France, the Alps and Lombardy
Southern France, the Alpine valleys, Lombardy, Savoy and Switzerland. The Geneva letter of 1403 dates from this period.
Preaching
The Word, on foot
along the roads of Europe.
For almost twenty years, from 1399 to 1419, St Vincent Ferrer preached from town to town before great crowds. This is how he preached, and where his road led.
How he preached
Method and style
After his experience in Avignon, at the end of 1399 he set out on an itinerant mission which he understood as received from Christ himself: he presented himself as legatus a latere Christi, a legate of Christ.
In a letter written from Geneva on 17 December 1403 to the Master of the Order, he describes his own rhythm: he preached every day, sometimes two or three times, and prepared his sermons on the move, on the road from one place to the next.
His preaching always began from Scripture and drew on images and comparisons from everyday life that everyone could grasp. He called people to conversion and reminded them that the Last Judgement was near, yet always with charity and a fatherly tenderness towards his hearers.
- Scripture The biblical text as the starting point of every sermon.
- Images Metaphors and examples within reach of ordinary people.
- Crowds Open-air preaching before great gatherings.
Where and when
Itinerary
The Iberian Peninsula
Catalonia, Valencia, Murcia and Castile. In 1412 he takes part in the Compromise of Caspe.
Towards the Atlantic
Languedoc, then Burgundy and Brittany. He dies in Vannes on 5 April 1419.
The dates of each stage are approximate; the exact routes vary between sources.