Our Founder: St. Alphonsus Liguori

Alphonsus Maria de Liguori was born in 1696 near Naples, Italy, the son of a captain in the Royal Navy and a very devoted mother from a noble family in the city. His parents provided him with an exceptional education in philosophy, literature, and the arts. He was 16 when he was awarded doctorates of civil and canon law. When he was 18, like many nobles, he joined the Confraternity of Our Lady of Mercy with whom he cared for the sick at the hospital for “incurables,” washing afflicted bodies, feeding the helpless, changing bedclothes and devoting himself to works of mercy and compassion.

The work of a lawyer, however, could not satisfy his deeper longings. After losing what was the most important court case he had ever taken on, Alphonsus left the legal profession to enter the priesthood, much to the disappointment of his father. He was ordained in 1726.  Christ’s claim on the heart of Alphonsus was absolute and irresistible. As a young priest he worked himself to the point of exhaustion. Caring for the poor, wherever his journey took him, was the hallmark of his calling.

In 1732, Alphonsus realized he could no longer be comfortable in his role of popular preacher living apart from the poor. So, leaving his family and his dearest friends, he set out to dedicate himself completely to the service of the poor and most abandoned. He sought others who were called as he was, and adopted a style of ministry to “mission among the people” — and so began the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, commonly known as the Redemptorists.

In addition to his role as founder of the Redemptorists, Alphonsus was made bishop of St. Agatha of the Goths in 1762.  He was also a gifted artist, composer and writer, and in his lifetime would write over 110 books, including his Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament, The Glories of Mary and his massive Moral Theology.  St. Alphonsus died in 1787 and was canonized in 1839 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871.  St. Alphonsus is the patron saint of confessors, moral theologians, lawyers and arthritics. 

Our Redemptorist Saints

St. Clement Hofbauer

St. Gerard Majella

St. John Neumann

John Neumann was born in Prachatice, Bohemia (present day Czech Republic) on March 28, 1811. He studied theology in the seminary of Budweis. Zealous for the missionary life and to lead souls to Christ, he decided to leave his homeland to dedicate himself to the European immigrants in America, who were deprived of spiritual support.

Neumann was ordained a priest by the bishop of New York in 1836 and gave himself to the pastoral care of people in the vast area around Niagara Falls.

Wanting to live in a religious community that corresponded more to his missionary vocation, in 1842 he entered the Redemptorists. A tireless missionary, Neumann busied himself with the German immigrants, in Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

Having filled the role of vice-provincial superior of the Redemptorists from 1846-49, he became the parish priest of St. Alphonsus Church in Baltimore. In 1852, at the age of 41, he was named bishop of Philadelphia.

Neumann had a strong effect on the religious life of the United States by founding Catholic schools and promoting the 40 Hours devotion.  He brought many congregations of religious sisters into his diocese, including the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the Sisters of St. Joseph, and the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  In just seven years, he built many churches, as well as several hospitals and orphanages.  As a bishop, Neumann was untiring in visiting his vast diocese.

On January 5, 1860, at the age of 48, he died suddenly on a Philadelphia street. Neumann was beatified during the Second Vatican Council in 1963, and was canonized in 1977. In the homily on Neumann’s canonization, Pope Paul VI summarized the activity of the new saint: “He was close to the sick, he loved to be with the poor, he was a friend of sinners, and now he is the glory of all immigrants.”