Liguori

Liguori, Alfonso Makia de' (1696-1787), a saint of the Roman Catholic Church, was born near Naples. He took a degree in law when only sixteen, and had a large practice at the bar, but in 1724 took holy orders. In 1732, having in the meantime gained a high reputation as a preacher, he founded "The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer," a society whose chief work was to be the education of the poor. Their "rule" was confirmed by Benedict XIV. in 1749. In 1762 Liguori, who had refused the archbishopric of Palermo, became Bishop of Sant' Agata dei Goti, but resigned his office in 1775 and retired to Nocera dei Pagani, the head-quarters of his order. He was canonised in 1839, and declared a Doctor of the Church by Pius IX. His Moral Theology is still in use among Romanists, and his casuistical treatises are also highly valued by them. The Liguorians or Redemptorists have houses in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.