The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the beating heart of the Christian faith and an essential reference in the spirituality of Saint Vincent de Paul. For him, the risen Christ is not an abstract truth, but a living presence that acts through the poor, the sick and the least of his brethren. In the resurrection, Vincent sees the source of hope, charity and mission.
For St Vincent, the resurrection is not only Christ’s victory over death, but the guarantee of our rebirth. In a conference in 1654, he stated:
‘The Lord has freed us from eternal death by his grace, and by his resurrection he gives life to our bodies, for in Holy Communion we receive the seed of the resurrection.’
The Eucharist is therefore not only spiritual nourishment, but a real participation in the risen life of Christ.
St Vincent taught that to serve the poor is to serve Christ himself, the living and risen Christ. He said:
‘To serve the poor is to go to God; and God must be seen in their person.’
This vision transforms charitable service into an Easter experience: every wound healed, every comfort given is a reflection of the healing power of the resurrection.
For St Vincent, the resurrection is also the model for all mission. Addressing the Daughters of Charity who were leaving to help the war wounded, he said:
‘Do what the Son of God did on earth.’
Just as Christ came to ‘repair what Adam had destroyed’, the sisters are also sent to ‘restore souls to life by instruction, good example and exhortation’, and to care for the bodies of the sick. It is a work of resurrection, both spiritual and physical.
In the midst of trials, Saint Vincent drew inner strength from the resurrection. He recommended:
“Honour must be mortified, what is given to you must be returned to Our Lord, and all applause must be shunned.’
Service to the poor does not seek the glory of the world, but that of the Risen One. The true reward is found in Heaven, where every act of love performed ‘towards one of these little ones’ will be remembered forever.
For Saint Vincent de Paul, the resurrection is a living source of charity, a model of mission and the foundation of hope. It is the light that transforms suffering into redemption, service into adoration, poverty into glory.
In every poor person healed, in every sinner reconciled, the paschal mystery is renewed: Christ is risen – and he rises again in the charity of his disciples.
