VincentWiki:Ephemerides/17 October

1655 During a repetition of prayer Vincent says: “Perfection does not consist in escatasies, but in doing God’s will. Now who is there so perfect as to be wanting in nothing? No man is perfect, and even the just man falls seven times a day?....Perfection consists in so uniting our will to God’s that His Will and ours form only one will....The practice of the presence of God is very good, but I believe the practice of doing God’s will in all things is even better. For the latter embraces the former.”

1797 The Directory of Vorges delivers an immediate sentence and 15 priests are exiled. Two Vincentians are among this group: Frs. Perrin and Rambous.

1818 Justin de Jacobis enters the Internal Seminary.

1926 191 martyrs of the French Revolution are beatified. The Vincentian priests Frs. Francois and Gruyer are part of this group

1936 Jose Sanchez Medina, the chaplain and spiritual direction of the Children of Mary in Cartagena is executed by a firing squad in Archena (Murcia). He was the author of the popular book Salve Cartagenera.

1946 A Decree of the Sacred Congregation for Religious recognizes the exempt status of the Daughters of Charity. This exemption had been affirmed by Pius XII on August 12, 1946.