Charles de Foucauld

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Charles Eugène de Foucauld de Pontbriand, PFJ (15 September 1858 – 1 December 1916) was a

Childhood

De Foucauld's family was originally from the

On 17 July 1857, their first child Charles was born, and died one month later.[6] Their second son, whom they named Charles Eugène, was born in Strasbourg on 15 September 1858^[9] in the family house on Place Broglie at what was previously mayor Dietrich's mansion, where La Marseillaise was sung for the first time, in 1792.^[6]

A few months after his birth, his father was transferred to

Charles pursued his studies at the Saint-Arbogast episcopal school, and went to Strasbourg high school in 1868.[9] At the time an introvert and short-tempered,^[9] he was often ill and pursued his education thanks to private tuition.^[6]

He spent the summer of 1868 with his aunt, Inès Moitessier, who felt responsible for her nephew. Her daughter, Marie Moitessier (later Marie de Bondy), eight years older than Charles, became fast friends with him.^[9] She was a fervent churchgoer who was very close to Charles, sometimes acting as a maternal figure for him.^[6]

In 1870 the de Morlet family fled the Franco-Prussian War and found refuge in Bern. Following the French defeat, the family moved to Nancy in October 1871.^[6][9] Charles had four years of secular highschool left.^[9] Jules Duvaux was a teacher of his,^[9][6] and he bonded with fellow student Gabriel Tourdes.^[9] Both students had a passion for classical literature,^[8] and Gabriel remained, according to Charles, one of the "two incomparable friends" of his life.^[8] His education in a secular school developed nurtured patriotic sentiment, alongside a mistrust for the German Empire.^[9] His First Communion took place on 28 April 1872, and his confirmation at the hands of Monseigneur Joseph-Alfred Foulon in Nancy followed shortly thereafter.^[8]

In October 1873, when he was 15, whilst in a Rhetoric class, he began to distance himself from the faith before becoming agnostic.^[9] He later affirmed, "The philosophers are all in discord. I spent twelve years not denying and believing nothing, despairing of the truth, not even believing in God. No proof to me seemed evident."^[10] This loss of the faith was accompanied by uneasiness; Charles found himself to be "all selfishness, all impiousness, all evil desire, I was as though distraught".^[11][8]

On 11 April 1874, his cousin Marie married Olivier de Bondy.

He then returned to Nancy, where he studied tutoring whilst secretly perusing light readings.^[9][6] During his readings with Gabriel Tourdes, he wanted to "completely enjoy that which is pleasant to the mind and body".^[13][6] This reading introduced the two students to the works of Aristotle, Voltaire, Erasmus, Rabelais and Laurence Sterne.^[8]

In June 1876, he applied for entrance to the

The death of Foucauld's grandfather and the receipt of a substantial inheritance, was followed by his entry into the French cavalry school at Saumur. Continuing to lead an extravagant life style, Foucauld was posted to the 4th Regiment of Chasseurs d'Afrique in Algeria. Bored with garrison service he travelled in Morocco (1883–84), the Sahara (1885), and Palestine (1888–89). While reverting to being a wealthy young socialite when in Paris, Foucauld became an increasingly serious student of the geography and culture of Algeria and Morocco. In 1885 the Societe de Geographie de Paris awarded him its gold medal in recognition of his exploration and research.^[15]

Religious life

On 14 January 1890, de Foucauld entered the

In 1897, after seven years, he therefore left the order began to lead a life of prayer near a convent of

After that, he went to the Sahara in French Algeria and continued to live an eremitical lifestyle. At that time he adopted the religious name Charles of Jesus.^[18] He first settled in Béni Abbès, near the Moroccan border, building a small hermitage for "adoration and hospitality", which he soon referred to as the "fraternity" and both himself and the future members as "little brothers" of Jesus.^[19]

De Foucauld moved to be with the

The French authorities continued for years searching for the bandits involved. In 1943 El Madani fled French forces in Libya to the remote South Fezzan. Sermi ag Thora was apprehended and executed at Djanet in 1944.^[23]

In April 1929, the mortal remains of Charles de Foucauld were transferred to the oasis of

De Foucauld inspired and helped to organize a confraternity within France in support of his ideas. This organization, the Association of the Brothers and Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, consisted of 48 lay and ordained members at the time of his death. Members of this group, notably Louis Massignon, a scholar of Islam, and René Bazin, author of a biography, La Vie de Charles de Foucauld Explorateur en Maroc, Ermite du Sahara (1923), kept his memory alive and inspired the family of lay and religious fraternities. Though French in origin, these groups have expanded to include many cultures and their languages on every populated continent. The Charles de Foucauld Spiritual Family Association brings together the Little Brothers of Jesus, the Little Sisters of Jesus and 18 other religious orders and associations for priests, religious and laypeople which were inspired by him.^[31]

Legacy

The 1936 French film The Call of Silence depicted his life.^[36]

In 1950, the colonial Algerian government issued a postage stamp with his image. The French government did the same in 1959.^{[citation needed]}

Antonello Padovano wrote and directed the film "The Four Doors of the Desert" based on Charles de Foucauld life and his friendship with the Tuareg Amenokal Moussa Ag Amastan.^[37]

Charles de Foucauld is honored in the

References

Further reading

• Casajus, Dominique (1997). "Charles de Foucauld et les Touaregs, Rencontre et Malentendu". Terrain 28: 29–42.
• Casajus, Dominique (2009). Charles de Foucauld: Moine et Savant. CNRS Éditions.
  ISBN 9782271066312
  .
• Chatelard, Antoine (2000). La Mort de Charles de Foucauld. Karthala Éditions.
  ISBN 9782845861206
  .
• Fournier, Josette (2007). Charles de Foucauld: Amitiés Croisées. Éditions Cheminements.
  ISBN 9782844785695
  .
• Fremantle, Anne (1950). Desert Calling. The Story of Charles de Foucauld. London, Hollis & Carter.
• Galand, Lionel (1999). Lettres au Marabout. Messages Touaregs au Père de Foucauld. Paris, Belin, 1999.
• Hallier, Jean-Edern, L'Evangile du fou: Charles de Foucauld, le manuscrit de ma mère morte, Paris, Albin Michel, 1986
• ISBN 978-2-36526-128-9
  )
• Wright, Cathy (2005). Charles de Foucauld – Journey of the Spirit. Pauline Books and Media.
  ISBN 9780819815767
  .
• Kathleen of Jesus, Little Sister (2019). The Universal Brother: Charles de Foucauld speaks to us today. New City Press.
  ISBN 1565486463
  .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Charles de Foucauld.

Wikiquote has quotations related to Charles de Foucauld.

• Lay Fraternity Archived 8 November 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Lay Fraternity Page
• Facebook Group, Brother Charles' Facebook page
• Lay Fraternity in Canada, Canadian Lay Fraternity Page
• Association Famille Spirituelle Charles de Foucauld (Spiritual Family of Charles de Foucauld)
• Názáret, a Hungarian website about Charles de Foucauld and his spirituality
• "Charles de Foucauld" Archived 28 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine at Jesus Caritas
• "Books by or about Charles de Foucauld" Archived 22 May 2016 at the Wayback Machine at Jesus Caritas
• Newspaper clippings about Charles de Foucauld in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW
• An "Insight" episode based on Charles de Foucauld, portrayed by
  Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.