I LOVE this portrait of St. Vincent de Paul! Look at how kind his eyes are!
I see a sweet, humble man when I look at him. I know that if I passed him on the street, I would not pay much attention to him. I would get the impression that he was just a kindly old man—a weak old man, even, who probably didn’t do much with his life.
Yet nestled beneath those kind eyes was a very great man with a huge heart who did remarkable things with his life, a man who loved God deeply and whose love of God prompted him to love others generously and in extraordinary ways.
St. Vincent de Paul was a 16th century priest who lived an absolutely remarkable life* hallmarked by service to the poor. Just one of the many organizations founded in his name, The St. Vincent de Paul Society, today offers food, shelter and financial assistance to millions of people around the world.
To read more about his life, go to:
*https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/saints/vincent-de-paul-795
Born to French peasants in 1581, Vincent was later captured by pirates and sold into slavery, in bondage for over 2 years. In his lifetime he served as chaplain for royalty, established hospitals and charitable organizations, taught and preached everywhere, was a prolific writer and tireless worker, reformed the clergy and founded religious orders that are still today focused on the needs of the poor, He was 80 years old when he died in Paris on 9/27/1660.
He was an amazing person, this saint with the kind, humble eyes.
