In February 1835, almost two years after the establishment of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Frederic wrote to his friend, Leonice Cornier and stated:

Let us, in our turn, poor Samaritans that we are, weak and of little faith, draw near to the wounded man. Perhaps he will not take fright at us, being only what we are but will let us try to probe his wounds and pour balm into them. Let us breathe words of consolation and peace into his ear, and then, when his eyes are opened, we will place him in the hands of those whom God has constituted the guardians and physicians of souls, and who are, so to speak, our hosts on the road of our pilgrimage here below, since they feed our famished spirits with the word of life and the promise of a better world. This is the task before us, this is the divine vocations to which Providence calls us (Kathleen O’Meara, Frederic Ozanam, Professor at the Sorbonne, Catholic School Book Co., New York, p. 87-88 also see Joseph I. Dirvin, Frederic Ozanam: A Life in Letters, Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, St. Louis, Missouri, 1986, p. 65).

Here Frederic is exhorting the members of the Society to act in the same manner as the Good Samaritan, that is, to approach and reach out to those persons who are wounded and lying on the side of the road … to bind up their wounds and comfort them. Taking that first step and reaching out to those who are “poor” can be a challenging task. Vincent de Paul said that the poor scarcely have the expression or the mind of rational persons, so crude and vulgar … if we look on them according to the sentiments of the flesh and a worldly spirit, they seen contemptible (CCD:XI:26). Frederic Ozanam was the forerunner of what today we might call “Catholic social ministry.” He provided not only direct services to the poor but also was their advocate – what we might call today a “lobbyist” before people of influence and affluence in both the larger society and within government.

Pope Francis in Evangelii Gaudium, states:

Since this Exhortation is addressed to members of the Catholic Church, I want to say, with regret, that the worst discrimination which the poor suffer is the lack of spiritual care. The great majority of the poor have a special open­ness to the faith; they need God and we must not fail to offer them his friendship, his blessing, his word, the celebration of the sacraments and a journey of growth and maturity in the faith. Our preferential option for the poor must main­ly translate into a privileged and preferential re­ligious care (Evangelii Gaudium, #200).

Nevertheless, Pope Francis, like Vincent de Paul and Frederic Ozanam, goes on to say that loving attentiveness is the beginning of a true concern for their persons which inspires me effective to seek their good (Evangelii Gaudium, #199).

During this time of pandemic, as more and more people are experiencing uncertainty with regard to food and housing and obtaining basic necessities, the members of the Vincentian Family are being challenged to become ever more creative in responding to people’s spiritual and material needs.

• How have the members of your group or you, individually, been able to respond to the material and spiritual needs of those who are poor?

To view Part I, click here.

To view other posts in this series, click here.