The Institute of the Sons of Charity was officially founded on December 25, 1918. Founded by Father Jean-Émile Anizan (1853-1928), it brought together both priests and brothers. Its history is closely linked to that of another congregation, the Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul [today known as the Religious of Saint Vincent de Paul], founded in 1845 for the evangelization of disadvantaged populations. Father Anizan joined the Congregation in 1886 and became its Superior General in 1907. Removed from his post by Pope Pius X in 1914, he chose to serve as a military chaplain during the First World War. His departure from the Congregation was followed by that of nearly half of the Institute’s members. Among them were the first Sons of Charity, some of whom are considered pillars of the founding of this new congregation.

While Father Anizan has been the subject of research, it seems interesting to highlight the first Sons of Charity, whether those who participated in the foundation or the first novices. These priests and brothers left few written documents. It is therefore through iconographic archives that we invite you to discover them.

Pillars of the Foundation

Among the first Sons of Charity, some participated in the founding of the Institute. Former Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul who remained faithful to Jean Émile Anizan, seven of them played a special role in implementing the project for a new congregation.

As early as 1916, a group of followers of Father Anizan formed the Third Order of Saint Francis of Assisi. This “waiting group,” as the future founder called it, brought together priests and lay people, men and women, who adhered to a set of rules and took vows. At the same time, booklets detailing Father Anizan’s project were sent to members of the Third Order and other friends. Some of them approached the bishops and Pope Benedict XV to seek their support for the foundation project.

On November 12 and 13, 1918, seven former Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul gathered around Father Anizan to prepare for the founding of the Sons of Charity. All played a role in the founder’s project.

Alexandre Josse (1877-1945)

Born into a Breton farming family, Alexandre Josse met Father Anizan at the Ploërnel seminary while the latter was conducting a vocations tour. Having become a Brother of Saint Vincent de Paul, he was ordained a priest in 1903. When Father Anizan was deposed from his position as Superior General, he contacted Cardinal Billot, his former professor, to defend him, but without success. After leaving the Congregation, he began to minister in an auxiliary hospital in Paris.

In December 1914, he took part in the project to found a new Institute by Father Anizan, with Fathers Allès and Devuyst. He remained in contact with the future founder during the First World War, and was responsible for representing him in his dealings with the bishops. Called the “first-born son” by Jean-Émile Anizan, he was part of the General Council of the Institute from its beginnings, serving as assistant (1921-1925, 1931-1933) and secretary (1925-1931). He succeeded Father Anizan as spiritual director of the Auxiliatrices de la Charité, the women’s congregation that he founded.

Yves Allès (1879-1950)

Like Father Josse, Yves Allès, born into a Breton farming family, met Father Anizan during a vocations tour at the minor seminary in Tréguier. Having become a Brother of Saint Vincent de Paul, he was close to the future founder. When the latter returned from the front in 1916 and became parish priest of Notre-Dame-Auxiliatrice parish in Clichy, he was chosen as vicar. He then became parish priest of Gentilly (1923-1930), vicar of the parish of Saint Vincent de Paul in Clichy (1931-1939) and of the parish of Saint John the Baptist in Belleville, Paris (1940-1949).

Charles Devuyst (1881-1931)

Born in Lille, into a working-class environment, Charles Devuyst discovered the Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul through the patronage of Vauban, and was ordained a priest in 1907. When he left this Institute, he took charge of gathering the requests of other Brothers wishing to leave.

A combatant and then chaplain during the First World War, he participated in the founding of the Sons of Charity. He became the general secretary of the new congregation, then the first assistant (1925-1928) and the superior general (1928-1931), taking over from Father Anizan after his death. At the same time, he exercised his ministry at Notre-Dame-Auxiliatrice in Clichy (1920-1921 and 1924-1929), Notre-Dame d’Espérance in Paris (1921-1924), and Saint-Vincent-de-Paul in Clichy (1929-1931).

Georges Vaugeois (1866-1954)

Born into a family of the Parisian merchant bourgeoisie, Georges Vaugeois joined the Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul and was ordained a priest in 1891. From 1907 to 1914, he served as assistant to Jean-Émile Anizan, then Superior General. After serving as parish priest in Pas-de-Calais during the First World War, he was among the first Sons of Charity. From 1919, he served as novice master. In 1926, he became parish priest of the Bon Pasteur in Paris. In 1931, he succeeded Fathers Anizan and Devuyst as Superior General, serving until 1943.

Bruno Mayet (1860-1935)

Bruno Mayet was born into a middle-class family in Lyon. A Brother of Saint Vincent de Paul, he was ordained a priest in 1883 and took charge of various patronages. Father Anizan appointed him novice master in Tournai in 1911.

Having become a Son of Charity, he was the first parish priest of the Notre-Dame de Lourdes parish in Argenteuil in 1920. He then became the parish priest of Villeneuve-Saint-Georges (1922-1926), then succeeded Father Vaugeois as novice master in Draveil. From 1930 to 1935, he was part of the community of Paray-Vieille-Poste.

Donatien Clavier (1853-1921)

Born in the suburbs of Nantes, Donatien Clavier encountered the Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul during his law studies. He was ordained a priest in 1882. His legal skills were useful to the new Institute created by Father Anizan. In fragile health, he died just a few years after the founding of the Sons of Charity, in 1921.

Henri Tardé (1846-1924)

Originally from Vendée, Henri Tardé had a legal background. Having become a Brother of Saint Vincent de Paul, he participated in the expansion of the Institute in Canada in 1884, then took charge of the Work of the Apprentice Orphans of Auteuil from 1894.

During the First World War, Father Anizan tasked him with finding a home that could accommodate former Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul returning from combat. He carried out this welcoming mission on a farm in Gaillon, Eure.

Novices of the Villa Sainte-Marie

While the Sons of Charity are closely linked to the Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul historically, the Institute created by Father Anizan is nonetheless new. Pope Benedict XV, who reread and annotated the founder’s draft constitutions, insisted that it not be a “refoundation,” as initially planned by Jean-Emile Anizan. Creating a new congregation implies that its members be trained in a novitiate and that they pronounce new vows. Thus, most of the first Sons of Charity were former Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul, whose average age was 50, and who were new novices.

To accommodate them, Father Anizan acquired a house in Concy, in the hamlet of Yerres, in Seine-et-Oise. Dedicated to the Virgin, it was called “Villa Sainte-Marie.” Residents gradually arrived. While the armistice had only recently been signed, not all the novices had yet been removed from their previous assignments, while others were still engaged in parish ministry.

Novice training began on June 1, 1919, under the direction of Father Vaugeois. Jean-Émile Anizan was present one day a week. From October 1919, the novices were divided into two groups. The former Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul remained at Villa Sainte-Marie, while the future Sons of Charity, completing their first novitiate, settled in Draveil, in Essonne.

On June 11, 1920, the feast day of the Sacred Heart, nine priests and nine brothers took their temporary vows, becoming the first Sons of Charity. This day became the patronal feast of the Institute, celebrated annually. Today, the Villa Sainte-Marie, which was vacated in 1929 for the novitiate in Draveil, belongs to the Auxiliatrices de la Charité, whose Institute was also founded by Father Anizan.

To find out more…

Jean-Yves MOY, Father Anizan, Priest of the People. From the Brothers of Saint Vincent de Paul to the Foundation of the Sons of Charity , Paris, Cerf, 1997, 816 p.

Christophe HADEVIS, Erwan LE SAËC, Véronique GOURDIN, The Thirst for God. A Life of Father Anizan , Paris, Emmanuel Publishing, 2017.

Source: https://filsdelacharite.org/