Our Patron - St Francis de Sales

St. Francis de Sales was born in 1594 in the Castle of Sales in Savoy France, close to the Swiss border. He came from a wealthy and noble family. St. Francis eventually studied at the University of Padua where his brilliant writings and mind were discovered.

At first, his father refused to allow St. Francis to be ordained, trying instead to marry him off, but eventually he relented and St. Francis was ordained on December 18, 1593. Francis was assigned to Protestant missionary territory in Chablais, France, where his father feared Francis would be martyred. At the time, there were over 30,000 Protestants and only about 100 Catholics.

During his ministry there, he suffered many attacks on his life. With a very small number of Catholics in the area, Francis began writing them letters which were passed from household to household. Eventually even the Protestant hardliners were intrigued by this young priest. Many of the people converted back to Catholicism and the bishop deemed it now safe enough to visit the area. Francis was soon appointed bishop of
Geneva in 1602.

Francis is remembered for two great contributions to the spirituality of the everyday person; "Introduction to a Devout Life" and "Treatise on the Love of God".

Francis died on December 28, 1622 and in the Chablais region, there remained only about 100 Protestants. He was canonized in 1665 and declared a doctor of the Church in 1877 when Pope Pius XI named him the patron saint of journalists.

St. John Bosco was a great fan of St. Francis de Sales and began an order of priests named in his honour. The Salesian order of priests is renowned world-wide for their dedication to and work with youth. St. Francis was ahead of his time, anticipating liturgical and theological reform centuries before the Second Vatican Council.

On the 400th anniversary of his birth, Pope Paul VI wrote of St. Francis: "No one of the recent Doctors of the Church more than St. Francis de Sales anticipated the deliberations and decisions of the Second Vatican Council with such a keen and progressive insight. He renders his contribution by the example of his life, by the wealth of his true and sound doctrine, by the fact that he has opened and strengthened the spiritual ways of Christian perfection for all states and conditions of life. We propose that these three things be imitated, embraced and followed."

The Feast of St. Francis is celebrated on January 24.