Missionaries of Saint Francis de Sales

MISSIONARIES OF SAINT FRANCIS DE SALES. - The Congregation was founded on 24 Oct. 1838 at Annecy near the tomb of the Saint, under whose patronage it was placed, by Fr. Peter Mermier, of Chaumont (Haute-Savoie). It brings together priests and lay brothers and has as its purpose parish missions, the education of youth and the conversion of infidels and heretics.

It received the decree of praise on 2 June 1843 and was officially recognized by the Holy See on 19 May 1860. In 1845 the Congregation of Propaganda entrusted to it a vast territory of Hindustan, which was later organized into the dioceses of Vizagapatam and Nagpur, with 25 million inhabitants. In these two dioceses the M. of St. F. de S. possess two flourishing colleges, two industrial schools and various elementary schools. In 1857 they established themselves in England, in the diocese of Clifton, where they currently count 5 parishes. Later they opened houses in the archdiocese of Westminster and in the dioceses of Birmingham, Northampton and Plymouth. In 1926 they reached Brazil, where they opened two houses in the archdiocese of São Paulo and one in the diocese of Lages. In 1948 they established themselves in Algeria, in the diocese of Constantine.

Currently they count, in France, 6 houses and 4 in Switzerland. The scholasticates and novitiates of the Congregation are located at Fribourg in Switzerland, at Birmingham in England and at Rachol (Goa) in the Indies.

The Congregation counted, in 1951, 275 missionaries of whom 175 were priests, 43 scholastics, 77 lay brothers, 10 novices.

Paul Rime