Vinzenz von Paul (1581–1660) und die Praxis der Sklaverei im Mittelmeerraum

How does the Christian commandment to ‘love thy neighbour as thyself’ fit together with the violent enslavement and exploitation of human beings? This partial biography of Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) examines this question with a view to the practice of slavery in the Mediterranean region. The founder of charitable religious orders, honoured by the Catholic Church as the patron of all works of charity, has first-hand knowledge of the violence and deprivation that characterised the lives of prisoners: as a royal chaplain on the galleys in Marseilles and Toulon he cared for prisoners and Muslim slaves, and in Tunis and Algiers he ministered to Christian slaves. This study describes for the first time the charitable answers that Vincent de Paul offered to the needs of prisoners in France and North Africa in the context of his ministry, and how he interpreted galley slavery, forced labour and slavery spiritually. Vincent de Paul’s theological convictions and his pastoral activity shed new light on the connection between religion and violence and call into question the classical theory of humanisation according to which Christianity worked gradually towards the abolition of slavery.