The Heart of Saint Vincent de Paul at Vichy (April 1 and 2, 2017)

We all know that the Good Shepherd left the 99 sheep to find the lost one. We can now also witness that Vincent, the good shepherd, has left the flock of the Rue du Bac, to meet a few sheep four hundred kilometers away.

For two days Vincent’s heart stayed here to be with hearts that were sick, broken and crushed. The story summed up the news. The last three Daughters of Charity who had worked at the hospital of Vichy now came to join us, all the way from Le Coteau. They left their nursing center (EHPAD) to find the place where once they used to serve, now transformed. The heart was there, in this hospital chapel, during this week devoted to organ donation. One man testified, having lived these past four years because of a heart transplant, declaring simply that now he lives his life only because of and for others. Three people then came forward; one had given his kidney to his brother who was present at his side. Now its his turn to be sick as he gets ready to receive the kidney of his wife who is willing to make this gift without the slightest reticence. Suddenly, we realized that “giving one’s heart” was no longer a figure of style, but the testimony lived out by thousands of anonymous people. They illustrated a love that is contagious, a love that works miracles. After such testimonies as these, who would refuse to give his heart?

Saint Vincent de Paul’s Conferences in Vichy, now more than a hundred years ago also were meant to show us just how simple it was to give one’s heart. It wasn’t necessary to give an hour-long conference to invite us to visit a single person their community. Nor was it necessary to wait for great ways on how to do things in one’s group. Getting together with others on a Sunday when boredom could be deadly, recovering one’s taste for life sitting around enjoying a good, homemade pie. These conferences uncover delightful examples of love in action. Who could refuse, after these testimonies, to let their own heart speak out?

The mass in the Missionary’s Chapel offered the singular testimony of the fruits of the Mission. Saint Vincent’s heart wanted to beat on to the ends of the earth. “It is not enough for me to love God, if my brother or sister doesn’t also love him.” Saint Vincent sent the missionaries to Madagascar, Poland, and Algeria, never stopping at the first shipwreck, despite the disapproval of the slow-pokes, who thought it more reasonable to keep the missionaries for France. Around our altar today, Malagasy, Algerian and Polish priests presided, in a paradoxical missionary turnaround. 400 years later, missionaries from these countries chosen by Saint Vincent now set out to minister in France. Who would refuse now, after these testimonies, to allow Vincent’s heart to spread out to the ends of the world?

On Saturday evening, in a small group led by the parish chaplain, divorcees gathered in the chapel around the heart. “For the heart that is broken, my God, you have no contempt.” Surprised by our invitation, they did not know how to express their gratitude. Expressions of life paths that have been painful, disappointing and chaotic, tears replaced the formulaic prayers. They wrote their own messages on pieces of paper deposited in the urn to return to the Rue du Bac. Who would refuse, after these testimonies, to let all hearts beat at their own rhythm?

On Sunday, the heart had an appointment to join the parish at the church of Saint Louis. A crowd of great days when the solemnity of organ music did nothing to take away popular piety. Even Saint Pius V came to join Saint Vincent for a time in a silent face to face. Reunion of the Daughters of Charity with the elders of the neighborhood. Discovery and sharing of the faithful with our sisters from Brazil, Spain and Poland, as a family providentially reconstituted, and experience, already here, of the Kingdom.
On Sunday afternoon, the diocesan group DUEC (becoming one in Christ) was surprised that they were joined by the heart. Long litanies of hearts murmuring in arrhythmia the two refrains. Some abandoned silences that never wanted to justify anything. All in agreement, affirming that there is no greater love than to give one’s life …
Their conclusion is also our own.

Preparation Team
House of the Missionaries of Vichy