138 Washington Avenue
Cobleskill, New York 12043
(518) 234-2892
[email protected]
website: stvincentdepaulcobleskillny.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/Saint Vincent de Paul Roman Catholic Church - Cobleskill
PARISH OFFICE HOURS:
The Parish Office is located in the lower level of the Church.
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Closed Wednesdays and Fridays
Closed the week between Christmas and New Year's Day
Closed Holy Days and Federal Holidays
Pastoral Staff
Rev. Joseph Arockiasamy Pastor
Gary Surman Deacon
Trustees
Peter Nichols Trustee
Virginia Nyahay Trustee
Administrative Staff
Rachael Surman Rys Office Manager
Veronica Schmidt-Henzler Bookkeeper
Kathy Burgin Music Director
Facilitator of Faith Formation
Patrick Kilpeck Youth Ministry
Gregory Rys SUNY Cobleskill Campus Minister
Leo McAllister Chair of the Finance Council
Pastoral Council
Officers: , President Members:
, Vice-President
Parish Staff Members are ex officio members of the Council.
PLEASE NOTE:
Sexual Abuse is a sin and a crime. The Diocese of Albany urges all who suspect sexual abuse of a minor by a member of the clergy, church employee or volunteer, to report this to a local law enforcement agency or District Attorney’s office. Additional information for reporting may be found at http://www.rcda.org/ReportSexualAbuse. You may also contact the Diocesan Assistance Coordinator, Theresa Rodrigues, at (518) 453-6646 or [email protected].
St. Vincent de Paul was born in a town in Southwest France and was the son of poor French peasants. Today the town is called Saint-Vincent-de-Paul, Landes, France.
When he grew up and became famous, he loved to tell people how he had taken care of his father's pigs. Because he was intelligent, his father sent him to school to study under the Franciscan friars at Acqs. And after finishing his studies from the University of Toulouse, Vincent became a priest at the age of 20.
At first, he was given an important position as the teacher of rich children, and he lived rather comfortably. But while he was traveling by sea from one city to another, he fell into the hands of Turkish pirates who sold him as a slave in Tunis.
Two years later after he was finally set free by one of his owners, who he converted to Christianity, he returned to France where he served as a parish priest.
Then one day he was called to the side of a dying peasant. In front of many people, this man declared that all his past confessions had been bad ones.
Suddenly Father Vincent realized how badly the poor people of France needed spiritual help. When he began to preach to them, crowds went to confession. He finally decided to start a congregation of priests to work especially among the poor.
The charities of St. Vincent de Paul were so many that it seems impossible for one person to have begun so much.
Even though he was such a charitable man, he humbly admitted that he was not so by nature. "I would have been hard, rough and ill-tempered," he said "were it not for God's grace."
"It is not sufficient for me to love God if I do not love my neighbor. I belong to God and to the poor." Vincent de Paul died in Paris on September 27, 1660.