Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales - January

[Hildegard of Bingen]

Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales

Teachings and Examples from the Life of the Saint by Salesiana Publishers

 

January 13th (page 13)

 
     “For patience is necessary for you; that, doing the will of God, you may receive the promise,” says the apostle.  [Hebrews 10:36]  True, for our Savior Himself has declared, “In your patience you shall possess your souls.” [cf. Lk 21:19]  It is our great happiness to possess our own soul, and the more perfect our patience the more completely do we possess our soul. Therefore, it is very necessary that we perfect ourselves in this virtue.
 

(INT. Part III, Ch. 3; O. III, p. 133)

 
 
    On January 13th, 1616, a young nobleman whom Francis de Sales had often rebuked for his disorders gathered some of his like-minded friends under the windows of the bishop’s house and passed the night blowing hunting horns and provoking a pack of dogs to set up a din.  The holy bishop had to use all his authority to stop his brothers from teaching those ruffians a lesson.  To convince them not to do this, he said that those poor devils would be annoyed enough by not knowing whether their din was heard.  He also said he that the future held in store for them a much greater punishment than his brothers could inflict.  And that is how it turned out.  The nobleman, the instigator of this terrible insult, fell seriously ill and was at the point of death; the holy bishop never failed to visit him throughout his sickness.  All of his companions also fell ill, either through pleurisy, rheumatism or toothache.  Not one of them missed out on a punishment from the hands of Him Who reserves to Himself to revenge the insults given to His servants.
 

(A.S. I, p. 313)

 
 
 
[22] Blessed shall you be when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake. [23] Be glad in that day and rejoice; for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For according to these things did their fathers to the prophets. [Lk 6:22-23]

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Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales

Teachings and Examples from the Life of the Saint by Salesiana Publishers

 

January 14th (page 14)

 
     We must not voluntarily nourish a desire to continue and persevere in venial sin of any kind.  It would be an extremely foolish thing to wish deliberately to retain in our heart anything so displeasing to God as a will to offend Him.
 

(INT. Part I, Ch. 22; O. III, p. 63)

 
 
     On January 14th, 1619, Francis de Sales was preaching in the Church of the Magdalen in Paris.  In the text of his sermon were the words of Saint Paul: “He humbled himself, becoming obedient unto death, even to the death of the cross.” [Philippians 2:8] After the sermon, a Protestant was waiting for him in the sacristy and very arrogantly told him that the theme of his sermon was wrongly developed.  The saint quickly replied, “I was speaking just to you, my dear sir, because I know you are disobedient to the Church.”  That man was so moved by this reply that he began to take instructions and was converted to Catholicism.
 

(A.S. I, p. 332)

 
 
 

The soul of our heart is the temple of the Spirit.

 

Women deserve to be helped to mature spiritually because they are more open to spiritual direction and religion than are men.  These, as a general rule, presume that they know a lot and have no need of others’ help.