“According to my judgment, it seems to me that the zeal for the salvation of souls was the dominant virtue in our Blessed Father; for, in a way, you would sometimes have said that he left the service that immediately looks to God, to prefer that of one’s neighbor. Good God, what tenderness! what sweetness! what a support! what a job! finally, he consumed himself there. … he noticed in everyone what he could know most estimable. He had no such respect for his neighbors, because he looked to God in them, and to them in God.
My God, dare I say? I say it, if it is possible: it seems to me naively that he was a living image in which the Son of God Our Lord was painted.” (Letter from the Mother of Chantal to Dom Jean de Saint François on the virtues of François de Sales)
And the contemporaries of Saint Jeanne de Chantal said of her:
« … Loving fraternity so strongly, she was never late in doing good to one’s neighbor; she was not content with emotional love, she joined the workforce, and did good to all according to the extent of her power. She had an extraordinary zeal for the salvation of the soul of this dear neighbor. »
Heart of Jesus, through the intercession of Saint Francis de Sales and Saint Jeanne de Chantal, we ask you for their zeal for the salvation of our brothers and sisters. Amen.