Saint Vincent de Paul

Vincent de Paul, CM (24 April 1581 – 27 September 1660) was a French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor and is best known for founding the Congregation of the Mission and the Daughters of Charity. After being ordained a priest in 1600, de Paul was kidnapped and enslaved for two years in Tunis and returned to Europe after escaping in 1607. He then served as a parish priest and in the French royal court before dedicating himself to the poor, founding the Ladies of Charity in 1617. In 1622, de Paul was appointed as chaplain to the galley slaves in Paris. De Paul founded the Congregation of the Mission, also known as the Vincentians or Lazarists, in 1625. Its members, with vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and stability, were to devote themselves entirely to the people in smaller towns and villages. Vincent was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy at a time when the local clergy's morals were flagging. He was a pioneer in seminary education and also founded the Daughters of Charity in 1633. He is the namesake of the Vincentian Family of organisations, which includes, among other groups, both of the religious communities he founded. De Paul was renowned for his compassion, humility and generosity, and was canonised in 1737. He is venerated as a saint in both the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion.