"Charles de Foucauld: From Playboy to Beatified Hermit"

Charles de Foucauld (1858-1916) was an idiosyncratic, ascetic hermit–a one-time pudgy French playboy who died in the desert of Algeria killed by thieves looking for gold and arms. This past Sunday (November 13, 2005) he was beatified at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome in a ceremony presided over by Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, prefect of the Congregation for Sainthood Causes. French justice minister Pascal Clement and several other officials, as well as more than 200 members of the de Foucauld family and a delegation from the French military were expected at the beatification ceremony and the Algerian government was to send a representative from the Council of Islamic Affairs.

[Entire Story]

Via Ignatius Insight Scoop.
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