Blessed Sebastian Valfrè (1629–1710) was a holy priest, well-known for his pastoral works throughout Turin. He was respected in hospitals, where he regularly visited the sick, and consoled them with his presence, the sacraments and by preaching the word of God. He was recognised in the marketplaces for his public preaching. His most beloved work, however, was that of teaching the catechism to large groups of children at midday on Sundays — a duty he began soon after joining the Oratory in Turin and continued for most of his life. In all these works he saw Our Holy Father Saint Philip as the model of the perfect priest. Blessed Sebastian’s perseverance in his priestly works was a true mark of his sanctity.  

However, the sanctity of Blessed Sebastian also arose from his struggles to conform himself to Saint Philip. Saint Philip was gentle and kind, whereas Blessed Sebastian was said to be harsh and short-tempered. Saint Philip could easily immerse himself in deep prayer at any time and would often spend hours in an ecstatic state. Blessed Sebastian, on the other had, was said to have found it hard to concentrate and could not easily engage himself in mental prayer — but his soul would always find peace and focus at the point of consecration during Mass. Although these difficulties made him suffer interiorly, Sebastian’s Christian joy in the spirit of Saint Philip was in constant evidence in his life in the Oratory.

These struggles did not affect Blessed Sebastian’s faith in any way. In fact, his life has become a model of perseverance and a great source of hope, offering many examples of the strength of his faith. Sebastian, who had a great devotion to the Shroud of Turin and would visit it every Friday, was entrusted with the delicate task of repairing it in 1694. With great reverence and care, he worked to mend the Shroud, seeing in this labour an act of love and devotion to the suffering Christ. “The Cross received the living Jesus and gave him back to us dead; the Shroud received the dead Jesus and restored him to us alive.” Blessed Sebastian knelt for hours as he did his work, speechless, with tears flowing down his cheeks as a testament of love.

Blessed Sebastian was aware of his imperfections. He also allowed himself to be led by the gentle spirit of Saint Philip, overcoming his personal difficulties to the extent that other people considered him to be another Saint Philip. It was his will to do the will of God despite his personal struggles and he succeeded  by having Saint Philip as his patron and defender, as his guide to the port of eternal bliss. May we be able, like Blessed Sebastian, to acknowledge our imperfections and seek the guidance of Saint Philip in overcoming them.

On Friday, we will celebrate the feast of the great Counter-Reformation Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church, St Francis de Sales. He founded an Oratory at Thonon, on the shore of Lake Geneva, after having met St Philip in Rome and having been inspired by his work there. Sadly for St Francis, he was not able to stay there for very long, because he succeeded to the Bishopric of Geneva upon his predecessor’s death three years later. As Bishop, he laboured to bring the people entrusted to his care back to the Faith — Geneva was, of course, the centre of the Calvinist world.

When we think of the Counter-Reformation, we might think of great institutions founded to fight heresies, like the Society of Jesus or the Inquisition — but St Francis’ efforts were quite different. He preached the Word of God simply and engagingly, drawing people in with the sweetness of our Faith. Nowadays, he is often known as the Doctor of Charity, precisely because the foundation of his approach was to preach that love of God which has no end. He worked hard to bring everyone, from all walks of life, closer to God, following St Philip in teaching the faithful how to dedicate themselves to God in the midst of their ordinary lives.

We might imagine the challenges of our own times to be very different to those faced by St Francis more than four hundred years ago, but, in fact, his example is essential for us as Catholics today. It is so often said that polite conversation does not include money, politics or religion — such things are surely far too personal to be spoken about in public! St Francis de Sales shows us that this need not be the case. Our Faith is not something to be embarrassed about: it is something we must share with others, and there is only one way to share it. We do not need expertise in theology or rhetoric — all we need do is, like St Francis, to talk to our friends, our family, our neighbours — to anyone who will listen — about the love that Our Lord Jesus Christ has for each and every one of us.

This week we celebrate the feast day of Saint Joseph Vaz, known as the Apostle of Sri Lanka, who was both a Son of St Philip and a great missionary. The idea of an Oratorian missionary may seem rather strange to us. Usually, Fathers of the Oratory are thought of as “fishers and not hunters” of souls, quietly winning individuals for Christ. After all, Saint Philip had a deep desire to travel to India to preach the Gospel, but was told by the holy monk Agostino Ghettini that St John the Evangelist had appeared to him and said that it was the will of God for Philip to remain in Rome and that “Rome was to be his Indies”. In humble submission to the will of God, he never once left the city for the rest of his life.

Almost a century later, Saint Joseph Vaz spent his whole life travelling around those very Indies that Saint Philip had renounced, converting thousands of people to the Catholic Faith.

There were great miracles that accompanied his missionary work. To give just one example: in the region of Kandy, the rainy season failed one year and there was a severe drought. The staple food of the people was rice, which they were unable to grow. Magicians had offered sacrifices to the devil and the aid of Buddha had been called upon, but still the rain did not come. The King then called upon Father Vaz to pray for rainfall since “he preaches that his is the true God”.

Having erected an altar in a prominent place in the town, Father Vaz prayed that the people may be saved from famine. As he was praying, rain fell for several hours until all of the reservoirs of the town were full again, though the altar at which the Saint was praying remained completely dry. This miracle wrought a huge conversion amongst the people of Kandy and many were baptised. The King, astonished at so great a miracle, allowed Father Vaz to travel wherever he wished in the surrounding regions, which he had so far not been able to do and this was hugely advantageous to his mission.

Impressive miracles such as these were nevertheless no replacement for the chief tools of his apostolic work: prayer, administering the Sacraments and preaching. Here we see what made his missionary work distinctly Oratorian.

Fr Francesco Agnelli of the Savigliano Oratory reminds us that there is no vocation “more sublime than the one to which the sons of St Philip are called; for their vocation consists in three things, the highest and holiest which adorn Holy Church: prayer, the administration of the sacraments, and feeding the people with the daily Word of God. Even the Apostles themselves were not called to a nobler end.”

From letters of Saint Joseph Vaz towards the very end of his life, we get a sense of the particularly Philippine approach on which he modelled all of his missions. The Saint, writing in December 1710 to one of his great comrades in Sri Lanka, Fr Menezes, to hand over his duties as Vicar General and as Superior of the Oratorians, says: “Take no attention of the fact I am still alive; I cannot celebrate Mass nor hear confessions; what therefore is life to me?” And again one week later, on the eve of his death, he writes: “I will pray as long as my strength lasts, for I am no more good for anything else.”

The Saint’s priorities could not be laid out to us more clearly. He had a great love of the Holy Mass and even when he was no longer able to say Mass, he still received Holy Communion every day. When he was too weak to preach Christ to the people of Sri Lanka, he did not cease to turn to God in prayer for their souls.

We may not be called to preach the Gospel in far-flung lands but we are each called to spread the message of Jesus Christ, not by any heroic means but by performing well the daily duties of our state of life. The example of Saint Joseph Vaz, himself following the pattern of Saint Philip, gives to us the means to achieve this: prayer, frequent reception of the Sacraments and study of scripture. May we, through the intercession of St Joseph Vaz, be attentive at prayer, deepen our love for the Holy Mass and meditate more fervently on the Word of God. St Joseph Vaz, pray for us!

Our celebration of the feast of the Epiphany of our Lord is very special, because it marks the point at which we come into the story. We, the Gentile world, are called into friendship with the Lord, called to share in the joys of God’s kingdom. For us, life is about seeking Christ, and doing so in the spirit of the Magi would seem to be an excellent way of going about it. Like them, we embark on a spiritual journey marked by faith, perseverance, humility and surrender. The Wise Men’s story teaches profound lessons about what it means to search for the Divine with a sincere heart. First, consider how they set out on their journey guided only by a star. They had no idea where it would lead them or what exactly they would find, yet they set off, curious and eager to see where the star would lead. Seeking Christ often requires us to step into the unknown, trusting in his guidance even when the way ahead isn’t exactly clear. We might ask ourselves if we are willing to trust God’s direction in our lives, even when it challenges our comfort or understanding?

The journey of the Wise Men was long and arduous and even dangerous, yet they persisted in it, deeply committed and determined to find the Christ Child. Are we persistent in our search for Jesus, even when the way is hard, tedious or dangerous? Do we seek him in prayer, the Scriptures, in the Sacraments and in the humdrum circumstances of everyday life?

St Matthew tells us that when the Magi found the Holy Child Jesus in Bethlehem, “they fell down and worshipped him”. What an odd sight that must have seemed! Despite their importance and status, they humbled themselves before the infant King. Do we approach Jesus with humility? Do we recognise the wisdom of surrendering ourselves to him, acknowledging our need for his grace and mercy?

Then they offered their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, each with their symbolic significance, representing the Magi’s recognition of Jesus as King, God and Redeemer. What about us? What gifts do we bring? Our time, talents, love and service? And what of the sacrifices we can make to honour him fully?

And having made their offerings to Jesus, those men left Bethlehem and returned to their homes “by a different way”, thereby avoiding any further contact with Herod, lest he discovered the child’s whereabouts and did him harm. Their return journey was characterised surely by joy and grace. Their encounter with Christ and his family, must surely have had a transforming effect. They went back with renewed purpose. How has our encounter with Christ changed us? Are we willing to take new paths in life? Are we willing to let the Lord transform our lives?

To seek the Lord Jesus in the spirit of the Magi is to live with hearts open to his light and love. It involves embracing the onward journey with courage and with faith, offering our best and trusting that he will lead us into a deeper communion with God.

Blessed be the Holy Child Jesus now and for evermore.