St. Alphonsus, however, did not in all things follow their teaching, especially on one point much debated in the schools; namely, whether we may in practice follow an opinion which denies a moral obligation, when the opinion which affirms a moral obligation seems to us to be altogether more probable. Both last about two hours but are filled with soul-stirring music. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01334a.htm. Soon after this the boy began his studies for the Bar, and about the age of nineteen practised his profession in the courts. "Banquets, entertainments, theatres," he wrote later on--"these are the pleasures of the world, but pleasures which are filled with the bitterness of gall and sharp thorns. But one may easily overcrowd a narrow canvas and it is better in so slight a sketch to leave the central figure in solitary relief. He was a lawyer, not only during his years at the Bar, but throughout his whole life--a lawyer, who to skilled advocacy and an enormous knowledge of practical detail added a wide and luminous hold of underlying principles. Dissensions arose, the Saint's former friend and chief companion, Vincent Mannarini, opposing him and Falcoia in everything. He wrote sermons, books, and articles to encourage devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and the Blessed Virgin Mary. St. Paul of the Cross (1694-1775) and St. Alphonsus, who were altogether contemporaries, seem never to have met on earth, though the founder of the Passionists was a great friend of Alphonsus's uncle, Mgr. Stay up to date with the latest news, information, and special offers. A religious founder, consummate theologian, and holy man of God, Saint Alphonsus never failed to utter a stirring word that draws out a lively penitence and redoubled dedication to the work of God from his congregation. About the year 1722, when he was twenty-six years old, he began to go constantly into society, to neglect prayer and the practices of piety which had been an integral part of his life, and to take pleasure in the attention with which he was everywhere received. Alphonsus was the oldest of seven children, raised by a devout mother of Spanish descent. He was born Alphonsus Marie Antony John Cosmos Damien Michael Gaspard de Liguori on September 27,1696, at Marianella, near Naples, Italy. In fact, in the beginning, the young priest in his humility would not be Superior even of the house, judging one of his companions, John Baptist Donato, better fitted for the post because he had already had some experience of community life in another institute. (27 September 1696 - 1 August 1787), was an Italian Catholic bishop, spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, scholastic philosopher, and theologian. At the age of sixteen, on 21 January, 1713, he took his degree as Doctor of Laws, although twenty was the age fixed by the statutes. In 1723, he decided to offer himself as a novice to the Oratory of St. Philip Neri with the intention of becoming a priest. Alternate titles: Saint Alfonso Liguori, Saint Alfonso Maria de Liguori, Saint Alphonsus Maria deLiguori. It is true that theologians even of the broadest school are agreed that, when an opinion in favour of the law is so much more probable as to amount practically to moral certainty, the less probable opinion cannot be followed, and some have supposed that St. Alphonsus meant no more than this by his terminology. So many times I have sinned, but I repent sincerely because I love you. When he was preparing for the priesthood in Naples, his masters were of the rigid school, for though the center of Jansenistic disturbance was in northern Europe, no shore was so remote as not to feel the ripple of its waves. Unfortunately, he was not obliged by his confessor, in virtue of holy obedience, as St. Teresa was, to write down his states of prayer; so we do not know precisely what they were. He was not afraid of making up his mind. He first addressed ecclesiastical abuses in the diocese, reformed the seminary and spiritually rehabilitated the clergy and faithful. The experience and teaching of St Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori regarding the Eucharist was in line with the Pope's invitation to Christians to persevere in their most important duty: to proclaim to humanity the great mystery of God's love, especially visible in the Eucharist. He founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, known as the Redemptorists, in November 1732. But he overcame his depression, and he experienced visions, performed miracles, and gave prophecies. About 1729, however, Filangieri died, and on 8 October, 1730, Falcoia was consecrated Bishop of Castellamare. Addeddate This Novena for the Holy Souls in Purgatory was written by St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787), a bishop and founder of the Redemptorist order, and one of the Doctors of the Church. The Superior of the Propaganda and even Falcoia's friend, Matthew Ripa, opposed the project with all their might. Most were in favour of accepting, but the superior objected and appealed to Filangieri, Falcoia's colleague in establishing the convent, and now, as General of the "Pii Operarii", his superior. He had a pleasant smile, and his conversation was very agreeable, yet he had great dignity of manner. According to this view he chose a different formula from the Jesuit writers, partly because he thought his own terms more exact, and, partly to save his teaching and his congregation as far as possible from the State persecution which after 1764 had already fallen so heavily on the Society of Jesus, and in 1773 was formally to suppress it. His system of moral theology is noted for its prudence, avoiding both laxism and excessive rigour. Updates? [8] Moreover, Liguori viewed scruples as a blessing at times and wrote: "Scruples are useful in the beginning of conversion. they cleanse the soul, and at the same time make it careful". With Don Carlos, or as he is generally called, Charles III, from his later title as King of Spain, came the lawyer, Bernard Tanucci, who governed Naples as Prime Minister and regent for the next forty-two years. He knew how to reach ordinary people who had limited education and very real needs. This combination of practical common sense with extraordinary energy in administrative work ought to make Alphonsus, if he were better known, particularly attractive to the English-speaking nations, especially as he is so modern a saint. I therefore repeat: If the divine teaching authority of the Church, and the obedience to it, are rejected, every error will be endorsed and must be tolerated. The cause of this was "regalism", the omnipotence of kings even in matters spiritual, which was the system of government in Naples as in all the Bourbon States. After practicing law for eight years, he was ordained a priest in 1726. Even if there be some exaggeration in this, for it is not in an advocate's power always to be on the winning side, the tradition shows that he was extraordinarily able and successful. The dissensions even spread to the nuns, and Sister Maria Celeste herself left Scala and founded a convent at Foggia, where she died in the odour of sanctity, 14 September, 1755. So indeed it proved. Holy Name of Jesus & St. Alphonsus Liguori | The Eucharistic Miracle at What are Revelations? by S. HORNER (Edinburgh, 1858); VON REUMONT, Die Carafa von Maddaloni (Berlin, 1851, 2 vols. Of extraordinary passive states, such as rapture, there are not many instances recorded in his life, though there are some. . He is the patron of confessors, moral theologians, and the lay apostolate. Psychologically, Alphonsus may be classed among twice-born souls; that is to say, there was a definitely marked break or conversion, in his life, in which he turned, not from serious sin, for that he never committed, but from comparative worldliness, to thorough self-sacrifice for God. and reportedly performed miracles. Resuming the General Audiences after the summer break the last was held on 27 June in the Vatican the Pope . He submitted the new Rule to a number of theologians, who approved of it, and said it might be adopted in the convent of Scala, provided the community would accept it. Pure probabilism likens it to a criminal trial, in which the jury must find in favour of liberty (the prisoner at the bar) if any single reasonable doubt whatever remain in its favour. The English translation in the Oratory Series is also rather inadequate. Here he laid his sword before the statue of Our Lady, and made a solemn resolution to enter the ecclesiastical state, and furthermore to offer himself as a novice to the Fathers of the Oratory. The priest was Alphonsus. It would be a sacrilege to say otherwise." He was ordained on December 21, 1726, and he spent six years giving missions throughout Naples. Many years before, in Rome, Falcoia had been shown a vision of a new religious family of men and women whose particular aim should be the perfect imitation of the virtues of Our Lord. In 1762 he was appointed Bishop of Sant'Agata dei Goti. For six years he laboured in and around Naples, giving missions for the Propaganda and preaching to the lazzaroni of the capital. It is a matter for friendly controversy, but it seems there was a real difference, though not as great in practice as is supposed, between the Saint's later teaching and that current in the Society. Early Christians began the devotion of following the footsteps of Christ's passion. In 1762, there was no escape and he was constrained by formal obedience to the Pope to accept the Bishopric of St. Agatha of the Goths, a very small Neapolitan diocese lying a few miles off the road from Naples to Capua. Paths to Heaven; Revelations. Then God called him to his life work. He was helped in this by his turn of mind which was extremely practical. Eight times during his long life, without counting his last sickness, the Saint received the sacraments of the dying, but the worst of all his illnesses was a terrible attack of rheumatic fever during his episcopate, an attack which lasted from May, 1768, to June, 1769, and left him paralyzed to the end of his days. Quite recently, a duet composed by him, between the Soul and God, was found in the British Museum bearing the date 1760 and containing a correction in his own handwriting. Prayer to Jesus Christ to Obtain His Holy Love - I Am Jesus His works have gone through several thousand editions and have been translated into more than 60 languages. His promotion to the episcopate in 1762 led to a renewal of his missionary activity, but in a slightly different form. Saint Alphonsus Liguori | EWTN He had a love for the lower animals, and wild creatures who fled from all else would come to him as to a friend. Bishop, Doctor of the Church, and the founder of the Redemptorist Congregation. St. Alphonsus Liguori, in full Saint Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori, Alphonsus also spelled Alfonso, (born September 27, 1696, Marianella, Kingdom of Naples [Italy]died August 1, 1787, Pagani; canonized 1839; feast day August 1), Italian doctor of the church, one of the chief 18th-century moral theologians, and founder of the Redemptorists, a Miracles - Devotion to Our Lady Alphonsus Liguori, CSsR (27 September 1696 1 August 1787), sometimes called Alphonsus Maria de Liguori or Saint Alphonsus Liguori, was an Italian Catholic bishop, spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, scholastic philosopher, and theologian. Preaching, Eugene Grimm ed., Benziger Brothers, New York, 1887, Liguori, Alphonsus. He finally agreed to become a priest but to live at home as a member of a group of secular missionaries. He had nearly completed his ninety-first year. Life of St Alphonsus and the Holy Eucharist | EWTN Alphonsus had still one final storm to meet, and then the end. St. Louis, MO 63106 | parish130@archstl.org | Tel: (314) 533-0304. Twelve years, however, still separated him from his reward, years for the most part not of peace but of greater afflictions than any which had yet befallen him. The third book deals with the Ten Commandments, the fourth with the monastic and clerical states, and the duties of judges, advocates, doctors, merchants, and others. In 1732 he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, or the Redemptorists, at Scala. His friend the Grand Almoner betrayed him; his two envoys for negotiating with the Grand Almoner, Fathers Majone and Cimino, betrayed him, consultors general though they were. In theology Liguori is known as the principal exponent of equiprobabilism, a system of principles designed to guide the conscience of one in doubt as to whether he or she is free from or bound by a given civil or religious law. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited. There is a somewhat unsatisfactory French translation of Tannoia's work. In 1731, the convent unanimously adopted the new Rule, together with a habit of red and blue, the traditional colours of Our Lord's own dress. Blessed Clement Hofbauer joined the Redemptorist congregation in the aged Saint's lifetime, though Alphonsus never saw in the flesh the man whom he knew would be the second founder of his Order. He was canonized in 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI and proclaimed a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1871. Died: August 1, 1787. Very few remarks upon his own times occur in the Saint's letters. He knew that trials were before him. Tannoia was born about 1724 and entered the Redemptorist Congregation in 1746. St. Alphonsus Liguori, in full Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, Alphonsus also spelled Alfonso, (born September 27, 1696, Marianella, Kingdom of Naples [Italy]died August 1, 1787, Pagani; canonized 1839; feast day August 1), Italian doctor of the church, one of the chief 18th-century moral theologians, and founder of the Redemptorists, a congregation dedicated primarily to parish and foreign missions. CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Alphonsus Liguori - New Advent St. Alphonsus Liguori, the Prince of Moral Theologians, was one of the greatest preachers in Church history. [4], Liguori learned to ride and fence but was never a good shot because of poor eyesight. Much of the material for a complete life of St. Alphonsus is still in manuscript in the Roman archives of the Redemptorist Congregation and in the archives of the Sacred Congregation of Bishops and Regulars. His very confessor and vicar general in the government of his Order, Father Andrew Villani, joined in the conspiracy. His perseverance was indomitable. Visiting the local Hospital for Incurables on August 28, 1723, he had a vision and was told to consecrate his life solely to God. In his new abode he met a friend of his host's, Father Thomas Falcoia, of the Congregation of the "Pii Operarii" (Pious Workers), and formed with him the great friendship of his life. From the year 1759 two former benefactors of the Congregation, Baron Sarnelli and Francis Maffei, by one of those changes not uncommon in Naples, had become its bitter enemies, and waged a vendetta against it in the law courts which lasted for twenty-four years. The Eucharistic Miracle of Lanciano took place in the 8th century: a Basilian monk, who had doubted the Real Presence of Our Lord in the Eucharist, was celebrating Mass, and at the consecration, saw that the Host had changed into flesh. She was declared Venerable 11 August, 1901. St. Alphonsus Liguori Opening Prayer My Lord Jesus Christ, you have made this journey to die for me with infinite love. His spirituality was both affective and active, centered above all on the passion of Jesus Christ as the principal sign of our Savior's love for us. In the minutes it was MLA citation. The latest life, BERTHE, Saint Alphonse de Liguori (Paris, 1900, 2 vols. If civil courts could not decide against a defendant on greater probability, but had to wait, as a criminal court must wait, for moral certainty, many actions would never be decided at all. St. Alphonsus appeared a miracle of calm to Tannoia. If any reader of this article will go to original sources and study the Saint's life at greater length, he will not find his labour thrown away. Entdecke ST. ROSE VON LIMA, SCHWESTER MARY ALPHONSUS katholisches heiliges Buch in groer Auswahl Vergleichen Angebote und Preise Online kaufen bei eBay Kostenlose Lieferung fr viele Artikel! The Government throughout had recognized the good effect of his missions, but it wished the missionaries to be secular priests and not a religious order. In addition, he published many editions of compendiums of his larger work, such as the "Homo Apostolicus", made in 1759. But we must not push resemblances too far. Alphonsus was not sent to school but was educated by tutors under his father's eye. She became known in religion as Sister Maria Celeste. On 1 April, 1733, all the companions of Alphonsus except one lay brother, Vitus Curtius, abandoned him, and founded the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament, which, confined to the Kingdom of Naples, was extinguished in 1860 by the Italian Revolution. The early years, following the founding of the new order, were not promising. SVO), gives an extremely full and picturesque account of the Saint's life and times. Thus was he left free for his real work, the founding of a new religious congregation. Alphonsus himself was not spared. At his General Audience, 30 March 2011, in St. Peter's Square, the Holy Father presented Saint Alphonsus Liguori, Doctor of the Church. Alphonsus the Patron. The differentia of saints is not faultlessness but driving-power, a driving-power exerted in generous self-sacrifice and ardent love of God. Even the baleful shadow of Voltaire falls across the Saint's life, for Alphonsus wrote to congratulate him on a conversion, which alas, never took place! St Alphonsus Mary Liguori and Prayer | EWTN "I know his obstinacy", his father said of him as a young man; "when he once makes up his mind he is inflexible". Nihil Obstat. Feast day: August 1. To all his administrative work we must add his continual literary labours, his many hours of daily prayer, his terrible austerities, and a stress of illness which made his life a martyrdom. The wine had changed into blood; clotted and separated into 5 different sized clots. So the Saint was cut off from his own Order by the Pope who was to declare him "Venerable". [4] Myopia and chronic asthma precluded a military career so his father had him educated in the legal profession. d.kellysaintalphonsus.com Website Website Website Website Website Alyce Gilarski Business Manager / Ministry of Care 847-255-7452, x143 a.gilarskisaintalphonsus.com Dr. Carol Holden DRE, Grades K-8 847-255-9490 x116 c.holdensaintalphonsus.com Dee Munroe Religious Education Administrative Assistant 847-255-9490 x104 d.munroesaintalphonsus.com Some persons, boasting of being free from prejudices, take great credit to themselvesfor believing no miracles but those recorded in the holy scriptures, esteeming all others. Alphonsus Liguori - Wikipedia There were whole years, indeed, in which the Institute seemed on the verge of summary suppression. Contact information. "Let us have it." He did not, as in the past, ask for an exequatur to the Brief of Benedict XIV, for relations at the time were more strained than ever between the Courts of Rome and Naples; but he hoped the king might give an independent sanction to his Rule, provided he waived all legal right to hold property in common, which he was quite prepared to do. He founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (the Redemptorists). It was comparatively late in life that Alphonsus became a writer. Perhaps in any case the submission of their Rule to a suspicious and even hostile civil power was a mistake. He was crushed to the earth. Since its publication, it has remained in Latin, often in 10 volumes or in the combined 4-volume version of Gaud. The fifth book has two treatises "De Actibus Humanis" and "De Peccatis"; the sixth is on the sacraments, the seventh and last on the censures of the Church. Filingeri, was made Archbishop of Naples, the Saint would not write to congratulate the new primate, even at the risk of making another powerful enemy for his persecuted Congregation, because he thought he could not honestly say he "was glad to hear of the appointment." ), was published by P. KUNTZ, C.SS.R., director of the Roman archives of his Congregation. St. Alphonsus Liguori's prayer to Jesus Christ to obtain His holy love comes from the "Rule of Life", a guide for growing in holiness. St. Alphonsus Liguori. Saint Alphonsus Liguori 1696 - 1787. Again, we have a friendship of thirty years with the great Venetian publishing house of Remondini, whose letters from the Saint, carefully preserved as became business men, fill a quarto volume. [10] He tried to refuse the appointment by using his age and infirmities as arguments against his consecration. Father Francis de Paula, one of the chief appellants, was appointed their Superior General, "in place of those", so the brief ran, "who being higher superiors of the said Congregation have with their followers adopted a new system essentially different from the old, and have deserted the Institute in which they were professed, and have thereby ceased to be members of the Congregation." New York: Robert Appleton Company. Saint Alphonsus Liguori: Doctor of the Church - TAN Books The Saint's confessor declared that he preserved his baptismal innocence till death. Fearful temptations against every virtue crowded upon him, together with diabolical apparitions and illusions, and terrible scruples and impulses to despair which made life a hell. In 1762 he was appointed Bishop of Sant'Agata dei Goti. The answer is that God kept him humble by interior trials. Patron saint of: people with arthritis, lawyers, vocations. He founded the congregation with the charism of preaching popular missions in the city and the countryside. From 1726 to 1752, first as a member of the Neapolitan "Propaganda", and then as a leader of his own Fathers, he traversed the provinces of Naples for the greater part of each year giving missions even in the smallest villages and saving many souls. The Saint only wept in silence and tried in vain to devise some means by which his Order might be saved. Home | St. Alphonsus Rock While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. That legacy is the participation in the redemptive mission of Jesus. In December, 1724, he received minor orders, and the subdiaconate in September, 1725. Actually, the document was a new rule devised by one of his enemies, thus causing the followers of the old rule to break away. No doubt Thomas Falcoia had for some time hoped that the ardent young priest, who was so devoted to him, might, under his direction, be the founder of the new Order he had at heart. Miraculous Stories of the Blessed Virgin Mary : Saint Alphonsus De St. Alphonsus was so scrupulous about truth that when, in 1776, the regalist, Mgr. Had it happened a few years later, the new Government might have found the Redemptorist Congregation already authorized, and as Tanucci's anti-clerical policy rather showed itself in forbidding new Orders than, with the exception of the Society of Jesus, in suppressing old ones, the Saint might have been free to develop his work in comparative peace. St. Alphonsus Mary de Liguori, Doctor of the Church . He continued to live with the Redemptorist community in Pagani, Italy, where he died on 1 August 1787. The Saint's mother was of Spanish descent, and if, as there can be little doubt, race is an element in individual character, we may see in Alphonsus's Spanish blood some explanation of the enormous tenacity of purpose which distinguished him from his earliest years. St. Alphonsus as a moral theologian occupies the golden mean between the schools tending either to laxity or to rigour which divided the theological world of his time. The German life, DILGSKRON, Leben des heiligen Bischofs und Kirchenlehrers, Alfonsus Maria de Liguori (New York, 1887), is scholarly and accurate. At the time of his death, there were 72, with over 10,000 active participants. Omissions? Educated at the University of Naples, Alphonsus received his doctorate at the age of sixteen. Alphonsus Liguori, Saint | Catholic Answers This article was transcribed for New Advent by Paul T. Crowley. In 1780, a crisis arose in which they did this, yet in such a way as to bring division in the Congregation and extreme suffering and disgrace upon its founder. "The life of St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori" (1855)John Murphy & Co., Baltimore, 1855, "Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori", St. Alphonsus Liguori Parish, Peterborough, Ontario, The life of St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, Bishop of St. Agatha of the Goths and founder of the Congregation of the Holy Redeemer, Tannoja, Antonio (d. 1808), John Murphy & Co. (1855), "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Alphonsus Liguori", "Alphonsus Maria de Liguori", Saint Alphonsus Mary de Liguori Parish, Makati City Philippines, "1st English Translation of St. Alphonsus Liguori's Moral Theology", https://www.avemarialynnfield.org/sites/g/files/zjfyce466/files/2021-01/Stations-of-the-Cross-St-Liguori.pdf, Liguori, Alphonsus.