A Daughter of Charity with deep spiritual insights into St. Louise de Marillac and a Vincentian priest who nurtured Vincentian researchers for nearly two decades were awarded the 2010 Vincentian Studies Institute Pierre Coste Prize in a ceremony at DePaul University this month.

Named for the Rev. Pierre Coste, C.M., a 20^th century French Vincentian historian known as the father of modern Vincentian studies, the award recognizes distinguished contributions in Vincentian scholarship. 

This year’s honorees are Sr. Louise Sullivan, D.C., and the late Rev. Paul Henzmann, C.M.

Sr. Sullivan is a professor emerita of Modern Languages at Niagara University.  She edited and translated “Saint Louise de Marillac: Spiritual Writings” and “Sr. Rosalie Rendu: A Daughter of Charity on Fire with Love for the Poor,” among other books and articles. She speaks worldwide on Louise de Marillac, who cofounded the Daughters of Charity in 1633 with Vincent de Paul; Rosalie Rendu, a Daughter of Charity decorated by Napoleon III for her service to the most impoverished of Paris; and other Vincentian topics.

Sr. Sullivan first became interested in Vincentian heritage in 1968 when she was an interpreter for the First General Chapter of the Daughters of Charity, called in response to the directive of Vatican II to all religious congregations to return to the spirit of their founders.

“Through the years, interest became a passion especially for Louise de Marillac, and more recently, Rosalie Rendu,” she says.  “My great joy is to share my discovery of these two remarkable women with the Vincentian family and to see the seeds planted grow in such diverse settings.”

From 1991 almost until his death in July 2009, Fr. Henzmann was the archivist at the mother house of the Congregation of the Mission in Paris. “He was blessed with a photographic memory, a sense of order, organization, and the importance of the Congregation’s historical heritage,” says the Rev. Edward R. Udovic, C.M., senior executive for University Mission. In addition to possessing a kind a generous soul, “Fr. Henzmann supported the research of a generation of Vincentian scholars who remember him with gratitude and fondness.”

Fr. Udovic adds, “Both of this year’s honorees have made unique and substantive contributions to fostering a living interest in the Vincentian heritage.  Their work helped not only to ensure that this generation of Vincentian researchers and authors is the greatest in the history of the Vincentian tradition, but that this work will form new generations of members of the Vincentian family worldwide.”

Founded 30 years ago by the Congregation of the Mission and Daughters of Charity in the United States, the Vincentian Studies Institute is the premier international resource for Vincentian Studies.  Sponsored by DePaul University in Chicago since 2007, the institute engages in research, publications and continuing educational missions by expanding the availability of Vincentian history on the World Wide Web.

The awards were presented as part of the university’s recognition of the 350^th anniversaries of the deaths of Vincent  de Paul (1581-1660) and Louise de Marillac (1591-1660).