St Alphonsus Liguori

 Reflections on St Alphonsus Liguori

 

I first learned about St. Alphonsus Liguori through his moving interpretation of the Stations of the Cross (Via Crucis) where the reflections after each station are short, personal, and devotional in tone — designed to stir contrition and love rather than intellectual mediation. Over three hundred years ago, he created a simple structure where each of the 14 station follows the same pattern: an opening call and response ("We adore You, O Christ, and we bless You... because by Your holy cross You have redeemed the world"), a short meditation on the scene, and a closing prayer. It soon became one of the most reprinted and translated versions, especially popular in English-speaking Catholic parishes around the world.

Who was St Alphonsus Liguori?

St. Alphonsus Liguori devoted his life to bringing God’s mercy to souls, especially the poor and spiritually neglected. He is also a Doctor of the Church, and the founder of the Order of the Most Holy Redeemer, or Redemptorists, to minister to the abandoned and forgotten. Today the Redemptorists (CSsR) are known for parish missions, devotion to Our Lady, and preaching about God’s mercy and redemption through Christ. They remain dedicated to the belief that every soul can be reached with the message of the Gospel.

Early years

He was born Alphonsus Marie Antony John Cosmos Damien Michael Gaspard de Liguori on September 27,1696, at Marianella, near Naples, Italy. 

Raised in a pious home, Alphonsus received a doctorate in both canon and civil law by acclamation, at the age of 16, but he soon gave up the practice of law for apostolic activity.

His calling

Visiting the local Hospital for Incurables on August 28, 1723, he had a vision and was told to consecrate his life solely to God. In response, Alphonsus dedicated himself to the religious life, even while suffering persecution from his family. He was ordained on December 21, 1726, and he spent six years giving missions throughout Naples.

Alphonsus founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer on November 9, 1732, an association of priests and brothers living a common life, dedicated to the imitation of Christ, and working mainly in popular missions for peasants in rural areas. 

The foundation faced immediate problems, and after just one year, Alphonsus found himself with only one lay brother, his other companions having left to form their own religious group. He started again, recruited new members, and in 1743 became the prior of two new congregations, one for men and one for women. Pope Benedict XIV gave his approval for the men's congregation in 1749 and for the women's in 1750. 

Gifted writer and preacher

Alphonsus is best known for his moral theology, but he also wrote well in the field of spiritual and dogmatic theology. He taught that while sin must be taken seriously, priests should always remember God’s love and mercy for sinners. He encouraged priests to avoid both excessive strictness and careless leniency, instead guiding souls patiently toward holiness.  His Glories of Mary is one of the great works on that subject, and his book Visits to the Blessed Sacrament went through 40 editions in his lifetime, greatly influencing the practice of this devotion in the Church.

“The greatest glory we can give to God is to do his will in everything. Our Redeemer came on earth to glorify his heavenly Father and to teach us by his example how do the same…Our Lord frequently declared that he had come on earth not to do his own will, but solely that of his Father…To do God’s will – this was the goal upon which the saints constantly fixed their gaze. They were fully persuaded that in this consists the entire perfection of the soul."

 
Alphonsus composed hymns and prayers, including the beloved Christmas carol Tu scendi dalle stelle (“From Starry Skies Thou Comest”), which remains popular in Italy today."

Alphonsus’ great pastoral reforms were in the pulpit and confessional—replacing the pompous oratory of the time with simplicity. His great fame as a writer has somewhat eclipsed the fact that for 26 years he traveled up and down the Kingdom of Naples preaching popular missions.

Last years

He refused to become the bishop of Palermo but in 1762, at age 66, had to accept the papal command to accept the see of St. Agatha of the Goths near Naples. Here he discovered more than thirty thousand uninstructed men and women and four hundred indifferent priests. For thirteen years Alphonsus fed the poor, instructed families, reorganized the seminary and religious houses, taught theology, and wrote. 

His austerities were rigorous, and he suffered daily the pain from rheumatism that was beginning to deform his body. He spent several years having to drink from tubes because his head was so bent forward. An attack of rheumatic fever, from May 1768 to June 1769, left him paralyzed. He was not allowed to resign his see, however, until 1775. 

In 1780, Alphonsus was tricked into signing a submission for royal approval of his congregation. This submission altered the original rule, and as a result Alphonsus was denied any authority among the Redemptorists. Deposed and excluded from his own congregation, Alphonsus suffered great anguish. But he overcame his depression, and he experienced visions, performed miracles, and gave prophecies. 

He died peacefully on August 1,1787, at Nocera di Pagani, near Naples as the Angelus was ringing. He was beatified in 1816 and canonized in 1839. 

In 1871, Alphonsus was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX. He was buried at the monastery of the Pagani near Naples. Shrines were built there and at St. Agatha of the Goths. In liturgical art he is depicted as bent over with rheumatism or as a young priest.

Patron saint

Saint Alphonsus Liguori is the Patron Saint of: moral theologians, confessors, the poor, vocations, and those suffering from arthritis

Prayer to St Alphonsus Liguori

O God, through the person of Saint Alphonsus Liguori, you allow us to see one who served the poor, wrote about the faith, and preached the Gospel to all people. Help us to bring zeal for the faith and to preach the Gospel to all those we encounter in our lives. Through the intercession of St Alphonsus Liguori, who suffered from curvature of the spine and from severe bone, muscular and joint pains, may God alleviate the pains of those who suffer from arthritis, back and spine trouble, rheumatism, sciatica, lumbago, and like problems.  Amen.

References

1. Online, C. (n.d.). St. Alphonsus Marie Liguori - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online. Catholic Online. https://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=1284
2. Franciscan Media. (2025, August 26). Saint Alphonsus Liguori | Franciscan Media. Franciscan Media. https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-alphonsus-liguori/
3. EWTN. (2026, July 29). St. Alphonsus Liguori | EWTN Mission. EWTN Mission. https://ewtnmission.com/dailysaint/st-alphonsus-liguori/
4. Perna, T. (2014, August 4). Saint Alphonsus Liguori – the patron of theologians. TOM PERNA. https://tomperna.org/2013/08/01/saint-alphonsus-ligouri-the-patron-of-theologians/