Founding of the Redemptorists

St. Alphonsus Liguori was born in Naples, Italy, in 1696. He left a promising legal career against the wishes of his family and became a priest.

Alphonsus dedicated himself completely to the service of the poor and most abandoned, and in 1732 he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer: The Redemptorists. Alphonsus and his companions preached the Word of God in rural and isolated communities around Naples. He died in 1787 at age 90 and was declared a saint in 1839. His feast day is August 1.

By the early 19th century Redemptorists were serving in central Italy, Poland, Germany, Belgium, and Holland.

In 1832 six Redemptorists traveled to the United States at the request of American bishops and began their first missionary work outside of Europe. They worked first among Native Americans and then with Irish, German, and Slavic immigrants.

They ministered to the people and opened parishes and schools, often teaching immigrants the English language.

In 1847 St. John Neumann, born in Bohemia and the first Redemptorist to profess vows in the United States, was appointed superior of all Redemptorists in America. Five years later he was consecrated the fourth bishop of Philadelphia.

He died in 1860 and in 1977 became the first American bishop to be canonized. His feast day is January 5.

In 1850 the Redemptorists’ American Province, consisting of nine houses, was established from the Belgian Province, and headquartered at the Redemptorist seminary in Baltimore.

Redemptorist ministries soon spread throughout the United States and Canada. Missions were established in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, the Virgin Islands, Brazil, and Paraguay.