Today, September 9, 2026, we, the members of the Vincentian Family, pray for cooperation among Vincentian branches around the world.
The Vincentian Family is made up of many congregations, associations, lay movements, and communities. Each branch has its own history, gifts, and forms of service, yet all share a common call to follow Christ by serving people who live in poverty.
When we work separately, our efforts can become fragmented. When we listen to one another, share resources, and plan together, our service becomes stronger and more faithful to the charism we have received.
Saint Vincent de Paul and Saint Louise de Marillac knew that organized charity could reach further than isolated generosity. Their example invites us to move beyond rivalry, mistrust, and institutional boundaries.
We pray today for deeper cooperation throughout the worldwide Vincentian Family. May its branches learn from one another, support shared projects, include younger generations, and respond together to the cries of the poor. May unity never erase diversity but allow every gift to serve the common mission.
Word of God
“There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.”
(1 Corinthians 12:5)
Prayer
God of communion, strengthen the bonds among all branches of the Vincentian Family. Help us overcome division, share our gifts generously, and work together with humility and courage in the service of those most in need. Amen.
On this same day, we also celebrate:
–the feast of Bl. Frédéric Ozanam, S.S.V.P., a lay Catholic scholar, husband, father, and principal founder of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul. Born in 1813, he gathered with other young students in Paris in 1833 to respond to poverty not only with words, but with personal service, visiting families in need and defending the dignity of the poor. A professor, writer, and pioneer of Catholic social thought, Ozanam believed that faith had to become active charity and justice. He died on September 8, 1853, and his liturgical feast is celebrated on September 9 because September 8 is the Feast of the Nativity of Mary. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in Paris in 1997
–the feast of Bl. Maria Euthymia Üffing, B.V.M., a German Sister of Charity of Münster, also known as one of the Clemens Sisters. Born Emma Üffing in Halverde, Germany, in 1914, she entered religious life in 1934 and became a nurse, serving at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Dinslaken. During World War II, she cared with special tenderness for sick prisoners of war and foreign workers, especially those suffering from infectious diseases. Her charity, humility, and constant availability made her a sign of hope in a time of suffering. Later assigned to laundry work, she accepted the task with the same spirit, saying that everything was for God. She died on September 9, 1955, and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2001.
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