François Leclerc du Tremblay (November 4, 1577 – December 17, 1638)

Just after researching Cardinal Richelieu last week, I heard this term “Grey Eminence” on Jeopardy for the first time. I took it as a sign.

Father Joseph started out as a soldier, then became a monk at age 23, so I have rectified his chart to place Saturn at that age. I ‘knew’ that Neptune would be on the horizon (conjunct the Ascendant, Cancer Rising). Isn’t it lovely when that happens? This man was a mystic, for sure.

Venus Inconjunct Midheaven

You often feel that you haven’t any right to ask much of those whom you love. You feel that you must do favors for them instead of asking for their help. For you, love is an act of service, not self-gratification. Also, through relationships with others, you try to learn more about your own and other people’s inner workings. For this reason your relationships are more deep and profound than most people’s. But they are somewhat difficult, too. Your close friends and loved ones discover that you are quite different in a close relationship than you appear at first. It is not that you are dishonest, but that you show a side of yourself to your friends that you usually keep hidden, often because you are not entirely confident in that role. You may feel unsure that others will like you or accept your affection. This is one reason why you express your love by doing nice things for people. You are trying to win them over.

Jupiter Inconjunct Midheaven

The problem with this aspect is to find a balance between, on the one hand, expressing yourself creatively, perhaps artistically, and having a good time and, on the other hand, getting ahead in life, learning the ways of the world and finding an acceptable role in society. You know you will have to make sacrifices in order to accomplish anything of value.

Later in life, you will enter a critical period when your need for personal satisfaction and freedom force you to change jobs or even careers. When you have learned more about the world, you will understand how to make changes intelligently, but now you should discipline your Jupiterian drive for freedom and learn what you need to know to take over your own destiny. You should learn as much as possible about any subject or skill that will make you more aware of the larger world. Travel or foreign study would be beneficial, if that is possible. The more you know about how you fit into the larger scheme of life, the easier it will be to make the right decision when you have to change to a more rewarding and personally satisfying course.

Father Joseph’s chart has a lot of Libran energy, so it is no surprise to me that he was a political agent for Richelieu. But his Sun is in Scorpio, That’s why he preferred being behind the scenes.