These quotes are taken from “The Conferences of St. Vincent de Paul to the Sisters of Charity,” translated from the French by Joseph Leonard. Newman Press, 1952. They are prayers that St. Vincent de Paul said at the end of His Conferences with the Daughters of Charity in their Motherhouse, beginning in 1634.

“I implore God, the source of charity, to grant you the grace to learn how to serve the sick poor corporally and spiritually in His Spirit, and in the perfect imitation of the Spirit of His son, and also to bless you.” v.1, p.55

“O God, we give ourselves to Thee for the accomplishment of Thy designs on us; we confess we are unworthy of this grace, but we ask it of Thee by the love of Thy Son; we ask it of Thee by the Blessed Virgin; we ask it of Thee by our Sisters whom in Thy goodness, Thou hast already taken to Thyself in Thy holy paradise. Grant it unto us, O Lord, for Thy glory, and bless us.” v.1, p.113-4

“May the Divine Goodness, the source and fountain-head of true union, grant you the grace to avoid all the evils caused by disunion, and may God, for His own glory, ever keep you in perfect union with Himself and with your neighbor by true charity.” v. v.1, p.101

“I beseech the divine Goodness to grant you all the grace to love holy obedience, to practice it, in imitation of His Son, towards your Superiors, your rules and hold Providence and, to this end, to bestow on you the blessings of the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost.” v.1, p. 69

“I implore Him, with all my heart, to pour forth on your Company the spirit of cordiality and union by which you will honor the Divine Unity in the Trinity of Persons and the cordial respect that reigned in the family of His Son in His human life; [that] you will enjoy the peace bestowed by His Son after His resurrection, you will have great union amongst yourselves and will labor profitably in the service of your neighbor.” v.1, p142

“I implore God to give you His Spirit, to perfect your vocation and to pour out His blessings on all the Company, so that it may fulfill His holy will in this world with such fidelity that it may one day deserve to enjoy His glory in the next.” v.1, p. 225

“I beseech the Divine Goodness to bless you by bestowing on you the gentle kindness of true Daughters of Charity, mutual forbearance in your weaknesses, the grace of reconciliation with one another, if any little difficulties arise amongst you.” v.1, p. 52

“Return thanks to God, for having chosen you for such a perfect vocation; ask Him to grant you all the graces you need to be faithful to it. I beseech Him to do so with all my heart and I beg Him to imitate the Blessed Virgin in the care, vigilance and love which She had for her Son, so that, like her, true mothers and true virgins at one and the same time, you may bring up those poor little children [foundlings] in the fear and love of God and that they may, with you, glorify Him for all eternity.” v.1, p. 127

“I beseech Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has brought you together that you may follow the example of His holy life, I beseech Him to grant you His Spirit unto the observation of your rules, to give you the grace to imitate Him in His humility, simplicity and gentleness, that you may edify one another and be in good odour with all, in accordance with God’s designs.” v.1, p. 187

“May the Holy Spirit pour forth into your hearts the lights of which you stand in need that a great fervor may be enkindled in them, that you may be faithful to, and in love with, the practice of all those virtues so that you may, for the glory of God, esteem your vocation at its true value, and love it in such a way that you may persevere therein for the remainder of your life, serving the poor in a spirit of humility, obedience, suffering and charity and may you be ever blessed.” v.1, p. 85

“We likewise give ourselves to Thee, O my God, to honor and serve, all our lives, our lords the poor, and ever beseech Thee to grant us this grace by Thy holy love.” v.1, p. 22



Click on the tags to explore related resources:


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.