Friendship • A Weekly Reflection with Louise
"Mon Dieu, my dear daughter, how your letter and the thoughts [you] sent to me console me! Indeed, I must confess to you that the feeling has spread through every part of my soul" (CCD I, 34). "What shall I tell you now about the one whom your heart loves so dearly in...
400-Year Legacy of Charity & Vincentian Spirituality
Did you know that on the grounds of St. Vincent’s Seminary and the Vincentian Family Office in Philadelphia, adjacent to the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal, there is a more than 100-year-old oak tree grown from a seed of St. Vincent’s oak which still stands near his...
Homelessness Continues To Be A Grave Problem In The USA
With all of the hubbub about a strengthening economy, Vincentians need to tell the other side of the story. I have known four adults over the last ten years who in spite of their diligence and integrity financially “bottomed out.” Two lost their government jobs due to...
Think Global, Act Local. A Vincentian Perspective.
Growing up, one of my greatest dreams was visualizing myself immersed in the subjects for which I am most passionate. Through my involvement in community college, I was able to build a community of individuals that believed in me and provided the foundation for my...
Emmaus and The Eucharist
Emmaus and The Eucharist (Lk 24:13-35) Many people’s favorite story in the New Testament is the one of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. It contains so much of everyone’s experience of what it is to believe -- and certainly touches on the belief of a...
Don’t Try To Make Systemic Change Happen!
Renowned systemic thinker Peter Senge and colleagues make a bold assertion. "Ineffective leaders try to make change happen." Most of the visitors to this site are familiar with how often Vincent pointed out that neither he nor Louise de Marillac thought the things...
Grace and Love and Communion for Us
Through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, God reveals his love to us. He wants us to enjoy the communion of the Holy Spirit. Grace is ours through Moses. Grace, on the other hand, comes to us through Jesus Christ. God gives him to the world, so that we may have...
Vincentian Discipline of Prayer – JOHN 14:15-21
Vincentian Discipline of Prayer - JOHN 14:15-21 - JOHN 15:12-17 - Vincentians Remain Calm Vincentian Day of Prayer and Fast Vincentian Discipline of Prayer The courage to live the call to share Jesus with others comes from a hope that gives way to the discipline of...
Thoughts on Pentecost
Souls that are truly poor and desirous of serving God should place their trust in the coming of the Holy Spirit within them believing that, finding no resistance in them, He will give them the disposition necessary to accomplish the holy will of God which should be...
Come Holy Spirit
Archbishop Van Thuan, from Vietnam, in his famous book, Testimony of Hope mentions about an interview done many years ago with Cardinal Jean Marie Lustiger of Paris. The Journalist asked him, “Do you believe in the existence of the devil?” “Yes, I do.” “But...