Prayer:Prayer to St. Francis de Sales
Stored: Prayer to St. Francis de Sales
| Prayer to St. Francis de Sales | |
|---|---|
| Author | Unknown |
| Purpose | |
| Recipient | |
| Liturgical Context | |
| Prayer Type | |
| Origin | |
| Length | |
| Season | |
| Language | English |
| Approval | None |
| Tags | |
| Added on | 2026-08-13 |
Saint Francis de Sales (1567–1622) was the Bishop of Geneva and a Doctor of the Church, renowned throughout Christendom for his extraordinary gentleness, pastoral zeal, and spiritual wisdom. His writings, most notably Introduction to the Devout Life and Treatise on the Love of God, have guided countless souls on the path of holiness. He is the patron saint of writers, journalists, and the deaf, and his feast day is celebrated on January 24.
The Prayer to St. Francis de Sales is a traditional devotional prayer addressed to this beloved Doctor of the Church, asking for his heavenly intercession. It reflects the distinctive spiritual charism of the saint — above all his deep conviction that holiness is attainable by all people in every walk of life, and that the path to God is most surely walked in meekness, charity, and patient endurance. The prayer has been used in parishes, religious communities, and private devotion for generations.
This prayer is particularly fitting for those who struggle with irritability, impatience, or harsh speech, as Francis de Sales himself famously overcame a fiery temperament through years of ascetical discipline and prayer. He became, in the words of his contemporaries, the very image of Christian gentleness, and Catholics have long sought his intercession for the same transformation of heart.
The Prayer
O great Saint Francis de Sales, you who were given to the world as a model of gentleness and charity, obtain for me, I beseech you, the grace to imitate your meekness and humility of heart.
Teach me to bear with others in their faults, to correct my own, and to walk always in the spirit of true charity.
Help me to perform all my duties faithfully, to practice patience in all the trials of life, and to seek always the greater glory of God.
Through your powerful intercession before the throne of God, win for me the graces I most need to persevere in virtue and to grow daily in the love of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
O gentle shepherd of souls, look with compassion upon me, a sinner in need of your guidance, and lead me ever closer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Amen.
History and Background
Saint Francis de Sales was born in the Château de Sales in Savoy on August 21, 1567, to a noble family. Despite his father's expectations that he pursue a career in law and statecraft, Francis felt an irresistible call to the priesthood. He was ordained in 1593 and almost immediately volunteered for the dangerous mission to the Chablais region, which had been largely converted to Calvinism. Through extraordinary perseverance, personal risk, and the innovative use of written pamphlets — thought by many to be the first instance of Catholic tract evangelization — he is credited with bringing tens of thousands of souls back to the faith.
Appointed Bishop of Geneva in 1602, Francis de Sales became one of the great pastoral bishops of the Counter-Reformation era. Together with Saint Jane Frances de Chantal, whom he directed spiritually, he founded the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary in 1610, a congregation designed for women of weaker health who could not endure the austerities of existing religious life. This foundation itself reflected his fundamental spiritual vision: that the love of God is the soul of all authentic devotion, and that charity expressed in gentle, humble service is the highest form of the spiritual life.
He was canonized by Pope Alexander VII in 1665 and declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1877. In 1923, Pope Pius XI named him patron of the Catholic press and of writers and journalists. Devotional prayers invoking his intercession became widespread especially among the Salesians of Don Bosco and the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, the religious congregations formed in his spiritual tradition, as well as among ordinary Catholics drawn to his warmth and accessibility.
The traditional prayer preserved on this page draws together the principal graces associated with his life and patronage: meekness of heart, fraternal charity, patient endurance of suffering, fidelity to duty, and the constant orientation of all things to the glory of God. These themes echo his own teaching throughout Introduction to the Devout Life, where he insists that "a hasty, choleric, or passionate spirit must be particularly on guard" and that the soul must repeatedly return to gentleness as to a spiritual home.
How to Pray / Devotional Use
This prayer may be prayed in a variety of circumstances and devotional contexts:
- Daily personal prayer: It is particularly suited as a morning offering for those who anticipate situations requiring patience, charity, or difficult human interaction. Prayed at the start of the day, it places the soul under the protection and spiritual influence of the gentle bishop of Geneva.
- Before writing or speaking: As patron of writers and journalists, St. Francis de Sales is an appropriate intercessor to invoke before any act of communication, whether written or spoken. This prayer may be adapted as a brief preparatory devotion before composing articles, letters, sermons, or pastoral correspondence.
- Novenas: This prayer is commonly used in a nine-day novena in preparation for the feast of St. Francis de Sales on January 24, or for the feast of St. Jane Frances de Chantal on August 12, with whom he shares a profound spiritual bond.
- Parishes and schools: Communities named in honor of St. Francis de Sales, as well as schools, seminaries, and apostolates formed in the Salesian tradition, often incorporate this prayer into communal liturgical devotions, chapter prayers, and morning assemblies.
- In times of anger or impatience: Following the example of the saint himself, who recommended the immediate recollection of the heart when one has fallen into anger, this prayer may be prayed as an act of spiritual repair after moments of irritability or unkind speech, asking the saint's intercession for the grace of renewed meekness.
- As a closing prayer: The prayer may also conclude devotional gatherings, parish meetings, or spiritual direction sessions, reminding those present of the primacy of charity in all apostolic endeavors.
Those who pray this prayer regularly are encouraged to read Francis de Sales's own writings, particularly the Introduction to the Devout Life, which remains one of the most practical and beloved guides to Catholic spirituality ever written.