"Servus sciens voluntatem Domini
et non faciens, vapulabit multis". "The servant who knows
what his master wants, but does not do it, will receive very
many strokes of the lash."
1
Thus spoke André Duval to Vincent de Paul in 1624.2
Later, Vincent often said that his Company (the Congregation
of the Mission) owed a good part of its origins and
establishment to this same André Duval.3
Who was this man who spoke so strongly to Vincent de Paul, and
convinced Vincent to take up (albeit some time later!) what
was to become his life’s work ? What was his relationship
with Vincent de Paul and his role in Vincent's life ?
Background
and Early Years
André Duval was born at Pontoise,
just north of Paris, on January 15, 1564, the son of Nicolle
d’Eaubonne and Robert Duval, both of whom were catholic and
of well regarded families4.
His father was a lawyer in the Parlement. André’s
youth was untroubled, but he grew up during the Wars of
Religion, his family actively siding with the Catholic League
against the King of Navarre (later to become Heny IV of
France).5
When the Catholic League became a political faction in the
service of ambitious individuals, along with a number of other
moderate Catholics André separated himself from the League.
It was from these more moderate catholics that Henry IV, after
his abjurations (there were several) and as King of France,
drew his supporters.6
Growing into manhood during and
towards the end of the Wars of Religion7,
André began his studies of philosophy - first at the Collège
de Pontoise, then in Paris, dedicating his philosophical
theses to Cardinal de Gondi, archbishop of Paris and Abbé de
St-Martin lez Pontoise. Uncertain of a career on which to
embark, he then studied law. Eventually, he began studies in
theology in preparation for Priesthood, receiving a Doctorate
in Theology, apprently being ‘top of his class’ in this
discipline.8
It appears he came to be in demand
as a preacher. He preached Lenten sermons in the cathedral
churches of Rouen, Nantes, Amiens and Paris. His reputation
drew Henry IV to come and hear him in Notre-Dame at Paris.
Having heard him preach, Henry said of him “Here is someone
who must become a bishop”, and requested his presence at
Court. Duval however, regarded being at Court to be a
dangerious enterprise, and could not be persuaded.9
Active in opposing the spread of heresy, he was named by
Henry as a lecturer and Regius Professor in theology at
the Sorbonne.10
He was to occupy a Chair of Theology in the University of
Paris for 42 years.
11
But teaching theology and
preaching were not the only aspects of his life worthy of
note. His own virtue, and his wise counsel, soon acquired for
him a number of admirers and friends. He was the spiritual
director of many, including Père Joseph (François du
Tremblay).12
He visited the
poor, and was himself quite poor.13
His Lectureship in Theology at the Sorbonne brought in 70014
livres annually and he lived simply – no fancy furniture or
clothes. His room had no floor covering, just one bed and five
plain chairs, and no silverware. When he relinquished his
lectureship, he was unwilling to accept a pension.
15
One day, on seeing a large number of mules carrying the
luggage of Michel de Marillac (Keeper of the Seals and uncle
of Louise de Marillac) who was going on a trip with the King,
he said to M. de Marillac, whom he knew very well “Monsieur,
how poor you are!” M. de Marillac asked why he would say that.
“Because you need so many things” was the reply!
16
Like
his father before him, Duval was not concerned about accepting
preferments to better his state.17
He refused the archdiaconate of Limoges (which was worth 1000
ecus18),
the théologale, of the cathedral church of Amiens and
the curacy of the St Germain l’Auxerrrois à Paris.19
Duval was proposed and named Archbishop of Rheims, but he
would not accept the appointment.20
In his religious
life, he was devout to the point of mysticism, a disciple of
de Bérulle, a friend of Benoît de Canfeld (Benet of Canfield),
and very much influenced by Mme Acarie,21
herself a mystic. It was in writing the life of Mme Acarie22
that his deep knowledge of theology preserved him from error
and misunderstandings in describing the unusual piety of Mme
Acarie, including her experience of the stigmata.
23
It
appears he was also somewhat modest as to his own appearance.
He had been told that, being un bel homme who had
un beau visage, he should have his picture sketched. He
refused, but his portrait was drawn without his knowledge.
Vincent de Paul was given one of the copies of the sketch and
displayed it at St Lazare. When Duval, visiting St Lazare,
saw it there, he was overcome with confusion, so much so that
he compelled Vincent to remove it from sight. This Vincent
did, until after the death of Duval, when the picture was
again displayed, along with those of others known for their
virtue and piety.24
It is no wonder
such a man became one of the most listened to in the
University of Paris.25
Champion of the Catholic
Reform
Duval made a
signifcant impact on the reform of a number of Relgious Orders
and Institutions in France. He contributed to the
establishment of the reformed Benedictines, and was involved
in the reform of the orders of Saint Augustine, of Saint
Benedict and of Citeaux. He was a member of of Extraordinary
Council to the Bernardines in Paris.
26
He was appointed one of the judges in the troubles among the
religious of the Third Order of St Francis. He opposed the
expulsion of the Jesuits from France.27
He also contributed to the foundation and governance of the
Reformed Carmelites in France, which is further discussed
below. He was one of the first to whom Madame Acarie
communicated her ideas on bringing the order to France. Along
with Pierre de Bérulle and Jacques Gallement, he was of of the
three first superiors of the Order.28
In 1604, he founded a convent of the same Carmelites at
Pointoise. Out of his own resources he purchased the house
where the Carmelites in Pontoise were to live. And he founded
like establishments in Rouen, Gisors and Amien, Dijo, Beaune
and Châlon-Saône. He worked to re-establish proper observance
in the abbeys of Montmartre and de Montivilliers, where
relaxation had taken place during the civil wars, and he
assisted in the setting up of the Ursuline of Pontoise.
29
He was appointed one of the three directors and administrators
of the Hôpital de la Miséricorde in Paris.
30
As a theologian in
the Sorbonne, Duval was further able to dedicate his talents
and prestige to the Catholic Restoration in France by
concentration upon restoring the University of Paris to its
role as the intellectual stronghold of Catholicism. Two ideas
dominated his theological attitudes. A dedicated disciple of
Saint Thomas Acquinas, Duval was concerned that only
re-dedication to authentic Thomism could offer the foundation
requisite for the refutation of heresy and the revival of
Catholicism. Secondly, he staunchly defended the
infallibility of the pope and the papal supremacy in spiritual
afffairs.31
André
Duval was an unltramontanist !
His zeal for the
theological restoration of the university was concentrated on
the Collège de Sorbonne, where his teaching made a profound
impression on the students, eg., Richelieu and François du
Tremblay, the future Père Joseph. In addition to his mastery
of dogmatic theology, Duval was an expert in ascetical
theology, being noted as “not having an equal in handling
cases of conscience and spiritual problems.”32
This competence explain Duval’s influence with Mère Acarie and
his selection as one of the three superiors of the Carmelites.33
He was also instrumental in setting up a foundation to assist
criminals condemned to death, and from this time on, a
professor from the Sorbonne assisted such criminals in
conducting their defence.34
He also published a Commentaire de la
Somme de Saint Thomas, a Supplement to the
translation of Ribadeneira’s Fleurs de la Vie des Saints,
and a refutation of Dumoulin’s
Le Feu d’Héli pour Tarir les Eaux
de Siloé.35
Gallicanism, Ultramontanism, 'Duvalism'
As a Doctor of the
Sorbonne, the gallican dispute in regard to papal authority
eventually involved Duval. The assassination of Henry IV in
1610 brought matters to a head in the Sorbonne. Immediately
after the appeal on behalf of Henry’s assassin, François
Ravaillac, had been conducted, the Parlement ordered an
Assembly of the Sorbonne to discuss the revision of a former
decree of the Jesuits who had taught that it was permissable
and even meritorious to take the life of the king in some
cases. The Sorbonne renewed its decree, even though the
renewal was never actually promulgated.36
A further threat
to gallican power was seen in the work of Cardinal Bellarmine
on the power of the pope in temporal matters. Then Edmond
Richer, a syndic37
of the Sorbonne, created a storm with his work Libellus de
ecclesiastica et politica potestate.38
This work, published in 1611, focussed on the nature of
authority within the Church, embracing the views of Conciliarism. It contained among others the idea that
legislative power (in the Church) as well as infallibility
were not the attributes of the pope but belonged to the
hierarchy, composed of the bishops and the priests, which
functioned in its totality as a general council. It also
maintained that the episcopate was an essential element in the
constitution of the Church - the papacy was only an accessory.39
The pope
complained to the Queen Regent (Marie de Medici) and the
bishops were obliged to censure the work.40.
This was done in 1612, and was followed by a number of works
criticising Richer, notable among which was the work
Elenchus libelli de ecclesiastica et politica potestate by
André Duval.41
Duval deeply respected the church hierarchy, and saw the Pope
as the head of this hierarchy and sovereign moderator of the
Church.42 Cardinal Barberini (the future Urban VIII) had urged Duval to
respond to Richer’s Conciliarism,43 and
Duval refuted Richer with such success that he had
ecclesiastical praise heaped on him, contributing to Richer
being dismissed from his position of syndic in the
Sorbonne in 1613.44
At the same time, while refuting Richer, Duval did not
elaborate too much on views that would be contrary to those of
Richer. The result was that Duval came to be regarded as the
champion of a ‘reasonable’ form of ultramontanism that was
acceptable both to the Pope and to France. In his treatise on
l'Autorité du Pape, he critiqued the extreme views of
both the Ultramontanists and the Gallicans, offering a new
approach which came to be known as "Duvalism".45
The affair continued for some years before Richer yielded on
his propositions and was reconciled with Duval.
Duval was again called in, this
time by Pope Urban VIII, in the matter of the Jesuit
Santarel’s work on a similar theme. Once again he acquitted
himself with great distinction.46
Duval and Pierre de Bérulle
In the matter of
opposing the ideas of Edmond Richer and his particular brand
of Conciliarism, Duval had been joined by Pierre de Bérulle,
the founder of the Oratory, and mentor of Vincent de Paul in
Vincent’s early discernment period. Richer had, in fact, had
his revenge on de Bérulle by persuading the members of the
University of Paris to extend to the members of the Oratory
the ban which excluded all alumni who were members of
religious orders from professorships and from voting at the
meetings of the college corporation.47
This certainly would have had an effect on de Bérulle and his
Oratorians.
But trouble was brewing between de
Bérulle and Duval. Intellectually, de Bérulle was setting
aside the scholastic approach of Duval in preference for a
theology based on the writings of the Church Fathers,
particularly St Augustine. Bérulle was also passing this
patristic view on to his Oratorians who then communicated it
in their various works. Moreover, de Bérulle seemed able to
attract some of Duval’s outstanding doctoral candidates into
joining the Oratory, thereby excluding themselves from
assisting in Duval’s hope of building the Sorbonne into a
Thomistic Centre. It became clear that de Bérulle regarded his
Oratory as being more important in the Catholic Restoration
than the Sorbonne! The whole matter was exacerbated by a
physical problem of Duval – increasing deafness – as he saw
his teaching career coming towards its end.48
Then there was the
involvement of both men with the Carmelite Nuns and Mme Acarie,
a mystic.49
Mme Acarie's salon in Paris had become the meeting
place for some well known personnages of the time – Michel de
Marillac (‘Keeper of the Seals’), Benoît de Canfeld, Pierre de
Bérulle, François de Sales, André Duval, and many other great
ladies and gentlemen.50
Duval, along with Mme Acarie and de Bérulle, had been
instrumental in bringing the Reformed Carmelites to France. By
the Bull of foundation in 1603, Jacques Gallemant had been
named first superior, with Duval and de Bérulle as assistants.
In 1606, the Holy See had made Gallemant Visitor of all French
Carmels until 1614. But in 1611, de Bérulle began to
negotiate with Rome to have the Visitorship made the exclusive
prerogative of Bérulle himself and his successors in the
Generalship of the Oratory. In 1614, Rome acceded to the
request, thus antagonising Duval.51
De Bérulle then went even further, and tried to introduce into
the Carmelites a vow of ‘servitude to Our Lord and His
Mother’. This was too much for Duval who took his case to the
Holy See. Madame Acarie, by then a member of the Carmelite
community at Pontoise and known as Mère Marie de l’Incarnation,
sided with Duval, despite de Bérulle’s attempts to persuade
her to his own views. In the conflict with followed, and
especially in an interview with Mme Acarie at Pontoise in
1618, de Bérulle revealed the acrimonious streak which had
caused even François de Sales to be alarmed.52
Mme Acarie, ill at the time, died in that same year without
making her peace with de Bérulle.53
After her death, Duval himself wrote the story of her life.54
So there developed a rift between Duval and de Bérulle, a rift
which must surely have impinged on Vincent de Paul when he
made a choice to move from de Bérulle to Duval for his
spiritual direction.
Duval and Vincent de Paul
After the Edict of Nantes in 1598, and the formal end of the
Wars of Religion, the energy that had driven the Catholic
League in fighting to keep France Catholic needed to go
somewhere. Much of it went into the Catholic Restoration or
Revival, and typically took the form of a renewal of the
interior life. Religious Orders were reborn and reformed,
and as indicated above, Duval contributed to this. Religious
life in general, and mysticism in particular, flourished.
This was epitomised in the founding of the Oratory by Pierre
de Bérulle, the development of Port Royal, and the centre of
mysticism at the Hôtel Acarie. All this involved the Clergy,
Religious, and the well to do. But there was no spirituality
for lesser lights like the poor in the country. Here Vincent
de Paul, having a great understanding of the necessity of
developing the interior life, at the same time directed his
attention outwards towards action. Vincent, while continuing
to associate with and draw on people like de Bérulle, Duval,
Benoît de Canfeld, and François de Sales, developed a ‘way’
that would enable the ordinary people to find God in the
‘sweat of their brow’. And Duval played a role both in
Vincent’s outlook and decisions, in a number of areas.
Around 1610-1611,
it seems André Duval had put in the hands of Vincent de Paul
the work of Benoît de Canfeld - The Rule of Perfection
reduced to a single point – The Will of God.55
It was after a retreat at Soissons in 1624 that Duval spoke
the words to Vincent: Servus sciens voluntatem Domini et
non faciens, vapulabit multis. "The servant who knows
what his master wants, but does not do it, will receive very
many strokes of the lash.’56
Vincent, in his efforts to be completely submissive to God’s
will, was guided by Benoît de Canfeld’s Rule of Perfection
– and had learnt that if God’s will is made known by interior
promptings of grace, it is even more clearly revealed through
the will of superiors. Needing to know if his plan for the
company of missioners was God’s will, he appealed to André
Duval.57
On hearing these words of Duval quoted above, Vincent felt an
upsurge of grace with the conviction that indeed this proposed
work was the will of God.58
And so, as we now know, “he resolved to take on the work, and
search for the means to do so, consulting André Duval,
without whose opinion he undertook nothing”.59
Vincent’s Deference to Duval’s Opinion
During his life, Vincent consulted and deferred to André Duval
many times. The matters on which he consulted Duval were both
large and small.
In 1631, in a
letter to François du Coudray concerning the seeking of
approval of the Congregation of the Mission by Rome as an
Institute, he says: “Note that the opinion of M. Duval is …..”60
A footnote to the same letter refers to Duval as “friend and
counsellor of Vincent de Paul”. It also says that Vincent
never took any important decision without recourse to Duval’s
insights, and that he asked Duval’s opinion before accepting
St Lazare and establishing vows in the Congregation of the
Mission.61
Also in 1631, in a
letter to Guillaume de Lestocq, the Curé of Saint-Laurent,
Vincent indicates that it was appropriate to refer the
acceptance of Saint-Lazare to André Duval. Duval in fact
supported the Prior, Adrian le Bon, in his wish that Vincent
accept the property.62
(The process of accepting St Lazare, and the litigation
involved in retaining it, was quite a saga.63)
The same idea was echoed in the following year, 1632, in
another letter.64
In 1633, writing to Michel Alix, Curé de Saint-Ouen-L’Aumone
on a personal matter, he advises that there should be
consultation with Duval.65
In the summary of a Conference of unknown date, Vincent quotes
Duval’s opinion regarding the role of a Curé as almoner66.
In the
Interrogatory of the Abbé de Saint-Cyran (14-31 May, 1639),
Duval was named as the one whose advice, above all, Vincent
followed in the way he did things, an example given being the
refusal of a particular priory
67.
Presumably this refers to his refusal to accept the Prieuré de
Bonneville.68
And, in regard to his relations with the same Abbé de Saint-Cyran,
however willingly Vincent may have listened to Saint-Cyran, he
did not follow his advice slavishly, but preferred that of
Duval or other doctors of the Sorbonne.69
Vincent’s Regard for Duval
In his conferences
and repetitions of prayer to the confreres of St Lazare,
Vincent referred several times to André Duval - or quoted him
- as being both humble, learned and simple;70
as saying that the unlearned or the poor would gain entry into
paradise before ‘us’ (Duval and Vincent)71,
or before ‘us’ (the confreres at St Lazare!)72;
and in respect for the authority of the Pope
73
For a number of
years, Vincent had looked to de Bérulle for guidance on the
professional level, in matters concerning his work and
occupations, but he followed Duval’s advice more in matters of
conscience. It would seem that Vincent found Duval just as
wise as de Bérulle, but more impartial in his judgements and
more saintly.74
Vincent said of him ‘He was a great doctor of the Sorbonne,
but even greater for the holiness of his life.’75
Speaking further about Duval, Vincent de Paul said of him
“Everything is holy in M. Duval. If I wanted to go through
all the virtues I have seen in him, I would never have
managed it. And so, I conclude that I have never seen
anything in him which did not appear to me to be holy.”76
Vincent gave a similar testimony on the occasion when the
nephew of Duval gave to M. des Cordes, an adviser at the
Chatelet, two small pictures that had belonged to Duval.
Vincent said “These are are relics of a holy man – do not
refuse them.”
77
Vincent found
Duval’s teaching more to his liking – the idea that the
unlearned would compete with the wise for entrance into heaven
and that they would be admitted first78
would have appealed to Vincent more than de Bérulle’s notion
that the shepherds of Bethlehem were unworthy to pay homage to
the Word Incarnate because of their lowly condition.79
Active service of
God was one of Vincent’s maxims. “Let us Love God, my
brothers, let us love God, but let it be in the strength of
our arms and in the sweat of our brow.” Vincent took active
service (of the poor) as his rule of life, quoting Duval in a
repetition of prayer, July 24, 1655: “M. Duval, great doctor
of the Church, said that an ecclesiastic should have more
things to be concerned about than he can manage”80.
Vincent had been
to Rome himself, and it left a deep impression on him. He
became used to looking towards Rome and papal authority. The
ultramontanist approach of Duval strengthened him in his
feelings of respect and submission to the Pope. He was from
this point of view an ardent ‘duvalist’ – and so when Rome
spoke against Jansenism, Vincent immediately distanced himself
from what had become an erroneous train of thinking.81.
As Duval had been so clear in his explanations on the
ultramontanist-gallican debate, Vincent became accustomed to
consulting him in everything, and as a result Duval became a
sort of theologian and canonist for the growing Congregation
of the Mission.82
Some Further Relationships
It would seem that
Vincent and the Congregation of the Mission had some wider
connnection and influence with Duval’s relatives. André
Duval’s nephew, Robert Duval, certainly had a knowledge of his
uncle’s close relationship with Vincent de Paul, as we see
from his manuscript of the life of his uncle.
83
And the le Vacher brothers, Jean and Philippe, who joined the
Congregation of the Mission, were nephews of André Duval.84
Jean le Vacher is remembered for his work in Africa, and
execution at the mouth of a cannon, and Philippe for being
among the first confreres to work in Ireland, as well as for
his work in Africa.
Final Years
But eventually
work and travel weakened the health of André Duval. From his
youth, he had suffered with a hearing problem, despite a
painful operation to remedy it. During his university
studies, he endured a severe fever for seven or eighth months,
and soon after, a painful abcess, and then stomach problems
which continued for the rest of his life.85
Overtaken finally by fever, he died on September 9, 1638, aged
74.86
His body was buried in the Sorbonne Chapel, his heart,
beqeathed to the Carmelites Nuns at Pontoise, was placed near
the tomb of Soeur Marie de l’Incarnation (Madame Acarie).87
Conclusion
Though Duval was
Vincent de Paul’s director for many years, he never took over
Vincent’s soul. Vincent admired him, and respected him, but
did not indicate he wanted to imitate him. Though he was his
friend, Vincent was not one of those who frequented the salon
of Mme Acarie.88
As with with Pierre de Bérulle, Vincent remained his own
person.
Vincent de Paul was
eclectic in his sources of spirituality. The real key to
making sense of Vincent de Paul’s eclecticism lies in looking
not firstly at the sources from which he drew, but rather at
the particular experiences and events of his life, and the
results of his reflection on them. Such experiences and events
would be the accusation of theft in his early days in Paris,
taking on the doubts of the Theologian at Marguérite de Valois’
Court, the incidents at Gannes and Folleville, his time at
Clichy and Châtillon, the founding of the Congregation of the
Mission, the acceptance of the Priory of St Lazare, the
setting up of the Ladies of Charity, his work with Louise de
Marillac founding the Daughters of Charity, and others.
Perhaps the events of the ’missing years’ might even have
figured in his reflections! Many of the thoughts or writings
of Benoît de Canfeld, Pierre de Bèrulle, François de Sales,
and others, resonated with, or spoke to, Vincent’s own
experiences. The language and ideas Vincent used may have been
from these sources, but the experiences, and his reflection on
them, were his own.
In time, much of
Vincent de Paul’s developing spirituality focussed on
Providence and the Will of God. And, from 1610 or 1611
up until 1638, in the forefront of advising him with
sound judgement, helping him to make decisions and to
recognise the Will of God in the experiences and events of his
life, was André Duval. Clearly, this man had more than a
passing role in the life and work of Vincent de Paul!
****
