St. Francis de Sales
On The Grapevine 62
When an acquaintance of St. Francis de Sales began making fun of a hunchback, St. Francis rebuked him, saying "The works of God are perfect." "What! Perfect, and yet deformed?" replied the acquaintance. "Yes," answered St. Francis, "perhaps he is a perfect hunchback."
St. Francis de Sales was a patient, hopeful, gentle man. He never wanted to put his own will above God's, and was known to wait almost endlessly without asking for something, only to have it seeming drop into his lap from out of nowhere. He led a two man expedition to Switzerland on foot to reconvert the 60,000 Catholics who'd converted to Calvinism. At the end of three years, the other man left, no one had converted and he was by himself. But he waited. Because the people would not talk to him, he began writing out his sermons by hand and slipping them under doors - to great success! It's estimated that by the time he left to go home, he'd converted 40,000 people. He became the bishop of Geneva, and wrote a book called "Introduction to Devout Life." He hated gossip, and encouraged loving prayer. He is the patron saint of journalists and writers. You can read more about him HERE, and see our other St. Francis de Sales comic HERE.
St. Francis de Sales was a patient, hopeful, gentle man. He never wanted to put his own will above God's, and was known to wait almost endlessly without asking for something, only to have it seeming drop into his lap from out of nowhere. He led a two man expedition to Switzerland on foot to reconvert the 60,000 Catholics who'd converted to Calvinism. At the end of three years, the other man left, no one had converted and he was by himself. But he waited. Because the people would not talk to him, he began writing out his sermons by hand and slipping them under doors - to great success! It's estimated that by the time he left to go home, he'd converted 40,000 people. He became the bishop of Geneva, and wrote a book called "Introduction to Devout Life." He hated gossip, and encouraged loving prayer. He is the patron saint of journalists and writers. You can read more about him HERE, and see our other St. Francis de Sales comic HERE.
Prayer of St. Francis de Sales
Lord, I am yours,
and I must belong to no one but you.
My soul is yours,
and must live only by you.
My will is yours,
and must love only for you.
I must love you as my first cause,
since I am from you.
I must love you as my end and rest,
since I am for you.
I must love you more than my own being,
since my being subsists by you.
I must love you more than myself,
since I am all yours and all in you.
Amen.
and I must belong to no one but you.
My soul is yours,
and must live only by you.
My will is yours,
and must love only for you.
I must love you as my first cause,
since I am from you.
I must love you as my end and rest,
since I am for you.
I must love you more than my own being,
since my being subsists by you.
I must love you more than myself,
since I am all yours and all in you.
Amen.