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April 28 is the feast day of St. Gianna Beretta Molla, who served among the elderly and needy as a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. After earning degrees in medicine and surgery in 1949, she opened a medical clinic and thereafter gave special attention to mothers, babies, the elderly and the poor. This week we’re featuring two videos about her life, produced by Salt + Light media: the first video is 12 minutes long and the other video, “Love is a Choice” is more in-depth and runs 28 minutes.

Since 1617 the fire of God’s love transformed the world. This is our story. Watch video

You may have read the recent post on Haiti, in Famvin News’ United Nations series. In it, Fr. Guillermo Campuzano writes: “The reality of Haiti is truly dramatic. We can not turn our gaze from this nation where our charism has been present in several Family branches for a long time.” This reminded me of a multimedia feature on Haiti that we developed at the time of the 350th anniversary of the death of Sts. Vincent and Louise: Faces of Hope.

Do Catholics adequately understand that the social teaching of the Church is an essential part of Catholic faith?
Why is this essential part of our faith so little known? Fr. Robert Maloney, C.M. offers a possible reason: “the Catholic social doctrine has not been conveniently condensed for consumption; it has not been “packaged” for catechetical purposes like the ten commandments or the seven sacraments.” Full article…

Vincentians often gather to reflect on the lessons, sorrows, and miracles that occur in the course of their experiences of serving people living in poverty… browse this assortment of Shared Stories of Vincentian Family ministry (mainly videos, some essays) and compare with your own experiences.

As Vincentians it’s a good idea for each of us to prayerfully review our thoughts, words, actions, and omissions to check their conformity with, or deviation from, the principles of Catholic Social Teaching. This handy SlideShare presentation provides a great way to do this on a regular basis. Return to these eight slides whenever you are in need of a checkup. Face your shortcomings, and ask God to help you change.

The St. Vincent de Paul Society is not a relief agency… it’s a group of people who are “journeying together towards holiness, primarily through visiting and dedicating themselves to the poor, whose faith and courage often teach them how to live.” (paraphrased from The Rule, para. 2.2). As you watch the following video produced by the Society on Long Island, NY, look for evidence of how each of the Society’s members is being transformed in their journey with the poor.

St. Francis Regis Clet, C.M., whose feast day is Feb. 18, offers some candid commentaries in a letter to his brother. Read them, and the rest of his story, in this SlideShare presentation.

Inspire others at your next gathering… share what being a Vincentian is all about… using this video from the Daughters of Charity International, featuring quotes from our holy founders, set to beautiful music.

In collaboration with their brothers and sisters of several other branches of the Vincentian Family, the Congregation of the Mission has been accompanying the poor in Kenya for over 20 years. We invite you to journey to Kenya with the missioners in this multimedia story — an integration of text, audio, and photography.