baptism - more
On 24 March 1843, 10 days after his birth, Leo Gustave Dehon was baptized by Prosper Hécart in the parish church of La Capelle (Hécart was the pastor of La Capelle from 1830 to 1855). The church,described by Dehon as 'poorly', would yield later to a new parish church, which was built between 1884-1886.
"The 24 March was the celebration of a martyr child, Saint Simeon. Above all however it was First Vespers for the feast of the Annunciation. Many years later it gave me joy to associate the remembrance of my baptism with the Lords 'Ecce Venio' [Behold I come]. This combination has given me a great sense of trust. The Ecce Venio of the heart of Jesus protected and blessed my entry into the Christian life. Our Lord will surely not blame me if I see in this coincidence a particular sign of His providence in view of my present vocation as a priest-victim of the Sacred Heart. I always dedicated a special devotion to the remembrance of my baptism." (NHV I/1r f.)
For Dehon's mother the name Leo was connected with the memory of a son of the same name, who had died at the age of four years only a few months before the birth of Leo John Dehon and whose death projects again and again into Dehon's childhood. In addition the name Léon was connected - according to Dehon - by his mother with the "Pope of her childhood" (NHV 2v), Pope Leo XII. The name Gustave was selected in honor of his godfather and uncle Edward Gustave Dehon, the brother of Dehon's father.
Also in the report on his baptism Dehon mentions in detail, to which Saints he assigns his names: Leo the Great and Augustine (for Gustave was not the name of a Saint but a derivative of Augustine). The characterization of the two Saints, given by Dehon, is quite revealing:
"I hope that they will receive me as a friend. They have testified to me innumerable marks of friendship and confidence. With regard to Leo the Great, I esteem above all his great theological doctrine, his beautiful style, his mildness, his dignity; concerning Augustine I admire his repentance and his tears, which I'd like to make my own, and also his great heart, his burning love for our Lord." (NHV I/2r) One Saint for the head and one other for the heart - ideals which oriented Fr. Dehon’s own personality.