St. Francis de Sales Parish

Francis de Sales was born in 1567 in the Castle of Sales in Savoy France, close to the Swiss border. Francis eventually studied at the University of Padua where his brilliant writings and mind were discovered. Francis to be ordained, trying instead to marry him off, but eventually he relented and St. Francis was ordained on December 18, 1593. Following his ordination he was assigned to Protestant

missionary territory in Chablais, France, causing his father to fear Francis would be martyred. At the time, there were over 30,000 Protestants and only about 100 Catholics. During his ministry there, he suffered many attacks on his life. Since there was such a small number of Catholics in the area, St. Francis began writing them letters, which were then passed from household to household. Eventually even the Protestant hardliners were intrigued by this young priest. Many of the people converted back to Catholicism and the bishop deemed it now safe enough to visit the area. Francis was soon appointed Bishop of Geneva in 1602. Francis is remembered for two great contributions to the spirituality of the everyday person; “Introduction to a Devout Life” and “Treatise on the Love of God”. Francis died on December 28, 1622 in the Chablais region. At the time, there remained only about 100 Protestants in the area. He was canonized in 1665 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1877 when Pope Pius XI named him the patron saint of journalists.