiouf world of Paris one '"• two wlio afterwards unhappily became entung-led in ibe Jansenist party. We oug'ht, however, to recollect, that it was many years before their real character develop* d itself as they now stand in ecclesiastical history. Yet ilie instinct of Francis^ totally opposed as it always was to the least shadow of heresy, led him, lon^ before that fatal spirit had manifested itself, to reject the apjilication of Ang6Hqi4 AruHuld to be admitted into the order of the Visitation. Nothing: definite, beyond a certain pride that showed itself in her disposition, seems to have determined him U) this ; but it s}i<,«ved in a singular raanner the unerring judgment by which saints anticipate and repel evil b«- fore common eyes can detect it. In general society, too, a powerful effect was pitv daced by this short sojourn ot a s lint in a city wliich was then, as now, the voitex of dissipation, as well ai the centre of religicms acton. Many of those immersed in the pleasures of the world, dated fi-om his visit their return to the fear of God. With a patience that nothing could weary out, with a winning sweetneM that the hardest heart could not resist, he would watch hit opportunity to edge in a word just at the moment when it would be felt; never saying too much, or hMtrjwg OB •onl* £uter th«& Alnughtj Qod inVuiM V\i : I Si OH. TI.] fT. FRAHOIf DB flLU. n them to go. In short, the way in which he tnmed to ▼ast account a period of time which, to other men, would have been but a tedious parenthesis, and accom- plished a great by-work at intervals, when the work which brought hira to Paris cotild not be proceeded witli, is one of the most instructive }»as8affes m his ufrt. However, his original mission to Paris did receiva ad accomplishment in some degree. After much harasi* and delay, in the coui'se of which Francis de Sales wa» falsely accused of sharing in a pohtical conspiracy against Henry IV., but out of wliich affair his dignity and innocence oii)y appeared with the greater lustre, the French king ended by charging the iiaron de Luz, governor of Burgundy, to re-establish the exercise of the Cathohc religion throughout Oex, wherever there were a suiHcient number of Catholics ; only taking care to proceed gi*adually, so as to avoid giving alarm to the Protestants. He also formally took the ecclesiastics of those districts under his special patronage, and invited Francis de Sales to choose pastors for the re-consti- tuted parishes, whose pnidcnce and charity would quap lify them for the difficult jontion in which they would be placed. This was not all that had been asked : still it was something ; and Francis now decided to return into Savoy, especially as the failing health of the aged Bishop ot Gleneva m Je it necessary for him to hasten his coiisecration. The kind and noble old man, who, without any extraordinary ability, was a model of the patriarchal simpHcity of bishops of the apostolic days, died before his saintly coadjutor reached home. Some time previous to his death, which took place in Sep- tember 1602, he had the c^ nsolation of celebrating tat jubilee at Thonon, by whicii the luEiory of its convert sion was concluded and wound up with a sort of dcstacr^ of rejoicing and thanksgiving. Hundreds of thousancu of pilgrims of all ranks, m masses numbering one, twoi or even four thousands, each preceded with orooinz ami banner as they advanced, poured fiom all the ootintiy Nondy attkinf tiM AlpiM fiiliyi mimid wilk HhIi likiii; i 'm i: i\. '.■ i 'i ' ', tu ■V. FBAKOIt 91 IAL1 pfoof ehiDts. More thtn a hundred eonfetson were 0ng[aged continual] j at the tribunal of penance; and alto&'ether 62,000 communions were made in the church of Ihonon, where, but a few years betbre, it needed the heroic couraj^e of a saint to venture over from the for- tress of Alling-es to minister to a handful of Catholics, who tremblin«^Iy kept ahve the lamp of faith amidst the darkness of triumphant heresy. l)unnjr this joyful festival, the " Holy House" was canonically erected by the bishop, agreeably to the bulls granted oy the Pope, and united in pen)etuity to the cburch of St. HipjK)ly- tus, under the title of Our Lady of Compassion, under whose invocation he also placed the high altar. After the ceremony, he caused to be inscribed, in letters of gold, on the vaultinc^ of the church, those words which on no occasion could more appropriately havo been uttered : Oaiuie, Maria viraOf cunctas htereset sola interemuiti in uniuerso mnniio. Could a happier and holier termination be imagined for the lonr toils with which thia aged prelate, white with yean, iiad eant^ hii tfferlaftiag orowm f 11^ Ki' ;/ .yi^,- i «■ fa,J MP . VmA«0n BB lAUB. CHAPTER vn. ffSAMOn DB 8ALK8 AM BISHOP OV OBHBTA. Ill roini iinf^ homewards, Francis de Sales took th« Pays de Gex in his w^y, where he re-estabHshed five parishes ; one of them the town of Oex itself, where he placed as pastor Iiis cousin, Louis de Sales, who under- took ohe office without salary. He then retii'ed to astics, one for the management of affairSi and the oth^ to assist in the Divine Oifice; they must be plainly habited in the Roman dress, or in that of the pnests oi the seminary of Milan, being the least ex})en8ive. The remainder of the establishment comprises a secretary, two valets, a cook and kitchen-boy, and a lackey^ whose livery is to be tawny, with violet borders. None of them are to wear feathers, swords, long hair as moustaches, or gay colours, — the u&uu! vanities of the rufBing serving-men of the time, such as would certainly have round no harbour in the house of the Bishop of Geneva. They were to confess and commumcate once a month, hear Mass every day, and the Divine Office 09 days of obh^tion ; their hour for rising was to be five o'clock, theu* bed-time ten; previous to which they were to attend the Utanies, to oe read by the Bishop: ▼is. on Sunday, that of the Name of Jesus ; on Moof day, of the Saints; on Tuesday, of the Angels: o| 'Wednesday, of St Peter the Apostle, patron or the ehurch of Geneva ; on Thursday, of the Blessed Saon^ uec^; on Friday, of our Lords Passion; and on S^ tnrday, of the Blessed Virrin. He is particular m eiactmg CTeat courtesy to be shown by his servante towards all, especially priests, whether of the inferior class or not. fiveiy chamber was to have an oratory, a holy-water font, some devout picture, and an Agmu Dei; two only were to be carpeted, one for strangen^ the other a reception-room. His table was to be fru- gal, but neat iund decent ; the priests were to take it in turns to say grace; and som. [)ook of devotion wai to be read till dmner was half over, after which convera^ tion was to proceed. The dinner-hour was to be ten; that of supper, six. Alms were to be publicly giren on certain days, both to the poor, ana to religious oruerv like the Capuchins and the Poor Clares, and to the hospital He lays stress on publicity, for the sako of example. Special and extraordinary alms were to W ■dmmifrawri as << tho nnotian"— tho gnat inpwlid TII.1 •T. FmAvcif am iali m to by his oonMeration — nhoald rankest Then fuHowi • Ust of the days on wUich the fiishop resolvje to aasift at the Divine Offices in his cathedral, and of Tarioiu eonfrutemities at «viiose reli^ous exercises he would be present as ofter as possible. I'hen come the regfulft- tions which he lays down for his conduct internally. As to study, he would take care to be able to learn fomethin^ every day of a proHtahle kind and suitable to his profession. To this pui'pose he would generally devote the time between seven and nine o'clock in the inomm(2^; ()esides which he would have a book of devo- tinn read for half an hour after supper, which miflrhi answer partly for study and partly for meditation. He would meditate for an hour every momingf. Then fdi* low resolutions about the presence of God, and about ejaculatory prayers (to which, by the way, he attached rreat importance, as an excellent means of makinff up for lost time, if any thing hindered the usual medit** tions). He goes on to fix his hours for saying the Divine Office : he would say Mass at nine o'clock daily; hear confessions every two or three days, and occasion- ally himself go to confession publicl^r in the church, by way of example ; he would fast, besides the days com- manded by the Church, every Friday and Saturday^ and on all vigils of the feasts of Our Lady, Everr year he would make a retreat of eight days, in whicK ne would review his progress, confess his o£fences, con- fer with his confessor on his difficulties, make many prayers, especially mental, offer and cause to be offered many Masses to obtain from Almighty G«d the gracei he required, nd renew all the good purposes and de- signs with which Almighty God inspired him. The time he thought best for this retreat was the camiyai; not only to avoid beholding the license to which the neople gave way at that season, but, like our Lord and His holy precursor, to emerge from the desot to pi'eaching and good works : but if there were hopee of withdrawing the people from their dissipation, then hi would take loiiii ok ^ woeki between EfUlm lad m ■': 1 ^^^'11 ' w •: y^ :>A ^ ' 79 Wl. nUNOIf Dl tALl Pentecost fbr the retreat, to hare the advantage ci> the ^^race of those holy feasts, and because affairs were then less pressing'. Such was his rule of life, which was signea by his director, Father John Forrier. Bui although he made out this exact distribution of time, as an arrangement to which he always aimed at con* forming himself^ still he did not allow it to entangle his conscience, ov .interfere with the service of his flock. He was too wise a man not tc know that '* the torrents of business," as he calls them in his letters, by which a bishop is overwhelmed, must often sweep away the best-devised regulation of hours ; and that, on the other hand, nothing will be well done unless there is at least a constant eirort to adhere to rule. Dy this means ha kept clear both of scru])ulosity and disorder. His consecration took place on December 8, 1603, the feast of the Immaculate Conception, at the narish church of Thonon, one of the noblest of the lorashipt belonging to the house of Sales. A vast concourse ot the most distinguished peo))Ie from every pai't of Savoy were present at this joyful ceremonial. Tlie mother ot the Saint had taken care to have this church magnifi- cently adorned ; and she too had prepared by a reti'eat for this great day, expecting for herself an overflow of gracoL , when so much would be bestowed on the child oi benediction whom she had offered to our Lord before he was bom. The chief consecrating prelate was Ves- pasian Orimaldi, formerly Archbishop of Vienna; but who for many years had led a retired and charitable life at Evian, on the borders of the Lake of Geneva. The character of the ceremonial was felt by all to be pervaded by a supernatural sweetness. The countenance of Francis de Sales af)p6ared radiant like an angel's ; and he afterwards declared that he had beheld our Blessed Lady and the holy apostles Peter and Paul assisting him; and that at each stt^p of the ceremony,— the imposition of hanos, the unction, the conferring of the mitre, the gloves, the ring, and the cross, — he law fUmAj tad divine;!? the Blind Tnaitr workuif !■ ii be CS. TII.J IT. FBAHOIt SI tALM. /? his toul the effeotA symbolised by those cere m o ni efc When the oonsecration was over, he returned to the nstle of Sales, where he spent a few days more m retreat; and on Dec. 14th he made his solemji entiy into his episcopal city of Anneoy, where he was reoeiyed by the authonties and the whole population with great rejoicin|rs. He had now entered on the career which made him what he is in the history of the Churchy and previously to which, notwithstancung the f^eat actions he had achieved, and the extensive influence he had acquired, the purpose for which such graces had been lavished upon him would not have been fulfilled. The rule of life, of which we have p^ven an abstract, was carried out by him with that ming-led good sense and gentle- ness which governed all his proceedings. He lived at Annecy in a hired house, pre/ening to do so fwa mo- tives of humilitv, ratlier than to purchase one for him- telf. Aftervv ..i-as, however, the President Favre, cm leaving that city, presented him with the mansion he had himself lived in. Every tiling in his establishment was simple, but still elegant; and, considering the vei^ small revenues he had, which did not amount to more than 3680 fr. a year (not equal to 150/. of our money ), his ap|)ointments were even magnificent. In this respect he was the greatest contrast to St. Charles BoiTomeo, whom he reverenced so much, and who, with a vast in- come, lived in the utmost external as well as internal austerity. However, although Francis de Sales thought it right to adopt a certain degree of dignity in his household economy, he kept for himself a little dark and poorly-fumiished apartment, which he playfully callea the room of '' I* rancis," the others being the rooms of " the bishop." The house was the very abode of calmness and peace : it united the stillness and holi- ness of the monastery with the air of homeliness that became the palace of the bishop. He goveiiied hii household with that astonishing sweetness with which at did eTaij thing, and of which h» had ipant ouibj M,i':^.i M m W tr. FmAVon bb tAiiik vwn !b the patiflnt aoqniaitioii. There «f};^) beantifbl miUneee of it at regards thii part of his eoauuot; such •I his Idndlj allowing his old prejeptor, the iVbb^ Dtege, who uved in his house, to reprove him, as if he were still his pupil. He secured, however, as exact ao obeervance or his rules as could possibly have been obtained bj the method of severity. Female servaiats he would not permit in his household, nor indeed any females to enter it, except in the ^Ilery and recention- room : when urged to relax this rule, at least so far ai to allow some aged and respectable woman to superin- tend the linen, ne replied, that he would not permit even his own mother to live in his house; for tnough ■he was his mother, all the women who would be certaia to come to see her were not. The first business which Francis took in hand after he was settled at Annecy, was to establish a confra- ternity of Christian Doctnne, and to make catechetici^ instruction his strongest point. He opened it with •olemii; H:c^h Mass in the church of St Dominic, and tesLtd fh'n classes himself every Sunday. A more in* ittra^'uiig fight there could not be than to behold hin^ feated m fi^nt of the altar, teaching the little ones,— the girls on one side, and the boys on the other. Ha took the g^reatest pains with it, making Bellarmine's latechism his basis, and working it in every possible ray with the most familiar explanations, repeating 3wr and oTor again what he had said, till he was quite ifttisfied the children understood it He encouraged them with prizes, sucb $>s medals, rosaries, and prayer- books; and very seldom used reproofs. The instructioa ended with 8in{^ng hynms in French, several of which, •ays our biographer, ** were of his own composition." 8t Francis, ooweyer: says, in the preface to nis TVm- iue on the Love of Ood, in speaking of Despores' metrical Torsion of the Psalms, that he himself ** 1 ad never so much as thought of this style of writing.** He ma;|r not, however, have considered the hynms m had wnttn iut ehiUrao worth mantioning ai an €■ ) «. fIL] •T. wmAwon Da malwl 7» aeption to thii. The catechetical inttnutioiui beeaiiM ▼ery popular in Annecr, and ^ruwn-up people resorted to thorn in such numbers, that he was obliged firat to open the side-chapels of the church of St. Dominic, and afterwards two other churches, to accommodate addi- tional classes. Twice a year he made a festival for th« children, and went thror -h the city with them procei* donally, sinking lita The influence his kmdnest gained over toem t' that he never came forth without the children ut from every nook and eomer of the streets tc iu«. u. > blessing or kiss his robe. He was followed by troo^^i of them, so that his friendi complained of it, as the i -iciples did to our Lord; and they received from the Luiy bishop a similar answer: '* Suffer them to come," ho said ; '' they are my litUo ^ple." He caused the p nests to eive catecoetical Jistructions every Sunday tnroughout nis diocese; and exhorted such priests as were without benefices to de- ^te themselves to this duty, giving them letters signed jy himself to authorise them to catechise with permii- Bon of the jparish-priests. He took immense pains to secure good priests for kia parishes ; and would fill up no vacancies except l^ a etneurtus, or examination, conducted by a council of his best and most learned ecclesiastics. He drew up tnr the use of his clergy an admirable set of instnio- dons on the Sacrament of Penance, entitled Avertisse- menji aux Confesseurs, which had also a wide circulation n France and Italy; and he put forth an exact and well-devised ritual tor the use of the diocese of Geneva^ based ou the Homan liturgy. During this first year of his episcopate, his tact and wisdom were shown in a wondenul manner by the re- form he effected in the abbey of Sixt, an Augiistinian monastery among the mountains of Faucigny, which had fallen into such a state of relaxation ^iiat tne abbot did not even know whether he was commendatory or titular, that is, whether he was or was not bound to keep the ^ilif olliii ovdar^ aiidtAii monks bad no predao iam id > IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 US 1^ 2.2 us Ui 2.0 II >•< iLi^ nu 11.6 -» .^^ ^ -^ ^v\\^ ^"^^ Hiotograiiiic SoHices Corporation iP ^^•j^V^'^ :\ \ 33 VVtST MAIN STMIT WIUTII,N.Y. 14SM ( 71* ) 172^503 i\ Ill I: h'W" di8 €Bt«t of thoir obligations. In spite of Btron|g^«ppi ntion on the Murt of the abbot, he g^radually and gentl| rs-estahlishea monaitio discipline in the communitj^ though, as we shall see, kreguiaiiij again crept in, ami towwds the dose of ms lira he was obliged to renew his exertions to oomiilete this «form. On Oct 2d, 1600, he opened his first diocesan synody at which he establislied a yariety of excellent rtdes for the ffOTemment of the diocese; one of the most important of wnich was, to divide it into twenty districts, odleG iungiUanees. Over each of these he placed one of the most experienced of the parish-priests, whose duty it was to visit all the parishes of tne surveillance once in fix months; to hoL a meeting of all the parish-priests twice a year; and to give a half-yearly report to the bishop or the exact skate of e ery courch, every parishu •ad of the conduct of each parisn-priest The result m this and of the other statutes he issued was, that he acquired the most perfect knowledge of his widely-ex- tended diooescL and brought its aoninistration to av extraordinary oegree of perfection. It will be interesting here to mention the sources from which he majr be sup- posed to have derived his views of the duties of a bishop. Having occasion, in 1603, to give his advice to a newly- consecrated bishop, he recommends him first of all, ror his individual improvement, to study the works of Gre- nada, ''as his second Breviary;'' to read them ''with reverence and devotion;" and to ruminate them chapter after chapter widi much consideration and prayer. Next to Grenada, he advises the works of Stella and Arias^ the Confessions of St. Au^tine, Bellentani, a Capuchin writer, Costerus, the Spintual Letters of Avila, and the Epistles of St. Jerome. In the conduct of affairs, he recommends Cardinal Toilet's Cases of Conscience, the Morals and Pastoral of St. Gregory, the Epistles and Books de ConMderatione of St. uemard ; the Stimnltu Pattarum of Bartholomew de Martyribus; the Decreet tf the Church of Milan as indispensable ; the Life tl Ml GharlM Bonoineo; and abov* all, ho adviiei him U Hf9 tSmyy^ to bit baadi tha Coundl of Tnat vod fm f (Atflehism. Throughout this period, ana indeed during all tot oiscopate, the affairs of Gex me him a great deal ot irouhie ; the policy of Henry 1 V., notwithstanding tha bvour with which he regarded Francis, and the mo- mises the holy Bishop managed to extort from nimy being very much influenced by a fear of offendin^f hii Protestant subjects and the neighbouring repubho ot Geneva. Ilence it was with much diificulty and bj slow degrees that Francis was enabled to nooBftraflt o MTtain number of parishei in that diitriat •T. f EAVOIl DB lAUii OHAPTBB ym rma or v&AXcif di tAua to dmon— hu DiMonoa tv turn VAAMCEt DB CBAMTAL. In 1603, the Schevintf or magistrates, of Dijon inTiteo him to preach the Lent ia that city ; an invitation whiob he the rather accepted, as it gave him the opportunity of adjusting 8{:^e aifficulties connected with the Chnroh- proi)ert J in Gex, which Henry IV., forgetting the grant ne nad ahre^dy made of them for the endowment of thi parishes, assigned to Andr4 Fremiot, councillor of the parliament of Dijon, whom he appointed Archbishop of Bourges. At Dijon, as at Paris, the preaching of Francis de Sales produced an impression une(^ualled in those times. The visit, however, led otherwise to re- sults which constitute it the most important epoch oi his life, and to which we shall find it necessary to devote considerable space of this outline. Whilst he was preaching the Lent at Dijon in 1603, Francis de Sales first made the acquaintanoe of Jane Frances de Chantal, in com^ don with whom he ifterwards founded the Oitler of Visitation, which is the most perfect reflex of his spiirit; and the history of which, even after his death, may be said to be a con- tinuation and developmer.t of his own. The characters and actions of the holy women who fiffure in its early history were so completely formed hj the teaching'' and example of the Saint, that whoever wishes to understand him must study their biographies, of which there are such copious mrterials, as much as his. The smallest anet^ote relating to them throws liffht on Francis; for f;heT lived in nis atmosphere, and, uke Mary at the feet (uf Jesus, laid up in tneir hearts whatever he said. He founded the order in a twofold manner: first, hj starting th« idaa of ao isftitation so reqnigita m tha was in iho Catholio Clniroh; and second] j, bj moulding and direeting another mind of kindred heroism to oarrj out his idea. To us it appears that this circumstance throws his greatness into stronger relief than any thing else we have to tell of him. We judge best of the power of one mind bj obsenring the (»dibre of othei minds which it is able to influence and control, ior instance, in the history of this world, great as the first Napoleon is if considered by himself, he becomes far greater when we consider that his marshals and depen- dent kines were themselves great men, and ^et mani- pulated Dy him as his instruments. In the rise of the Visitation, we see the wonderful sight of the gradual formation, and, so to speak, the spiritual education, e one great saint, to execute a work projected by another. We nave the whole process oompletely before us front the first; and it must not be supposed that the cast is less extraordinary because a teminine mind might easily be captivated and subdued by the naturally sup» rior reason of a man. Jane Frances was one of those women of whom French history affords so many ex- amples, who in clearness of intellect, strength of wOI, and greatness of characier, were fidly on a level witn the loftiest minds of the stronger sex. As far as the possession of these characteristics goes, she might have ruled a kingdom ; and her letters show a grace and ao elegance, both of thought and style, that prove hmr powers needed only to nave had a worldly instead oi a spiritual direction, to have equalled in composition such a writer as Madame de Sevign^, who was her grand- daughter. The Uves of these two saints are so closely associated, that it is difficult to view them apart; and from the time they met to the death of Francis, who- ever would be the complete biographer of the one, must also record, almost equally at large, the actions of the other. Both of them had precisely the same settled object of Ufe : and the one was far more the product and expression or the mind of the other, than the most peiw M pietnit if the image of thevtiit^iioiil: ftriatiM UMVERSITY OF WINDSOR LIBRARY Mil ♦ ir I M •T. FRAHCIt DB BAhBB, pifltim the titist himself alone ttriTes to embody hli oooeeptions ; the picture is inanimate, and cannot oo- operate widb the will of its inventor. But in exael Droportion to the desire of the holy prelate to train and mshion the noble soul Almighty God intrusted to hiii oaroy so that she might best fulfil the work for which ■he was designed, did that soul of herself co-operate with his purposes, eagerly drink in the lessons of hia wisdom, and strive to become the peifect copy of hii saintliness. But the brief limits of the present sketch will not allow us to delay. We proceed to give an out> line of the earUer years of Jane Frances, and of the ori* gin and leading features of the order of the Visitation. Jane Frances de Chantal was the daughter of B^ nigne Fremiot, president of the narliament of Dijon, an illustrious member of one of tne best families of tfaf %ohlesM de la robej whicli was held in such considera* tion in old France. S)ie was born in 1572, and at an ^ly age married the Baron de Cliantal, a nobleman of Burgundy. Their mamed life affonis a beaiitiftil pio» lure of domestic society among the country noblesse of that period in France. The feudfU manners are still risible; but softened by modem refinement, and yet more by the gentleness and diligence of the true Catholil wife. Althoiif^h in such high life, Madame de Chantal dressed v^ry plainly, only in linen and woollen, except on festivals, wiien she wore the more 8])lendid attii'e she had brought with her to her husband*s house. And yet, when she wore nothing but camlet and serge, " it was with such neatness, gmce, and pro])riety, that she looked a hundred times better tiian many othei's who their families to wear head- ihelon, the seat of her father-in-law, the old Baron de Ohantal. He was seventy-five years of age, and of a most severe and repulsive temper ; add to which, he was completely under the control of an ill-conditioned •ervant, to whom he had intrusted the whole manage- ment of his house and affairs to such an extent, that Madame de Ghantal, admirable as were her business talents and skill in the p^vemment of a family, was al* lowed no sort of authonty in the place, not so much al to give a drink to a messenger without permi^fiion. lliii woman also had five children, who had the run of the house, and were put on a lev^ with those of Madame de Ghantal She set the mini, of the weak and irritable old man against his holy daughter-in-law ; and amongst them, the latter led sucn a Hie, that her biographer culs it a purgatory of seven years and a half. Notwithstand- ing, she repaid good for evil, and took the trouble to teach the cnil(h«n of the housekeeper to read, and even sometimes washed and dressed them with her own hands. She was, however, allowed to continue her good Affioes to the poor ; and kept a store-room in the house, appropriated to her medicines, ointments, and other femetues, so neatly arranged, that it became a proverb throughout the country to say of any thing in partioa- brly good order, C^est pr&pre et bim rangS, comme la \outique de Madame de Ckantal. A mind thus, like Madame de Chantal's, corres- ■onding with divine grace, could not fail to be led on ftuther ; and resplendent as her virtues were, she was as jet only at the commencement of her career. Yet, as the glories of the natural day are prefigured by the •arly rays which gild the distant mountain-snmmitk tiMNWMii IB hir mmd |ifoph«ti«isstiii0ti which foratoM la «■. Tin.] ST. PRANOIS DB SALES. 89 wliftt was to ooms; and which received jean after their fhlfihnent and completion. She was haunted with an ardent, inextinsuishable longing to find some wise di> rector who could tell her certainly what was the will of God with regard to her, and whose counsels she might follow with unhesitating obedience. She had a vision of a very remarkable kino, in which it was not only shown to her that her wish woiUd be accomplished, but she even beheld the very person who was destined to lead her through the difficult paths which she was to traverse. One day, whilst riding in the fields, she saw standing at the root of a hill a man of amiable and august ap- petraaoe, habited in ecclesiastical dress, and holding a Dreviary in his hand. At the same moment it was re- vealed to her that she now beheld the director whoit God intended for her. Long after this, on the first oocasion when she saw Francis de Sales at Dijon, sh| recognised in him the very features of the person sha had seen in her vision. Other revelations or superna- tural anticipations began to visit her. Thus it was conveyed to her mind, that ** through the gate of St. Claude" she was to find peace and comfort We shall see, as we go on, what those words meant, which she knew not at the time. Again, on another occasion, i» the ohapel of Bourbilly, she s'^\ a brilliant army of d» voat virgins and widows, and ^a'l told that of tuat hei^ venly company she was to be the mother. The first oi these propnetic dawnings of the future was so vivid that, tnirty-five years after, she remembered it as dis^ tinctly as if she even then saw it with her bodily eyes. What makes all of these the more striking is, that about the same period Francis de Sales, with whom she was then quite unacquainted, had revelations of an ana^ logons description, in which he beheld in prophetio vision the appearance of the holy foundress, ana received by divine illumination the idea of the order which he originated. After passinff a lona time in a ttate which would b»f« bMD aam « hwrniui aaxktj and uoirtainiji btf n ft. FBAirOIS DB lALlib far thtl deep tranqnfllitj which erer reiffni m the li^ molt heart of the saints, Madiune de Cliantal wai it length induced to place herself under the direction oft Capuchin monk, a good and learned man, but who proved hunself singulai-ly wanting in that wisdom and discretion which is requirea for the conduct of souls. He hena by making oer take four tows : first, ever to obey him implicitly ; second, never to change him ; third, to keep secret all he *jo\d her ; and fourth, not to confer about her conscience with any one but himself. His method of direction was equally ill-advised. He burdened her with all sorts of observances, particular devotions, prayers^ fasts, vigils, which kept her continually hampered, and de- prived bier of all the liberty of spirit essential to advance- ment in the spiritual life. She had had from the first • iecret repugnance against taking him for her directory and his narrow, harassing system, based as it was on • nrinciple which no confessor had a right to dictate tc nifl penitent, kept her soul in a state of disquiet which, added to all her other crosses, was indeed a Aimaoe fit to try the purest gold. These very trying circumstanoea lasted for about three years; for Jane Frances, with that prudence which belongs to the saints, knew that we ought to be in no hurry to change any state in which we find ourselves placed, and which is not sinful. How* tver painful it might be, she patiently endured it, till •be was quite clear that it was the will of God it should be changed, and changed, as is most usual wher'^ stefw are taken agreeably to that will, not by any one sudden and violent act, but gradually and sweetly ; one event leading f^f and as it were melting into anotoer, like the coluiin in a beautiful and harmonious landscape, llie beginning of her release from this captivity was occasioned by Fraacii iz &^1««' ^mt to Dijon in 1603. He was preaching the Lent in the cathedial of that city, and Madame de Chantal attended his sermons. She reoogb Biied in him the very person whom, years befc re, she liad seen in the vision we have rehited. as the appointed gwdi w]Mm AJmif h^ God mtnded to toko ohaift «■• ▼IIL] it. FBAlfOIS Ol lAUl. If •f ber Mill. Francis noticed her particniarlj, u ilil Mt in front of the nulpit: — a lady of that grace ana dig^ty which, in tuose days, distingpuished hur rank from others as much almost as if they were different classes of the 01*6111100, and yet habited in a widow's garb of the humblest materials. On his return to th# palace, he inquired of his host who she was; and the Loly prelate was amused to find she was the sister of the Archuishop of Dourgea, and the daughter of the Presi* dent Fremiot, of whom he asked tne question. He seema at once to have sinprbul her out, with that unerring eye by which saints know who are best qualified to aid them in carrying out their great purposes. On the very first occasion on which he met her at the archbishop's, he tried her spiiit of obedience by hinting to her to leave iff, one after another, some of those ornaments which, diough dressed in the gravest habit belonging to a lady if her rank, Madame de Chantal still retained. She ^mediately and joyfully complied. The entanglement of the vows which her unwise director had induced her to take, checked the ardent wish she almort directly en* ^rtained of opening to this wise and holy adviser the Itate of her conscience, and of asking his heaven-inspired lounsels. Could any cross be imnrnned more painful «han for a holy soul to be in doubt of her coui'se, — to see before her, and to recognise, the person who had the clue to all her difficulties, and yet to be bound down and pri* 8oned-in with a fourfold vow taken in obedience ? It might hsvw 1)een thought that nothing could break through ■uch a superincumbent weight on the mind ; vet, by the grace of Almighty God, the evil worked its own remedy. The director hapjiened to be alisent fi-om the titj; tliough, as if to demonstrate his unfitness for such an office as guiding a great soul in its way to heaven, he had left a ])erson in charge to watch his penitent, lest ■he should have recourse to any one but himself. Ma- dame de Chantal, however, being under extreme anzietr and distress, did what the insf>iration of Heaven, as weu M that liberty which no directoi could lawfdlj leetnii^ W' 'I'. 1 , 1 .'■■ 4' V s'i ■ ;}!'* M ft. FEAVen DK lALIt. ■ttthoriMd Imt in doinr; ihe htd an iiit«r?i0W wiU ynaOMf in which. Although hindered from fpeaking half what she wished by the terrors of her 'ow, she yet to some extent relieved her mind, and insiai 'j felt shi had done right by the tranquillity which came upon her spirit from the wise advice he gave, and fiom tiiat at- nosphere of peace which reigned around him. Before his departure from Dijon she confessed to him. and re- ceived the holy communion at his hands. This she seems to have been allowed to do ; what h( r director had attempted to prevent was not her occasionally going to another confessor, — for Father de Villars, rector of the Jesuits at Dijon, was her confessor, — but her placing her- self under any direction but his own. The change d directors was not accomplished without a good deal d aelay. No state, not unlawful in itself, ought to be changed without a great deal of consideration and prayer Mad. de Chantal knew this well, and would doubtlefli nave endured throughout her whole life the martyr- iom of having a director who did not understand her, if she had known this was the will of God. Francis, moreover, was eminently hostile to any thing like hasti or flurnr ; his favourite word was peaetentim, ** by de- grees ; '' soon enough if well enough.*' His method m this case, accordingly, was not to make any violent break in the existing state of things, but to allow oni state to merge into another, making no visible altaraticm tdl die will of God was completely ascertained after long- continued prayer; in which he secured, according to ma wont, the co-operation of others. On his departure from Dijon, Madame de Chantal remained in tranouillity, abandoning herself entirely into God's hands. However, on Whitsun-eve, forty days after he had gone, she was suddenly assailed by a storm of spiritual anguish, her soul being divided between an earnest longing to place herself under the guidance of Francis, and a scrupulous fear of leaving her former director. Father de Villars, whom she cons olted, with gntt dadiian advised the farmer count. ^It ta tha nn.] ir. VKorai am fAum will of Oody** b« Mid, ^ that too phos ymanelf iiiid« Uw direotion of the Bishop of Uenert : he, and not the gnide jaa at preMnt follow, is adapted for you ; he hai m& spirit of uod and of the Church, and Divine Pro- ▼idenoe wills something great trom you in giving that terrestrial seraph for your conductor. Woros like these showed what an extraordinary impression the holy Bishop produced on those who saw liim. Father de Villan, years after, in writing to Francis de Sales, said that God had given him ** so strong an impulse to assure Madame w Chantal that it was by the channel of hia lips that Heaven willed to fpve her the waters of tba Samaritaness, that had the angels come to dissuade him from this, he did not think they could bave succeeded, because the impression came from the i^ing of the an- gels." However, she remained under her first director ror a few months, and even, under obedience, renewed the vow he indiscreetly exacted from her. These trials It length came to an end. On St. Bartholomew's day, 1604, the two saints met at St. Claude, — thus fulfilling the vision in which it had been revealed to Mad. de Chan* lal, that by ** the gate of St. Claude" she was to find /est: though both were brought thither for other appa- rently accidental occasions. Madame de Chantal with sreat simplicity and candour revealed her whole soul to Francis, lie hstened attentively, made no answer what- ever, and thus they parted. Early next morning he called upon her, and said that, after having spent the whole mght in prayer and reflection, he had concluded it was Ood's will he should undertake her direction, that her four vows were of no avail but to trouble her con- science, and that his long delay was only caused by hit wish to know thoroughly the will of God, and to nave nothing done in the affair except by His hand. " 1 heard him," said Mad. de Chantal in after-times to hm nuns, "as if a voice ftt)m heaven had spoken to m0| he seemed to be in a ravishment, so recollected was h&i and he kept seeking for his words one after another, ■■ haling a oifficnlty in ipeaking." 8ha thm madt hm i^ll JM '^ > •i tr. FBAVon in tAiBi mntral wnfeRdoii; and a vow of obedience to him } and Ee wrote her ort a method for passing the day devoutly^ and ehangfwl her manner of meditation, xrhlcn had been harassing and difficult ** Fram tliis day (it was the festival of St. Louis, August C5) she began to enter into the interior repose of the childi'en of God, into a great interior liberty, and was attracted to a sort of prayer, altogether cordial and intimate, which leads to a holy and respectM familiarity of soul with the heavenly Sponsor. The letters which Francis wrote to Mad. de Chaa- tal, and which from this penod form so large a part of his correspondence, are, as we need hai*dly tell our readers, a r(>))eitory of asceticiU and practical wisdom, such as it would be hardly ])ossible to Hnd eoualled in the whole body of ecclesiastical literature. The rulei of life which he projioses to her, and from time to time modifies as she needs it, the continual application and development of two or three grand maxims, the pru* dence with which difficulties and temptations are con- stontly met, and the rich abundance with wliich traits of personal character come out, and the great and Uttle trials of domestic life in the CnthoUc circles which sur- rounded the two Saints (for, as we shall see, their fami« lies became connected), — all give a wondeiiid interest to these beautiful old French letters. In May 1605, Mad. de Chantal paid a visit of foni days at the cliAteau of Sales, where she again had an opjx)rtunity of confening with Francis on the state of her soul. On this, as on tlio former occasion, he drew out for her a set of niles regulating the whole method of her life, marking out her devotions, fixing her ho'irs, and sugg^ting the princiitles on which she should en- eounter temptations. Wuen she returned home, she almost immediately commenced the system he had pre* scribed to her. We here set down briefly her order of life, as she copied with the greatest exactness the idet of perfection which he suggested to her, as a lady itiU UfiBg ill tha world, and having all thaotrns cf a nmilj OB. Till.] fT. nuHcn vm uLmk M upon her. She rose eTenr day at firey and earliear in summer, lighted her oaiuue woen it was needed, and went to her oratory, where she spent one hour in mental prayer, and said her daily prayers, after which she com- pleted her toilette without attendance, and without a fire, no matter how cold it might be. She then heard her children m,j their prayers, and afterwards went to bid good morning to lier cross-grained old father-in law, and assisted aim to dress, if lie was in the humour to allow her. She heard Mass every day, and on Sa* turdays had a special Mass said, wmch, with Francis' pemussion, she uad vowed to the Blessed Vii'gin. A regular part of her daily occupation was to teach hei ciuldren, and those of the housekeeper, from whom sh4 had to suffer so much, their lessons and catecliism. Tf> spiritual reading for herself she devoted half-an-hoi4 a day. Each dav she made a spiritual retreat into one of the Wounds of^our Lord, re-entering into it especially in a short recollection before sup))er-time. She then «aid her chaplet, which, under a vow, she persevered in throughout her hfe. In the evening, after supfter, H thera was no company, and the old baron allowed her, she assembled the household, and read some profitable instruction. She ended the day by saying with her children and attendantis the Litany of our Lady, and a J)e prujumli* for the repose of the soul of her deceased husband. Then came the examen of conscience, and the recommendation to the angel-guardian ; after which she gave holy water and the blessing to her childran. She still remained at prayer for about half-an-hour, concluding all with reading the subject for the next day's meditation. Her favourite devotion was to visit in spirit each portion of the Chiuch, congiatulating that which is triumphant in heaven ; supplicating for tiie mihtant Chui'ch on eaith; and applying for the Church suffering in purgatory her sutli'ages, prayers^ iod indulgences. The above-mentioned practice of re* tirinff each day into one of the Five Blessed Wounds, to whim the addM the scan left by tht Crown of Thonuk m i V f'J I '.'■ S' a m : .i !*' H ST PBAirOll DB tAUNi WM a source of speoial grace to her. ^It me her a spiritual view of God in all thrngs, and a hoW indifPer- ence, so as in all diversities of creatures, anairsy and events, to find her one only Good." Her daily reading at this time was the Exposition of the Gospels hj the Carthusian Ludolfiis, called 'Hhe great Vita Cknstif* she also was paiticularly fond of the metrical version of the Psalms by Philippe Desportes, abbot of Tiron, li-om which Francis de Sales continually quotes in hit T^reatise on the Lmse of Ood» She early began to entertain an ardent desnw to leave the world, and addict herself to some religious in- stitute. That of Mount Garmel sug^^sted itself; and she often had ladies who wished to jom that order stay* ing in her house. The holy director, however, follow* ing his usual method, by no means encouraged a hasty decision. He implored the Divine light at the holy Sacrifice, and had prayers offered up by devout personsi All he could say at first was, that one day or other sha should quit every thin^ ; but whether to ent r religion or not, he left undetermmed. He said that he had never placed his own inclination in a state of such indifference ts in that question ; but, so far, ^' the ' yes* could not fix itself in his heart, and the * no' was present there with much firmness." This state of uncertainty went on till the Whitsuntide of 1607, m^en Madame de Chantal went to Annecy to advise with him on her spi- ritual affairs. After keeping her some days in douDt, he tried her obedience by proposing, one arter another, several religious orders and institutes for her to enter upon ; she numbly accepted each apparent chai^ of purpose he expressiBd ; and at last, when he had satisfied nimself of her submissiveness to the will of God, ha unfolded to her very fully the idea of the Order anar- wards called by the name of the Visitation, which ha had matured in his mind, and in the foundation oi wluch he knew Almighty God intended bar to co- operate with him. It will be sufiidant in this plaoa to state bnrfiy tka 1. Tin.] IT. VB41ICI1 OB •AIM. (ttindptl oljeots of this Order, which we duJI tfter wards develope when we have gone through the moif interesting points connected with the history of iti foundation. Francis intended it to supply wnat had hitherto beea a deficiency in the conventual institu- tions. All that had hitherto existed were such as the delicate and wealthy could with difficult/ enter there were severe fasts or vigils, or other corporal aus- terities, which no person of a feeble constitution could undertake without danger. Thus a whole class of the most devout and lowly-minded women were excluded from all hope of the religious state, for which other- wise they might be exceUently qualified. Francis de Sales, therefore, projected sucu cui Institution as would welcome the infirm, the sickly, or the aged, as well as the robust ; which would make up, by works of cha- rity and the exercise of prayer, for those kinds of self- aenial which the weakness of their health would not permit. Madame de Chantal joyfully acquiesced in the proposition, and felt that unmistaKable serenity of soul which accompanies any great step in life taken in oerfect accordance with the Divine will. '^ I suddenly telt,** she said, ^* a great interior correspondence, wim a sweet satisfaction and light, which assured me that this was the will of God ; which I had never felt as to other propositions, although my whole soul was entirely submittea to them." There were, however, two grand difficulties in the design, — one, the fiunily ties with wliich Madame de Chantal was entangled. She was a widow, with four children, still quite young: and there were also the two old men, her father ana father-in- law : the former with his whole soul wrapped up in his admirable daughter ; the latter in the helplessness and fieevishness of iiis decline, requiting, perhaps more than ever, her tender and all-forgiving care. And next, there was the necessity of establisning the first house of the new institute at Annecy, where it would be under the eye of its holy founaer. To go to laeh a diflMM Ml ]i» eild profiuwd hooie^ would mmi It y i I 'I, 90 IT. fBAlieit 91 lAUik tn Madame de Cluiital*t relatiTflf a tbing Mh to her family and eztrayagant in itself. What seemed at first a grreat misfortune, bron^ht about the solution to these difficulties. After a vudt to Annecy in 1607, Madame de Ghantal brought awaj with her Mademoiselle Jeanne, the youngest sister of our Saint, to stay ?rith her in Burgundy. This young lady was only fifteen, and exceeding'fy accomplished ana interesting. Francis had baptisea ner himself, and loyed her with the affection of a father as well as a brother. He reckoned much on what she was likely to do for the glory of God. However, she had not been long at Madame de Chantal's before she was carried ofl by a fever. The letter Francis wrote to the saintly baroness on receiving this sad news affords so -touching and beautiful a picture of Catholic familv-hfe, that wo must translate a part of it: ** What, my clear daughter,** he asks, ** is it not reasonable that the most holy wiU of God be fiilfilled, as well in things that we chensh as in others ? But I must needs hasten to tell you that my good mother has drunk this chahce with an altogether Christian constancy; and her virtue, of which I had always had a good opinion, has far exceeded my estima- tion. On Sunday morning she sent to fetch my brother the canon ; and because she had observed him very sad, and all the other brothers also, on the evening before^ the began to say to him : * I dreamed all the night thi^ mj daughter Jeanne was dead ; tell me, I pray yon, it it not true V My brother, who waited for my arrival to tell it to her, seeing this was a good openmg to offer her the cross, * Mother,' says he, * it is true,' and did not say any thing more; for he had not the power of laying another word. And, * God's will be done,' sayi my good mother ; and she wept abundantly for a spaoe of time, and then (filing her servant Mark : * I will riae^' ■ays she, ' to go ana pray God in the chapel for my poor daughter. And immediately she did as she had laid : not a single word of impatieiice, nor a single dia- ^nieted twinkling of the eye, a thooaand UaiaingB npoa :!ti Ofl Till.] IT. FRANCIS DB 8ALB 07 Gon, and a thousand resiiipiationa to 1 mi»i11. Nerar did I see a more tituiqnil sorrow ; it was a wonder to see 10 many tears; but all this by simple tender gushes of the hearty without any sort ot violence ; yet for all that it was her dear child. Well now, this mother of minSi ouffht I not to love her well V* Another letter brings out no less beautihilly his own feelingps on this bereavement? ** You may thinic/' he says, ** my dear daughter, how heartily I loved this UtUe gi*!. I had begotten her for her Saviour, for I had baptised her with my own hand, above fourteen years ago ; she was the first creature on whom I exercised my priestly office. I was her spiritual fiither; and I promisea myself much to make something ^food of her one day; and what rendered her very dear to mo (but I speak the truth) was that she was yours. But ne^eitheless, my dear daughter, in the midst of my heart •f flesh, which has had so many throbbings on accotmt of this death, I perceive very sensibly a certain sweet tran- quility, and a certain sweet repose of my spirit in Divina rrovidence, which difiuses on my soul a great content- ment in these sorrows." Then he goes on to give direc- tions for his sister's fimeral ; he sen(h Madame ae Chantal •n escutcheon of his sister's armorial bearings, " to pleasa her/' and agrees that services be celebrated at the place where her body reposed; '^ but without great pomp, only wiiat Christian custom required;" for he lovea simplicity in death as well as in Ufe. ** We will pray God for her MRil; and we gladly render her her Uttle honours." Ma- dame de Chantal, as might be supposed, took this death deeply to heart; indeed such had been her anguish during the illness of poor Jeanne, that she prayed Grod rather to taka herself, or one of her own children, than her. When ill was over, she made a vow to give to the house of Sales one of her daughters, in the place of this one who had died whilst under her roof. Whilst she made thin vow a sense of consolation came over her mind, and she per oeived that it was the means Providence had chosen to bar ittinment to Anneey. Her daughter waa 08 0T. PRANOIfc DB SALBl. Ui for jvang, and iha would Iietb to aooompaii j her thm ana woula thus become disconnected from the ties of home. It took much trouble to reconcile her relatlTea to this match ; the venerable President Fremiot being gpreatly attached to his grand-daughter, and unwilling to part with her from his house, although he reverenced the name of Francis de Sales, and valued the nobility of hii illustrious house. On the other side, overtures had, some time before, been made to Madame de Ghantal by the good Madame de Boky, who had set her heart on her 3on, the Baron de Thorens, marrying a daughter of Madame de Chantal. The youthful pair were in fact iffianced in the autumn of 1608; ana a twelvemonUi after, on Oct. 16, 1609, they were married at Monthelon, the residence of the old Baron de Ghantal. Madame de Boisv died before this union, to which she had looked forwara with all the maternal pleasure of her simple and loving heart, had taken place. She died rather mddenly of a paralytic seizure, but retained her senses idll nearly the last. Her dying moments were quite in keeping with the tranquil beauty which rei^s through* out the whole history of the Saint and his household. She held the cross in ner trembling hands, and kissed it even when her eyesight was gone. When Francis ar- rived at the bedside of his expiring mother, she knew him; and although oppressed with blindness and le- thaigy, she caressed him much, and said, ** This is my son and my father, — this one.'' Charles Augustus de Sales, in his exquisite life of the Saint, describes the last scene with singular sweetness of expression. ** At last,'* says he, ** on the first day of the month of Marohu she yielded up to God her beautiful soul, gently and tranquilly, ana with a greater constancy and wmitj than perhaps she had ever had, remaining one of the finest corpses it was possible to biehold, and exhaling no evil odour. The great prelate had then courage, after having given her his holy benediction, to close her lips aod eyes, and to |;ive her the last kiss of peace. After «■. Till.] n. FRANOIf DB MAhW^ M wUeh his heart swelled very much, and he wept owtr that mother more than he had ever done since he was • ehuvhman ; but it was without spiritual bitterness, af he afterwards protested. He rendered her the funeral honours and duties, and her body was placed to rest in the tomb of Sales in the church of Thorens." As we are writing the life of Francis de Saleiy and not that of Mde. oe Chantal, constantly as the inoi* dents of both are interwoven with each, we must neoea> sarily pass over much of the latter on which it woul^ be pleasing to dwell. In this place we need only add, that the history of Mde. de Chantal's external life, whilst she remained in the world, is a perfect study for those of her class, — ladies, namely, whose resources and leisure enable them to devote much of their time to the reliel of the poor. The whole method she adopted, the sweet- ness and kindness she displayed in visiting them, at> wendinff those afflicted with soras so terrible that even to read of them would sicken the delicacy of many a sensi- tive person, cleaning and mendings their clothes, washinff and laying out the dead, — all was done well. And au this time she was still afflicted by the great domestic eross of the tyrannical and upstart housekeeper whom we have mentioned. One anecdote on this subject if in the very spirit of the teaching of Francis de Sales. In the hearing of Mde. de Chantel some one said that when the old baron was dead, they would cut off this woman's nose, and drag her into the ditch. ^^Noj* said the noble-minded lady, ** I will be her safe- guard : if God makes use of ner to impose a cross upon me, why should I wish her illT' One of her methodi in visiting the sick was to imagine she was on pilgrim- age. She would say to her attendants : ** We are ^ing to make a little pilgrimage ; we are going to visit our Lord on ^e Mount of Cuvary, in the Garaen of Olives, or at the Sepulchre.'' Whilst thus devoted to the life of perfection, she took excellent oare of her domesti* affiun; and managed the intereats and fortunes of hei Mdiwijut aawaUyMd 6r bfttv, than if iho hM i 100 ST. FlUWOIt Dl tALMi bfion dATotfld to the world. Slie also did not negpleol the usiinl elegant tasks of devout ladies of her rank, such ns Mfiii'kintj;' omaiiumts for the altars of the neigph- bouring churches. On one occasion she spun some Mrr3 to make a vestment for Francis de Sales, and haa it dved violet. The manner, in which he acknow ledppes tfiis g^ft, is a remarkable example of tlie way in which he worked up the commonest incidents into devo- tional lessons. She had asked him to g^ve the value of it to the poor; he waives this as a soi*t of scrupulosity : •he was quite ng^ht inworking* for hei*selfor her friendi at leisure hours, but she must not feel herself under an obliofation to give an equivalent sum to the poor; it would interfere with that holy libei'ty which must pre- vail every where. Then, if he were to pay the value of it to the poor, he asks, with elegit raillery, how wat he to estimate the value? If he was to give a sum equal to what he thought the value, it would ruin him. Tne vestment had given him a thousand glad thoughts; and one of them was when he wore it in a procession in the Octave of Corpus Christi. " Do you see/' he says, '' I adored Him whom I was bearing ; and it came into my heart that He was the true Lamb of Oody who taheth away the sin of the world, Hofy and Divme Lamb, — ^tms is what I said, — ^how wretched am I without Thee! Alas, I am not clad, save in Thy wool, which covers my misery before the face of Thy Father. Upon this thought, behold it is Isaias who saith that our Lord, in His Passion, was dumb at a lamb before his shearer. And what is that divin« fleece, but the merit, but the example, but the myf> teries of the Cross ? It seems to me, then, that the Cross is the fair distaff of the holy Spouse of the Can- ticlesi of that devout Sunamite; the wool of the Incarnate Lamb is preciously fastened to it, — that merit, that ex- ample, that mystery." Then he advises her to spin eontinually on this distaff the threads of holy asputip tions, drawing from the spindle of her heart that whits tad dfllioate wool ; and tne robes made from it woaU i OH. Till.] ST. FRANCIS DB SALBS. 101 defend her from concision in the day of her death. ** I wished you thereupon bhjssing>s a thousand-fold ; aad tliat, at the ^I'eut day of judgment, we mifi^ht all find ourselves well-clad, some in the e[)isco|)al raiment others in widowhood, or in the wedded state; others in the f^arb of Capuchins; others Jesuits; others vine* dressers ; but every habit made of the same white and red wool, which are the coloura of the Spouse." On the day after the mai-riag-e at Monthelon, Fran- cis de Sales, the President Fremiot, and the Arch- bishop of Dourc'es, held a soil of council to decide upon the vocation ol Madame de Ghantol. When invited by them to explain her views, she showed with such clear- ness the good order in which she would leave her affairs on quitting the world, and the excellent arrangements she had made for the education of her children, who might even be brought up under her own eye in th« event of the institution being established at AnnecVy that, deeply as the sacrifice was felt by her father, £• could not but recognise the finger of God in the design which she was undertaking. He gave his consent ; ani after a few hours' delay, sue finaUy parted with her re^ lations. The separation was unusually agonising, in Droportion to the extraordinary love ana reverence with which she had inspired them all; but having heroically overcome these last trials, she proceeded to Annecj, where, on Trinity Sunday, June 6th, which was also the Feast of St. Claude, the new institute, called at first that of the Ladies of St. Mary, and afterwards the Order of the Visitation of our Lady the most glorious Virgin Mary, was solemnly opened by its holy patri- arch. There were at first three Sisters, Maclame de Chantal herself, Charlotte de BrtSchard, a young lady of noble birth from the province of Nivemois, whose delicate health had obliged her to leave the order of Mount Carmel, and Marie- Jacqueline Favre, a daughter of the President Favre, Francis's ancient friend. To them was added a lay-sister, as touriiref Anne Jacqne- liiia Cofte^ • humble and good son], who had baoi • Fi I < lOQ ST. FRANCIS DB iALMi servant in a hotel in Geneva, having taken that plaes from a wish to serve the eoclesiastios and other Gatho> lies who had occasion to rasort to that heretical dtr. We shall attempt in the following chapter to giv« (£• leader a more detailed dettoription of tM minMit tad '-^-ofthtMfrOrdar. i . H m^ T I ifr' '' if ! Ik'U I'- It ; ..•trr,^ OB.U.J IT. FBANOlt DB tALIl. l$$ km t OHAPTBB a. OMUimww tem which is based on the mortification of the wilL In such a system the most delicate can be as perfect as the strongest ; corporeal mortifications musty moreoyer, in eyery case arrive at a speedy limit) whilst the occasions of eyery moment of conscious existence mighty if nk auired, oe turned into mortifications of the wilL There I also another reason why, in modem timaiy the latter, as a spuritual method, is superior to the former. Asoul- tiyitioii adyanoes, temptstiooi become much Urn afanple^ or bekag BMM to tfai iDtalkft or to the ImiiI tbiB te I ii .- !|-:t(^ 104 IT. FmAirett bi tiiM. Jm leniet. Rude and M^aga aaturet wnUmpUd It irealth and indulufenco, wbiUt th« mora refined t^rgaaT* latiun of a highly •«)diicHted niind is more apt u> girc way to pride, to a refined melanciioly, or to a uioihi^ pro|)en8ity to look in u|ion itmit' and analyse its own action ; in a word, the ancient or simple age is tempted by that which is without, the cultivated, or modem age, by that which is within. The 8]H)ciul remedy for tiia foimer would consist in external suffering, in stern fasts, in lonff vigils, in severe [lenances ; the remedy for th« latter m the ))er})etual subjection of the individual to tho will of a superior. As soon as the idea we have 9i- tempted to aevelop had been enunciated to the world, it or course more or less affected the rules of every new religious institute; and we shall be enabled to traca its presence, to a very considerable extent, in the consti- tutions of the Visitation. The kindly nature of Franoia de Sales, and that special tenderness with which he ra* ffarded the infirm or the afflicted; and again, that pra> nrence which he seems always to have had for what ha edls the little virtves wliich grow at the foot of tha eroes, were another iniportant element of the institution which he founded. Iiis system as a confessor had grs- iually formed many characters in the high socie^ of France and Savoy, who required the formation of a nair order to give them scope and operation. They were ladies, who to the courtly graces of an earlier affe added that intellectual culture wiiich reached its higuest per- fection in tha reign of Louis XI V. It was evident that for oharicters like these the simplicity of the IVancia- ean or «Jie Dominican rule required ront>HeriibIe mod^ fications; the modi of life which, *imd«r n'r" duecti >i Jane Frances de Chantal had a; >}*'.. 1 Iij tha world, must of itself have suggested to him the idea of utilising it, of turning it to account in snch a manner as to act, not only on her immediate circle, but on society generally ; ■na, as wa have seen, she was surrounded by many fner^, who emulated her virtues, and ware ready to iiiUdirwkre aha lad. Aa mayparliapabaaiudofcfMy y "ft • I J tr FmAVOIt BlIlIBl. rreftt m^Tetnei.t. ifep miprht be compared to the hiftuti- lul creHt (if th^ wave ; liif^lit'r, iiidt^Hl, and mora reKplen* dont than tlie other drops wliicli tbnii4Mi it, Hut of the ■uine ninreniil. Just uk in Sjmin, before tUe Society of Je^us was instituted, Avihi hmi conceivHl gious institutes. In this respect it bore an obvioq resemblance to the institute of the Oratory; for which as we have already seen, Francis had a great admi* ration, and the spirit of which may be traced in man} details of the constitutions which he gave to this order. This orig^al idea, however, in a few years unde^ went a great and vital alteration. The Archbishop ol Lyons, Denis de Marquemont, when a house of the in* stitute was being founded in the capital city of his dio- cese, urged very strongly on Francis the prudence oi bringing the Visitation into the category of the regu- lar monastic orders, that is, of establishing the cloister, and substituting the solemn for the simple vows. His view was, that however useful the comparatively lax ^stem might be, so long as the early fervour of a newly-established order remained, it would be certain to grow into abuses as soon as that fervour began to diminish. It is evident that this suggestion tend 3d completely to change the features of the structure a« it came irom Francis's hand. His object was of ont kud, the purely monastic system was of anc^^her; Urn 6H. IZ.] ■T. FBANOU DB tALBS. 107 latter mig^bt be i^Acb greater, but it was not inreoisely the same; for example, the establishment of the en- closure would entu'ely destroy what had at first been an almost necessary element in Francis's idea. He had wished to combine the two examples of Martha and Mary ; so strongly was he impressed with this view, that he even wished to place his order by name under the patronage of the former saint. If the enclosure was established, the poor could no longer be visited, and the institute could no longer act directly upon society ; it would close one important sphere of spiritual action, whieh was, perhaps, what constituted the principal charm of the order to minds like those of Madame de Chantal and her earliest companions. But never waa there a Saint who was more ready to defer to others in all matters not involving right and wrong than Francis de Sales. His view remained the same ; but he at onot conceded the alteration demanded by the Archbishop. The institute accordingly was erected into a regular mo- nastic order, with enclosure and under the solemn vows, m the year 1 618, in virtue of a bull from Pope Paul V. The constitutions ^ven to the new order were thosr of St. Augustine, which were adapted to the existing a^, and penetrated with what we may call the Sale- sian spirit. In the body of regulations called the Directory is contained perhaps as copious and sug- (restive a collection of nints for the development of me religious life as can be found in any portion of the literature of the Church. We see in it at once the legislative spirit and personal influence combined. The writer speaks indeed with the voice of law ; but speaks like the tenderest and kindest father, entreating rather than commanaing, and setting forth the duties of the Teligious life rather by nainting the ideal of the perfect teligious than bv sternly dictating: "This you shall |o; this you shaU not do." Never did the founder of a religious order bequeath to his children a. moif perfect tnuueript of his own mindt a more perpetual mmaarf 1i l^-f 108 fT. VRANC18 OB tALBS. of his presence, or so easy a means of enabling^ eaob member of bis institute to carry out, both in the spirit and the letter, tlie gi'eat though simple principle which it was his mission to convey. To give a com[ilete ana- lysis of the Constitutions and Directory of our Saint would far exceed the Umits of the present sketch. We shall, however, endeavour to select those points which leem most cliaracteiistic of the Sairt personally, and most distinctly to mark off his institu:« from that of all others. In so doing*, we describe the Visitation as it waa finally settled after the establishment of the enclosure. Each house consisted of three classes : the Sisters of the Choir, who were obliged to say office ; the Asso- ciate Sisters, who were not under that obligation ; and the Domestic Sisters, who were concerned m the duties of the house. Their breviary consisted only of the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin ; one reason he had for this limitation, was the great difficulty of teaching ladies to chant Latin with a proper accent, to which he attached much importance, and in which he found the natives of France peculiarly deficient. The choral music of the Visitation became however exceedingly beautiful, and he speaks of this in his letters with great delight. In writing to Cardinal Bellarmine, he says, ''that the chant was so happily formed according to Jie rules of piety, that he can hardly tell whether its ■weetness is surpassed by its gravity, or its gravity by its sweetness." The age at which postulants coufd be admitted was not to fail short of sixteen; \mt widows tnd ladies even of extreme old age might be admitted, as also those of the most delicate and weakly coniftitu- tions, and those even who laboured under personal de- formity, provided these afflictions were not such as to interfere with their joming in the service of the depart- ment in which they were placed. The austerities, as maybe supposed, were not exti-eme; and so much kind- ness is shown to those of dehcate constitntion, (hsX it is opiaMly Mid 'Jtuj must not maka a iampla to aat oar OB. IX.] ST. FHAIfCIS 9B SALBt. 109 of meal-time if they raally required it; but they wen ordered never to leave table without huymg at leas^ mortihed themselves in soniethinir. Bach coiuinunity of the V isitation consisted of thirty-three^ of whom twenty were Choir-sisterS) nine Associates, and four Doinestic-sistei's ; the Superioi'esi must have been professed for five years, and be not less than thiity years of a^e ; she is assisted in the govern- ment of the house by a council of four coadjutors,, whose opinion, though she is bound to consult, she is not necessarily to adopt. From among them or the rest of the Sisters she w»^ to choose two, called SurveiU lanteSf whose business ir is to observe any faults that are committed, and coniv: with the Superioress on th^ best ramedies to ajiply. A beautiful spirit of maternity reigns throughout the instructicns which the Saint gives for the guidance of the Superioress. The Sistert are to repose in her precisely that sweet confidence which an mfant reposes in its mother ; and as an infant would fly to its mother if it were torn by a brier o stung by a bee, so every sorrow, little ana great, muaj find a remedy in the sweet wisdom of the gentle and Erudent Superioress. In fact, what an infidel author as said is tne first human need, namely, true guidance, In return for loving obedience, was exemplified in the relations of the Superioress and her nuns. The second functionary in a Visitation convent was the Assistant ; her office was to act for the Superioress in her absence, and to superintend the due performance of the choral service ; to take care of the books of the convent, to oee that none were used tmless authorised by the spiritual Father or Confessor, and to keep the jtroper order on lays of confession and communion. Tlie duties of the Directress or Mistress of the novices are beautifully ex* plained ; she is to exercise them in obedience, sweetness, and modesty, and to clear away from their characters idl those foUies, tendernesses, and sickly humours, by wbioh mmds, especially of women, are often made Ian* fiud tnd aifMolMl: ih* initmott Umb in th« birt no IT. VBAHOIt DB tALM. 1. '>'*'■•!'('■ ;l ^i{' f U - ■ffpi iJ;:i :.' ^. t i • ■'■; 1 k\: BM^ods of prayer and meditation, and other spirttoA. tunifles; she teaches them how to confess in the man- ner most calculated for their spiritual prolit, how to em- ploy their confessions and communions to the best ad- ▼antage, and in particular to see that they carry out to the utmost that ^at business of all convents, inter- cessory prayer : her mind must be humble, generous, noble, and universal, — by which last qualification we understand the founder to mean, that liberal and lai|;e> minded capacity of entering into the feelings and diffi- culties of others, so as not to be discouraged even when a disposition appears somewhat rude and unmanageable at first sight; she is patiently to cultivate and ti*ain such wild plants, till tuey are completely brought into order and reclaimed, so as to grace and adorn the gar- den of the Loi'd* One of the rules for this office showt in a particular manner Francis's insight into cliaracter He says : ** She will take care not to amuse herself witii the outward appearances of the novices, which often de- pend only on a graceful demeanour and elegant style of manners, or on the quickness of the intellect and pro prie^ of language ; but she will as far as possible pene trate into the very depths of their hearts, so as to dis- cern their faults, and to know with what hand to guide them." He elsewhere cautions the Superioress to take care to be on her guard ajgainst any mere natural incli- nation, founded on the noble extraction of the nuns, the gentleness of their characters, their elegant manners, or other attractive qualities. One can in tact easily under- stand how the polished manners and soft demeanour, learned in a society like that of Fran'^e in those daySy might bear an external resemblance to the true gentle- nesB produced by the Christian character ; just as the buoyancy of youth, the ardour of imagination, the reso- luteness of merely physical courage, pixxluce result! which, where the character is to a considerable extent influenced by grace, mi^ht be mistaken for the higher Banifeetationi of the spiritual life. Asodiw importuit offiflt m tht «obiiiiiiiiiIj wm tbn «.J 0T. FRANOIf DB fALBS. Ill «ned the Aide of the Superioress. This was a Sister ehoeen by the Superioress herself, whose business it was to warn her of tne faults that she committed, and to whom all the Sisters were to address themselves if they saw any thing in the Superioress which required admonition. In this, as in many other parts of the constitutions, we discern the element of Christian friendship to be largely made use of. The Sister in charge of the househola has her duties marked out in m manner which shows the most thorough business- talents on Uie part of the founder ; indeed, this chapter, as well as those which relate to the Superioress and the Directress, might be studied with ^at advantage by mothers of famihes, and all who have charge of household affairs. Every nun who studied the consti- tutions, no matt/cr what her rank, from the Superioress down to the Portress or humblest lay-sister, must have felt that the foimder gave to every one of the offices an iqual share of his attention. Every thing in its own department is accounted good ; and no vocation is to be despised. To return, however, to the Sister whom, for want of a better English word, we must call the house- keeper. She was to undertake this duf with a special f delity and gladness, in imitation of ti^e holy women Irho followed our Loi-d and the Apostles, to provide them with what tney reauired. She was to copy the dih- fence and fervour oi St. Martha, but to avoid her anx- iety and emprMsement, — ^i fault against which, as every reader of St. Francis must have observed, the Saint is continually preaching. The housekeeper was to see to the storage of all the provisions of the house in their proper season, and to look at them from time to time, to ■ee that nothing was STH>iling. Twice a year she was to go over the whole estaoHshment with the SurveillanteSy io make a report on it to the Superioress ; she was to keep exact accounts and inventories of all that came onaer her charge, to distnbute to the Sisters the mate- liala for work, and to take care that the lay-sisters were ■iithff oyarahirgad with toil nor illowea to be iil^ I mn 'i^ 1: 119 IT. FRANCIS DB 8ALBS. The instnictions for the sncnsty afford us a gpood iniigfak into Francis's views as regards htua' matters. He in- sists very particularly on the neatness, cleanlinbss, and griod order of the church, of all the ornaments, vest> ments, and furniture of the altar. The sister-sacristao is to rememher, that our Lord always loved neatness and cleanliness, and that Joseph and Nicodemus wer« praised for having' huried His body carefiilly and neatlj ▼ith nerfumes and precious ungiients. Throuj^hout the houseliold there reig^ied the utmost simplicity ; but at Uie same time the most perfect neatness and cleanhness. On this he lays particular sti'ess ; and one reason for it •indoubtedly was, that the institution was intended for «dies who had been accustomed in the world to the -^finements and elegances of Ufe. These indeed thej ▼ere to sacrifice ; but it was not part of the idea of hif ■Astitute that the mortification or slovenliness and dii Mmfort should be adopted : for instance, though he fbiw ^ds silver plate in general, he allows them to have ipoons made of that metal for the sake of neatness, ** 4 mue de VhonnStetSy^ and also because St. Augustine, m whose rules their mstitute was based^ used no other ilver plate except these. But whatever re^rictions hem might be as to expensive furniture in the house. «he altar was to be as rich and precious as thej coula srith prudence make it, '' for the honour and glory of Tknl, who resides there in a most special and aomurable manner." One curious rule he lays down is, that they made for the sacristan, whioL 4he was to have always before her eyes, and read over t month, so as to fiul in nothiof toat mu wxittM OH. TX.] ST. FRAWCIS DB tALKS. lis In it. Hii sxpressioQ is particularly strong . '* Th« lonj^effation," lie says, have an incomparable interest that this ^'liarffe slitui be paftmmately well exercised." The office of tlie Infirm* jian bring;s us to a veiy cha- racteiistic depai'tmeut ot tlie institute. We have seen that the sick and the aged were not excluded from the life of perfection which Francis marked out. Tha niles for the comfoii; and well-being" of tliese Sisters are strikinj^ly beautifiU. " The Infirmarian is to breatha nothing out ciiarity, not only in order to serve the sick Sisters well, but to l)ear with the fancies, distresses, tind ill-humour the poor sick people often derive from their mfinnities. She is to divert their disagreeable impres- sions in the rnftest and most dexterous way she can, without evpr snowing herself disgusted or annoyed. She is to have a list to help her memory of every thing re- quii'ed for the comfort and good order of the infirmary, and to take cai'ethat tiie rooms shall be neat, clean, ana nicely ornamented with pictures, green leaves, and flowers, according as the season shall permit." ^Thus we see, that in some degrc-e the idea of the Visitation resem- bled that oi Lea Pctites Scnitnt (It's PauvreSy except that the sick wore themselves religious, and not so far infirm as to be incapable of adheiing to tb'* rules. Their pre- sence in the convent was of course the same advantage to those Sisters who were in health as the objects of their angelic charity are to the holv order to which we have alluded. They would fiirnisn them with examples of patience, with the hving copy of the sufferingr ol* our Lord ; a d by waiting on tiiem without goiuL' out of their enclosure, they might add the virtues of Martha to those of Mary. In a Convent of Mercy with whicn we are acquainted, the good Sisters have lor tins very purpose taxen into their hous<«. as an inmate, a poor creature afflicted with cancer. The sweet resignation and the imfailing prayers of this ... woman are a per- petual edification to tue good Sisters ; her intercession is wonderfully effioaoious, and we believe a whole chaptet might bt fiUad with iUutratioBt of th« good nmiti d»> V i I »•, m,: ■ mm 114 ST. FRANCIS DB SALBt. !|:^- '.^ I ;{ ,1 rived from the constant witnessing of such patience ia affliction. But to ratum to the Visitation. The idea suggested in the chapter on the Infirmainan, short as it is, seems to embudy the very principle of the orders engaged in active charity. Tliose constitutions which relate to the smaller offices of the house, suah as the keeper of the wardrobe and the laundry, are eqiially interesting in their way. Those which give rules for 4ie lay-8i8ters, whether domestics or tovrihfiJif contain a kind of sketch of the duties of the Catholic servant, and afford another illustmtion of tliat most useful action on society which all the religious orders possess, but which, in a particular degi'ee, we discern in the Visita- tion. One rule is worth quoting at lenf^h. " The Sis- ters employed in the kitchen and the other household service will do it with cheerfulness &n^ consolation, re- collecting what St. Maltha did, and reprei "Oting to themselves those little but sweet med ^atk^o* waidh St. Catherine of Sienna made use of, wh' , in i^ nidst u5 such tasks, did not cease her ecstatio jontHC>? a<4»)s of God. Thus ought the Sisters as fa; as possiudk co hold their hearts recollected in the goodn as of God, Who, if they are faithful, will one day dec' ae before the whole \7orld) that what they did for His servants was done fox Him." Before quitting the subjfct of tne ffo' 'mment of the house, we should notice tlat special feuT^tire of it which consists in the office of ths spiritual father. The supreme tataority over the conp regation was that of the bishop, wHeh Francis preferrp i to that of the father- genend, which is more usual in other orders, because any abuses or any decay in t\e spirit of the institution was more likely to be checV :d by the frequent change in the depositary of the ch' f authority, wnere this was held by the bishop of the diocese. But whatever ad- vantage wiis derived in r spiritual point of view from the office of the father-g^ aeral, he still retained by insti' tutin^ that of the spi' tual father. This officer wai appomted by the hi^\' », and his duty was to take oars ^ttt tht ruMB V Ji ohsflrred, aoid that no ebuBg^ M. II.] fT. FlUNOIt DS tllBt. la it idea as it dera hich the .ally for tain aiit, ction , but isita- I Sis- )hold 1 :, re- * hSt. Istc!" m of > Hold ho, if rhole le foi ment of it The •fthe ther- muse utioD ange I was rad- froiD nsti- wai can or abuse was introduced. He was fitlt the honit once a ^ear, in company with another ecclesiastic of ripe af^, yirtuous and discreet. He was to be present at the elections of the Superioress and ordinary confessor ; was to sign iierraissions when any extraordinary reason made it necessary for a sister to go out of the convent ; and to Iiim both the Superioress and the other Sistert were to have recourse, whenever there was occasion for sitecial prudence or foresight. With regard to the ordinary confessor, the rules which Francis lavs down for his choice are such as might be supiiosed m>m the importance of the office. He was to discliarge the office of the spiritual father in his absence, as regarded grant- ing dispensations and giving advice in any questiom that miglit arise. One point which Francis apnears tl have provided for with considerable anxiety in the rulea of tliis office is, tliRt the confessor should lie thoroughly imbued wit!i the s])irit of tlie institute ; he was to take particular care to avoid doing any thing, either by the imposition of extmoitlinary ])enances, or by the oounsdr and advice given in confession, which mignt disturb till order and the routine of the monastery. The hoi} founder carcfidly secures for the Sisters the privilege of confessing or confernng on the state of their conscience with any person of known cliaracter, without the Supe- rioress asking why the Sister wishes to do so. Yet if she frequently demands it, then the Superioress will in- form the spiritual father, who will dexterously prevent the holy lii)erty of confession fi-om degenerating into n source of disquiet, melancholy, aversion to the ordinary confessor, or a vain preference for individuals. The f^entle spirit of these constitutions was much attacked ny tha rigorists of the age, who, complain- ing of the deficiency of exterior austerities, said that ** these religious had found out the secret of going to Paradise by a road sown with roses without thorns, of entering into it by another door than that of tlie Cross, and wim another Icey than that which the Son of David on Hit abouldara." Othen niok-named tilt im- n "I 116 IT. fmiiron si ialml ititnte the " ConfrAternity of the Desoent of the CroM,* and others said that the oishop was founding a hoi> pital rather than a monastery. The proper answer to all these objections is affordea by the multitude of holy souls who were nurtured by tms institution, and who would otheiinse have had no assistance of that kind to enable them to reach the perfection intended for them; and by the rapidity with which it spread throughout the Catholic Church, showing^ that it met the needs of reli- gion at that time. The Church itself has placed the winning* gentleness of the Salesian spirit beyond the reach of dispute, by permitting it to influence as it has done the method of direction ever since. Before the death of Francis de Sales, houses of the Visitation were founded, under his auspices, at Lyons, Moulins, Grenoble, Boucges, Paris, Orleans, and Bfjon; and in less than sixty jears from the first foundation the order reckoned no fewer than 120 monasteries. Here the limits of this biography obHge us to leave this subject; and we proceed to trace the general life xi the Bainl from the period when we interrui>ted it to give ooi* timunuly the hiitory of thii, hii pn}iun|ML fraiulstioB. u., f .'f St V" ■■• ff ^•x.1 •T. FBAirCIt Dl fAll *B CHAPTER X fOraSATIOIf OV TBB FLORIMOIfTANB ACADBMT — THB TBSATIUi OV **TBB INTRODUCIION*' AND ** THE LOTS OV OOO.** In 1606 and 1606 he made a general yisitation of hii whole diocese^ underf^oing excessive fati^e, and often ffreat danger, in traversing the Alpine districts, which formed the ^eatest part of it, and every where preach mg, catechismt^, and Learing confessions, with the utmost seal and assiouity. The results of this yisitation he embodied in a report to the Holy Father, which forms a most copious and interesting record of his apostolic labours, and of those business details, the possession of which is so essential to the good government of a diocese, and which his talents peculiarly fitted him to acquire, widely distinct as atfirat sight a mind of heroio charity like his seems to be fiom that which is besi qualified to conduct the transactions of the world. In 1607, in combination with the President Favre, ie founded a literary institution at Annecy, called the /lorimontane Academy. The rules which he enacted for it are among the most curious of his opuscula. Only Catholics of good character were to be admitted mem- bers of it, and each on admission was to deliver a dis- course in prose or verse to the assembly. At the gene- ral meetings, eminent men in the various branches of art were to be admitted, such as painters, sculptors, Viechanios, and architects; lectures were to be give** m mathematics, cosmography, philosophy, and rhetoric ^excluding theology^ and politics), and on tiie cultivation to languages, especially the French language. The style of speaking was to be prose, polished ana full, without ifiectation ; and the lecturers were as much as possible to dispose of one subject in each lecture, and ao their utmost '- pearance, a oopr having been sent by Marie de Modicis to James I., wlio was exceedingly struck with it, and expressed Ma surprise that no such work ever oama from the pen of his bishops. The moderation of the view taken by the holy writer as to the worldly amuse- ments of balls and dancmgi raised some controversj amonff the ri^orist school, one of whom went so fiur af to declaim against the book from the pulpit, and actuallj to tear it in pieces in the middle of his sermon. Never was an attack more unjust; for there are few persona indeed who could calmly read the chapter in the In- troduction on the subject of balls, ana not rather be powerfully detached from those amusements than en- couraged to adopt them. Francis allows only that *' in their own nature they are indifferent;" but devotoi a long disquisition to show that they are ''usually dangerous, dissipate the spirit of devotion, weaken strength, chill onarity, and awaken in the soul innu- merable evil affections; so that great prudence is re- quired in their use." In 1600 he was engaged in effecting reforms in the Benedictine Abbey of Talloires, and of those monas- teries which, like that of Sixt, had in the course of ages fallen into a lax and irregular state. He completely succeeded in bringmg it not only into conformity with the rulos^ but to be a most fervent and edif)ring commu- nity. Soon afterwards he went to Gex, wnither he was summoned by order of Henry IV. to confer with the Baron de Luz, the king's lieutenant-general in Bur- gundy, on the reUgious affairs of Gex. On this occa- sion the Rhone was flooded; he boldly passed through the city of Geneva in his episcopal habit, and styling himself to the officer at the gate as the bishop of the diocese. The officer did not seem to understand the •ipnaoom; and Franai fsnuuned a whole hour in tbt ido ft. PRAircn t>B tALSt. '•'I. j in ■ ^ 9 i>^ i i city without molestation. During this visit to 0«i he succeeded in restoring to Catliolic worship eight Darish-churches, and made a g^'eat number of conver- sions. The same year was marked by an event which had very great effect, not so much on his Hfe as in providing tn observer of tliat life, who has handed down a singTi- lai'ly minute and beautiful j)icture of it. This was the consecration of Peter Camus, Bishop of Belley, at which Francis de Sales officiated, ana which was the commencement of a fi'iendship between the two pre- lates lasting till Francis's death. As their dioceses were close to each other, and the Bishop of Belley, both from his youth (he was but twenty-five years old when consecrated) and from his ardent and reverential dis* Dosition, beffan immediately to look up to Francis as tis spiritual father and o^uide, he saw him very fre- luently, and asked his advice whenever he was in any flifficulty. Once a year the two bishops made it a rule to spend a week in retreat at each other's house; and the Bishop of Belley took the fullest advantage of the many opportunities he had to keep a copious record of the sonvei'sations of Fitmcis. These reminiscences he col- .ected into the book entitled L^ Esprit de S, Francois de SaleSf perhaps the most interesting and valuable, as it is one of the most curious compilations ever written. The only work at all resembling it — thougli of course we only compare them in a purely seculai* and literary point 01 view — is Boswell's Life of Johnson. The latter biography is often considered as something perfectly unique, and without any thing either equal or similar to it as a complete poi'trait of the life and character of &n individual. Pei'sons who so speak of Boswell's lohnton cannot have read J^ Esprit de S. J^an^ois de Salest a record nearly as voluminous, and show ing quite as much of that genius fitr singling out t hero, and dwelling on his cliaracter till the minutett festui^ of it is represented with the fidelity of the most life- like painting if 911 1L] it. V1UN0!S Dll BA MB, m if i In 1610 Francis de Sales had tLe a£9iction of losing hiB old precentor the Abb6 Deage, whose declining yean he had soothed with filial kindness. It may be men- tiofiftu as an instance of the sweet and affectionate cha- racter of the Saint, that when he said Mass for the re- pose of the old man's soul, on reaching the " Our Fa- ther," he was so overcome by the recollection that the poor Abb6 had first tauj^ht him to say the " Our Fa- ther," that hf> was almost unable to proceed. The same vear he had another great loss, though not by death, m the promotion of Antoine Favre to the presidentship of the senate of Chamb^ry, and liis consequent with« drawal from Annecy, where he had lived in the most intimate friendship with the holy bishop. As regarded iiis episcopal labours, the life of Francis about thir perioa seems to have been crowded with work, and, like every other part of his career, full of incidents characterising his untiring sweetness and diligfence. He made two or three remarkable eor versions this year, one of them a Calvinist lady of Geneva, Madame de 8te. Sergues, who was so conspicuous for her bitterness ;lgain8t Catholicity, and her activity on behalf of her sect, that she used to go by the nickname of *'the Arch-ministress." Another was a Baron de Monthelon, whose first impulse towards the faith was given by the reading of the Introduction. A tliird was a poor apos- tate friar, named Bartholonio, who, much like some melancholy cases in the pi*esent day., had abandoned the faith merely for the indul<>'ence of his passions. He had recourse to Francis de Sales, as the common father of prodigal children, and was charitably brought back to the true fold. Besides the general business of the diocese, Fran^ CIS had at this time a good deal of con-espondence with the Holy See; among other objects, to procure tha canonisation of Amadeus III., Duke of Savoy, whoai memory was held in the highest veneration in thosv provinces. The question of She authorit of the Holy Bm in tamponl mftttm wii at tU mr period bolli ):/ !?r; i %l i U': )l- < if ■ V :; i ■ ^i| |:v t ', 1 ^^S i] ^ § u iij Idy AT. FRANCIS DB SALBt. eontested tlirou^hout Europe. Bellarminey in his oeI«- brated work, 3e Romano Pontifiae, had maintaiiied the theory that the Pope has, hy Divine ri^ht, an indi- rect power even in temporals, — a view which at Rome was thought too moderate, and hy the GalHcan theo- logians too strong. In France the controversy was vehe- mently agitated on both sides, much to the distress of Francis oe Sales, whose gentle spirit saw no advantage in thus letting out the waters of stiife. The course which he earnestly i-ecommended was silence, on the ground, to use his homely sunilitude, that in those difficult times there was trouble enough in defending the brood of tbk Church from the kite which incessantly hovered OTer them, without allowing the chickens themselves to be pecking at each other. He even disapproved of the extent to which Bellarmine had opened the dispute; not that he passed any judgment as to whether he was riffht or wrong, but f^rnply from the deep conviction which he entertamed, both by reason and nrom his na* tural disposition, of the necessity of peace. He looked npon the question as easily settled, practically, by those «rlio acted in the spirit ot charity ; out difficult in the midst of such violent contention, and useless, because there was, in fact, no disposition on the paii; of the Pope to interfere with the temporal rights of sovereigns, — no- thmg to call for the question Ming opened at the risk of ruining the peace and unanimity of Catholics. In an able memoir addressed to Cardinal Caffarelli Bor> ffhese, he developed this conciliatory policy, recommond- mg the Holy See to invite the French government to impose silence on the seditious controversialists, whose wntings were the prelude to the unhappy variance be- tween the two powers in the reign of Louis XIV. On the Catholic side, he advised that preachers should be ordered to inculcate with calmness the duty of subr mission to the Holy See, and that in re])lving to the opponents of the papal authority, writers should adopt tue indirect rather than the diivct method, and point ivt yentlj the nBreasonablensM of tooh attaduk He Ol. z.] ■T. WRAVCIB DB tALSf. 198 farther argnd the importance of acting so as to oring about a better understandinf^ between the Sorbonne and the Society of Jesus, the centres of these conflict- ing views ; to soothe the former of these bodies and the French prelacy generally, by addressing them with briefs drawn up in a winning tone : but in the first in- itanoe to have the affair discussed by the nuncio, the French cardinals, and the government, showing, on the part of the Holy See, an earnest wish for the cessa- tion of these disputes. The bitterness of the foes of the Church was probably too violent to have yielded *rms in the episcopal administration, particularly in the appointment of parish-priests. Hitherto abuses had crept in from the highly aristocratical spirit of the age ani country; and men had been placed in the care of souis who nad little to recommend them but the splen- dour of their birth. Francis, however, as we have seen, resolutely carried out the principle of giving away the , incumbencies by concurmsy that is, to the candidate of the greatest merit, as tested by an examination. Thiti regiuation frequently occasioned the most violent dis- satisfaction on the part of e'-desiastics and their relaF* tives, who obstinately refused to comprehend the new arrangement ; and the sweetness of the Saint was oftei put to the uroof in a manner which would have hew leo mvflh rar any patinoe bat fueb ■■ hi% \ij dinp «■• z.] •T. FIUNOII am lALIl. 127 pointed cbiisanto or their friends calling: upon him, and ▼entin^ their rafre by the most violent ana abusive ex* pressions. At this time, it not unti'equently ocourrod that people whom his unbending sense of justice had displeased, would beset his house dui'iiig' the night witn deafening noises, blowing horns, and making their doors bark and howl. Insults of this kind Fi'ancis de Sales knew how to set at rest, by passing them over inthout the least notice; and it generally happened that those who thus far forgot themselves, took reiiige from the stings of their conscience in his angeUc spirit of forgiveness, and made the humblest a{)ologie8 for the insul''i8 which, like stones tiung upwards to the sky, only fell back on the heads of those who threw them, ima made them feel conscious of their own meanness when they looked on the unti-oubled min'or of his sanc- tity. Early in 1616 he brought to a completion his greatest work, the famous Treaiise on the Lave of Goal It is a book which possesses an mterest i*e8embling that of the heroic actions of the Saint, much of it having been written, not like ordinary theological works, but in actud ecstasies of that love towards God of which he is the historian and the teacher. His manuscript was blotted with his tears, and the treatise doubtless abounds with thoughts directly suggested to his mind Ny the Holy Spirit. When he was meditating on the ommencement of the work, on March 26, 1614, he ras visited by this inspuration, manifesting itself even fisibly : a globe of fire descended on him, and dividing itself into a multitude of little flames, played harm- lessly around him, and rendered his face radiant like a star. His brother, Louis de Sales, entered the room, just when this manifestation had disappeared, and per- ceiving his face as though it were on nre, the Saint, in reply to his startled mquiries, told him, trembling all over, what had occurred. In memory of this event, Framcis de Sales wrote these words in a book which he •Iwayi oanied about with him : Di$ vigetimd pimtd U t < ' M^^,' Wi k' 228 ST. FRANOn DB SALSt. JSfartis, hodie iervwn mvm Francl^cum wittmeorMtm vivtari (h(jn/itiut ext Domimn. The TVeatute on ths Lave of God is ])erlians little read in this country, the common translation oeing very indiiferent, and the quaint old French of the original not being: very easy to ordinary readers ; but a greater mine of ricn and beautiful thong'ltts does not exist in the devotional lite- rature of the Cln;rcli. This treatise was also sent to James I. of Enm Grenoble. The year 1617 was marked by severe afflictions for the affectionate soul of Francis. His brother, the Baron ae Thorens, was carried off by feyer whilst with the anny, and his yoimg widow, the daughter of M'ulame de Chantal, was so overwhelmed with the bereavement, that it brought on a prematui'e confinement, of which she (Ued : though having^ had the happiness of receiving the last Sacraments, and 3f being invested on her death- bed with the habit of the Visitation. I I •T. FKAMOII DK SALJ I ,!• Vl! 'e. Dming the yeara 1618-20, he made several tedious journeys, and undei-went great exertions, in order to re- estabhsh discipline in the abbey of Sixt, a community which had got into an unsatisfactory state, and on which, at an eai-ly period of his episcopate, he had bestowed gi'eat pains ; but which again and again relapsed into its for- mer relaxation. During one of his visits to this abbeyi he wrou^b". a miracle which was attested by six witnesses in fhe processes of his canonisation. Great numbers of people had resoi'ted to the place to ask his counsel, as they constantly did ; and the increased consumption of food weighed heavily on the resources of the abbey. Francis prayed, and the river produced such a supply of fish as had never been remembered up to that tune ; tktt asnal qvantitj ef fam^ baked for the comniuu^ om. zi.j •T. FRANCIS DB 8ALBI. 188 II Mad Mopal he in- lesBion I state yean some ; and as the yhuroh /harlei lies, a iceived liness ; shortly lat en- a very career, it, was ars im- health d have tedious tore- munity which, dgi*eat its for- abbey, tnesses hereof Qsel, as >tion of abbey, supply tune; luo^y foficed for the ndditionnl mouth?, and the cask of wine from which they drew for ull the strangers sustained no increas(M) diniinution. In 1020 he enacted constitutions for the hprmitagre of Mont Voiron, a lioly institute which had Um<^ flou- rished on the north of the Luke of Geneva, till Gtilvinist baibai'ity had overthi'own it. Several devout religious, and among them one named Rig'aud, who had adopted the eremitical life after havin}^ been many years ac- tively engag-ed in the political world, restored the as- sociations of the place, and besought Francis de Sales eo devise a rule for them. This he accomplished with his usual pnidence, and was accordingly considered as ♦ihe founder of the congi'ejration. In 1621 he was engag-ed in the business of negoti- dting a reform in a convent of Bemardine nuns, at St. Catherine's, near Annecy. It proved a tedious and difficult undertaking, h-om the opposition of the abbess, who headed a pai'iy in the community opposed to re- formation. As usual in such case«, this party sup- ported itself by the civil power. The holy bishop's correspondence about this simple affair reaciied above a hunared lettere. The matter at length ended in the tbundation of a separate convent for the nuns who were miiuus to live up to the rule. Francis de Sales drew ap constitutions for them; and the reformed institute beeame a flourishing stock, from which several oom- oiunities branched on*. One of the last public proceedings of the Saint, and which, from the circumstances attending it, derived a peculiarly touching interest, was the translation of the •elics of St. Germain from the nave to the high altar of the abbey of Talloires. This is a beautifiil spot near the lake oi Annecy, wherf* were the ruins of the her- mitage of St. Germain, winch Francis had caused to be lebuilt. At the ceremony of the translation he spoke at treat length on the devotion inculcated by the Church E>r saints and relics, and on the virtues of the holy '" whoM tbodi^ Ifiid waste hy haretiad fiolno^ I '/ M i i^Nli-'l: 184 ST. FRANCIS 1}B SALBt. he had piously repaired. When all was over, he yiriied the hermitage, and g^ed with delicrht on the exqu- lite prospect around him, the calm lake and the over- hanging mountains, and his own heloved Uttle city of Annecy in the distance. He said that, if it were our Lord's will, he should wish to come there, to enjoy an interval of rest ; he would leave the burden and heat of the day to his coadjutor, and with his rosary and his pen he would serve God and the Church in that peaoe> ml hermitage. " What a delicious site !** he exclaimed, with the feeling no less of a poet than a saint. ** How great and beautiful thoughts will fall around us, thick and soft, as the snows come down in wi iter !" It was not a uassing fancy, but apparently a sett-nl plan, which he haa iiilly maturec^ in his mind. He gave orders the same day to the prior of Talloires to have five or siy oells built for him, and announced his intention to sel tie there as soon as he could arrange to transfer thi diocese to his brother. ** And then/' he said, ''we wiO serve God with the breviary, the rosary, and the pen; we shall enjoy a holy leisure to trace out for the glory of God and tne instruction of souls what I have oeeo turning over in my mind these thirty years and more, and which I have used in my sermons, mstructions. ana meditations ; I have abundance of materials, and be> sides, God will inspire me. Oh^ who will give me the wings of a dove, to fly into this sacred desert, and breathe awhile under the shadow of the Gross f* He had in his mind plans enough to have occupied more than a life-time. There was to be a history of Jesus Christ in four books ; the first, a sort of diatessaron, or harmony of the four gospels ; the second, a treaf ise on the evidences, drawn from the words of our Lord in the gospel ; the tliii'd, on the Christian virtues, as set forth in the gospel ; the fourth, a history of the primitive Church, drawn from the Acts of the A|M)stles ; oesides a similar work on the Epistles of St. Paul. Then another treatise, supposing all this completed, ** on the love of «nr Mighbour«" woild have sanred u the pmkiaiU to «■. ZI.j •T. PRANOIS DB SALBl. 1» his great work on the Love of Ood. Lastly, in a fflriet of letters on the Pastoral Office, he would nave thrown together the results of his vast and unexampled ex> perience as a missionary-priest and bishop. It was, of course, obvious that, even if yf^itrs of health had been still afforded him, these designs were too vast for him to expect to accomplish them. Of this he was perfectly conscious; but he remarked, with profound practical wisdom, that " to give scope to the activity of the mind, we ought to form designs as great as if we had a long hfe before us, but not to reckon on doing more than if we had to die to-morrow." The only part of his designs which the holy bishop was enabled in some degree to accomplish, was the superintendence of the education of his nephew and future successor Charles Augiiste de Sales, whose residence in the house hold and under the care of the holy prelate diudng tbf last twelvemonth of his Ufe gave him, as we have alreadl mentioned, impressions which were never obliterated, and were the means of his worthily keening up, both by imitating and by writing tlie life of ins uncle, those heroic virtues which became almost the hereditary pos* session of his race. In May 1622 he was commissioned by the Holy See to pi'eside at a chanter of the order of Feuillants, held at Pignerol, there oeing at the time considerable disputes in the order relative to the election of a general, on which they were unable to agree. By the address and chanty of Francis these dissensions were haupily appease«i, and harmony restijrtni. The exertions, Mow- ever, which he went throu«j;h in mannging this difficult affiiir were more tlmn his strength was adequate to sus- tain. He was now fifty-ibur years of age, and the infir- mities of age began to weigh heavily on liim. He suf- fered greatly from weakness of the chest, violent pains in the head and stomach, swelling and inflammation of the legs, — all these symutoras indicating a general break- op in uis constitution, i el he still held on, — the eneivj tthi••01lIn■iI^j;aup•rior to thadiMjd tilt body. Oi 1 ■;|. i.# m^' . • li mm 1 v> ■ I ■ y I ■ ] ' ' ' i i' fr. VRAirOTt VB f Allt. (eayinf Pi; erol he visited Turin, whither he wm is* vited by the> iouit. Tliere he stayed a short time, lodfl^- Uig" in a small and stiHing- cell in tiie monasteiy of the Feuillants; thou}^li handsome accommodation was eag-erly offered him on all sides. The arcliljislionric of Turin having- fallen vacant, that rich and sj)leiidi(l appointment was pressed upon liim in vain. He wished to hasten his return to Annecy, as a scarcity was prevailing" in the country which ho hoj)ed to relievo. The court at length unwillingly let him go ; and on his departure the Princess of Piedmont presented him with a magfnificent diamond ring^ of the value of 3000 fi'ancs. He accepted it g'ladly for the sake of his ])oor people ; and he was no sooner in Annecy than he pawned it to the jewellei*s, in order to ohtain the means of carrying" on his charities. Tlie ring was speedily redeemed hj his fiiends, and re- turned to him ; and he would agiun ])ut it in pawn, till t became a proverb in the town, much Uke tlie snuff- foxes and watches which, in our own days, are puied H eharitable circulation from one n£le to inotlMT. \ .•^•^ I «■ Zll.] tr. FBANCIl DB BkLWk W CHAFTEB Xn. nuTB or nANon di iauhl Towards the close of the year, he was invited by rji« Duke of Savoy to attend him at Avig^ion, whei'e he was to meet Louis XIII., in order to congratulate that prince on his successes against the Huguenot faction. Fi-ancis had a presentiment that this journey would be hif last ; but he did not think it right to decline the invitation of his sovereign, es])ecially as it was hkely to afford him the opportimity of negotiating for the mterests of reh gion. Accordingly he made preparation, with the utmost taknness, as if he were to retm'n no more. He made his Krill, changing them to bury him in the nave of the Church 01 the Visitation at Annecy ; but if he died out of his diocese, leaving the place of his sepulture at the choice of those who snould attend him at the time. He jmited the adornments of his funeral to thirteen candles, md would have no other escutcheons than the holy Name of Jesos. On November 7th, he made his general confes- ■ion, and in the afternoon handed to his brother and co- adjutor a mass of papers relatinjo: to the business of the diocese ; after which he said cnoerfully, that he seemed to rest on earth with one foot only, the other was raised in the air, and ready to go. On November 8th, he bade farewell to his relatives and friends, to the canons, and to hif dear community of the Visitation, for which he had thougnt and toiled so much. One of them, an in- nocent and holy soul, Sister SimpUcienne, had foretold that he would not outlive the year. As he parted with another of them. Sister Anne-Jacqueline Coste, she wept as she had never done before on any of his jour* Dm* When he asked her why was this, she saidTthat 1l <■• 1^11 HI IfvJ 188 BT, FRANCIS DE 8A!Bf. F^oiSy who, in the spirit of prophecy, foresaw that thr good Sister herself was not destined lorg tc survive him, replied that his heart also told him tLttt thej would sef ^ach other muoh sooner than she thought. On the 9th of Novemher he set out on his journey, amidst the tears of the whole city, and proceeded to Avi^on by way of Belley and Lyons. At Lyons a trifling incideL't. happened, which is worth relating as an example of his sweet and gentle demeanour. As he was going on board the boat, the boatman refused to receive him frii'iout his passport. When his attendants were angry at the delay, the oishop remarked, ** Let him alone ; he Knows his business of boatman, and fulfils it : we don't know that of travellers." He had to wait an hour for the passport under a bitterly cold wind, but showed a calnmess which diiiiised itselfover his irritated followers. When at last they got on board, he went and sat next the boatman who had been so tiresome, obscrvmg, ** I wish to maka friends with this good man, and to talk to him a little of our Lord.*' A similar example of the manners of tLs Chrisdan traveller occurred on their arrival at Avignon. The city bemg crowded with the retinue of the two «H>urt8 oi France and Savoy, Francis and his company coidd find no room at the first hotel at which they applied, and had to go on foot to another through torrents of rain. The holy bishop, as he went along, catechised the poor man who served ai» their guide ; and when they [mrted at the door of the hotel, said he would remember hir^i next day at the Holy Sacrifice. Tf we consider all the circumstances, his scattered health and lameness, and the great fatigue he had underg-one, equanimity Hke this will appear so unusif«i' as to deserve a record in a £fe every action of whlca was ':croic. At Avignon he held aloof from all the magnificence which the reunion of two courts in that splendid age •o lavishly displayed. He would not even go to tne wmdow to look at the triumphant entry of Louis XIII. ttd tht two qiujtn% Maim d« liadioi Mid Anoe d €B, XII.' IT. FRANCIS liJI tALBf. ram. poor |)Arted Irhi?^ lithe and hke in a Anetria. He spent liis time in prayer, in conference with religious persons, and in yisitmff the vaiious places of devo^oa in the city. On Novemoer 26th, the royal fisitors quitting Avignon, Francis accompanied their train. When they arrived at Lyons, offers of hospi* tality poured in upon him from various quarters ; bu^ he insisted on taking a little room in the nouse of tL« gardener of the Convent of the Visitation. It was a comfortless place, being full of draughts, and with a smoky chimney. Francis, however, maintained that it would suit him quite well, and that he wished to be away from the noise of the court. Here was held the last interview between Jane Frances de Chantal and her holy director. She had been visiting the convents of her order at Dijon and elsewhere, and came to Lyons to advise with Imn. With difficulty he found time to receive her, such was the press of people who besieged him for covnsel and consolation. When, however, ne at length was enabled io release himself, the first thing he asked her was. srhioh of the two should begin to speak, as they had oat a few hours at liberty. Madame de Chantal, anxious to tell him of her spiritual affairs, said : ** I, if you please, father ; my heart has great need of being rr - vised by you." He gently ^proved her eagerness, as contrary to his favourite lesson of avoiding all excited feelings, all self-will. M»dame de Chantal at once shut up the memoranda she had pi'ej)ared about the state of her soul durir*' the three-and-a-half yea^ which had elapsed since she last had seen the Saint; and she opened instead of them her pai)ers about the Institute. They talked of it for four hours, and Francis dc Sales gave her his last instructions for the government of his order; in paiticular insisting that they should never Elace themselves under the management of a General, ut always be subject to the Bishop of the diocese where they were placed. He then commanded her to visit some convents he mentioned, and dismissed hsr With hu Uissingi to msst no mors in this liis II r 140 ST. FRANCIS DB SALES. ,■ 1. 14 ri km nut f '■;>( '.ll I 1 Among the persons of distinction who frequenteo the society of Francis at the closing jieiiod of hif life was Jacoues Oher, one of the liigh magistracy oi Lyons, and father of the Jean-Jacques OUer who after wards bticame so famous as the founder of St. Sulpice. The itter was at this time still a child, and afforded no jrrise of his future holine^s, being exceedingly self-v/illed and unmanageable. Yet Francis de Sales predicted, with the utmost, confidence, that Almighty God had chosen him for the advantage and glory of the Church, and he bade his parents change their iears into acts of thanksgiving. There seemed to be an impression amongst all that his end was approaching, and his iiiends openly ez- fressed "^.o him their belief that he would be canonised it did not disclaim this, his humility being such as nok to be weakened by a consciousness of his own saintli- ness, unlike many others from whom such knowledge has been withheld. A lady of the court, whom he met at the Princess of Soissons', said : " Really, my lord, if you wei-e in red robes, one would take you for St Cmffles." He replied : *^ Madame, it is of little use to haye red robes ; but it would be yery desirable to be s St. Charles in one's works, if not in one* s dress." A Jesuit father, in conyersation with him, speaking of the different charactei-istics of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Francis of Paul, and St. Francis Xayier, he exclaimed : ** Yes, either it will cost me my life, or I shall one day be a fourth St. Francis." It now drew near Christmas ; and in spite of his sufferings, he had been toiling in his apostohc ministry with eztitiordinary energy, preaching wherever he was asked. He said his Midnight-Mass at the Church of tne Visitation, and preached on the Nativity with a feryour wmch surprised all who heard him. The Mdre de Blonay was so struck by it, that she yentm'ed to ask him if he had no^^ received some special ?race at the Mass, remarking that it seemed to her that she bahald (ha arahan^ Gabrial at his lids whan hf i» \s "1 .: . »!.] w •T. FRANCIS DM BALBl. 141 toned the Gloria in axcehns. Ho did not deny that he had heard with his eai's the holv melody of the antrels, and had seen with his eyes the iDivine Infant and those blessed s])irits surrounding' Him. He then heard the confession of the Prince and Princess of Piedmont, and said the '^ Aurora" Mass for them in the Dominican church. He then heai'd three other Masses, and did not say his own third Mass till near mid-day, after which he dined, and then g'ave the habit to two novices of the Visitation, preached at the ceremony, gave them a conference, received several visitors, and afterwards waited on the Queen Marie de Medicis, who was to leave Lyons the next day. Yet he was actually a dying man when he thus crowded such astonishing exertions into one day. Next day, the Feast of St. Stephen, he bade his last farewell to the nuns of the Visitation, and spoke to then ^or nearly two hours, chiefly on Divine love, on confess, ^n and communion, repeating much of those practical lessons by which he throughout his life had imparted to so many minds the means of obtaining serenity and repose. It gi'cw late, and his servants came with torches to light him to his house. Obedience called him, he said, and he must go. The Superioress asked him, before he departed, to tell them what he wished should remain most deeply engraven in their hearts. " My dear daughter," replied the dying bishop, '' desire nothing^ re/\ oe TwtMng. Enough is said m that word." And he illustrated it by the example of the Infant Jesus in the crib, receiving poverty, and nakedness, and cold, without stretching forth His hands to ask for any thing; leaving Himself entirely to the care of His Mother, yet not refusing her alleviatinns, nor those of St. Joseph, nor the adoration of the kings; yet all with an equal indifference. " But, my lord," said one of the nuns, ^' ought one to warm oneself when one feels very cold?'* The simplicity of the question only brings out with the greater clearness the depth and practical wisdom of his answer : ** When the fire is lit^" M tv^M^ ^W6 Me that obedienoe iatmdf om to warn '0, ' 5 i I' t il';.. ;»«■. WW- mhmm 149 ' ST. f RANOIS DB tALBli MMMlf, providetl it be not done with too gieat eagw^ MM.*' Thus in hifl last words he expressed the great mauifi which he preached thi'ou{:>;hout his life, to avoid tmpreiAnmentf to observe a certain holy equality and serenity of mind, to accept and to do wito calmness and thankfulness what Divine Providence intends for us at the moment; and to avoid that tiurry, that iiaste, that / / of Truth. Next morning' was the Feast of St John the Evan- (,elist. He felt his sight weaker when he rose, and remai'ked to his utt^naants it was a symptom of his departure. He confes. >nly good ren^on ; so I swear it and I {nrofess it." in tlie course of the day he confessed, and asked to receive Extreme Unction, wiiich they gave him aoout one o'clock in the morning; but without the Via- ticum, in consequence of his sicluiess. He then made them place his chaplet on his aim, and blest medals were attached to it, which he had brought from Rome and Loretto. Next morning' he received several visitors, the Bishop of DamascuR, the Duke of Nemom's, and Madame OUer and her children. His foimer director, Father Forrier, having afked aim if he remembered ! ira, he replied, ** Si ohlitvs fwro tuif oblivioni detu dextera mea:" " If I forget ehee, let my right hand be forgotten." The good priest invited him to say, like St. Martin, " Lord, if I am still necessary to Thy people, 1 rctiise not the labour." The Saint, in reply, repealed thrice, " Serws inntitU, inutiliSf inutilig : " A useless servant, useless, useless." He seems to have replied to almost every question in the words of Scripture, generally the Psalms. Fre- 3uently he uttered that passage ot'tlie Canticles : " /»- wa mihiy dilecte miy uoi pa^ns et cubes in meridis:** ** Show me, Thou when, my soul loveth, where Thoc ftiedcst, where Thou liest in the mid-day." The symptoms, however, got worse : he constantly mlapsed into drowsiness ; and to remove this, the phy- ficians resorted to all the expedients used in the bar- barous surgery of that age; not only blisters on the head, but the application of a lot iron to tlie na})e of the neck, and even of an instiiiment shaped hke a button, heuted red-hot, and pressed on the crown of his head till it was burnt to the very bone. The saintly patient bore all this cruel torture with the most perfect ^erenitv, tallmgon the dear names of Jesus and Mttry. As might be expected, he gradually sunk after sufferings so excru- natmg ; yet the few words he still uttered were all ol them worthy of record. A nu .: who was in attendance, thinkinf to gntiff his^ tokl him hiifaroth«| tbt ^'-^— t ] » F I 1 I'.f III' <•■ ' ' ■ - ■ Ilil|i^3| 144 IT. FRANOIt 0« SALVa. of Chaleedon, kad arrived, vbich was not trae. Ha mid to her, * My sister, o*ie should never tell lies." ^Vhen asked if he was not so ry 1o pait with his daugh- ters of the Visitation, just w)i02i the institution was at its commencemeni, he said thnci!, ** Quictrpit op\u^ ipse petficiet, peiificiety perfUnet'" " He who hath begun the work will peifect it, will pc rfeut it, will perfect it ;" words whicn he repeated, afte* nn interval, when he wai asked whether he did not fear V) be vannuished in the last combat. Then turning to a friend, ana grasping hie hand, h 3 said, ^' Advesperascitf et inclinata est jam me$:** ** It is towards evening, and t le lay is now far spent." Then, after uttering the Name of Jesus, he lost the power of speech, the faint movement oi lips and eyes still in- dicating that his soul was in prayer. Those present now knelt down, and recited the 'Mtet^ommendation for a de- parting soul.'' When they cam ) to the invocation, '' Om nes Saneti InnocenteSyOrate pro «r> was believed to be past recovery. On the Feast o^ ^ne Holy Innocents, however, a sweet sleep sudden)*' came on him, during which he dreamed that the bisc'vj had come from Lyons to bless and to heal him. On waking, he exclaimed that his uncle wa£> dead. A holy pnest at Annecy, whilst oelebrating Mats, saw the fkoe of Francis de Sales iiimNuid«i with raji^ ind Iomw ia hit own mind that 1" 5 ? M'^i'-il'B^ I. m.] tr. vmiiien »i tin 14i he hHcl dflp«rt«d ; and the lame reveUtJon waf made in Noel Perf^ord, an advocate at the comt of Chamheryy in ft drnam, in which he l)ehelii a dove of dazzling^ wtiite- ness hover round him, when he heard a voice say, " I maj not toucli tlie earth any long^er^* and the do?e immediately flew towards the sky. Other holy sculf had similar revelations. When the bo£^:r'BST5^^ Ij' p^^ IM •r. VBAKOn Dl •MLM, m ;■ V. 'If*} of SardiniB. The ceremony was of tuoh mtgnifiomM as to show that the spirit of Francis de Sales still pre- vailed with all his ancient power over the land he nad loved so well. The king and queen were present; nine bishops and 683 priests assisted at the functions; and che concourse of people who flocked to Annecy to vene- nite the holy relics on that day, and through the octave, was declared to amount to dn,000. The splendid silver slir-ine in which the relics were placed was contributed hy those of the family of Sales who had survived the storms of the revolution. It is interesting to add, that it was H dH.^ceurlant of that noble house, the Countess of Divoniie, who afforded hospitality not many years since to the worthy successor of Francis, Monsignor de Maiilley, Bishop of Lausanne and Geneva, when exiled from his see by the infidel government of the latter city. TIte general voice of the faithiiil, as was to be ex- pected, began immediately after his death to invoke the mtercession of Fi'ancis ; and miracles of the most asto- nishing kind continually attested his title to be ranked among the Saints. Limbs distorted from infancy were made straight ; sight was restorad to the blind ; diseases at which the beholders shuddered were completely ban- ished ; the dead were restored to life by his power with Almighty God. The assembly of the Frencii clergy in 1625 addressed to Pope Urban VIIL a letter soliciting his beatification, and reiterated this petition on fow oc- casions, up to the year 166L Great exertions were made by Jane Frances de Chantal to urge foiward the cause, and bring evidence as to his life and mijacles. The inquiry, which was unusually exact and extensive ^as intrusted to a committee, consisting of her brother. tlie Ai'chbishop of Bourges, the Bishop of Belley, and a doctor of Louvain, George Namus. As continually hu[)pcns in similar cases, difficulties interfered with the tirosecution of the cause, and were singularly removed ly the providence of Almighty God. It was reserved for Alftikndar VIL, formerly Cardinal Ghigi, wboM gmt |!1 'B 1 «■• ZII.] ffr. FftAHOIf !>■ tA&Mi 147 flareer had been foretold to him by the Saint himeelf, to place this resplendent li^bt upon the altars ef the Church. Hi» beatification was announced in 1662, and his canon- isation in 1665 by the same Pope, who appointed Jan. 29th to he obsenrad as the festiTal of St. Franeif dt talsk. W ^ •T. FAAirCIS Dl lA ,('' B ''' Kill,. It* ii'- 'I:' if I 'i : Jy:. ,'1' > !■' H '.II;' . 1'J ,- •I Ml Si •I '^« V ; ...i^ii ?|,, i ^! i !i ;i CHAPTER Xni. 0BAB40TIB or IT. tRAKOB SI UUIb Ih tfoncludin^ tliis outline, it will be interesting t$ review in general the clmructer of" the Saint, as it ap- pears from the details we have given, and from those abundant sources of information which our limits have enabled us scarcely to do more than indicate. It is, of course, obvious to any one, that the leading feature of his character was the most oxquisite, invincible sweet- ness. He was sweetness itself: he mi<^ht almost have been styled that quality itself invftst(Hl with a visible form ; and the elegsmce of his a))j)earance and air was the fit expression of tlie serenity which dwelt within. This sweetness, h<^wpv«»r, seems not so much to have been the result of natiu-al disnosition, as of long efforts and watchfulness over himselt. He spent years in ao- ouiring it, and for a long time hardly thought of any tiling else. The !)hilosoj)her Seneca tells us that no one can hope coinpletely to subdue any natural failing; but he may so far bring it within bounds, that no one but the person himself shall be aware of its existence. Grace can effect wonders unknown in the sphere of 8im])ly natural virtues; but the remark holds good to this extent, that the natural failing will be the trial destined to bring out the peculiar excellence which the character ought to nossess. We often see, moreover, m the mind a singular balance of opposite qualities, in* tended by the Creator to limit each other, and to afford the soul the means of developing its special grace. Thus it was in the case of our Saint. The very last failing under which he might have been imagined to suffer, was that of anger ; and yet he assured the Bi- f ho]) of Belley that this was one of his severest tempta- tions. There were two passions he felt assail him the lUMl tutoDglj, Mifff tnd lovib The ]aUn h* could i\ OM. UII.] ST. FEAirOXl ]>■ lALBS. Uf W rabdns by inaiiag;«ment, by eMnf; it a right and holj direction ; but as for anger, be had " to take his heart in both hands/' in order to stifle it. We have seen the Hune expression used some where in St Francis's works, in advising a person as to the proper way of subduing aTersions. In the Introduction to a Devout Lifej he gives some precepts of ^at interest and value on the proper means ot rcstraming angler, which show that this metaphor of ''taking the heart in both hands'' must be understood on what we may call the Salesian principle of "Imness, and the absence of any thing Uka flurry and haste. He says : '^ But how &m I to repel anger? you will say to me. It is necessary, my Phuo- thea, that at the first feeling you have of it you should promptly collect your forces, not by any means rouglily or impetuously, but sweetly, and nevertheless seriously. For as one sees in the audiences of many senates and parliaments, that the beadles crying ' Silence ! silence ! ' make more noise than those whom they wish to hold iheir peace, so it hap])ens full oft that, wishing with impetuosity to repress our anger, v e raise more troublp H our heai't than the auger itself had done, and the heart, leing thus troubled, can no more be master of itself." He then goes on to advise that ejaculationf should be made to Almighty God to calm the storm - ^tt observes that " the prayer made against m^'^^x and pressing anger ought always to be practi?f :», sweetly, tranquilly, and not violently." Anotbar nile which accompanies this is, that the v«>-7 moment you perce^'e you have ::^Himlt'w«i. oti act of anger, you shoil** '* repair thf foult by an act of sweetness, exercised promptly to- wards the same person against whom you were ii-iitated. For as a sovereign remedy against lying is at once to recal the Ue the moment you perceive you have said it, 10 it is a good remedy against anger to repair it sud- denly by a contrary act of sweetness ; for, as thev sav, firesh wounds are most easily remedied." Lastly, £« gives this most useful precept : " When you are in truh vuiUitj, and without any fubjcct of anger, lay ia r u' f?- U ': ' 1 1. - : I.. lfe:0 I ; life mill' ■;, •■ i <;: .■■'■A ■ 'm great store of sweetnem and meeknessy uttering all yovf words and performing^ all your actions, little and great, hi the sweetest manner you possibly can." One trans- lator renders this, '' so as to be able to utter all your words," Six. ; but this is quite missing the point of the passage. St. Francis means, that in tranquil hours we should acquire a habit of gentleness, by speaking and acting gently, and then in moments oi temptation we shall oe better able to resist the assaults of anger. There are many most beautiful stories in the Esprit, which appear to us to justify St. Fitmcis's own account of his r^aracter. His gentfeness was of too positiye a kind to allow one to suppose it was merely caused by the absence of the element of anger in his mmd. Anger, or whatever princij)le it is on wnich the sterner yirtues depend, he doubtless had; but this was kept in the most perfect subjection by the action of grace on hb affectionate heart and clear serene reason. The samf combination, aided by his L.ustrious birth and earl} familiaiity with high life, even had grace not furmea his whole manner, would doubtless ot itself have made him one of the . most finished gentlemen of the a^e. There is something exceedingly chivalrous in his cha- i-acter, which meets one curiously now and then through- out his works. For example, in the Introduction^ how redolent is the following passage of the days of Chris- tian chivalry : " The blessed Elzear, Count of Arian, in Provence, having been long absent from his devout and chaste Delphina, sJ:c sent him an express to hear news of his health, and he made re}>ly to her : ' I am right well, my dear wife ; but if you would see me, seek me in the wound of the Side of our sweet Jesus ; for 'tis there where I dwell, and where you will find me : elsewhere you will seek me in vain.' This was a Christian knight mdeed." (fntrod. ii. 12.) The readers of the Life of St. Francis of Assisi will recollect that beautiful passage where that great ntediieval Saint, in his early youth, dreamed he wa.s in a vast hall hung round with rich iiiDOur j and eyery helm and corslet and buckler bora ZIII.] •T. riUIfCIS DK SALBB. 16j «n it tbe stamp of the cross. Tn the life of his name- ■ake, St. Francis de Sales, we find traces of this martial spirit, which is so nobly worked out in the Spiritual Exercises, Such is that scene where, when a guest in early life at the Bishop of Geneva's, he was invited to sit, layman as he was, and girt with his sword, in an assembly of ecclesiastics, ana solved subtle questions in theology, on which the wisest there could not agree. Such, too, is that other beautiful anecdote we have already given of his travelling* with his preceptor in the forest of Sonnaz, when his sword and scabbard thrice fell from his baldrick, and formed the figure of a cross upon the gi'ound. The whole picture of the old priest and the youthfiU noble riding in tiie forest, his eye arrested by the sign of the cross accidentally formed by the sword, and his tracing in the occuiTcnce an indication of God's will — all leads one to those soft and holy scenes we meet with, in the midst of so much of a different character, in such a romance as the Mori d^ Arthur. When we reflect that, to a naturally pure and noble disposition, there was in St. Francis de Sales added that dignity, which among his class in old Europe before the revolutionary times was almost a second natiu*e, and that this was the material which Divine grace moulded into a supernatural form, and seemed to rejoice in lavishing its richest oniaments upon it, we can well fancy that the result must have been something extraordinary. People imagine St. Francis de Sales' character to have been marked chiefly by a sort of sugary and somewhat cloying sweetness. We have shown what a mistake this is. There is a sweetness which is the resalt of a certain childishness of mind, and which becomes fretful- ness the moment really trying circumstances ap|)ear His was the disciplined sweetness of a gracious soul, at peace with itself and full of the light of heaven. Had It l)€en any thing else, people would not have stood in awe of him as they did. The Bishop of Belley, who ebflarr ed him with mora than the Tigilanoe and aoourac^r 169 •T. F1UXC18 DB tALSt. ^,1 ;ttv H H ■ •■ ! . - i\iiw !i ■' / '' ^ml f fw^ H:l,, ■•'ii of ft Bof/welly writes on this subject in singularlj strik- ing terms, which are worth quoting at length. ** Our Saint/' he says, '' with this aid of grace, knew how to onite in himself these two admirable qualities of gravity and sweetness. He knew how to accompany with so much afTability and sweetness that ray c^ mpjesty and honour which giace diffused over his brow, chat you would havo said it was a Moses, who was veiUnff his luminous visage to converse famiharlv with his brethren. If he had attractions to make himselV loved, he had also so much g^vity and modesty that one could not choose, but fear, or at least respect him ; but with a respect so lull of love, that I know many people who trembled on approaching him, not so much for fear of displeasing him (for nothing displeased him, and the modest were always well received by him), but for fear of not pleasing him enough. I have known persons of high quality, whose ordinary conversation was with tlie g.eutest princes and pi Incesses, who declared to me that they composed themselves witii more attention when they were in his presence than they did when in the ni^sence of those goas of the eaith ; it being their opinion that GoJ had set in his visage a ray of His light, which penetrated them even to tiie heait." {Eitvrity xiv. 7.) Of this digiity of denieanom, wliicn is indeed a ouality more rar^lv to be found than greatness of mind, tne Bishop of Belley gives a most curious illustration. Having made it his business to wntch Francis, and note down all his sayings and customs, it occun-ed to the good bishop that it would he extremely interasting to know liow Francis conducted himself when alone. He resorted to a very simjile expedient to discover this, which he relates with much nni'vefS. " I must liera tell you one of my tricks. When he came to see me at my residence, ana to pass his usual octave there, which bo never failed to do every year, I had purposely made holes in certain places, to watch him when he was re* tired alone in hu chamber, tn see how he carried him* ■ilf IB ftad J, al prAjor^ a fmdmg, in ■nditaiiofy ia , fr. nuiroit db tALit littmf;^, in waHdng^, in lyinj^-down, in rising, in writing •nd) to be brief, in the most trifling occasions wbereini wben alone, one often gives oneself liberty. Never- theless, I never observed him dispense himself from the most exact law of modesty : such he was alone as in company, such in company as alone; an equality of bodily demeanour similar to that of his heart. Being alone, he was as composed as if in a rreat assembly. If he was praying, you would have said he was in tne presence ot the angels and of all the blessed. Motion* less as a dove, and with a countenance full of awe, I even took notice, seeing him by himself, vr'iether ho crossed his legs, or whether he placed his knees oyer each other, or whether he rested Lis head on his elbow. Never. Always a gravity, accompanied with such t sweetness, that filled all those who looked at him with love and reverence." ( Esprit f iv. 1.) For such a les- son one can forgiye tlie good bishop for his astonish- ing infringement of the usual laws of hospitaUty and good breeding. After all, to have such a person as Francis in the house, was hke entertaining a superior being. Other witnesses speak la just the same way. Jane Fitmces de Chantal, in that beautiful letter m which she describes his character, speaks of " the great •plrndour of his countenance" when he said Mass ; and how, when he earned the Blessed Sacrament in procos- non, " you would have seen him like a cherubim, al) luminous." '^0 Jesus i" she exclaims, ** how admirable was the order which God had plaeed in that blessed sou! ! Every thing was so arranged, so calm, and the liffht of God so clear, that he saw even the least atomi of its movements. That soul was more pure than the sun, and more white than snow, in its actions, in its resolutions, in its designs and affections." And, coming more to the subject ot that external grandeur so natunu to such a soul, she gives us another key to it in tha value the Saint put upon his office as bishop : ** As for his dignity," she says, " what honour and respect did Im \mr to iti Cartainly hia humility by no "■I:, I life; ■ , ' I' "J R ; i' 154 »T. PHANClt DA SALBi. aindflred the exercise of the gravity, majesty, and rer» ranee due to his Quality of bishop. My Ood ! might I dare to say it ? 1 say it, if I may : it simply seems to me that m^ Blessed Father was a living imnge, in which the Son of God our Lord was painted ; for truly, the order and the economy of that holy soul was aitogcither supernatural and divine.'* His natural character had aconsiderabi^tin^c of the country in which he lived, — simple, beautsfiil, m'\\ yt g^rand, like the Alpine mouiitairs. He was fjonscious of a strong predilection for his country, and seerjs to have delighted in it, and to have Mi that it gave him a spe- cial influence. Thus, we have seen how toucLingly he brings this out in the dedication \>( his controversial work to the inhabitants of Thonon, wh^re he snys tbst the air of his book is " wholly Savoyai d ; aij;i it ..^ a sai'vf ary recipe an(f last remedy, since it is the return to ^o'iiT u vtive air." This beautiful metaphor must have ^\Oim to the hearts of those to whom it was ad- dressee,, The Catholic Church was their native home, whither they should retire to be refreshed, as with the cool mountain-breezes of their infancy. Writing to the governor of Savoy, to remove some jealousy that the Duke might feel in the then state of aiFuirs between Bavoy and Fi*ance, in consequence of a visit be had made to Lyons, Francis says, " I am essentiaHy a Savoyard, both I and all mine; and I could never be any thing else." It is interesting to notice all this, because of the refutation it g^ves to the notion that Catholicity interfei*es with the warmest attacliment >o country and kindred, lie loved his own people, and was thoroughly at home with them. The very boat- men on the Lake of Annecy called him " Father." In a charming chanter of the Exprity where the Bishop of Belley tells us ot a sailing excursion they had on the lake, we read how he was reproved by Francis when he wanted the boatmen to call the holy prelate " My Lord" instead of the endearing name of " Father." His works ant ooAfMifttioiui aMund in iUuftmtioDt dtti? ad bom tb e>. XXII.] tT. FRANCIS Ol lALIl. 165 \' Alpine toennrjr. The foUowinr ii a rery pleasing in- •^Anoe. Writing to a friend, ne feiays: "I protest to you, that on receiving jour letter, it seemed to me that I was gathering flowers of incomparable sweetness on the sunmiits of our mountains, where I then was.*' Again, in relating the histonr of a visitation he Lad madf through his diocese : "I even found God full of sweet- ness and gentleness among our highest and roughest mountains, where many smtiple souls were cherishing f^nd adoring Him in aU trutn and sincerity ; and the roes and chamois were running hither and thiither amidst the frightful glaciers to proclaim His pi-aises : it is time that, tor want of devotion. I only imderstood a few words of their languages ; out it seemed to me that they said beautiful thmgs. Your St Augustine would have understood them well if he had been thei-e." In the same letter he relates the deep impression he re- oeiveil ii-om an accident that had taken place " in this country of the glaciers" dunn^ his journey. A shep- herd was going about the glaciere to recover a stray heifer ; he missed his footing, and fell into a deep cre- vasse ; people came to rescue him ; and one of his neigh- bours caused himself to be lowered bv a cord down the flight fill precipice, where he founcf the ]wot man dead and frozen ; and they drew liim ii]) iu all haste, with the corpse in his arms, lest he too sliould perish in the icy chasm. The Saint is profoundly struck with every circumstance : the shp])heniwan(iiM-ing about those teiTiule paths to regain one »tray lu;ifer ; his eagerness in the pursuit, which makes him forget his own safety ; the alacrity of his neighbour, who descends into the abyss that he may rescue his friend from his peril. Tr was like a parable of our Lord's in actual life. He iKms^ not enlarge on it, but says simply, " Quel aiffvillon pou* moiy ma ekh^e filleT One sees the influence of the scenery upon his style; his fondness for introducing metaphors from the frequent changes of the atmosphere Ji a mountainous region ; from the vintages, from bees, ^om birds, from flowtrsi ana limilAr natunl objaott, II' :» ^m 'M *;.;.: ^;' I'll M tr. PBAHCntt Bl lAlBt. of wlii)h he was evidently a rreat obsenrer. One mt nous eharacteristio of his sty^ is his habit of drawing illustrations fi'om the senses of taste and smell, of which a familiar instance has passed fi'om his writinj^ into many religious books; we allude to that of making up from his morning's meditation a spiritual bouquet witn which to refresh himself during the day. Another favourite set of comparisoiis he draws from the old treatises of natural history, in which he seems to hare taken great delight, such as the legends about the hal- eyon, the birds ot Paradise, the formation of pearia from the dew-drops, and imagery of that fanciful yet beautiful description. Occasionally there is a most poetic spirit in his illustrations; for example, in the preface to the Treatise on the Love of Oody where he compares the plea^in effect produced on his mind^ amiast the pressure o^ business, by always keeping be- fore him the plan of so ne pious treatise or other, to the repose which engraveis and jewellei's find is afforded to their wearied eyes, by looking from time to time ob some beautiful emerald. This sweetness of style, how erer, does not deceive us; for in eveiT page lie shows so keen an insight into the heart, that he keeps us, as were, in awe, whilst he attracts us by his gentleneek This is singularly shown in a set of questions for self- examination to be found among his smaller treatises, where the shortness and the simplicity of his questions, coming straight to the conscience like the piercing of ft sword, show one that Francis de Sales, with all his gentleness, was not a man to be trifled with, and that his sweetness in reality derives its essential character from that burning hatred for sin with which one who loved God so ardently was of necessity imbued. His hfe possesses the charm of singular unitj Many holy men have fallen i.i some period of theit lives, and have exhibited wonrteifii' example of the power of penance to bring back lioliness even greater than innocence. Many good men, without being b» Irajed into aotoal sin, Lave y%% strftyad mora or isM \' OB XTII.] IT. VmAVOIl 91 f All 117 '[ ( from the path on'fpnallj intended for them bj Bivint Provid(>nce, have taken inconsiderate steps, ana embar- rassed tlieir career. But there is in the life of Francii de Sales a completeness and harmony, wliich distin- guishes it no less from the chiss of heroic penitents than Iron* the chequei d scene of mistakes and corrections, u. tailing' and nsin^^ ag'ain, which chainicterises the hie of most men. He never lost baptismal innocence ; each ffreat action of his hfe is preceded, accompanied, and followed by prayer. His days are full ; lie does all tiling " passionatKly well/' infusing- into the calmness and (leliberateness ot a course which never steps an inch in advance of God*s will, an intensity far greater than the vehemence which higlily-excited feelings coula im part to those who act from merely natural motiyeu. In these times, and to Protestant readers, his life and works are peculiarly instnictive, for this reason, that whilst none can deny his singular holiness, it if equally imi)ossibIe to deny that that holiness was from beginning to end the product of the most complete &ith in the teaching of the Catholic Church. It must always be remembered, remarked an Anghcan paper,* in reviewing a volume of translations from his works which appeared some time since {Practical Piety aet forth ty St. Francii de Sales\ "that St. Francis de Sales was a thorough Roman Catholic." Nothing can be more true. Wuilst it would be easy for Angh- eans to " adapt" his writing, or consideraole parts of them, as Thomas k Kempis may be abridged or al- tered, it could never be concealed, that such character- istics as the most tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, and to the relics of Saints, the continual application of the Huly Sacrifice of the Mass, and the )resence of that sacrificial view of daily actions which is lerived from it, the constant recollection of the suffering Jhurch in purgatory, the devotion to the Five Blessed Wounds and to the Sacred Heart cf Jesus, ani, vn fine. * Tke QwidiMi '■ (:' fV' ' . ••MIS fi|lil mm m lit:: ^l|i i i Ul I8t •r. VAAVOn M •AUBt all that people consider as most distmotiTelj ** Homaa Catholic, pervades the whole of his teaching^ and worki; as much as they do those of St. Philip Neri and his dis- ciples. Tlis life is thus one great testimony to the truth or Catholicity, inasmuch as it all hangps indissolubly to- gether, and you caimot separate his charity from hii faith. If tliese ff>w notices, aided by the powerful in- tercession of the Blessed Saint, lead even one soul to per- ceive the force of thir arf^ument, or in any way promota the study of the teach\^^ of St Francis, or extend mors widely the devotion towards him, richly indeed will tb* writer feel that his labours have been rewarded. ■'■■v . ^SLECTIONS VBOM «■» ' 'IV* ^IMRIT OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES.' BT THE BISHOP 0? BULBT. It has been our cpood fortune to haye had transmitted to us more nbundiint memorials of this most sweet and chnrmiripr Saint thaij perhaps of any other in the calendar. What witli his writing's and lettei-s, we seem to have a thoroiig-h and familiar actjuaintance with every linea- ment of his cfiuracter; while, to complete the portrait, we enjoy the })enefit of the reminiscences of a contem- porary and intimate friend, John Pierre Camus, Bishop of Belley, himself remarkable for a higfh degree of sanctity, an«i upon whom St. Francis had laid his holy hands in consecration. FroTn the work containin*^ these recollections, en- titled " The Spirit of St. Franci" de Sales," and which is usually pi'efixed to the Saint's wr:t' ;g«, a few selections have been made, as forming- ai> a; propriate complement to his life. As M. de Delley nUopted no systematic plac in the memoi-ial of his mend's vii-tues which he nas bequeathed to us, so neither will it be necessary to follow nim in the exact order which he has chanced to observe. Forced by limited space to make a selection,* * The extracts have been put together, nnder the direotioo if one of the Editors of the series, by way of an Appandix I) ir. Onslqr** Lif» of the 8aint 100 •T. FRANCIS DB SALS8. the tninslator ban therefore thougflit it bout to gro«f the paMaget in their most natural connection. Uli I !:• 1ST h*'^-r 4 •« SAnrr ■ smtBTwcBt, craritt, aitd rBAOTion ov rRATKHMAL OOHKBOTIOM. The ipirit of St. Francis was pre-eminently a spirit of sweetne88 — ruper mel dulcis ; tljut supeinHtiiiHl sweet- ness which is, as it were, the cream and the Hower of chanty. Dut its preciuusness is hest felt when exhi- bited in conibinutiun and harmony with those other Christian virtues and g^races which the Saint |>ossessed in 80 eminent a de^p'ee ; for sucii is one of tiie distm- guisliing marks of t^upcnmtural virtue, tliat its promi- nence never implies any op|>osite defect, but the very reverse; whereas it is sehlum that any purely natural quality, when very remarkable, is not accompanied by kome at least slig-ht defect in what may be called the counterbalancing- quality. It is as thou;j;-h one pole could not be raised without the de])re88ion ol its opposite. The quotations which follow will exhibit this beautiful harmony in the Saint's character. Of the hisrh esteem in which St. Francis held the virtue of gentleness^ we have an example in the follow- ing anecdote related by M. de Belley : " A young man was once brought to him for the purpose of receiving a severe reprimand ; nevertheless, ne spoke to him with his habitual sweetness, and per* eeivmg the youth's obduracy, he onl^ shed tears, re< marking that his hard and unyieldmg heart would bring him to a bad end. Being told that his mother had cursed him, he said, ' Oh ! this is sad indeed. If the poor woman is taken at her word, in vain will she afterwards curse her own curse. Unhappy mother of » •till more wretched son !' *' The Saint proved too true a prophet ; for the youth ptrished, not Umg- after, in n iniseranle duel ; his bodj \ •T. PRAIVOIB 01 BALBt. 10J leeame the pnj of dogt and woWet, and hit motha difld of grief. '* In reply to those who found fault with him for having reproved with too much gentleness on this oc- casion, he said, * What would vou hav« hud me do ? I did my best to arm myself with an anger free ii-om •in; I took my heart in both my hands [a fuvourite expression of the Suint^s, as has been seen], and 1 had not the resolution to throw it at his head. 13 ut, truth to say, I was afraid of letting that littl** dro|) of meek- DOM, which it has taken me twenty -two yetii's' labour to store up like dew in the vessel of my henit, run off in a quarter of an hour. The bees are seveinl months making a little honey, which a man will swallow down in a mouthful. Besides, what is the use of 8])enking when we are not hstened to? This youtii was iuuo- eessible to remonstrances, for the light of his eyes — his judgment, I mean — was not with him. I should have ione him no p^ood, and myself, |)erliaps, much harm,— like one who is drowned in his attempt to save another Charity must be prudent and judicious.' " It was "oMom, however, that the heart of the sin- ner was proof against his gentleness. Among other anecdotes of a like nature, tue Bishop relates the fol- lowing: ''While engaged in one of his diocesan visitations, great complaints were made to him of an ecclesiastic who nve scandal by his life, and whose habits but ill iccoraed with the theolo^cal science for which he was remarkable. This ecclesiastic presented himself before the holy prelate with as much boldness as if he had been perfectly innocent of all that had been laid to his ehar^, and loudly treated the matter as a calumny. The Saint gave him a very gracious reception, charao- ferised by his accustomed oenignity ; but when he beheld the efiirontery with which the offender justified himself, he blushed in his presence. The very change ni countenance, unaccompanied by any other correo- tiony tooohed the heart of this impenitent sinner. He Ih '1 lUt- if KV |j li' >fe ■f . I m Cl .^^^s h. ie9 ST. FRANCIS DB SALBS. resolved to disarm his judge by confession, and begged the holy Bishop to hear him in the tribunal of penancik Immediately, not an ear only, but still more a hearty was open to him, and ho came out of this health-giving pool like Naaman from the watera of the Jordan ; his race sufiiised with that holy shame which conducts to glory. " * Well, monseigneur,' he said, * what think you of the greatest sinner upon earth V * That God has poured His abundant mercy on you,* replied the holy man ; * you are all resplendent with gfrace in my eyes/ ' But you know what I reallv am,' he rejoined. * Yon are such as I have said.' ' I mean, what I have been.' * Of that,* replied the Saint, * I have no recollection. Why should I keep up the memory of what God has consigned to oblivion r W ould you take me for that Pharisee who esteemed Magdalen according to whaic she had been, not according to what she was when washing her Saviour's feet with her tears? And to prove to you,' he added, * that I look upon you as re> Elenished with heavenly g^ces, of which your heart as received a full measure and running over, I beg you to make me a partaker of it by giving me your Uessing.' So saying, he threw himseu at the ecclesi- astic's feet, to the exceeding jrreat confusion of the latter. ' No,' said the Saint, M am in earnest ; I en- trjat you to render me the same office I have ])er- formed for you, and to hear my confession.' The other refused, but he constrained him to acouiesce; and it is impossible to express how great' v he was edified thereby. And fiirtiier to convince nim that he was perfectly sincere in the esteem he pP ofessed for him, he made his confession to him two or hree times consecu- tively in sight of the public, who icarcely knew which to admire most, the prodigious bimility of the saintly Bishop, or the miraculous conversion of the ecclesiastic. " One day a person came to him to confession who detailed his sins with so much boldness, not to say im. podencei and with such a total want of all feeling or •T. FBANCI8 It& SALB8. Ida our esi- thfl en- aompnnctioii, that he might have heen supposed to be narratmg a story, and to be even listening to him- self discoursing with a certain self-complacency. Thm Saint, who, from the tone in which the penitent spok^ knew the inward indisposition of his soul, since of the three conditions for the sacrament of penance he brought but one, confession, and that of a very imper- fect kind, being devoid of that modesty and holy shame which ought to accompany it, without interrupting his narration, began to weep and sigh and sob. The other asked him what was the matter, and if he was ill. * Alas ! my brother,' he replied, * I am very well, thank God; but you are very ill.* The other boldly an- swered that he too was in good health. * Well/ said the holy man, ' go on.* Tne man continued, in the fame off-hand manner, relating shocking things with- out any sense of sorrow, and the Saint's tears redoubled. Again the penitent asked him what he was weeping for. * Alas !' he replied, ' I weep because you wee^ not.* He who had oeen insensible to the first prick—* the hour of grace, as we have reason to believe, having now oome — was not callous to the second; and the rock, struck by this rod, suddenly giving forth water, he exclaimed, * wretched man that I am ! who feel no sorrow for my enormous sins, which draw tears from him who is innocent.' So powci'fully was he touched, that he was very near fainting, had not the Saint con- soled him ; then instructing him how to make his act of contrition, which the penitent performed with won- derful compunction, he put him in a proner state to receive the grace of the sacrament. From that moment this man gave himself entirely to God, and became a model of penance. " The penitent confided all this to one of his inti mate friends (who related the circumstance without mentioning the individual's name), but witii the addi- tion of the following rather pleasing remark : * Othei oonfessors,' he said, ' sometimes make their penitents weep ; but as for me, I made my confessor weep. It UNIVERSITY OF WIKHSflR LIBRARY I!' I'. i. ;;i W:' n 'I'i llf:.*i H. ti i H l#A tr. Fiuiroit db silbs. is trae, he jpiud it me back to the full ; and God granti for my sours salvation, that the change may have been ffeuuine, and that I may never lose the grace which hit benediction then conferred upon me/ *' Hare is an instance of his leniency to offenders : ** An ecclesiastic belonging to his diocese had been imprisoned for some scanddous offence. The Saint was urgently entreated by his officers to allow him to be pimished as the law enjoined. His gentleness accord- mgly submitted to compulsion, and he let them have their way. Besid&i the penances which the culprit had to undergo in prison, he was interdicted from aJl eccle- tiastical functions for six months. So far from being amended by this treatment, he, on the contrary, grew worse, and it was found necessary to deprive him of his benefice and expl him from the diocese. While in prison no one could seem more docile, more humble, and more penitent ; he wept, he entreated, he promised, he protested. When threatened with being deprived of his benefice, he promised to amend; but after having eluded justice so many times, he found the door of mercy closed against him. Some months afterwards, another ecclesiastic was imprisoned for faults no less serious. The officers wished to treat him similarly, and hinder him from having recourse to the mercy of the blessed Francis, his bishop, to whom he was con> tinually appealing, protesting that he was willing to give up his charge, provided it were at his feet, confi- dent that he would oe able to read the sincerity of his repentance in his eyes. The Saint commanded him to be brought before nim. His officers objected. ' Well,' he said, ' if you will not let him appear before me, jou cannot forbid my appearing before nim. You will not allow him to leave ms prison, sutfer me, then, to enter within its walls and share his captivity with him. Wa must indeed console this dear brother who calls upon vs. I give you my word that he shall not come forth without your consent.' He acv jrdingly visited him in hif prison, aooompanied bj his oiBcers. Scarcely did ST. FRANCIS DB SALES. M at behcid this miserable man at his feet, when lie fell apon liis neck, bathed in tears, and loving-Iy embraced and kissed him ; then, turning- to his officers, ' Is it possil)le,' he said to them, ' tliut you do not j)erceive that God has ah'eady tbr^viMi this man? Is there any condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus? If God justifies iiim, who is he that shall condemn him ? Assuredly not I. Go, my brother,' he said to the guilty man, — * ffo in peace, and sin no more ; I kno'V uiat you are truly penitent.' The officers told him *\n was a hypocrite; that the former offender, whom it hw been found necessary to depose, made much strong'er demonstrations of repentance than this one. * Perhaps/ rejoined the Saint, ' he would have bwen truly converted if you had treated him with more lenity. Have a care \e»t his soul may be asked at your hands some day. As for me, I am willing* to be security for this man, if you will accept of me as such. I am persuaded tha* Lis heart is truly touched ; and if he is deceiving me, he will injure himself more than me.' The ofiender, bursting mto tears, begged that any penance judged fitting should be laid upon him in prison ; that lie was prepared for any thing, his sorrow giving him more pain than any penance could ; and that he would him- self yoluntarily resign his benefice, if the Bishop thought proper. *I sliould be very sorry you should do so/ replied the Saint; ' the more so, as I hope that, even as the falling steeple crushed the church by the scandal it gaye, so, replaced upon its base, it. shall henceforth adorn it by its virtues.' Ihe officers yielded, and the prison- doors were thrown open. After being suspended d divinis for a month, he resumed the exercise of his charge, in which be subsequently gave so holy an ex- ample, that the Saint's prediction was fulfilled. As the conversation turned one day in his presence upon the perversion of the on« and the conversion of the other, he uttered these mejuorable v. ords : ^ Better make penitents by gentleness than hypocrites by severity.' " Zeal was consequently a virtue which he regarded IM ST. FRAXCIS DB SALES. P i.i ■ >'.■ I '•i-HW 1:1 with much mispicion : " Keeping peacocks," he would •ay, " ffood mann(>-6rs tell us, costs more in a country- place tiian it profits ; for ultliouj^h they devour spidei-s, caterpillars, mice, and sucli-like vermin, on the other hand they injure roof's, scare away the pigeons hy their screams, an(( heat the otlier fowls." " Sjwakinn;' of fraternal coirection/* says M. de Belley, "our olessed Francis often |*;ave me an impoii;- ant lesson ; I say often, bocauso he i'ep<;!it('d and in- culcated it frequently, that he miglit imprint it deeply on mv memory. Tins excellent maxim may he useful to all, hut esi)ecially to those who rule or who have the charg-e of others. ^ That truth,' he said, ' which is not charitable proceeds from a charity which is not txue.' A faithful saj^ing, worthy to be received and deeply pondered. " lie had been informed, by the sure report of wit- nesses who had both heard and seen what they related, that when I entered on my episcopal charg-e I mani- fested, in my diocesan visits, a zeal both severe and' excessive, or, to speak more clearly, which was deficient i)oth in discretion and in science ; and that in this spirit I administered harsh reproofs couched in bitter woi'ds. He one day seized a pwouer opportunity, with his ac- customed pnidence, discretion, and skill, which were no less admiral>le than his g-entleness, to insinuate into my mind this g^olden saying, which has ever since remained so deeply eng^ven there that I have never fcrg-otten ft. " I asked our Saint, one day, how we mig-ht be able to recognise whether the correction we g-ave pro- ceeded from charity. He replied, with that solidity of judg;ment which served as a guide to all his actions and as a light to all his words, * Truth proceeds fi'om chanty when we speak it only from the love of God aad for the good of^ him whom we reprove. It is bettei to be silenv than to speak a truth ungraciously ; for this would be to present a good dish badly cocked, or to adiLimster medicine unseasonably.' * But i? not tiiit to detain truth a pxisontr unjustly?' ' ^'^'-t^ulT ^^■ i. ST. FRA>XIS D£ BALE». id? not ; to ftct otherwise would be to bring* it fortli un- justly ; because the real justice of truth, and the truth of justice, resides in charity. A judicious silence in always j)refei'able to an uncharili^ble w:"ith.' " On another occasion, in(juirin<;,- of our Saint fox some other mark by which we might loiow when a re- proof was animatea by charity, ho, whose heart was (so to say) alto«^ether steeped in sweetness, replied, accord- ing to the s})irit of the g-reat Apostle, ^ When it is made in the spirit of meekness (Gal. vi. 1). Gentleness is, in fact, the gi-eat friend of charity, and its insej)ai"abie companion.* He recommended the imitation of the good Samaritan, who poured oil and wine into the poor man's wounds. It was a favourite S8yin«j with him, that to make a g-ood salad there should oe more oJ than vinegar or salt. ** Here is another of his remsikable sayings on this subject, which he repeated to me several times ; * Be as gentle always as possible ; and remember tha * Jt will catch more flies with a spoonful of honey i;hal with a hundred barrels of vinegar ; if we must fall into one extreme or the other, let it be into that of sweet ness , no sauce was ever spoilt by too much sugar Such is the natm*e of the human mind, it rebels against severity, but gentleness renders it amenable to every thing. A soft word appeases anger, as water extin- guishes fire. No soil so ungititeful but kirdness can make it bear fruit. T^ speak truths sweetly is to th/ow burning coals, or rather roses, into a person's &ce. How can any one be angry with another who fights him with pearls and diamonds ? Reproof Is in its na- ture a harsh thing ; but cooked in sweetness, and so roasted at the fire of chai'ity, it becomes a pleasant and delicious cordial.' ^ * But,' said I, * truth is always truth, however it mtj be spoken, or however it may be received ;' and 1 armed xnTself with that text of St. Paul to "nmothy. Prmeh the ward; he inetant in season^ out qfteoioii; ttfirofoe, entreaty rebuke in all patience ana ddfctrtMs :)n\ >1, \ ., A '■!!«: tfr. FRANCIS DB SALES. M (9 Tim. IV 2). 'The pith of this apostohc lesson/ he replied, * consists in these two words, in all patience and doctrine. Doctrine sij^ifies truth, and this tioith is to be spoken with all patience ; tijat is to say, we must endure repulse, and not fancy tliat it is always to be raceived with appIausG ; for if the Son of God was an object of contradiction, His doctrine, which is thit of truth, must be signed with the same maik. Every man who would instruct others in the way of Justice must make up his mind to bear their caprice and in- justice, and to receive ingratitude as his payment.' " While so careful to avoid the faulrs into which the practice of this difficult duty is apt to lead, St. Francis well understood and fulfilled the obligation of fraternal correction. " This good father," observes the Bishop, " often reproved me for my faults ; and then he would saj, * I expect you to be very much obliged to me for this ; it is the greatest mark of friendship I can give you ; and I should look upon it as a proof of your love if yon would do the like for me in return. But in this respect I find you very cold ; you ai*e too cautious ; love has a bandage on its eyes, and is not so nice ; it goes straight m without so many reflections. It is because I love you so much, that I cannot endure the least imper- fection in you. I should wif^h my son to be such as St. ?aul desired to see Timothy, blameless. Things which I should account as flies m one who was not so dear to me, look like elephants in you whom I truly love, as God knows I do. Would not that surgeon m to blame, and be rather cruel than compassionate, who should allow a man to die ibr want oi the resolution to dress his wound ? A strol* o of the tongue in season is sometimes as profitable for the soul's health as a cut of the lancet for that of the body. It requires some- times but a judicious bleeding to save a man's life, or a timely reproof to preserve a soul from eternal death.' ** A few examples of St. Francis's loving coiTection, iD whioh the good Bishop gives himself up to justice ia ■ V IT. VRAN0I8 BB BALIS. 1(» \ K ft nost delicious manDer, in order to exhibit the meriti UKi illustrate the spirit of liis revered fatliAr, may prove boti instructive ana entertaining;. ** lie had been told tliut I was extremely long^ in makinn;> my prepamtion for saying Mass, which was a great inconvenience to every one. Of this he desired to correct me. He had come to see me at Belley, ac- cording to our annual custom of visiting each other. It so liappened, tiiat wliile at my house, he had one moiTiing to send otf a number of despatches, which detained him in his own room to a late hour. It was nearlv eleven o'clock, and he had not yet said Mass. which he never omitted any day, unless he was pre- vented by illness or other serious impediment. Down he came, then, to the chapel in his rochet and mozetta ; and after his morning' salutations to the persons he found there, he proceeded to the altar, where he made a short prayer, then vested himself and said Mass. When it was over, ho knelt down again, made another shoii; prayer, and rejoined the company with a face so verene that ho looked to me like an angel, and con- tinued conversing with us till we were shortly after summoned to table. I, who was in the habit of closely observing all his actions, felt surprised at the briefness of this preparation and thanksgiving^. When alone with han that evening, I said to him, with the confidence of a son, * My father, for a man of your stature, you seem to me to go i-ather fiist. I noticed your preparation and thanksgiving this morning, and thought them both very short. " * How much pleasure you give me !'* he exclaimed, embracing me, * by telling me wliat you think frankly. "For these three or four days I have had something of a like sort on my mind to say to you, and scarcely * O Dieu : que voua me/aites plaisir I The exclamation^ hen •ad eliewhero, is omitted where in English it would give quite •nether ohanu!ter to the obserration. The name of Qod ia used fan French, without the smallest irreverence, on common ooe* iioni, where amongst us, i« would either impart an air of io> iro iT. FRANCIS J}U SALBS. 'vmt^ H'. ^ f ;) 1 knew how to introduce the subject. Come, what htkH . jou to say fcr your own lenj^thinesses, which wearjr people to death? Everybody makes loud complaints jf them; possibly, however, this has never reached your ears, so few persons are there wlio venture to speak the truth to tlieir prelates. No doubt it is be* cause no one here loves you as well as I do that the commission has been entrusted to me : you may rely upon it I have very sufficient authority to support me without giving up my credentials. A little of your excess would do us both a gfi-eat deal of g-ood; you would get on somewhat quicker, and I should not gp 80 fast. Is it not a C'ood ioke that the Bishop a Belley should reprove the B.ishop of Geneva for getting on too fast, and the Bishop of oleneva blame the Bishop of Belley for going too slow ? Is not this the world turned upside down ? But do just think how little all your fine agiosy and all those Duffrages and acts with which you are busied in your oratory in the sacristy^ suit the people who have come to hear your Mass ; stil less those wuo are waiting to speak to you on business when Mass is over.' * But, my father,' I rejoined ' bow is one to prepare oneself pro|)erly for offering- the Holy Sacrifice ? * Why do you not make your pre- paration,' he replied, ' eai'ly in the morning, when I know, or at least I believe, you never fail in the exer- cise of prayer?' I told him that in summer I rose at fou«*; ana did not say Mass till nine or ten o'clock. ' Do you ima^ne,' he repHed, * that an interval of four or five hours is a very long space m His eyes with whom a thousand years are but as the day that has passed ?' 'But the tnanksgiying — what of that?' 'Wait for jonr fiTeaing devotions to make it. Would you no^ lannity aot ia aooordanoe w^th the intention of the rpeaker, or •triks tbe ear, jerhAog, as an undue familiarity. Whatever may be th* oaoM or this oiserefMncy between the English and most Ikwvign tonfoas, it ia an indimutabln fact, which must be taken It in trinriatioos wnieh would rendar the true spirU M •T. FRANCIS CB 8ALBS. 171 ladMdy feel it necessary to oonsider how so imfwrtant •n action had been performed, when making' your ex- amination of conscience ? — and does rot thanksg'i mncf form a part of examen / Both these duties, then, can be disciiarg'ed, and that with more leisure and tran- quilhty, in the mornings and evening" ; this puts no one to any inconvenience, and enables you to acquit your- self of them better and more thoroug;lily, without mter- fering" with the functions belon^ng* to vour charge or weaiying" your neio-hbour.' * But,' I still objected, * will it not have a disedifying* effect to see all this despatched so quickly, since God does not wish to be worsiiijiped on the run V * We may in vain iim,' he said ; * God runs faster than we do. He is a S})irit, who, rising in the east, shines at the same in tant in the west. All is present to Him; with Him there is neither past noi fuiwre ; whither can we g-o from His Spirit ? I ac- quiesced in his advice, and have found the advantages of it. " One day I was complaining to our Saint of some grievous wro"^., that haa been done me. The thing was so very manifest, that he agreed to the ti*uth of what I said. Finding myself so strongly supjwrted, I felt triumphant, and grew very eloquent in dwelUng upon the justice of my cause. The Saint, to put a stop to all this superfluous discourse, ob.served, * It is true that they were in every way to blame for treating you in this manner ; such conduct was quite unworthy of them, particularly towards a man of your condition. I see out one circumstance in the whole affair to your dis- advantage.' *What is that?' I asked. 'That you have but to show your superior wisdom by homing your tongue.' This answer so struck me, that I was ■ilent at onoe, and had not a word to offer m reply. " It was his omnion, that the true servant of Ood ■ddom bx^r^plainea, and still more rarely desired to be pitifld by others; observing that those who complain to ^ rr friends, that they may be pitied m return, are 1^ dldren, who, when they have hurt a Anger, u m\ 179 ST. FRANCIS UB fiALEB. toothed when their nurse has blown upon it, or pmtaudad to CIT tO( " One day I was coTDpIaining of son' ; great and notable affront I had received. * To any orlitenes8. I have no oil for your wound ; perh^ips if ' tried to assuage it, I mig-ht ag'giiivate the mflamma- tion ; I have nothing but salt and vinegar to apply to it. You concluded your complaint by saying that it re- quires a prodigious patience, proof against every thing, to suffer such assaults in silence. Certainly yours is not of a very firm quality, since you make such loud lamentations/ * But, my father,' I rejoined, * it is only in you:' bosom and to the ear of your iieart. To whom shall a child have recourse when he is vexed, if not to his kind father ?' * true child, indeed ! how long will you love childishness ? Does it become him who is a father to others, to whom God has given the rank of a father in His Church, to play the child himself? bt. Pav! U'lls us, that as long as we are children, we may spf F\k as such; but that, when grown up, the stammer- mg Umgde wmch suits a sucking infant is unbecoming m bim who is no longer a child. Would you have me give J ju milk and oroth instead of solid meat, and low upon your hurt like a nurse? Have you not strong enough teeth to chew bread — nay, even hard breac[--the bread of affliction ? It is a nne thing, in- deed, to see you complaining to an earthly father you who ought to say to your heavenly father, / wa* dumbf and I opened not my mouthy because Thou kasi done t^* But voi} will say, it is not God but vxea, and the auemoly of the malignant, t What ! cav yoi not discern the permissive wiU of God, vtdob makes use of the malice of men either to correct joo or to ezarcise you in virtue? Job had more disjem SN *Fa.snvULia t P«. IxUL i. ST. FHANOIS DE f ALBS. 178 MtBt; for ha naid, 7^^ Lord gavej and the Lord hafli town away.* He dues noi shv, the devils and the toieTM; he looks only to the hand of God, who per> tonne all thinsps by whatever instnimonts He pleases. You are very tar from the spirit of him who said that the rod and staff with which God struck him were hie consolation ; and that he was as one that was deaf and dumb, who refrained evaii from good words, which might have served to jus* *"y him and prove his inno- cence. But, my fatlio' will say, smce when liuve you become so sevei -'»d your gentleness into cruelty ? as Jobf said Vnere are Tli^ ancient mercies fX Ceitainly i. u. >:ission is as Iresh and new as ever; for God kn -ws if I love you, or if I love myself better than you; and the reproach I make to vou is what I should make to my ow^n soul, if it had Droken out in the same way. Well, I forgive you, as a matter of indulgence, to use the Apostle's terms ; but on condition that you will be more coumgeous for the fiiture, and bhut up such-like favours, when God shall vouchsafe them to you, in the stiong box of silence, without letting their pei'fume evaporate, giving thanks in your heart to your heavenly rather for bestowins upon you a small particle of His Son's cross. What i you take pleasure in wearing a g-olden cross on youi bosom, ana you cannot bear a little one on your heart without manifesting it by yorr complaints ? And then, when they escape you, you make a wonderful appeal to patience, and would have me esteem you patient, for- sooth, while listening" to your lamentations, as if the great effect of patience were to hinder one from taking revenge, and not to stop complaints. But as for that, I do tnink you commit an en'or ii invoking the aid ol •o great a power as patience in the insult you have re- eeived. It is too noble a second for so contemptible a doflL A little modesty and silence might suffic^v yoi* ' • Job L 11. t ** Thou MTt dumnd to b* cmel toward mo.'* t Fk IxzxviiL fiO ^1 1» IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) ^^^, V %^ 1.0 I.I 125 u NO 2.0 I FhotogFaphic ScMices Corporation s; ;\ ^V ^. "^ ^:.*'i% ^^ n VraST MAM STRUT WIMTIR.N.Y. UStO (7U)t7a-4S03 ■s .; liB.i ; ■ h .',1 1 M 174 •T. VKAMOIS DB lALIt. ind to he dtsmissed me with this brief mortifiaiUoBi but 10 fortified by my rebufP, that it seemed to me, m f left him, that ul the affironts in the world could not haTe eztraeted a word from me. ** To a woman who complained to him that when* ever her husband enjoyed good healtli he went to the wars, and that when he was wounded or sick he canw back, and was so fretful as to be quite unbearable, he replied, ' What sauce can we find to suit you ? 'When he is well, he cannot bear to stay with you, nor you with him when he is ill. If you loyed each other only in Qodf you would not be subject to these changes ; your affection would be always the same, whether ateent or present. Beg this ffrace earnestly of God, others wise I have little hope ^at you will enjoy any peace.' " But if the charily of St. fVancis was displayed alike m the sweetness and the sincerity of his reproofs, so also was it manifested in tender regard for the reputa- tion of his neighbour, and in his unwillingness to be- lieye evil of any one. " His goodness of heart," says M. de Belley, ** was so great as to preyent him fix>m thinking ill eyen of the ba£ He did all he could to coyer the defects of his neighbour, sometimes alleging human infirmity, some- times the violence of temptetion, sometimes the number of those who were guilty of similar firalts. When these sins were so public ana evident that it was impossible to throw a veu over them, he took refuge in the future. * Who knows,' he would say, ' whether he will not be converted? and who are we that we should judge our brethiren ? If God did not uphold us with His grace, we should do worse, and our souls would already be dwellers in hell. The greatest sinners sometimes be* oome the greatest penitents, witness David and so many others; and their penitence edifies more persons than the scandal they gave destroyed. God knows how to vaise up from stones children to Abraham. The won- derful changes which His right hand effects causea vesiels of i^ominy to become vessels of honour* He ST. FRANCIS DB SALES. 176 would hear of despair of smners' oonTsrsion to dMir yery last breath, ^y^gt that this life is the road of our pilgrimage, in which those who stand may fall. and those who rail may by grace rise again. He went still ftirther; for even when dead, he would not permit an evil judgment to be foimed of such as had led an evil life, save in the case of those whose damnation is evident from Scripture. With this exception, he would have us not seek to enter into the secret of God, which He has reserved to His wisdom and power. His prin- cipal reason was this, that as the first grace was not within the reach of merit, so also the last g^race, final perseverance, was not accorded to merit: Who hath nnanm the judgments of the Lordf and mho hath been JBie counsmor?* Accordingly, even after the last breath had been drawn, he would have us hope the best of the deceased, however bad a death he might seem to have made, oecaose we could but ^und our con- jectures on outward appearances, which may deceive the most acute. Apnmos to this, he related to me th» following snecdute : ' A preacher of an indulgent dis- position, spealdng of the heresiarohf who caused the re- volt of the Church of Geneva, said, that we must not speak decisively of the damnation of any one after mth, save of those whom Piripture has declared to be reprobate, not even of thav heresiarch who was the author of so much evil by his errors. For who knows, he said, whether Ood may not have touched his heart at the moment of death, and whether he may not have been converted ? It is true, he continued, that out of the Church, and without tme faith, there is no salvation ; but who knows if lie did not in his heart acknowledge the truth of the faith he had opposed, and at the last die truly penitent? After having kept his audience thus in suspense, he concluded by saying. We ought, indeed, to have very high sentiments of the goodness of God. Jssos Christ offered His peaoci His love and salvstioi^ • Bon. ^. S4. fC^IfUi. ■*, '.1 :V .'.'"ir. 178 ■T. VBA1I0I8 OB SAL1 9wm to the traitor wlio betrayed Him with a kiss; why may He not have oifHrefl tiie smm grace to this wretched heresiarch ? Is God's arm shor ened ? Is He become less kind and less merciful, He m ho is meroy itself, and mercy without number, measun), or Hmit? But, he added, believe me, and I can assure you I speak but the truth, — if he was not damned, he had as narrow an es- cape as ever man had ; and if he was saved ii'om that everlasting shipwreck, he owed as handsome a candle* to God as ever did any one of his soit.' This lively •od quite unexpected conclusion did not draw many ' tears from the eyes of his auditors. ** Our Saint was in the habit of saying, that the soul of our neighbour is the tree of the Icnowledspe of ^ood and evil, w hich we aro forbidden to touch under nam of chastisement, because God has reserved the juagment .hereof to Himself. He observed an inconsistency very eommon amongst men, who are by nature inclmed to judge in a matter wliere they p % ignoitrnt — namely, the Ulterior of others, while the^ aie averse to judging of what they do know, or ought to know — their own interior, llie first is forbidden, the second is com- manded. In this they resemble a ce iain woman, who, having made a point all her life of doinp precisely the contrary to what her husband desireo, was at last drowned in a river. Her hrsband being found ft with for looking for her bodj in the contrary direct . to the current, ' Do you t Jieve,' he replied, ' that death will have deprived hei of her spirit of contradic- tion V To avoid this vice, our Saint gave t'>e following excellent rule : If an act may be viewed in a hundred different lights, to look at it always in its fairest. If we cannot excuse an action, we may soften it by ex- cnnng the intention : if that be not possible, we mntt Ikj it to the force or temptation, tr ignorance, or snr prife, or human weakness, so as at least to strive to diminish the scandal. In short, he said, those who * An aUasion to the votite ofbringk mad* by saikf • Mei^«4 voin ptnL If lUSt jBiir re to who IT. FRANCIS DB 0ALB1. 177 kmp ft wfttcb over their conscience eeldom comm'.t iht Hxit of rash judgments. It is the act of an idle soul which has no occupation within it»3lf, to stop to somti- nise other people's actions." Here is a specimen of his cJdIl in ezonsinff his neighbours. ** I was finding fault to him one day/ says M. de Belley, ''with some little country-gentlemen, who, althou^n as poor as Job, played the gref.t lords, talking contmually of their nobility and the high deeds of their ancestors. He replied with wonderful grace, 'What would you have? Do you wish these poor ^pie to be doubly poor 7 If they are rich in honour, at any rate they tnink less of their poverty ; like that young Athenian who was under the mental delusion that be was the richest man in the country, and having been cured of his madness by the care of his friends, eaused them to be prosecuted tor having robbed him of his pleasing imagination. What woula you have ? It belongs to nobility to bear up with a high spirit against ill-forcune. Like the elastic palm, it rebounds under its burden. Would to God they may never have worse faults ! It is of tliose miserable and detestable duels we should complain ;* and he said this with a sigh. "One day, as persons were exclaiming and even using vehement invectives against a very scandalous fault, although one of infirmity, committea by a mem- ber of a religious community, he said nothing, except, ' human misery ! human misery !* at another time, ' how encompassed we are with infirmity !' and again, ' What can we do of ourselves but sin V and, ' We should perhaps do worse, if God did not hold us by the right hand, and lead us according to His will.' He was in the habit of sayuig, that if the world were freed from evil-speaking, it would be freed from a very large portion of its sins, for of all sins which may be classed under the heads of thought, word, and deed, the most frequent and the most dangerous sometimes are those of word : and this for many reasons. First, because tins of thought are hurtful only to him who oommite 1,1 ( ■ (1 . :■ ! i •T. FBANCIf DB SALBS. them, and are the occasion of neither soaiidal, irritatioBk nor bad example to others, being known only to Ood whom they ofiend ; and so a loving and penitent return to God emioes them : but those of the tongue reach further; the word once pronounced can be recalled onlr oj a humble retractation: and yet our neighbour's heart has none the less been infected and poisoned through his ear. Secondly, sins of deed, if of any note, are liable to public chastisement j but slander, unless it be very atrocious and disgraceful, is not amenable to pvmishment ; hence numbers of persons fidl into this sin. The tmrd reason is the rareness of restitution and reparation in this matter; those who have the conduct of souls being too indulgent^ not to say lemissy in this respect ** It pained him to hear any one call a person bad on account of some single reprehensible act, because yirtuous habits, he said, are not extinguished by one eontraiy act; for instance, we cannot call a man a drunkard on account of one solitary act of intemperance, and so of the other vices. Hence, when he heard any sne for a single sin taxed with the coiresponding vice, he gently remonstrated against the accusation, and ob- served tnat there was a wide difference between vice and sin, the former signifying a habit, the latter an act ; and that as one swallow does not make a summer, so one solitary sinful act does not rander a person vicious, that ih, habituated to the vice an act of which he has per- formed. But if so, it was objected, we may not, on the other hand, conclude that a pei-son is in a state of giace, and possesses cliiirity, however holy he may ap- pear in his actions. He re])Iied, that if faith, as St. James teaches, is known by works, much more is cha- rity, which is a far more active virtue, works being, in relation to it, like sparks whicii reveal the existence of fire ; and althoug-h, wl:ren we witness a sin confessedly mortal, we may affirm tiitit the pei-son committing it forfeited the "rracP of God, how can we tell whether Uod, A moment after, did not touch his heart? and whetbv •T. FRANCIS i>B lALBl. in atioA| >God retura reach donlT bourt isoned ^Bote, ilesait ible to to ihii on and ondnot inthii on bad because by one man a lerance, Lrd any ag vice, and ob- sen vice an act; 80 one »U8, that las per- not, on state of nay ap- as ot. is cha- teing, in ence of fessedl^ ittinr it lerUod, whetbv te did not torn from his evil wj^ by an act of eon- trition? We must, therefore, be uj fearful of judg- iB||^ ill of others ; but as fp judging well, we mav act with perfect Ireedom ; beca. • Th€ beliert penoni lain to zterior, ue; let society )le who Lbe pest rse, and rieldingy » readily in every \ adyice^ me con* staining. irudencCy leimgim ipnnce-B an spiri* iselyWht •sons are Here.ai to adopt of a man by I has dis- a cheap one re- Ihe holds ST. FRANOIS DB BAtBS. Itl holding ins, out moment ofdfv<» iAbb, fimoy they must shun all company and oouTsrsi^ lion, w owls avoid the duy-bii'da, and by this strange Mud austere behavioiu' inspire others with an aversion to dovotion, instead uf rendering it pleasing and attractive. vhir Saint did not tipprove of this, but wished those who practised devotion to be the lij^ht of the world by their good example, and the salt of the earth, to impart « caste for pietv to such as Incked it. But, it may b(^ said, if the saft returns to the ocean from whence it was drawn, it will melt and become dissolved. True, but also if you do not mix it with meats, they will have Qo savour. " To a good soul who asked him if such as desire to live with some perfection may mix with the world, he made this reply : *■ Perfection does not consist in not seeing the world, out in not having a taste or relish foi it. All that sight brings is danger, for he who beholds 11 luns some risk of loving it ; but to him who is forti- fied by a good and firm resolution, it does no harm. In a word, the perfection of charity is theperfection of life ; for the Ufe of our soul is charity. Tne primitive Christians lived in the world in body but not in heart, and were nevertheless very perfect." '' Our Saint, by the help of gitice, knew how to unite in his person two admirable qualities, — gravity and sweetness. He knew how to blend with the ray o\ majesty and honour, which grace had poured up/^rs his brow, so much affability and sweetness, that you wcxld have said it was another Moses who veiled his beam- ing face when he would converse familiarly with his brethren. If he possessed attractions which drew per- sons to love him, he had also so much gravity and modesty, that they could not help fearing, or at least respectmg him. !uut this respect was so fall of love, that I knew of many who qmte trembled when they spoke to him ; not so much from the fear of displeasmg him (for nothing displeased him, and he received tho radest persons graciously), but for fear of not pleasing him tDOQgh. Iwill tendidly own that I took so muoS * ' n i.-J Mi: 13 : ill 1 1 r^ ^'., ii ! l! •T. V1UN0IS DB tALBi. delifi^bt in doings any thing to please him, that when ba •▼inoed any satisfaction with me, my head was up in the stars; and if he had not taught me to refer all ultimately to God. without stopping short at himself many of mv actions would have come to a stand in the midst of t^eir course. As for his sweetness, it was unknown only to thoM to whom he himself was not known. In him this viitue seemed to have clothed itself with a human form ; and you would have said he was gentleness itself, rather than a man endowed with that ((uality. Hence he possessed such powerliii in- fluence over men's minds, that all gave way to him ; and as he condescended to each individually, making himself all thin}^ to all men, so, on the other hand, uO acquiesced in his desire, which was no other than to behold them all embarked in the service of God and tho ways of salvation." tn SAXirr*B oranows aboct pbsaohiiio akd oohtbovbbst. AMD BIS MBTUOO IM OKALINO WITH UiaBTlCS. Any notice of the spirit of St Francis of Sales would be incomttlete without a few extracts regarding these eints, which are naturally connected witli each other, is extraordinary success us a preacher makes every Hint on this subject extremely valuable. Here, as in every thing else which api)ertains to him, we find the ■ame spirit of sweetness, simplicity, and sincerity. A few anecdotes will illustrate these characteristics. We will head them by an amusing incident related by the candid Bishop, wlio, in his Mmiration for the mode) before him, fell into the mistakj of labouring after tn external copy of the Saint's manner in the piupit. ** I entertained so high an esteem of him, that aB bii ways enchanted me. I took it into my bead to imitate his style of preaching. Do not ima^pine, bow* erer, that I aspireu to imitate bim in the haight of hii thoughta, in the profundity of bia doctrine, in the poim » ST. f RANG!! Dfi tALtt. 16$ lit aD id to, how* t > if hii rsafoning^, in the soundness of his judg-ment, io the tenderness of liis lanprimf^e, in the perfect ord(>r and oonnection which rei^pted in his sermons, and in that incomparable sweetness which could remove the yery rooks from their foundations. All that was beyond my reach. I was like those flies which, unable to walk on the polished surface of a mirror, betake tiiemsulves to the frame. I amused myself, and, as vou will hear, I deceived myself, in strivfng to adopt his exteimal ac- tion, his g'estui'es, and pronunciation. In him all tliif was slow and quiet ; mine bein^ naturally the reverse, I underwent so strang'e a metamori)husis, that no one would have known me ; it was no longer I myself. I had s|K)ilt my own orig'innl, to make a very bad copy of him whom I wished to imitate. Our Saint, who had been informed of all this proceeding, said to me one day, after making approaches to the subject for some time, * Apropojt to sermons, I have heard a piece of news : I am told vou have taken a funcy to mimic the Bishop of Geneva s preachin**'.' I defended myself 'I'om this cliarg^ by replying, 'Well, and iiave I chosen so bad a pattern after all / Do you not think he preaches better than I do ?' * Ah ! come,' he n^joined, * here la • personal attack. Well, certainly, he does not preach ill ; but the worst is, that I am told that you imitate him BO badly, that people can make nothing of it but A very imperfect attempt, which spoils the Bishop of Belley, without reprasenting the Dishop of Geneva; 10 that it would be necessary to follow the example of that bad painter, who used to write the names of the Crsons wiiose poilraits he had taken under the facea had daubed. 'Let him alone/ I retoited, * and yon will see that by degrees he will rise fi'om the rank oi wppnatice to that of a master ; and that in the end hia Mpiea will pass for oriffiuals.' ' Joking apart,' he r»- Ced, ' you spoil yoursdf, and pull down a good bnild* 1^, to reconstruct another against all the rulea of nn^ tnre and art; besides, at tout ag«, iuppoeinr jou htfi fontraoted • bad creaM, fike a piece ox doth, yon wiD *fl.hil iT. FBlNOIf SB lALHL wi Hud h tfuj to f^et rid of it. 0, if it were poaibk to exchange qualities, wliat would I not c^ve for yourt 1 I do what I can to move and stir myself up to a little rapidity; but the more I lal)our, the slower I (ret on. I iiaTe a difficulty in finding' words; more still in pro- nouncing them. I am heavier than the old stump of a treo; I can move neither myself nor others; I iiei-suire, it is true, a great deal, but mnke very little way. You get on full sail, I by dint of oars ; you fly, I crawl or creep along like a tortoise; you hnve more fire in your fingers' ends than I have in my whole body, — a won- derful rapidity, and the liveliness of a bird; nud now I lear that you weigh your words, measure your |)i!riod9, drag your wines ; that you droop and ting, und make Tour nearers ao the same.' J can tell you that thii ^ose was so effectual, that it freed me from this plea- •ant error, and sent me back to my old ways." His love of a holy simplicity and sincerity is dit- played in several other charitable lessons which the good Bishop records as having received at his hands. "One day I was to preacli at the Visitation: and being aware that our Saint would be present, ana that t large concourse was ex[>ected, I must own that I had felt a little personal anxiety on the occasion, and had prepared in good earnest. When wo had retired to his Qouse, and were alone together, ' Well,' he said, * you have given general satisfaction to-day; people went away exclaiming mirahilia at your fine and eloquent panegyric. I only met with one individual who was not satisfied.' ' What can I have said,' I replied, ' to f hock this person's mind ? for I have no desire to know his name.* * But I, for my part,' he rejoined, ' have a great desire to tell it ym. * Who is he, then, that I may endeavour to give him satisfaction V ' If I had not great confidence in you, I should not name him ; but as I know you well, 1 willingly do so. Do you see him heref I looked round, ana saw no one but him- •df. ' It is you, then/ I said. ^ Myself,' he replied. ' CSertainly/ 1 rejoined ; ' I should Have valued youi •t. f lUNOIt DM lALBt. 181 •f ( ab^le tpnrolwtion more than that of the whole oongra> fation. Thank Ood, I have fallen \:i\o the hands of one who wounds only that he may heal ! What, then, did you find fault with ? for I know that your indid* genoe will not excuse any thing: in me/ * I love yon too much/ he resumed, 'to flatter you; and if yoo had loved our sisters after thu fashion, you would not have amused yourself in puffink up their minds, instead of edifVing them; in pitusing tLjr state in life, instead of teacning them some humiliating and more salutary dootrine. It is with the food of the mind as with tha^ of the hody. Flattery is windy; and windy food, hk» vegetahles, is innutritions. We ought in preaching to provide, not empty food, the memory of which periiuiea with its utterance, but meat which will endure to life everlasting. We must never, indeed, ascend the pulpit, without the special object of building up some comei' or other of tue walls of Jenisalem, by teaching the practice of some virtue, or the avoidin^^ of some vice; for the whole fruit of preaching consists in the eradi- cating of sin, and the planting of justice. Lordt ex- claimed David, Infill teach the iinjtut Thy wayty ana the wiehed shall be converted unto Thee,* * What sort of conversion,' I retorted, ' could I preach to souli delivered from the hands of their enemies, the devU, the flesh, and the world, and serving God in holiness r * You ought to have taught them," he said, ' to taJce heed, since they stand, not to fall ; to work out their salvation, according to the counsel of the Holy Spirit^ Kith fear and trembling ; and not to be without fear, even with respect to forgiven sin. You described them to us as so many saints; it costs you nothing to o»> nonise the living. You must not place pillows under elbows in this way, nor give milk to those who need bitter herbs and wormwoml.* ' My object,* I said, 'waa to moanrm and fortify them in their holy undertak- iiifr*' ' We must enoouragey* he repUed, ' without • Fm]mL1& i- yi-M ! f.' ;»■■■ m pi It ii.J r," :!.;i i 1' ; 180 ■T. PRANOtS i>B SALSi. nioff the risk of ezcitin? presumption and TSiii^. 1% li lijWRys safer to liiimLle our keai'en, than to exalt them to higfh and admirable things above their roach. I fuel perauaded that another time you will be cautious in this re8])ect/ ** The next day he made me preach at a convent of the nuns of St. (Jlare. He was present, and the con- Sragation was not less numerous than on tlie preceding ay. I took care to avoid tlie pittail he had pointed out to me: my discourse was very simple, both in words and ideas, aiming' at notbing except edifieution. I proceeded with much method, and pressed home my •uoject Ou>- Saint, on our return, came to see me in my apartment, «hich, in fact, was his own; for when I was on a visit to him, be always gsive me up his room. After tftnderly emhacing me, 'Truly,' he said, * I loved yot deai-ly yesterday, but much more to-daj. You are, indeed, quite after my own heart*, and it I am not much misttiken, you ai-e also according to God's heart, who, I believe, has lieen pleased with your sacri- fice. I could nut have beiif'Ved you would have been 80 yielding and condescending. It is a tine saying, that the obedient inan xhall irpeak of victory.* You have conquered yourself to-day. Do you know that most of your heai-ers said, "To-day "is very unlike yesterday," and they were not as much pleased tbis time as the last ; but the individual who was not satis- fied yesterday is wonderfully i>leased to-dav. I grant you hereu]»on a plenary indulgence for all your past faults. You have fulhlled all my wishes to-day; and if you persevere, you will do much service fur the Lord of the vineyard. Preaching must not seek its strength in the words and the notions of human wisdom, but u: the demonstration of the Spirit and of power. If you faithiiilly adhere to this method, God will give to yoni labours a full and honourable increase ; you will beooma prodant in the words of mystical wisdom, and will pot* ♦ Prov. uO. n ST. FRANCIS DB 1ALB8. 187 tb« wienee of the saints, the science that makes saints. What, after all, do we desire to know, save Jesus, and jesus cniciHed !' ** When he heard people talk of preachers who did wonders, he would ask, *Iluw many has their preaching converted ? for the conversion of souls is a more mira- cidous work than the resuii-ection of the dead, since it is a passag'e from the death of sin to the life of grace.' If it was replied, that the wonders alludod to were elo- quence, science, memory, striking manner, and other cuaracteristics of a great speaker, — ^Thnse qualities,' ha would say, * are those of a worldly onitor, and can be acquired by human diligence ; biit they ap{M>r^ain not to those on whom the Holy Spirit, which bv been conferred upon them, has {wuitid tiiH science of the lan- guage of heaven, which is the science of salvatioi* and of the saints.' '*When any one said a preacher was succeedins rery well, he would ask in what virtues he excelled, whether in humility, in mortiHoition, in sweetness, in courage, in devotion, and such like. On being told that it was good preaching which was meant, 'That,' he would rejoin, * is saying, not doing. The one is much easier than the other. How many there are who say, and do not — who pull down by their bad exiimp^ what they have built up with their tongue! Is not that man a very monster, whose tongue is longer than his arm?' Some one observed of a preacher, * He has done wonders to-day.' He replied, ' He who has done wonders is the man who is found without s{K>t — who has not followed after gold, nor placed his hofM in worldly treasure.' To another, who said of a certam Sreaeher that he had even soared above himself, * What iterior self-sacrifice has he achieved V was his reply ; ' what injury has he endured ? It is upon such-liks oocasions that we surmount ourselves. Would you know whence I infer the excellence and merit of a inrcMher? It is when those who come away strike Uiiir kratiti, saying, / will do well; not, Jiow w§tt Ihil ■u . • i . i I F'i . ! li Mm Ifii 168 IT. FRAMOIS OB AALBft. he has aotu! When the sermon is over, do not amuM Tourself with attending to those rain popular plaudits, How well he has acquitted himself! What an eloquent tongue ! What profound knowledge ! What an admirable memory! What a fascinatiDg preacher! vVhat a pleasure it is to listen to such a man ! I never had such a treat in all my life ! All this is empty babble, proceeding from minds that lack judgment. Christian preachers, St. Jerome tells us, ou^ht not to have recoui'se to the arts of the rhetorician, Ijut should use the simple lan- guage of fishermen ; that is, of the Apostles. If St Paul condemns hearers with itching ears, how much more preachers who scmtch them b)r their choice words, rounded periods, and studied compositions! But i^ upon cominff out from the sermon, you should meet with any who, hke the centunon, say. Truly this man is of God ; he preaclies Jesus Christ cmcifiea, not him- •elf ; he teaches us to repent of our sins ; it will not be his fault if we do not turn from oiu> evil ways ; this sermon will rise against us at the day of judgment, if we do not profit oy it : or if they say, 0, how neces- sary is penance for salvation I how lovely is virtue ! how sweet is the burden of the cross ! how Ught the yoke of God's law! how hideous and detestable a thing 18 sin I rather let us die than sin : or if, without using so many words, the hearers testify to the fiiiit of the preaching by amendment of life, you may then judge of the gtiodness and efficiency of the preacher, not tc his glory, but to the glory of Him that sent him, — ^to the glory of God, who speaks by his mouth, and fiUt him with His Spirit.' "In proof of this, he told me the following anec- dote : 'A very celebrated preacher came to Annecy; I begged him to prf>ach ; he consented ; and setting off in a high style, he propounded his sublime notions in SQoh pompous language, and with such a display of eloquence, that our good mountaineers were quite as- tonished. As they came out, nothing was to be heard hnt eijirissions of delight and admiration. Never ■T. rRANOIS DB SALIS. 180 M ani^b {noense of praise offered to mortal man : thej ▼ied with each other m their applause, ana in crying him up to the skies. Knowing well how much this discourse waa above the comprehension of its admirers, I took ■ome of them aside, and questioned them, to discoyer how muf h they had retained of it, and what particular profit they had derived from it. Not one of them could tell me a word. One more mgenuous than the rest re> plied : *< If I had understood it, and could retail it to you^ that would show that he had said nothing uncommon. It is our ignorance which excites our aiuniration ; foi he talked of such high and lofty things, that they wera quite beyond our reach; and this makes vm bave a rreater esteem for the mysteries of our religioi.'* ' Our Saint praised his candour, and acknowledged that he had derived some sort of profit from the sermon. Spring flowers are not enough, if they are not followed by au- tumn fruit. The preacher wuo has only the leaves ai language and fine thoughts, is in peril of being classed among those unfruitful trees who are threateuMl in the Goepu with the axe and the fire. J have chosen you, ■aid our Lord to His Apostles, that you should go and Irimafyrthjruitf and ymir fruit Mould remain,*** ALde Belley mentions,' that m the early days of his episcopate, Demg yet, as he says. '' very green** (having by the speoal dispensation of the Pope been oonsecrated under the age prescribed by the canons), and having his mind yet freshly stored with his school knowledge and with elegant litertture, for which he had a particular turn, he brought forth a redundancy of such matter fi'om the treasures of his memory. It was upon the occasion of his being in CiiM llil were all flowers and perfume, which attracted erowdi of hearers, like bees which cluster round sugar and ho- ney. He, however, who judged aftei quite a different fbshion, and who was well skilled in this art, would have desired to see me draw mora upon the divine Scrip tures than on human letu^rs ; he would have wished for more of the soUd spirit of piety than display of spiritual expressions eloquent with numan wisdom. Whereupon he wrote me a beautiful letter, in which he apprised me, that the odour which my sweet spices exhaled had reached even to him, so that he compared himself to Alexander, who, sailings towards the Foi'tunate Islands, was made awara of iueir neighbourhood by the fra* ffrance which the wind, sweeping over the smooth sur^ race of the sea, wafled to his vessels. After havins thus concealed the point of his lancet in this oiled and perfumed cotton, he stuck it in by telling me that, after ■0 many messengers, who every day brought him word that our bed was all strewed with verdura, our fiimi* tura of cedar and Cyprus, — that our blossoming vines wero spreading their sweetness on all sides, — that our don was full of nothing but flowers, — that it was ^ bing sprinp'time all around us, — he was expecting others to give him news of summer and autumn, of the harvest and the vintage. ' I am lictening,' he said, ' to hear anJlore»/rvctiupartvriant ,*'* telling me that, afler all, he fwlvifiied me to strip my vine of its superfluous tendiila of belles-lettre/h—tempus putationis venit ;f to prune and retrench from it so many foreign oniaments ; and that, although it was allowable to use the vases of the Egyptians for the service of the tabernacle, C ought to be with sober moderation ; that Hachel was indeed fairer than Lid, but that Lia was mora fniitliil ; that the Oosiiel ought to Ije ex})oun(ied in conformity with its own stvie and simplicity; that red ami white fmint ill be* came the face of theology ; and that we ougiit to beware of adulterating the Word of God much more than the * Whether the flowers Are bringing forth fruits. t ** Th« tiuM 9f pruning U oome." C»n(iclM it. \% iT. nuiroit ob malsm, Itl tfUTOit coin ; to whiob he added many other similar in* ■tructions, which had the effect of making me much more resenred, much less liberal of those viands which are rather empty than solid, and much more careful to hibour for that meat which perishes not, and whion the Qospel so 8ti*ongly recommends to us. " It was his opinion, that it was not sufficient that the preacher should have a general intention of in- structing in the ways of God, out that he should aun at some special object ; for instance, the knowledge ol some mystery, the exposition of some article of faith, the destruction of some vice, or the estabUshment of some virtue. ' You would hardly believe,* he said, 'how important is this advice, and now many laboiured and studied sermons are profitless for want of point. If you will follow this maxim, your sermons will pro- duce much fruit; if vou neglect it, you may reap ad mu-ation for yourself, but others will derive no be- nefit." '' He approved extremely of shortness in sermonSi and said that lengthiness was the most general defect of the preachers of his day. ' Do you call that a de- fect,' said I, * and thus ^ve to plenty the name ol scarcity?' ' When the vme,' he replied, ' produces a rreat deal of wood, then it is that it bears the least Sruit A multitude of wonls never produces a great effect. Obsei've all the Iiomilies ana sermons of the ancient fathers — how short they are ; but how much more eilicacious they were than ours * The good St. Francis, in his rule, enjoins upon the preachera of his Order to be brief, and ndihices this reason —that God had made a short word vpon the earth* Believe me,' he said, * I sjieak from experience, and from very bug ex))erience ; the more you say, the less will be rememliered; the more you sny, the less will your hearers profit. By dint of overfoading their memory, foil malu) it breuk down ; as lauips are put out by tot •Bob. Is. ML m>. I- 199 ■T. nUHOIB DB lAUk •i» h: *'!?M' :* ;'t3^ 1-'. \l !ii W 5 "ill, ) 1 < li: much oil, and plants an stifled by too mnoli watenag. When a sermon is too long, the end makes ns forget the middle, and the vaLcLh the beginning. Preachers of very moderate powers are endurable, provided they a*e brief; while such as are excellent become burden- lome when the^ are too long. A preacher cannot have a more offensive fault than lengthiness. You musi saj little, and that good, and inculcate it diligently, not making the least account of those fastidious minds who are displeased when a preacher repeats a thing, and goes ovei* the same gi-ound again. What ! is it not necessary in making a work of iron to heat it over and over ap^ain ; and in pa nting to touch and retouch re- peatedly? How much more, then, is it needful, in order to imprint eternal titiths in hearts confirmed in evil, and on hardened intellects V " Not only did St. Francis approve of short sermons, but he had a predilection for a limited audience, as M. de Belley thus relates : ** ' Rejoice,' said our Saint, ' when in ascending the pulpit you see few pople, and that you have but a tliinly-scattcred audience/ * But,' said I, * it costs no more ti-ouble to teach many tiian few.' ^ It is from a thirt}- veai-s* experience in this matter,* he replied, * that I speak; and i Lave always seen greater results for God's service from sermons 1 hnve preached before small than before large congregations. At the time 1 was provost, I was sent by tlie bishop, my predecessor^ to preach. One Sunday, when tlie weather was very bad, there were only seven persons in the church, su that some one observed to me, that it was not worth while to give any sermon. I repUed, that neither did a large audience encom'a^e, nor a small one dishearten oie ; that provided one sm»-le individual was edified, it was enough. I accordingly mouutnd the pulpit, and I remember my sermon was on prayer to the saints. I treated the subject very simply ; I said nothing either pathetic or vehement ; however, one of the congre^ tion began to weep bitterly, and even to lob and ugb i I It •T. FRAlfOIS DS tALBl. 198 quite audibly. I thought he was ill, so T begpgped him not to put any constraint upon himself; that I was about to finish, and would come and help him if he needed any thing-. He replied that he was quite well in ^KKiy, and begged me to go on, saying that I was dressinig; the wound which required it. When the sermon, whicb was short, was over, he came and threw himself at my feet, exclaiminsf, ' M. le Provost, I owe my hfe to you; you have savea my soul to-day. Blessed be the hour when I came here and heard you ! it has been worth an eteniity to ..me.* He then told me, that havirg Wn conferring with some (Protestant) ministers concermng prayer to the saints, which they represented as horrible idofatry, he had fixed the following Thursday for hia abjuration of the Catholic religion ; but that he had been so well instructed by the sermon he had just heard, and his doubts had been so completely removed, that he detested the promise he had made, and vowed obe> dience anew to the Roman Church. I cannot tell yon what an impression this example, occurring amongst so small a number of people, produced through ua whole neighbourhood, and how docile and ready to receive the Word of God it rendered the hearts of others.* ** A very learned preacher, who took great paina with his sermons, but who was not much followed, often employed the best part of his discourse in com* plainmg of the negligence of those who did not corns to hear the Word of God, and even went so far ai to threaten to throw all up and forsake his pulpit The Saint, who had been present, said to one of his con< fidential friends, as they came out of church, ' Whom is this good person angry with ? He has scolded U0 for a fault we have not committed, for we were pre- sent. Would be have had us cut ourselves up mto bits to fill the empty places ? It is the absent he waa displeased with, ana tney will not be the more punctual in consequence, for they did not hear him. If he wished to addriM t}iem» he ought to have fpone about the atreed 194 n V«A1f Oil DS f ALI ^ii'i if i ■nm ¥:% and public places, to compel those who frequented then to come to Lis banquet. As it is, he inveighed at thv innocent, and let the gr^iilty alone.' " Disputes on reli>^ious mutters were Tery disagree- able to Itim, particularly at table and after dinner; these were not, he said, bottle topics. I replied, one day^ taking up his expression, that J a bottle of thii kind was occasionally broken, it was to g^ve forth the lamp of truth, which is all fire and flame. * Yes, in- fieea,' he rejoined, ' fire and flames of ang-er and alter- cation, wiiich yield only smoke and blackness, and verj 'ittle lij^ht.' He also particularly disapproved of contro- versial subjects being* introduced into sermons, preaching bemg ordained rather to edify than to ])ull down ; and 'bi* instruction in morals, rather than for settling those iisputes concerning the faith which arise among such is are external to the Church. But it will be urged, oerhaps, that it is for the purpose of confirming Cathodes sa their belief that the arguments of their advenarief are ovei>thrown in their presence. A plausible reason, but of which experience proves the futihty; because^ not to speak of tlie thorny difficulties with which thess distressing contestations are beset, the human mind, owing to its natural corruption, has so great a pro- pensity to evil, that it will fix its attention on the objection rather thily by sur- Srise, and makes them receive the trutii, not only without ifficulty, but with pleasura ; 4, simple as it is, it pos- sesses in its simplicity a wonderful energy, changing offensive into defensive wea]>ons, and di-awin)^ proofs for the defence of truth fram the very objections of those who are in error. M. de Belley goes on to exemplify the manner in which the Saint practised this method : '' The answers which Catholics are in the habit of {fiTing to the objections which Protestants make from passages of Scripture, being conformable to the truths which are taught by the Church, we have only to bring foiwajtl the solution first, which being explained and reasoned out, without making it figure as an answer to an objection, the passage upon which the difficulty is grounded comes by this means to furnish a proof of the truth laid down. Thus it was that the Saint himself explained it to me. Here is an example which wiU make the matter clear : " Protestants commonly quote this passage of Scrip- Pan against the Real Presence : * It is the spirit which ^veth life: the Jleeh profiteth nothing^ to which we make two replies, — tHe one from St Chrysostom, *h% other from St Angustioe : first, that the flesh without the spirit^thU is, without the Divinity — ^would profit Mthiog ; aeoondlj, tW the camtl iiiil groii waj a UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR LIBRARY Ih I IM •T. tftANOIf Dl tALll. 1; . II 'l ''i which cfte Gaphtrnaites understood Him profited bo* thing. In pursuance of the object we have in view, wt have only to point out the weakness of the flesh by it- self, without being united to the Divinity and anointed by it, and to show that it is the Divinity which imparts to the humanity the power it possesses of communi-. eating to the faithful who are its members that grace which itself has received as the head ; and thus it is this 8i)u*it of the Divinity and tliis Sacred Flesh which vivi- fies souls who become pnrtakera thereof in communion. According to the second interpretation, we have only to represent how gross and unworthy of the majesty o' clus mystery was the notion of the Caphamaites, ana how fsff removed from it is the Cathohc faith on this point, and hence conclude how true are these words of che Saviour, that the flesh, taken m these two senses, would profit nothing ; by this means availing ourselves, in conhrmatiou of tlie orthodox doctrine, otthat which is employed to oppose it. He told me that he had for a long time employed this method, and that it ttirew BO complete a disguise over controversy, that, althouG[h one might preach nothing else, hearers would scarcely be aware or the fact unless it were pointed out to them. Be preached an Advent and Lent at Grenoble, where /here are numbers of Protestants, who were more dili- gent in their atter dance on his preaching than on that of their own ministers, because, tiiey said, he was free ii-om the spirit of contention ; and yet he always em- ployed the first part of his discourse in setting forth the traths of Catholic doctrine, but in the manner I have described, the latter part being devoted to moral and de- votional application : the Protestants meanwhile, who never perceived the art of his method, wondering much at seeing him establish the faith of the Roman Church by the very same Scripture texts by which they sup- ported their priu' dpal objections. ''Our Saint one day, while at Paiis, preached a sermon on the last judgment, to which God gave M Buch power and efficacy, that certain Protestant! wba IT. FmiNOIt Dl BALM. 1^ had oome to hear him from euriositj were so deeplj moTed, that they conceived a desire to confer with him on some points of faith ; the result being their complete tatisfaotion, and the conversion of an entire family of much note, who were received into the bosom ot th» Catholic Church. *' Here is the Saint's own account of the fiust : ' Being at Paris, and preaching in the queen's chapel upon the subject of the day of judgment (it was not a controver- sial sermon), it happened that Madame de Perdreauville was present, having come from curiosity. She was caught in the snare, and in consequence of that sermon came to the resolution of seeking instruction; three weeks afterwards she brought her whole family to me to con- fession, and stood godmother to them all at confirmation. See how this sermon, which was not aimed at heresy, was endued with such power against it; for God at that time voiichsafed me that grace to my words ii bvour of these souls. ** * I have always said ever since that who everpreaohes with love, preaches sufficiently against heresy, although he may not utter a single word of controversy against 't. For these thirty-three years that Ood has called me to the sacred office of breaking the bread of His Word to the people, I have certainly remarked that practical sermons, where the subject is treated ?nth devotion and with zeal, are so many burning coals thrown in the faces of the Protestants who hear them ; that they are always pleased and edified by them, and are thereoy rendered more docile and reasonable when we come to confer with them on disputed points. This is not my opinion alone, but that of the most celebrated preachers whom I have known ; and every one agrees that the pulpit ought not to be made the oattle-ground of controversy, and that we 'demolish more than we build up, if we attempt any thmg beyond a passinp^ allusion to it.' ** If a Samt's opinion on this pomt is worthy of no- tice, how much more of one who gathered into tlw Ohurofa's bosom so many of her lost sneep ! ■'"I'.M "•>*■.■ 108 ST. FBAHOIt DB lALM. <' Our SainV' sayi M. de Bellej, " hud received from leaven a special grace for oon?ertingp linnera witlh* in the CImrah, and for bringing back those without to the bosom of that Mother, separated from whom we cannot have Ood for our Father. As resmcts theee, not to speak of the restoration of the Chaulais to tlM true Ciiurch, in which he codperated in the conversion of from forty to fifty tiiousand souls, he was besides per- sonally instrumental in reclaiming some fifteen or sii- teen tuousand pei'sons from Protestantism. Thif special gift lor converting was the occasion of an obeervatioD which the great uai-dinal du Perron, of Uteraiy cele- brity, made one day, — that if it was a question merely of eonfbiifuiing heretics, he thought he possessed th« secret; but to convert them, they must be sent to Um Bishop of Geneva, who had a commission from heaven for that work. The Cardinal de Derulle was of th« same opinion, and openly declared that the hand of God was with the blessed Francis." We are not to sup|)ose, however, that he ihrank from controversy where the honDvu* or religion and tha good of souls required that t)ie truth should be pub- licly vindicated. Here is an instance recorded by H. da Belley, which exemplifies his holy boldness, and at tha Mme time manifests its source, — a perfect oonfidenoa in God, whose glory he sought alonCi and a spirit ol bumble self-renunciation ; ** The Saint, when preaching Lent and Advent tt Grtiioble, di-ew such crowded congregations, not oidy of Catholics, but of Prjtestants belonging to the Gene- van sect, that the seimnns of their own ministers wt^vt* left unattended. One of these men, a turbulent f^ir^ seeing his pulpit deserted, after indulging in mam lo- vecftves and injurious declamations against the «unt» defied hiui to a public conference. The challenge wai accej>ted. A perran of merit, who did not think it ad* ▼itaole th^". * '.e Saint su ) ilii aipoee himself to this coii>. tent, represesvid . > him ^he insolent temper of thte ■Buatav^koLfttia helliaw mouth, tad the inoit vitvp^ •T. F«A1fCTt DB •▲!■•. IM rative and abusiTe of tonfpiM. ' Good/ said the Sunt ; ' this 18 just what we wan ' And as his friend weut on to represent to him that he would j^ceive the most on- worthy treatment from this man, who would show hioi no more consideration than if he wus the lowest of the people, ' Better still/ replied the holy Bishop; Hhis it what I seek. What gjory shall accrue to Ood from my confusion !' ' BuV rejoined the other, ' wt>uld you expose the rank you bold to ignominy ?' * Our Lord/ answered the Saint, * suffered rar greater insults. Wat He not satiated with opprobrium V * 0/ replied hii friend, ' you are aiming too hiff h.' ' What shall I say V continued the Saint ' I hope uiat God will gi^e me the grace to endure more insults than this man can offer me ; and if we are deeply humbled, God will be ^^loriously exalted. You will see heaps of conversions after that,— > « thousand fallm^ on the left hand and ten thousand «in the right. It is God's way to draw His own honour from our humiliation. Did not the Apostles cone fortk joyfully from those assemblies where they had Midured affronts for the name of Jesus? Let us take courage^ and God will help us. Such as hope in H^m want for nothing, and are never confounded.' ** The enemy, however, who feared that this night prove a losing game, sugp^ested so many prudential considerations to the minister's adherents^ who mis- trusted his powers, that they got the king'f lieutenant, who at that time still belonged to their tSst, to prevent the oonferenoe from taking place.'* Mt^Vib TBB IAIIIT'b LOVB OV HUMILRT AlID SIMPUCRT. ** St Gregory has well said, that when we praise a wise nan m his presence, we afflict his ears and pain bis heart. Such was our Saint He who so lovingly em- braced those who spoke abusive words against nim was mcnre disposed himself to give abiuive words to those irho offiMwi bin the ilighfieit praiaa. On^dayipmo^ it;:- lit ' h . •i. f^ HI [> f .IVi» 'If ;J 8T. FRAN0I8 DB SALIS. iziff before him at Anneoy, and calling to mind a sayii a ofthe Bishop of Saluces, Tu sal es, eqo veto neaue «M neque luxy* I was betrayed into maidnff a little aUu- sion to his name, observing that he was toe salt («u.2e«) which seasoned the whole mass of the people. He was 80 extremely disedified by this praise, tuat when we had returned home he reproved me in a tone and with a manner that would have been severe, had he been capable of severity. ' You were e^oing on so steadily/ he said, * and running so \