VI. Reforming the Clergy and Educating Priests

St. Vincent de Paul’s zeal for renewing the Church extended not only to caring for the laity but also to reforming the clergy. He understood that many of the problems faced by the faithful – such as widespread ignorance of the faith and lack of pastoral care – stemmed from an inadequately formed and sometimes corrupt clergy. Therefore, a major part of Vincent’s mission became the formation of priests and the improvement of their spiritual life. This aspect of his work had a more behind-the-scenes impact but was hugely important for the Church’s long-term health.

In the early 17th century, the Council of Trent’s decrees on setting up seminaries for training priests were still not fully implemented in France. Some dioceses had seminaries, but due to wars and financial issues, many did not, or their seminaries were ineffective. Many priests in country parishes were barely educated, perhaps knowing some Latin and Theology by apprenticeship but with little systematic training. Discipline was often lax: some clergy were worldly, even scandalous, holding multiple benefices for income and neglecting their flocks. Even well-meaning priests often felt isolated and ill-prepared.

Vincent de Paul tackled this on multiple fronts:

1. Retreats for Ordinands: In 1628, the clergy of Paris were discussing how to ensure that men being ordained to the priesthood were properly disposed. The common practice was that a man would be ordained after some studies but without a formal seminary experience. Vincent proposed that before ordination, candidates should make a retreat – a focused period of prayer, reflection, and instruction – to prepare spiritually for Holy Orders. The Bishop of Beauvais invited Vincent to lead the first such retreat for his diocese’s ordinands in September 1628. Vincent assembled the soon-to-be-ordained men and conducted a ten-day retreat that combined spiritual exhortations, instructions on priestly virtues and duties, and opportunities for confession and reflection. The experiment was a success: the young men emerged more aware of the sacredness of their office and better instructed in basics like how to celebrate Mass devoutly and how to catechize the faithful. Word spread, and soon bishops from other dioceses, including Paris, asked Vincent to do the same. These “ordinands’ retreats” became a regular offering of the Congregation of the Mission. They were held at Saint-Lazare and later other Vincentian houses multiple times a year, timed before the major ordination seasons (Trinity Sunday or Ember Days). Typically, hundreds of ordinands would attend each session. Vincent or one of his priests would give talks on topics such as the holiness of the priesthood, the importance of the breviary and the Mass, and the duties of a parish priest. The ordinands also participated in the sacraments themselves, often making a general confession of their life as part of the retreat. The effect was to impress upon them the gravity and beauty of their vocation.
   The success of these retreats was notable – many young ordinands came away with a renewed sense of the sacredness of their office and practical knowledge they had not received in their haphazard education. By all accounts, the Vincentians gave ordination retreats to over 12,000 candidates in Vincent’s lifetime – an enormous portion of the French clergy of that era. Many testimonies survive of priests later crediting the ordinands’ retreat with changing their outlook and sustaining their fervor in early priesthood.
2. Establishment of Seminaries: While retreats were a short-term fix, Vincent knew deeper academic and spiritual formation was needed. He became a pioneer in establishing seminaries or influencing their development. Around 1635, Vincent took charge of the college of Bons-Enfants in Paris. Initially, he used it as a school for young men who felt called to the priesthood but lacked education – effectively a minor seminary. In 1642, he acquired another house, near Saint-Lazare, as the Seminary of Saint-Charles for philosophy students (a sort of minor seminary for those in humanities).
   Beyond Paris, bishops started asking Vincent to send some of his missionaries to help run diocesan seminaries. For example, in 1641 the Bishop of Annecy invited Vincentians to run the seminary there according to Vincent’s methods. Vincent’s team also took on seminaries in Le Mans, in Saintes, in Agde, in Troyes, and more, at the bishops’ behest. Vincent was selective – he didn’t have enough priests to take on every request – but he tried to respond where the need was critical.
   Moreover, Vincent’s concept of a seminary included not just academic coursework but a strong spiritual and practical formation. At the Vincentian-run seminaries, the students followed a disciplined schedule of prayer, study, manual work, and supervised pastoral practice (like teaching catechism to children or visiting the sick under guidance). Vincent believed a priest should be as well-formed in virtue as in doctrine.
   One intermediate step Vincent championed was the idea of “seminaries for ordinands” – essentially a shorter residential program for those who had finished theology studies but needed immediate preparation for ordination. These could last a few months and would drill the candidates in practical skills (preaching, administering sacraments, etc.) and instill devotions. Over time, these interim programs evolved into longer programs, and in some cases, multi-year seminaries under Vincentian direction.
   As a measure of Vincent’s influence: at his death, the Congregation of the Mission was directly running 11 major seminaries in France. Prior to Vincent’s efforts, fewer than half the French dioceses had any seminary; by the 1660s, many had one, and Vincentians were at the forefront of this growth. By 1700 (a generation after him), Vincentian priests were directing as many as 53 major seminaries and 9 minor seminaries in France – roughly a third of all the seminaries in the country. This is a staggering impact on the formation of clergy.
3. Ongoing Spiritual Formation – Tuesday Conferences: Vincent also realized that formation shouldn’t end at ordination. Even good priests needed mutual support and opportunities to rekindle their fervor. So in 1633, he organized what came to be known as the “Tuesday Conferences.” These were weekly gatherings open to any priest in Paris who wished to attend (initially they were on Tuesdays, hence the name). At Saint-Lazare, a group of priests – sometimes 20, sometimes up to 60 – would assemble. They would discuss specific topics related to the life of a priest: e.g., how to preach simply, how to hear confessions well, how to cultivate personal virtue, and so on. Vincent moderated these discussions, which were somewhat informal but had spiritual rigor. Each priest was encouraged to speak in turn, sharing experiences or insights on the topic. They also prayed together and ended with some resolutions.
   The Tuesday Conferences attracted some illustrious participants, indicating the respect Vincent commanded. The great Bishop Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, famed orator and later Bishop of Meaux, attended as a young priest and credited them with shaping his pastoral outlook. Other notable clergy and future bishops were regular attendees. More importantly, ordinary parish priests of Paris came and found fraternity, practical advice, and spiritual rejuvenation. The influence of these conferences spread beyond Paris: priests who had attended sometimes started similar gatherings in their own regions.
   In addition, Vincent opened Saint-Lazare for any priest who wanted to make a personal retreat or needed refreshment. He famously allowed even those priests who had fallen into serious sin or alcohol problems to come and stay with the Missioners for a time to reform their lives – a charitable act since many considered such clergy hopeless. Some did experience conversion and went back renewed to their flocks.

The cumulative effect of all these efforts was a notable improvement in clerical standards in France by mid-century. One concrete result: the people in many parishes began to have priests who actually cared for them, preached understandably, and lived morally. This helped counteract Protestant inroads and Jansenist rigorism because priests formed under Vincent’s influence tended to be more compassionate and orthodox. In some ways, Vincent de Paul prefigured the modern diocesan priesthood’s ideal: well-educated, spiritually devout, and socially conscious.

Vincent’s humility shone in all this. Despite being one of the most influential priests in France, he always presented himself as unlettered in theology (which wasn’t quite true). He often invited more learned clerics to give lectures or sermons to the seminarians if he thought they could do better. His focus was on results, not personal credit.

He also maintained a stance of obedience to bishops. The Vincentians took a special vow of stability and obedience to the Pope in matters of missions, but Vincent insisted they always work under the local bishop’s authority in a diocese. This collaboration with hierarchy meant his reforms were integrated, not seen as threatening or competition.

One point worth noting is Vincent’s stand against the heresy of Jansenism (a rigorist movement within French Catholicism that, among other things, discouraged frequent communion and stressed predestination). Jansenism appealed to some clergy as a call to austerity. Vincent, however, perceived its lack of charity and its incompatibility with the Church’s teaching on grace. During the 1640s and 1650s, he became an outspoken opponent of Jansenism. In 1653, after Pope Innocent X condemned certain Jansenist propositions, Vincent worked diligently to get clergy throughout France to sign the formulary agreeing to reject Jansenism. Some priests and even one of his own Vincentian priests were drawn to Jansenism’s rigor; Vincent patiently tried to correct them. His efforts in this crisis further showed his commitment to a healthy, united clergy faithful to Rome.

By the end of Vincent’s life, there was a new spirit among many French clergy – one of personal holiness, simplicity of life, pastoral zeal, and unity with the Church. This renewal would bear fruit in the next generation with bishops like Bossuet and Fénelon and missionaries who spread the Gospel abroad (some of whom were formed in Vincent’s seminaries). It’s not an exaggeration to say that Vincent de Paul was one of the architects of the 17th-century Catholic revival in France, both in charitable works and in ecclesial reform.

The Tuesday Conferences.

VII. Later Years and Death

In the final phase of his life, Vincent de Paul, by then widely revered as “Monsieur Vincent,” continued to guide and expand the works he had founded, even as he became physically frail. The 1640s and 1650s were tumultuous years in France (with a civil uprising known as the Fronde and ongoing wars), and Vincent often acted as a stabilizing, conciliatory figure sought by all sides for counsel. Despite his low rank – he was never a bishop, only a simple priest – he ended up having enormous influence in both ecclesiastical and civil affairs due to the moral authority he had earned.

In 1643, King Louis XIII died and his wife Anne of Austria became regent for the young Louis XIV. The Queen, recognizing Vincent’s reputation for holiness and wisdom, appointed him to the Council of Conscience, a small advisory council responsible for recommending candidates for bishoprics and major ecclesiastical benefices. Typically this council might have been filled with political appointees, but Anne intentionally included Vincent to ensure that her nominations were guided by merit and virtue rather than purely by noble birth or favoritism. For Vincent, this was a delicate role. He took it extremely seriously, laboring to identify holy and competent priests who could be made bishops. He championed, for instance, the appointment of respected reformers like Msgr. François Bourgoing or others who had proven records of sanctity. On several occasions, Vincent opposed nominees who were put forward by powerful ministers if he knew them to be unworthy, even at risk to himself.

This brought him into conflict with Cardinal Jules Mazarin, the First Minister of France. Mazarin was more cynical in his approach to bishop appointments, often using them as political rewards. Vincent at one point in 1649 signed, along with other members of the Council of Conscience, a formal remonstrance to Queen Anne criticizing Mazarin’s governance and calling for his removal (this was during the heated time of the Fronde rebellion). The bold move reflected Vincent’s willingness to speak truth to power when justice and peace were at stake. Mazarin did not take kindly to such interference. After regaining influence, Mazarin orchestrated Vincent’s removal from the Council of Conscience around 1652, replacing him with someone more compliant. Vincent accepted this ouster without resistance – frankly, he was relieved to be free of the heavy burden of court politics. He had always been uncomfortable amid the intrigue of the court and only bore it as a cross for the good he could do. Once dismissed, he simply redoubled his efforts in his ministries.

The last decade of Vincent’s life saw some of his greatest trials but also triumphs. The turmoil of the Fronde (civil war) left many Parisians impoverished and starving. Vincent mobilized enormous charitable responses to assist refugees and the urban poor who were hit by unemployment and high grain prices. He went so far as to organize bread distribution in Paris’s worst-hit quarters and to send help to devastated provinces.

At the same time, he battled the spread of Jansenism within the Church of France. One particularly painful episode was the case of the Jansenist-leaning convent of Port-Royal and its supporters. Vincent was a firm signer of the anti-Jansenist formulary and encouraged all the priests and religious under his direction to likewise adhere to the Pope’s teachings. He wrote letters to various abbots and clerics trying to persuade them to abandon the Jansenist position for the sake of Church unity. The future Pope Benedict XIV (Prosper Lambertini) later noted that Vincent de Paul’s steady efforts against Jansenism were a key factor in containing that movement’s influence among the common clergy.

Physically, Vincent suffered from deteriorating health in his seventies. He had chronic leg ulcers (possibly varicose ulcers) that made walking difficult and sometimes kept him wheelchair-bound (an early form of wheelchair was used at Saint-Lazare to move him around when his legs were bandaged). He also had stomach ailments and probably arthritis, which caused considerable pain. Nevertheless, Vincent maintained a vigorous schedule almost to the very end. He rose early (at 4 or 5 AM) for prayer, celebrated Mass when he was able (in later years he often had to sit to say Mass because standing for long was too painful), and then conducted meetings, wrote letters, and received visitors throughout the day. He had help, of course – his community took care of him tenderly – but he refused to let pain or age stop him from doing God’s work as long as souls were at stake. There’s a letter from a visitor in 1657 describing Vincent at age 76: “The good Monsieur Vincent, bowed with age, his face radiant and kind, sat giving audience to a line of people: a poor beggar, a noble lady, a priest, a child – each came in turn, and he had a word and a blessing for each. It was as if charity itself was made visible.”

On one of his last days active, Vincent hobbled into a meeting of his missionaries and exhorted them to remain faithful to their founding spirit, especially humility and simplicity. If any of them were tempted to pride because their work was praised, he warned them to attribute everything to God’s grace, not to their own ability. Many present were moved to tears, feeling that Vincent spoke as if giving a final testament.

By September 1660, it was clear Vincent was dying. Louise de Marillac had died six months earlier in March, which was a heavy blow to him. He remarked to someone that “my right arm is gone,” so closely had he worked with her. He survived to see the establishment of a new superior for the Daughters of Charity and to settle the Congregation of the Mission’s leadership (he had designated a successor, Father René Alméras, who did indeed succeed him after a brief interim). Vincent’s mind remained clear, and he continued to speak of God’s providence and to pray the psalms.

In the final nights, as he lay in bed at Saint-Lazare, the missionaries gathered quietly outside his chamber praying for him. On the early morning of September 27, 1660, at the age of 79, St. Vincent de Paul passed away peacefully. It is said that he died as he had lived – gently, and thinking of others. One account relates that his final audible words were the prayer “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus” on his lips.

The news of his death spread and immediately, people from all walks began to mourn. The poor of Paris felt they had lost their father. The Daughters of Charity wept for “Mon Père” (My father, as they called him). The Vincentian priests lost their founder and guide. Authorities in both Church and state acknowledged that a saint had departed. His funeral took place on September 28 at the church of Saint-Lazare. Such crowds attempted to attend that several eulogies had to be given in different places to accommodate them. The Bishop of Toul delivered the official oration, in which he famously said: “He just about transformed the face of the Church in France through his charity.” The bishop particularly highlighted Vincent’s renewing of the clergy and his extraordinary charity as twin legacies. Significantly, even in that eulogy, the bishop focused on Vincent’s humility – noting that Vincent kept his virtues “hidden under the wings of humility” and truly saw himself as “the most wicked of men” despite all the good he accomplished.

After the funeral, Vincent was buried at Saint-Lazare. Miracles and favors began to be reported at his tomb almost immediately. People took little pieces of his clothing or objects he had used as relics. The popular devotion to him was spontaneous – in fact, it had existed even before he died. (There are accounts that folks in villages, upon hearing of his works, would exclaim “Il est un saint!” – “He is a saint!”) It was said that if “charity” should ever be depicted in human form, it would be in the person of M. Vincent.

In 1712, when the tomb was opened during an official canonical inquiry, they found that his body, which initially was found incorrupt, had since decayed somewhat due to environmental factors (floods affected the crypt at Saint-Lazare in 1705). However, major bones were intact and, notably, his heart was found to be extraordinarily well-preserved. His heart, removed and placed in a reliquary, remained supple and lifelike for many years – something those examining it considered inexplicable by natural means. This was taken as a sign of his exceptional charity (symbolized by the heart). His bones and body were later enshrined in a new reliquary and, after the turmoil of the French Revolution, eventually placed in the chapel of the Vincentian motherhouse in Paris, where they can still be venerated today. His heart is enshrined in the chapel of the Daughters of Charity on Rue du Bac in Paris.

Even in the immediate years after 1660, the works Vincent started continued vigorously. His successor as superior of the Vincentians, René Alméras, and later superiors, faithfully carried on his mission. The Congregation of the Mission and Daughters of Charity both grew and spread internationally. Meanwhile, the lay Confraternities of Charity that Vincent had formed continued to serve in parishes (and the are still active after 400 years). It was evident to all who knew his story that Vincent de Paul had lived a life of heroic virtue. Consequently, the Church began to gather evidence to officially declare him a saint.

The body of St. Vincent de Paul, on display in the church of the Mother House of the Congregation of the Mission in Paris.

(To be continued…)