St. Alphonsus

St. Alphonsus Mary Liguori was born September 27, 1696 near Naples, Italy. A brilliant student he earned a doctorate in canon and civil law when only sixteen. He passed the bar at age nineteen and was a successful lawyer for eight years, until he made a mistake which lost an important case. Alphonsus, devastated, quit practice, and prayed to know his true vocation in life. After a period of indecision, he was moved to become a priest. He was ordained in 1726 and founded the Redemptorists in 1732 and also helped Sister Mary Celeste found the Redemptorine nuns. The path of neither order was smooth; dissent caused the sisters’ congregation to shortly break away and found a new convent. The Redemptorists were plagued with dissent over papal approval of their rule and this would cause the saint much sorrow in later life. Alphonsus continued his work preaching missions and assisting the poor and gradually devoted himself more to writing; his major works in moral theology and devotional writing came after age fifty. In 1762, he was made bishop of Sant’ Agata dei Goti; in 1775 he resigned because rheumatism had paralyzed him. The saint’s later years were plagued not only by dissention over the rule of his order, but also by great temptations, “the dark night of the soul.” Faithful to God throughout every torment, Alphonsus experienced a time of peace and consolation before his death, which occurred on August 1, 1787. He was canonized in 1839 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871. Readers continue to be inspired by his many devotional works, especially the Glories of Mary.