During that period he had Saint Joan of Chantal as a disciple, with whom he founded the Congregation of the Visitation in 1610. With the notes with which he instructed the saint, he composed his famous Introduction to the devout lifethe best known of his works.
In 1622, the Duke of Savoy invited him to join him in Avignon. The holy bishop accepted the invitation, concerned for the well-being of the French part of his diocese. The trip, however, was risky due to his increasingly weak health and the harsh winter. After meeting the duke, Saint Francis began his return. That journey would be the last.
He stopped in Lyon and stayed in the gardener’s house of the Visitation convent. From there he spiritually attended to the nuns for an entire month. It was the time when he spoke and wrote about humility.
Then, despite the harsh winter, he continued the trip, preaching and administering sacraments, until his strength left him. Saint Francis de Sales died at the age of 56, on December 28, 1622.