Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales - March

[Hildegard of Bingen]

Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales


Teachings and Examples from the Life of the Saint by Salesiana Publishers


March 8th (page 68)

     There is no need to get upset if we find that we are not on equally friendly terms with everyone, provide we love our neighbor cordially, with real affection, as the Lord has commanded us, preferring the other person always and in everything above ourselves, according to the order of holy charity, and never refusing to do anything we can for him or her. We must be prepared to do everything for our neighbor except damn ourselves!

(Spiritual Treatises IV; O. VI, pp. 60-61)

     On March 8th, 1615, Francis de Sales sent to President Favre a letter which he had written to the duke of Savoy to defend his brothers, who had been calumniated to the sovereign, as we have already noted. He asked his friend either to hand it to the duke or keep it, as he thought best after he had read it. As far as we are concerned, we would not be doing right by the devotees of the saint if we did not give you a translation of the letter. Here it is: “My dear sir, I humbly beg Your Excellency to permit me to exercise a freedom that my office allows. Popes, kings and princes often receive reports and accusations for appropriate judgment; they pass them on to their senators and councils. Having heard all parties, they then are able to ascertain if the petitions and reports are justified. Princes cannot dispense themselves from following this procedure and are even obliged to do so under pain of eternal damnation. Your Excellency has received accusations against my brothers, you did well to listen to them, provided you did so with your ears only. But if you believed them, then as your most humble and faithful subject and also your most affectionate pastor, I must say – and I know that you will pardon me – that you have offended God. You will be obliged to repent, even if the accusations are true, because nothing disadvantageous to one’s neighbor should be believed until all parties concerned have had a chance to speak. Believe me, dear sir, anyone who says anything contrary to this is betraying his soul. In fact, even if the accusers are worthy of belief, they must not be believed until those accused are allowed to defend themselves. . .” The saint added several arguments for the defense of the innocent in such forceful terms that, if in a thousand ways he seemed to be the mildest of prelates, in this he showed himself to be the stout defender of the oppressed.

(A.S. III, p. 187)