Blessed Frédéric warned the Society against a “proud pharisaism that sounds the trumpet before it”, and the establishment of “bureaucracies which impede our march by multiplying our machinery”, believing these would be the Society’s downfall. [310, to Amélie, 1841] It was one of his regular reminders of the importance of the “primitive spirit”: the simple, gentle, humility that had motivated and animated our works from the beginning.

There was, in Frédéric’s time, no shortage of organizations working for the relief of the poor, just as there was no shortage of the poor. While he acknowledged the good these other organizations, which called themselves not charitable but philanthropic, accomplished, he noted that “they are only a year in existence when they already have large volumes of resumés”. [90, to Curnier, 1835]

Although Frédéric was not its primary author, the first version of our Rule reflected this thinking, recalling that “Our association originated in religious motives; we must, therefore, look for the rules of our conduct nowhere but in the spirit of religion – in the examples and words of our Savior – in the instructions of the Church – in the lives of the Saints.” As for other organizations, the Rule said, we should be happy that they serve the poor in their own way, and that, although we are very fond of the Society, we should regard it as “less excellent than others”. [Rule, 1835]

We should remember, the Rule explained, that our Society is “a work formed nobody knows by whom, nor how – born yesterday, and which may die tomorrow.” [Ibid] This echoes St. Vincent’s frequent reminders that he and Louise deserved no credit for the founding nor the works of the Congregation of the Mission, the Confraternities of Charity, nor the Daughters of Charity. If it is God we seek to follow in our actions, then all glory, all credit, necessarily goes to God, not to us. Christ Himself often told witnesses of His miracles not to tell anybody about them!

We were founded, after all, to show the good of the church, a good that is found in simplicity, not productivity; in humility, not pride; and in gentleness, not efficiency. Vincent considered these to be the virtues most closely tied to the life of Christ, and they are the heart of the Society’s primitive spirit.

It is the primitive spirit that can guide us faithfully into the future, and our primitive spirit is to love, to will the good not only of the other, but of every other. It is to humbly regard others, including other groups who serve the poor, as more important than ourselves. It is, above all, to serve in imitation of Frédéric Rosalie, Vincent, and Louise, who in turn imitated Christ, who came among us to serve and not to be served, in every part of our lives.

Contemplate

How can I keep the value of each personal work of charity above the value of an extensive “resumé”?

By Timothy Williams,
Senior Director of Formation & Leadership Development
Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA.