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Francois Fenelon
François de Salignac de La Mothe-Fénelon (1651 - 1715). French Catholic archbishop, theologian, and author born in Sainte-Mondane, Périgord, to noble but impoverished parents. Educated by tutors in Greek and Latin classics, he studied at the University of Cahors and Saint-Sulpice seminary in Paris, earning a theology doctorate in 1677. Ordained a priest in 1675, he directed Nouvelles Catholiques (1679-1685), educating young Huguenot converts, and preached in Saintonge (1685-1688) to persuade Protestants after the Edict of Nantes’ revocation, favoring persuasion over force. Named tutor to Louis XIV’s grandson, the Duc de Bourgogne, in 1689, he wrote Les Aventures de Télémaque (1699), a critique of absolutism that led to his banishment from court. Elected to the French Academy in 1693 and made Archbishop of Cambrai in 1695, he authored over 30 works, including Traité de l’éducation des filles (1687) and Explication des maximes des saints (1697), defending Quietist spirituality, which sparked conflict with Bishop Bossuet and papal condemnation in 1699. Unmarried, Fénelon lived ascetically, focusing on pastoral care in Cambrai. His words, “True prayer is only another name for the love of God,” reflect his mystical bent. His writings, translated into 60 languages, influenced Rousseau, Jefferson, and modern education, blending faith with humane governance. Despite controversies, his eloquent sermons and letters endure in Catholic and literary circles.
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Francois Fenelon preaches on the importance of true charity, emphasizing that it should be humble, consistent, and selfless, cutting off anything that does not align with pure love for others. He highlights the need for the circumcision of the heart to become children of faith like Abraham, surrendering completely to God's refining process. Fenelon uses the example of John the Baptist, who selflessly pointed others to Christ, showcasing the greatness that comes from forgetting oneself and focusing solely on God.
The Circumcision of the Heart.
LETTER XL. The circumcision of the heart. Our eagerness to serve others, frequently arises from mere natural generosity and a refined self-love; it may soon turn into dislike and despair. But true charity is simple, and ever the same towards the neighbor, because it is humble, and never thinks of self. Whatever is not included in this pure charity, must be cut off. It is by the circumcision of the heart that we are made children and inheritors of the faith of Abraham, in order that we may, like him, quit our native country without knowing whither we go. Blessed lot! to leave all and deliver ourselves up to the jealousy of God, the knife of circumcision! Our own hand can effect nothing but superficial reforms; we do not know ourselves, and cannot tell where to strike; we should never light upon the spot that the hand of God so readily finds. Self-love arrests our hand and spares itself; it has not the courage to wound itself to the quick. And besides, the choice of the spot and the preparation for the blow, deaden its force. But the hand of God strikes in unexpected places, it finds the very joint of the harness, and leaves nothing unscathed. Self-love then becomes the patient; let it cry out, but see to it that it does not stir under the hand of God, lest it interfere with the success of the operation. It must remain motionless beneath the knife; all that is required is fidelity in not refusing a single stroke. I am greatly attached to John the Baptist, who wholly forgot himself that he might think only of Christ; he pointed to Him, he was but the voice of one crying in the wilderness to prepare the way, he sent Him all his disciples, and it was this conduct, far more than his solitary and austere life, that entitled him to be called the greatest among them that are born of women.
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François de Salignac de La Mothe-Fénelon (1651 - 1715). French Catholic archbishop, theologian, and author born in Sainte-Mondane, Périgord, to noble but impoverished parents. Educated by tutors in Greek and Latin classics, he studied at the University of Cahors and Saint-Sulpice seminary in Paris, earning a theology doctorate in 1677. Ordained a priest in 1675, he directed Nouvelles Catholiques (1679-1685), educating young Huguenot converts, and preached in Saintonge (1685-1688) to persuade Protestants after the Edict of Nantes’ revocation, favoring persuasion over force. Named tutor to Louis XIV’s grandson, the Duc de Bourgogne, in 1689, he wrote Les Aventures de Télémaque (1699), a critique of absolutism that led to his banishment from court. Elected to the French Academy in 1693 and made Archbishop of Cambrai in 1695, he authored over 30 works, including Traité de l’éducation des filles (1687) and Explication des maximes des saints (1697), defending Quietist spirituality, which sparked conflict with Bishop Bossuet and papal condemnation in 1699. Unmarried, Fénelon lived ascetically, focusing on pastoral care in Cambrai. His words, “True prayer is only another name for the love of God,” reflect his mystical bent. His writings, translated into 60 languages, influenced Rousseau, Jefferson, and modern education, blending faith with humane governance. Despite controversies, his eloquent sermons and letters endure in Catholic and literary circles.