Pope to publish apostolic letter on St. Francis de Sales (la-croix.com)
In its international online English edition, La Croix reports the following:
“Pope Francis is preparing to highlight another outstanding Christian figure in history
worthy of imitation. La Croix has learned that on December 28 the pope will release an
apostolic letter on St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622), a bishop and spiritual writer many call
‘the gentleman saint’.
The new papal document will celebrate the 400th anniversary of the saint’s death. A native
of Savoy, where he lived a large part of his life, Francis de Sales was appointed bishop of
Geneva (Switzerland) but was forced to live in exile in nearby Annecy because of the rise
of Protestantism in the Swiss city. He became an important figure in the Catholic Revival
or Counter-Reformation, preaching tirelessly on abandonment to God.
Francis de Sales became a priest in 1593 and was opposed to violence all his life, preferring
to appeal to charity and witness.