Bishop François Fénelon was born in Périgord, France, the fourteenth child in his family. At the age of twelve, he was admitted to Cahors Seminary, completed his studies in three years, and entered Duplessis Seminary in Paris. He studied under the protection of his bishop uncle, Antony Fénelon. By that measure, he too had been something of a prodigy.
Later, his uncle recommended him to Saint-Sulpice Seminary. After graduating, he remained at the seminary to teach new missionaries. He became a devout believer and befriended Bossuet, the Eagle of Meaux, who sat north of the Saint-Sulpice Fountain.
During this time, he wrote two essays. One concerned "extremely profound" theology, while the other concerned how to educate young girls. Both were highly successful. Around 1688, Fénelon met Madame Guyon, who claimed that she had had an indescribable mystical experience with God. The woman was imprisoned by the Archbishop of Paris, while Fénelon believed what she said and visited her many times in disguise...
"What is an indescribable mystical experience?" Alessandro asked.
"You heard what I said. Indescribable," Gianluca said from the other end of the phone.
"I still don't understand," Alessandro said in confusion.
"Like the Virgin Mary. She became pregnant by divine inspiration," Gianluca said. "The Archbishop of Paris didn't believe her. He demanded that she name the child's father and forbade her from continuing to spread rumors, so he had her imprisoned."
"Oh." Alessandro suddenly understood. Felix nearly sprayed cola from his mouth.
"Fénelon believed her." Haji looked at the statue holding a quill.
"Actually, he later stopped believing what the woman said. Madame Guyon married Sir Guyon at sixteen and was widowed at twenty-eight. Yet Madame Guyon claimed she had possessed a feeling since childhood, something like prophecy. At the time, there was a heresy in the church