Saint Alphonsus Liguori | Prospect Heights, Illinois So bent was it in the beginning, that the pressure of his chin produced a dangerous wound in the chest. A few months later Alphonsus left his father's house and went to live with Ripa, without, however, becoming a member of his society. [9], In 1729, Liguori left his family home and took up residence at the Chinese Institute in Naples. He finally agreed to become a priest but to live at home as a member of a group of secular missionaries. If you have already donated, we sincerely thank you. Courts, you shall never see me more." St. Alphonsus tell us: "Modern heretics make a mockery of wearing the Scapular, they decry it as so much trifling nonsense." Yet many of the popes have approved and recommended it. He was born Alphonsus Marie Antony John Cosmos Damien Michael Gaspard de Liguori on September 27,1696, at Marianella, near Naples, Italy. "You have founded the Congregation and you have destroyed it", said one Father to him. A voice said "This is he whom I have chosen to be head of My Institute, the Prefect General of a new Congregation of men who shall work for My glory." 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. R. While affecting to treat the novice with severity and to take no notice of her visions, the director was surprised to find that the Rule which she had written down was a realization of what had been so long in his mind. Alphonsus returned to his little cell at Nocera in July, 1775, to prepare, as he thought, for a speedy and happy death. His very confessor and vicar general in the government of his Order, Father Andrew Villani, joined in the conspiracy. 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. In 1762 he was appointed Bishop of Sant'Agata dei Goti. The traditional Stations of the Cross were written by St. Alphonsus Liguori, a bishop and Doctor of the Church, in 1761. 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. where the Hosts were buried. Whenthey had withdrawn into another room, the appearance of the youth changed, and Heshowed Himself crowned with thorns, His flesh torn, and said to her: Prayers in Times of Sickness Disease & Danger, True Devotion to Mary (St. Louis de Montfort), The Glories of Mary (St. Alphonsus Liguori), A young nobleman was reading one day, while at sea, an obscene book, in which he. Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more all for only $19.99 Born at Marianella, near Naples, 27 September, 1696; died at Nocera de' Pagani, 1 August, 1787. Castle, Harold. Under the government of the Marquis della Sambuca, who, though a great regalist, was a personal friend of the Saint's, there was promise of better times, and in August, 1779, Alphonsus's hopes were raised by the publication of a royal decree allowing him to appoint superiors in his Congregation and to have a novitiate and house of studies. In the minutes it was Revelations from God, the Saints, and the Angels through the Miracle of Saint Joseph, started in 1967 and continuing to this day. In the eight years of his career as advocate, years crowded with work, he is said never to have lost a case. An Act of Spiritual CommunionA Daily Catholic Prayer - Learn Religions There can be little doubt but that the young Alphonsus with his high spirits and strong character was ardently attached to his profession, and on the way to be spoilt by the success and popularity which it brought. ); JOHNSTON, The Napoleonic Empire in South Italy, 2 vols. 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). [19], His Mariology, though mainly pastoral in nature, rediscovered, integrated and defended that of St Augustine of Hippo, St Ambrose of Milan and other fathers; it represented an intellectual defence of Mariology in the 18th century, the Age of Enlightenment, against the rationalism to which contrasted his fervent Marian devotion.[20]. You have overlooked a document which destroys your whole case." He was now free, subject to the approval of the Bishop of Scala, to act with regard to the convent as he thought best. Vague rumours of impending treachery had got about and had been made known to him, but he had refused to believe them. In addition, he published many editions of compendiums of his larger work, such as the "Homo Apostolicus", made in 1759. 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." He died on August 1 at Nocera. Description [ edit] The book was written at a time when some were criticizing Marian devotions, and was written in part as a defense of Marian devotion. St. Louis, MO 63106 | [email protected] | Tel: (314) 533-0304. But, before relating the episode of the "Regolamento", as it is called, we must speak of the period of the Saint's episcopate which intervened. 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. In addition his father made him practice the harpsichord for three hours a day, and at the age of thirteen he played with the perfection of a master. 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. The Ceremonies of the Interment. A star preacher, he called his fellow sermonizers on the carpet for sermons of "empty, rumbling rhetoric" or "flashy . All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, Copyright 2022 Catholic Online. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Alphonsus, having got so much, hoped to get a little more, and through his friend, Mgr. Now the saint has a very great momentum indeed, and a spoiled saint is often a great villain. "[17][18], Liguori's greatest contribution to the Catholic Church was in the area of moral theology. It was this which made him the prince of moral theologians, and gained him, when canonization made it possible, the title of "Doctor of the Church". On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The eighteenth century was one series of great wars; that of the Spanish, Polish, and Austrian Succession; the Seven Years' War, and the War of American Independence, ending with the still more gigantic struggles in Europe, which arose out of the events of 1789. He was declared "Venerable", 4 May, 1796; was beatified in 1816, and canonized in 1839. He spent several years having to drink from tubes because his head was so bent forward. Alphonsus's temperament was very ardent. Copyright 2022 Catholic Online. To this Alphonsus by the advice of his director, Father Thomas Pagano, himself an Oratorian, agreed. St. Alphonsus, after publishing anonymously (in 1749 and 1755) two treatises advocating the right to follow the less probable opinion, in the end decided against that lawfulness, and in case of doubt only allowed freedom from obligation where the opinions for and against the law were equal or nearly equal. But Alphonsus's director, Father Pagano; Father Fiorillo, a great Dominican preacher; Father Manulio, Provincial of the Jesuits; and Vincent Cutica, Superior of the Vincentians, supported the young priest, and, 9 November, 1732, the "Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer", or as it was called for seventeen years, "of the Most Holy Saviour", was begun in a little hospice belonging to the nuns of Scala. Perhaps in any case the submission of their Rule to a suspicious and even hostile civil power was a mistake. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Then the storm subsided, and he began to see that his humiliation had been sent him by God to break down his pride and wean him from the world. In April 1729, the Apostle of China, Matthew Ripa, founded a missionary college in Naples, which became known colloquially as the "Chinese College". There are two Sunday services, one at 8:15 and the second at 11. Could he have been what an Anglo-Saxon would consider a miracle of calm, he would have seemed to his companions absolutely inhuman. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. In this state of exclusion he lived for seven years more and in it he died. The prayer he recommended to his Congregation, of which we have beautiful examples in his ascetical works, is affective; the use of short aspirations, petitions, and acts of love, rather than discursive meditation with long reflection. St. Alphonsus Liguori Opening Prayer My Lord Jesus Christ, you have made this journey to die for me with infinite love. 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. Don Joseph de' Liguori had his faults. His masterpiece was The Moral Theology (1748), which was approved by the Pope himself[5] and was born of Liguori's pastoral experience, his ability to respond to the practical questions posed by the faithful and his contact with their everyday problems. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited. St. Alphonsus does not offer as much directly to the student of mystical theology as do some contemplative saints who have led more retired lives. Alphonsus Liguori, Saint | Catholic Answers It has a tendency at every moment to deflect, and if it does deflect from the right path, the greater the momentum the more terrible the final crash. Vol. Alphonsus Liguori was not a favorite with the windbags of his day. His sermons were very effective at converting those who had been alienated from their faith. Alphonsus had still one final storm to meet, and then the end. Here St. Alphonsus teaches that those who refuse to bow to the will of God only double their afflictions. He was not allowed to resign his see, however, until 1775. This lifelong friendship aided Alphonsus, as did his association with a mystic, Sister Mary Celeste. The crisis arose in this way. He had nearly completed his ninety-first year. It will be remembered that even as a young man his chief distress at his breakdown in court was the fear that his mistake might be ascribed to deceit. In fact, despite his youth, he seems at the age of twenty-seven to have been one of the leaders of the Neapolitan Bar. The Neapolitan stage at this time was in a good state, but the Saint had from his earliest years an ascetic repugnance to theatres, a repugnance which he never lost. Novena for the Holy Souls in Purgatory - Learn Religions About Liguori Publications He was the eldest of seven children of Giuseppe Liguori, a naval officer and Captain of the Royal Galleys, and Anna Maria Caterina Cavalieri. Early Christians began the devotion of following the footsteps of Christ's passion. St. Alphonsus likened the conflict between law and liberty to a civil action in which the law has the onus probandi, although greater probabilities give it a verdict. The family was of noble lineage, but the branch to which Liguori belonged had become somewhat impoverished. 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 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. [7] At 27, after having lost an important case, the first he had lost in eight years of practising law, he made a firm resolution to leave the profession of law. The Spirituality of St. Alphonsus Liguori | The Divine Mercy After 1752 Alphonsus gave fewer missions. The boy was bright and quick beyond his years, and made great progress in all kinds of learning. A year of trouble and anxiety followed. His system of moral theology is noted for its prudence, avoiding both laxism and excessive rigour. Other saints and servants of God were those of Alphonsus's own household, the lay brother, St. Gerard Majella, who died in 1755, and Januarius Sarnelli, Csar Sportelli, Dominic Blasucci, and Maria Celeste, all of whom have been declared "Venerable" by the Church. " Wonderful worship experience ". 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. Alphonsus wrote profusely on moral, theological, and ascetical subjects [notably his Moral Theology], was constantly engaged in combating anticlericalism and Jansenism, and was involved in several controversies over . Raised in a pious home, Alphonsus went on retreats with his father, Don Joseph, who was a naval officer and a captain of the Royal Galleys. Tannoia, also, through some mental idiosyncrasy, manages to give the misleading impression that St. Alphonsus was severe. "I know his obstinacy", his father said of him as a young man; "when he once makes up his mind he is inflexible". Saint Alphonsus Liguori 1696 - 1787. About 1729, however, Filangieri died, and on 8 October, 1730, Falcoia was consecrated Bishop of Castellamare. Home | St. Alphonsus Rock 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. His perseverance was indomitable. The answer is that God kept him humble by interior trials. He said himself that he was so small at the time as to be almost buried in his doctor's gown and that all the spectators laughed. He was a man of strong passions, using the term in the philosophic sense, and tremendous energy, but from childhood his passions were under control. St. Alphonsus encouraged an intimate, personal relationship with Jesus Christ through frequent visits to the Blessed Sacrament. He had even tried to form a branch of the Institute by uniting twelve priests in a common life at Tarentum, but the community soon broke up. a fresh vision of Sister Maria Celeste seemed to show that such was the will of God. So many times I have sinned, but I repent sincerely because I love you. A long process followed in the Court of Rome, and on 22 September, 1780, a provisional Decree, which on 24 August, 1781, was made absolute, recognized the houses in the Papal States as alone constituting the Redemptorist Congregation. The Vicar General, Monsignor Onorati drew up the minutes of the diocesan trial which lasted two years from 1772 to 1774. For three days he refused all food. Liguori Publications is a nonprofit Catholic publishing company that came into existence through a saint, some students, and a once-famous St. Louis resort. He opposed sterile legalism and strict rigourism. The basic elements of an Act of Spiritual Communion are an Act of Faith, an Act of Love, a desire to receive Christ, and an . It was all-important to the Fathers to be able to rebut the charge of being an illegal religious congregation, which was one of the chief allegations in the ever-adjourned and ever-impending action by Baron Sarnelli. He often writes as a Neapolitan to Neapolitans. Alphonsus was the oldest of seven children, raised by a devout mother of Spanish descent. In April 1729, Alphonsus went to live at the "Chiflese College," founded in Naples by Father Matthew Ripa, the Apostle of China. (Rome, 1905). That legacy is the participation in the redemptive mission of Jesus. He was beatified in 1816 and canonized in 1839. Suddenly he found himself surrounded by a mysterious light; the house seemed to rock, and an interior voice said: "Leave the world and give thyself to Me." Many Miracles are wrought through the intercession of Alphonsus. The rudder is humility, which, in the intellect, is a realization of our own unworthiness, and in the will, docility to right guidance. Corrections? It was this which gave St. Alphonsus the bent head which we notice in the portraits of him. He both made and kept a vow not to lose a single moment of time. Author and Publisher - Catholic Online [2][3], He was born in Marianella, near Naples, then part of the Kingdom of Naples, on 27 September 1696. 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. Saint Alphonsus Liguori | EWTN Ultimately, however, anything merely human in this had disappeared. 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. In liturgical art he is depicted as bent over with rheumatism or as a young priest. Daily Readings for Friday, March 03, 2023, St. Katharine Drexel: Saint of the Day for Friday, March 03, 2023, Lenten Prayer: Prayer of the Day for Monday, February 27, 2023. 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. Infidelity and impiety were gaining ground; Voltaire and Rousseau were the idols of society; and the ancien rgime, by undermining religion, its one support, was tottering to its fall. Actually, the document was a new rule devised by one of his enemies, thus causing the followers of the old rule to break away. He was canonized in 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI and proclaimed a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1871. Filangieri forbade any change of rule and removed Falcoia from all communication with the convent. His infirmities were increasing, and he was occupied a good deal with his writings. For six years he laboured in and around Naples, giving missions for the Propaganda and preaching to the lazzaroni of the capital. St Alphonsus Mary Liguori and Prayer. Thus was he left free for his real work, the founding of a new religious congregation. The "Moral Theology", after a historical introduction by the Saint's friend, P. Zaccaria, S.J., which was omitted, however, from the eighth and ninth editions, begins with a treatise "De Conscientia", followed by one "De Legibus". [4] Myopia and chronic asthma precluded a military career so his father had him educated in the legal profession. Alphonsus being so old and so inform he was eighty-five, crippled, deaf, and nearly blind his one chance of success was to be faithfully served by friends and subordinates, and he was betrayed at every turn. In 1871, Alphonsus was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX. Our founder, St. Alphonsus Liguori | The National Shrine of St. John "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. There are many editions of the Saint's Moral Theology; the best and latest is that of P. GAUDI, C.SS.R. This is a historic Catholic Church in mid-town St. Louis. Catholic Encyclopedia. Besides his Moral Theology, the Saint wrote a large number of dogmatic and ascetical works nearly all in the vernacular. He continued to live with the Redemptorist community in Pagani, Italy, where he died on 1 August 1787. MLA citation. 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. While the continual intensity of reiterated acts of virtue which we have called driving-power is what really creates sanctity, there is another indispensable quality. Alphonsus was a lawyer, and as a lawyer he attached much importance to the weight of evidence. [16] The 21,500 editions and the translations into 72 languages that his works have undergone attest to the fact that he is one of the most widely-read Catholic authors. As it was traditionally associated with the zampogna, or large-format Italian bagpipe, it became known as Canzone d'i zampognari, the "Carol of the Bagpipers". In 1732, while he was staying at the Convent of the Consolation, one of his order's houses in the small city of Deliceto in the province of Foggia in Southeastern Italy, Liguori wrote the Italian carol "Tu scendi dalle stelle" ("From Starry Skies Descending") in the musical style of a pastorale. Beatified: September 15, 1816. The Glories of Mary ( Italian: Le glorie di Maria) is a classic book in the field of Roman Catholic Mariology, written during the 18th century by Saint Alphonsus Liguori, a Doctor of the Church . 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. Dedicated to Fr. 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. (London, 1904). Even its Rule was made known to her. Today I would like to present to you the figure of a holy Doctor of the Church to whom we are deeply indebted because he was an outstanding moral theologian and a teacher of spiritual . The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. St. Alphonsus Ligouri ''Rock'' Church, Saint Louis - Tripadvisor It is not necessary to notice certain non-Catholic attacks on Alphonsus as a patron of lying. He started again, recruited new members, and in 1743 became the prior of two new congregations, one for men and one for women. Shop St. Alphonsus Marie Liguori. The other was not to be long delayed. Alphonsus, however, stood firm; soon other companions arrived, and though Scala itself was given up by the Fathers in 1738, by 1746 the new Congregation had four houses at Nocera de' Pagani, Ciorani, Iliceto (now Deliceto), and Caposele, all in the Kingdom of Naples. In 1734, however, it was reconquered by Don Carlos, the young Duke of Parma, great-grandson of Louis XIV, and the independent Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was established. It was only after his death, as he had prophesied, that the Neapolitan Government at last recognized the original Rule, and that the Redemptorist Congregation was reunited under one head (1793). He suspended those priests who celebrated Mass in less than 15 minutes and sold his carriage and episcopal ring to give the money to the poor. He was ordained on December 21, 1726, and he spent six years giving missions throughout Naples. 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. Ever mindful of his own sins, Saint Alphonsus saw prayer for the faithful departed as one of the chief duties of Christian charity. On 21 December of the same year, at the age of thirty, he was ordained priest. Alphonsus agreed to both requests and set out with his two friends, John Mazzini and Vincent Mannarini, in September, 1730. In 1732 he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, or the Redemptorists, at Scala. 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. Saint Alphonsus Liguori described in detail this miracle and took the opportunity to reawake the faith and devotion of the people towards the Eucharist. "Alphonsus was of middle height", says his first biographer, Tannoia; "his head was rather large, his hair black, and beard well-grown." St. Alphonsus Liguori Catholic Church is known far and wide as "The Rock." The parish is staffed by the Redemptorists, making history in 1922 when it began the weekly novena in honor of Our Mother of Perpetual Help. 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. He was born Alphonsus Marie Antony John Cosmos Damien Michael Gaspard de Liguori on September 27,1696, at Marianella, near Naples, Italy. Here with 30,000 uninstructed people, 400 mostly indifferent and sometimes scandalous secular clergy, and seventeen more or less relaxed religious houses to look after, in a field so overgrown with weeds that they seemed the only crop, he wept and prayed and spent days and nights in unremitting labour for thirteen years. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. 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. Hi readers, it seems you use Catholic Online a lot; that's great! He became very popular because of his plain and simple preaching. [15] The church did not bestow this unique privilege lightly but was due to the extraordinary combination of exceptional knowledge and understanding of church teachings combined with the great precision in which he wrote. Liguoris extensive works fall into three genres: moral theology, best represented by his celebrated Theologia moralis (1748); ascetical and devotional writings, including Visits to the Blessed Sacrament, The True Spouse of Jesus Christ (for nuns), Selva (for priests), and The Glories of Mary, the latter of which became one of the most widely used manuals of devotion to the Virgin Mary; and dogmatic writings on such subjects as papal infallibility and the power of prayer. It was comparatively late in life that Alphonsus became a writer. She was declared Venerable 11 August, 1901. St. Alphonsus Liguori | The Divine Mercy Life of St Alphonsus and the Holy Eucharist | EWTN The family was an old and noble one, though the branch to which the Saint belonged had become somewhat impoverished. Believe me who have experienced it, and now weep over it." He is credited with the position of Aequiprobabilism, which avoided Jansenist rigorism as well as laxism and simple probabilism. St. Alphonsus was so scrupulous about truth that when, in 1776, the regalist, Mgr. Liguori suffered from scruples much of his adult life and felt guilty about the most minor issues relating to sin.