Sons of St .Francis de Sales

On behalf of the General Council of the Society of the Sons of Saint Francis de Sales, I thank you for your inquiry into our lay society. Like the Daughters of St Francis de Sales, we are a lay society in the Catholic Church that was founded by Father Henri Chaumont of the Archdiocese of Paris, France in the late 19th century. Also like the Daughters, we go through a 2-year formation period in which we study the various virtues emphasized by St Francis de Sales and the role of laymen in the Church, especially our universal call to holiness.

Father Chaumont also founded the Priest of St Francis de Sales, and there is a branch of the Daughters who are vowed religious women named the Salesian Missionaries of Mary Immaculate (SMMI). We are very close to both of these communities, as we have a Priest of St Francis de Sales as our Spiritual Counselor and in many countries of the world where we are located, it is the SMMI sisters who provide our formation in the spirituality of St Francis de Sales.

Since we began in the late 19th century in France, we have spread to 11 other countries. We strive to attain holiness in our lay vocations by faithfully living out the duties of our state in life in the world, daily meditation, frequenting the sacraments and monthly group meetings. We work as medical doctors, university professors, engineers, small business owners, nurses, government employees etc. We are married, single, fathers and grandfathers. Two of us are Permanent Deacons as well! In any profession, God can be praised and men may attain holiness through faithfulness to the duties of one’s state in life.

Please read further this short history below. Feel free to contact us using the form below if you have further questions or know someone who would like information about beginning our formation program.

Live Jesus!

General Council of the Society of the Sons of Saint Francis de Sales

History of the Sons

In a letter dated November 8, 1876, Father Henri Chaumont, the founder of the Sons of St. Francis de Sales, rejoices over the beginning of a society of lay men, in addition to the societies of lay women (Daughters) and diocesan priests which he had already founded. He said:

“There is great joy among us! The last element has been achieved, the Society of St. Francis de Sales is complete.” As with the Daughters and Priests of St. Francis de Sales, the focus of the Sons was to do their utmost to spread the spirituality of Francis de Sales in the world. Fr. Chaumont saw St. Francis de Sales, “more than any other saint, the man able today to make the true Spirit of Our Lord understood, loved and followed.”

The Sons began meeting in 1887. Their society was approved by Cardinal Richard, Archbishop of Paris, on March 28, 1898. In a talk in 1892, Father Chaumont envisioned his Sons as similar to the 72 disciples who were with the Savior. He saw them as men of every social condition, remaining in the world, who receive a very solid formation in full accordance with the evangelical counsels. He said, “They make their meditation on the way to their work, they go to Mass as often as possible on weekdays, knowing they can only be auxiliaries of Our Lord, if they receive the sacraments abundantly…They are strong in their modest apostolate of presence and witness…they are men of faith and courage.”

Today in 2024, there are approximately 300 consecrated Sons of St. Francis de Sales throughout the world. In addition to a small but very active group in the USA, we are located in France, Madagascar, India, Bangladesh, Reunion, Mauritius, Benin, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, the UK and Ireland. As with the other branches of the society, their initial and ongoing formation is primarily through the method of probations.

Reference: “Discover Henri Chaumont and His Spiritual Family“

Questions? Contact a Son of St. Francis de Sales