St Francis de Sales

Today’s saint, St Francis de Sales, may have been one of the first post-Reformation saints that I hesitatingly read about (you see, it’s one thing for a Protestant to say he admires St Francis of Assisi or St Anthony the Abbot, and quite another to profess an interest in a Doctor of the Church known for his effectiveness against Calvinism). And I think the principal lesson that has stuck with me in the last few years has been about that mysterious cooperation of the soul with grace that can take place when one resolves to trust entirely in the love of God. It takes courage (surprisingly!) to do so; it takes courage to be humble, and gentle, sweet and generous. I often think of St Francis and St Therese in one breath for this reason: both lived out a way to love God despite fear (of predestination; of not doing enough pace Jansenism) and flung themselves into the arms of Him who is all mercy and all good.