The Saint's own letters are of extreme value in supplementing Tannoia. [10] He tried to refuse the appointment by using his age and infirmities as arguments against his consecration. He was fervent about using common words in . 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. Yet, to take anger alone, though comparatively early in life he seemed dead to insult or injury which affected himself, in cases of cruelty, or of injustice to others, or of dishonour to God, he showed a prophet's indignation even in old age. 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. Alphonsus had still one final storm to meet, and then the end. When the Saint began to hear confessions, however, he soon saw the harm done by rigorism, and for the rest of his life he inclined more to the mild school of the Jesuit theologians, whom he calls "the masters of morals". To come to saints, the great Jesuit missionary St. Francis di Geronimo took the little Alphonsus in his arms, blessed him, and prophesied that he would do great work for God; while a Franciscan, St. John Joseph of the Cross, was well known to Alphonsus in later life. 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. In the eight years of his career as advocate, years crowded with work, he is said never to have lost a case. [11], Liguori was consecrated Bishop of Sant'Agata dei Goti in 1762. Furthermore, St. Alphonsus was a great theologian, and so attached much weight to intrinsic probability. a special feature of his method was the return of the missionaries, after an interval of some months, to the scene of their labours to consolidate their work by what was called the "renewal of a mission.". Liguori suffered from scruples much of his adult life and felt guilty about the most minor issues relating to sin. Dignity and Duties of the Priest, Eugene Grimm ed., Benziger Brothers, New York, 1889, Free scores by Alphonsus Maria de' Liguori in the Choral Public Domain Library (ChoralWiki), "St Alphonsus", St. Alphonsus on Catholic Online, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alphonsus_Liguori&oldid=1141126599, Founders of Catholic religious communities, 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops, 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic theologians, Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference, Articles incorporating text from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia with Wikisource reference, All articles with bare URLs for citations, Articles with bare URLs for citations from March 2022, Articles with PDF format bare URLs for citations, Articles containing Neapolitan-language text, Articles containing Italian-language text, Pages using sidebar with the child parameter, Articles incorporating a citation from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia without Wikisource reference, Articles incorporating text from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia without Wikisource reference, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Bishop, Moral Theologian, Confessor and Doctor of the Church, This page was last edited on 23 February 2023, at 13:49. Don Joseph agreed to allow his son to become a priest, provided he would give up his proposal joining the Oratory, and would continue to live at home. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York. 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. So the Saint was cut off from his own Order by the Pope who was to declare him "Venerable". 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. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. A few months later Alphonsus left his father's house and went to live with Ripa, without, however, becoming a member of his society. In 1762 he was appointed Bishop of Sant'Agata dei Goti. Though a good dogmatic theologian--a fact which has not been sufficiently recognized--he was not a metaphysician like the great scholastics. The Fathers in the Papal States, with too precipitate zeal, in the very beginning denounced the change of Rule to Rome. The latest life, BERTHE, Saint Alphonse de Liguori (Paris, 1900, 2 vols. She was told to write it down and show it to the director of the convent, that is to Falcoia himself. The version with Italian lyrics was based on his original song written in Neapolitan, which began Quanno nascette Ninno ("When the child was born"). The eighteenth century was not an age remarkable for depth of spiritual life, yet it produced three of the greatest missionaries of the Church, St. Leonard of Port Maurice, St. Paul of the Cross, and St. Alphonsus Liguori. On 6 April, 1726, he was ordained deacon, and soon after preached his first sermon. 1. Saint Alphonsus Liguori | Biography, Contributions, & Facts He was now free, subject to the approval of the Bishop of Scala, to act with regard to the convent as he thought best. Pius VI, already deeply displeased with the Neapolitan Government, took the fathers in his own dominions under his special protection, forbade all change of rule in their houses, and even withdrew them from obedience to the Neapolitan superiors, that is to St. Alphonsus, till an inquiry could be held. Tradues em contexto de "Mary of Liguori" en ingls-portugus da Reverso Context : The Holy Church honors the priest and the priest must honor the Church with the holiness of his life - proposed St. Alphonsus Mary of Liguori on the day of his Ordination - with zeal, with work and with decorum. His life contains a number of minor inaccuracies, however, and is seriously defective in its account of the founding of his Congregation and of the troubles which fell on it in 1780. In the year 1747, King Charles of Naples wished to make Alphonsus Archbishop of Palermo, and it was only by the most earnest entreaties that he was able to escape. Our founder, St. Alphonsus Liguori | The National Shrine of St. John Still there was a time of danger. He was helped in this by his turn of mind which was extremely practical. First Station: Jesus Is Condemned to Death V. We adore you, Christ, and we praise you. He was the eldest of seven children of Giuseppe Liguori, a naval officer and Captain of the Royal Galleys, and Anna Maria Caterina Cavalieri. An Act of Spiritual CommunionA Daily Catholic Prayer - Learn Religions PDF Traditional Stations of the Cross by St. Alphonsus Liguori Miraculous Stories of the Blessed Virgin Mary : Saint Alphonsus De 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. The Vicar General, Monsignor Onorati drew up the minutes of the diocesan trial which lasted two years from 1772 to 1774. Deposed and excluded from his own congregation, Alphonsus suffered great anguish. But before he called a witness the opposing counsel said to him in chilling tones: "Your arguments are wasted breath. 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. "You have founded the Congregation and you have destroyed it", said one Father to him. On the other hand, ever since the Fall of Man, the will of man has been his greatest danger. Testa, the Grand Almoner, even to have his Rule approved. In 1871 he was named a doctor of the church by Pope Pius IX. His father opposed the plan, but after two months (and with his Oratorian confessor's permission), he and his father compromised: he would study for the priesthood, but not as an Oratorian, and would live at home. 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. The poor advocate turned pale. His own prayer was perhaps for the most part what some call "active", others "ordinary", contemplation. Let's start with the saint. St. Alphonsus Liguori | The Divine Mercy This submission altered the original rule, and as a result Alphonsus was denied any authority among the Redemptorists. In 1719, together with a Father Filangieri, also one of the "Pii Operarii", he had refounded a Conservatorium of religious women at Scala on the mountains behind Amalfi. 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". 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! In the second edition the work received the definite form it has since retained, though in later issues the Saint retracted a number of opinions, corrected minor ones, and worked at the statement of his theory of Equiprobabilism till at last he considered it complete. Although the doctors succeeded in straightening the neck a little, the Saint for the rest of his life had to drink at meals through a tube. Educated at the University of Naples, Alphonsus received his doctorate at the age of sixteen. 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. In 1871, Alphonsus was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Alfonso-Maria-de-Liguori, The Catholic Encyclopedia - Biography of St. Alphonsus Liguori. 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 . He was canonized in 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI and proclaimed a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1871. 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. The Saint Alphonsus de Liguori Collection [30 Books] The Holy Father addressed the faithful taking part in the General audience of Wednesday, 1 August [2012], in Piazza della Libert, the square outside the Papal residence in Castel Gandolfo. A year of trouble and anxiety followed. Alphonsus suffers great interior trials. Two days after he was born, he was baptized at the Church of Our Lady the Virgin as Alphonsus Mary Anthony John Cosmas Damian Michael Gaspard de' Liguori. 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." Tannoia, also, through some mental idiosyncrasy, manages to give the misleading impression that St. Alphonsus was severe. Vague rumours of impending treachery had got about and had been made known to him, but he had refused to believe them. The Holy Mass, Eugene Grimm ed., Benziger Brothers, New York, 1887, Liguori, Alphonsus. 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. When the day came the future Saint made a brilliant opening speech and sat down confident of victory. 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). 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. 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. He was a born leader of men. Life of St Alphonsus and the Holy Eucharist | EWTN Other personal friends of Alphonsus were the Jesuit Fathers de Matteis, Zaccaria, and Nonnotte. The question as to what does or does not constitute a lie is not an easy one, but it is a subject in itself. Both last about two hours but are filled with soul-stirring music. He both made and kept a vow not to lose a single moment of time. Saint Alphonsus Liguori | Franciscan Media 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. 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. Calendarium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 1969), p. 99, Appendix to his work on the Council of Trent, Saint Alphonsus Liguori, patron saint archive, St. Alphonsus 'Rock' Liguori Church (St. Louis), "St. Alphonsus Liguori, Our Founder", Redemptorists, Baltimore Province, Tannoja, Antonio. 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. Died: August 1, 1787. There are two Sunday services, one at 8:15 and the second at 11. Alphonsus was preaching missions in the rural areas and writing. 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". It happened that Alphonsus, ill and overworked, had gone with some companions to Scala in the early summer of 1730. 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. What are Revelations? If in some things Alphonsus was an Anglo-Saxon, in others he was a Neapolitan of the Neapolitans, though always a saint. Many Miracles are wrought through the intercession of Alphonsus. Actually, the document was a new rule devised by one of his enemies, thus causing the followers of the old rule to break away. It was this which gave St. Alphonsus the bent head which we notice in the portraits of him. He founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (the Redemptorists). This occurred twice. He was somewhat worldly and ambitious, at any rate for his son, and was rough tempered when opposed. In 1762 Pope Clement XIII made him bishop of Sant Agata del Goti near Naples; he resigned in 1775 because of ill health. Soon after, Falcoia made known to the latter his vocation to leave Naples and establish an order of missionaries at Scala, who should work above all for the neglected goatherds of the mountains. [12], He was beatified on 15 September 1816 by Pope Pius VII and canonized on 26 May 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI.[13][14]. He refused to become the bishop of Palermo but in 1762 had to accept the papal command to accept the see of St. Agatha of the Goths near Naples. The result of the retreat to the nuns was that the young priest, who before had been prejudiced by reports in Naples against the proposed new Rule, became its firm supporter, and even obtained permission from the Bishop of Scala for the change.