St. Vincent's Heart Was Changed

We had the privilege of visiting Chatillon. Chatillon is a village that is about an 8 hour drive from Paris. So, you can imagine that in St. Vincent’s time, it was a few days travel from Paris. St. Vincent went Chatillon to work in the parish. Unlike the movie, Monsieur Vincent, portrays, Chatillon was actually a parish with many active parishioners. The church at Chatillon was actually built by the people of the village – not by a bishop or diocese. The people of Chatillon desired to have a place of worship in their own village, so they built this beautiful church that had to even be enlarged before Vincent ever arrived there.
However, it was at Chatillon that Vincent’s heart was changed.

You see before this assignment, Vincent was focused on obtaining benefices – a type of secured salary that clergy used to be able to access so that they could retire, support their families back home, or just live comfortably. Vincent was desiring benefices so that he could help his family out with their farm and the education of his siblings.

Anyway, he was well underway to gaining this special status. He was working for a wealthy family when he was sent to Chatillon to check on the parishioners there.

Something happened to Vincent there. He encountered a poor family with many needs. He asked who in the parish would be able to help this family out. There were people who were willing to jump right in. He realized though that this family would be bad off again soon once the aid was gone. His heart changed. He knew that something had to be done to ensure the continued support for this family and others families in need.

He understood in a new way how Christ’s presence in the poor was to be honored and served. He was at Chatillon that St. Vincent started the first Confraternity of Charity – Ladies of Charity. He began this group to ensure the continued outreach to those in need. This was the beginning of the Vincentian Family. It was at Chatillon that Vincent became a founder.

While there, we were able to visit the church, Vincent’s rented room – which is now part of the sisters’ home. We saw the first charters that were hand written by St. Vincent for the Confraternity of Charity. We walked along the very streets that Vincent walked. We celebrated Eucharist in the church where Vincent celebrated Eucharist for the people of Chatillon. St. Vincent was only in Chatillon for a few months. However, in those few months, his heart was changed, his focus became the service of those who are poor – not his own advancement – and he became a founder.