Peter Canisius
Guelders, Habsburg Netherlands | |
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Died | 21 December 1597 Fribourg, Switzerland | (aged 76)
Venerated in | Catholic Church |
Beatified | 1864, Rome by Pope Pius IX |
Canonized | 21 May 1925, Rome by Pope Pius XI |
Major shrine | College of St. Michael Fribourg, Switzerland |
Feast | 21 December; 27 April (General Roman Calendar, 1926–1969; current SJ calendar) |
Patronage | Catholic press, Germany |
Signature | |
Catholic Counter-Reformation |
Catholic Reformation and Revival |
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Peter Canisius
Life
He was born in 1521 in
While there, he met
Canisius exerted a strong influence on the Emperor Ferdinand I. The king's eldest son (later Maximilian II) appointed Phauser, a married priest, to the office of court preacher. Canisius warned Ferdinand I, verbally and in writing, and opposed Phauser in public disputations. Maximilian was obliged to dismiss Phauser and, on this account, the rest of his life he harboured a grudge against Canisius.[2]
In 1547 he attended several sessions of the
He moved to Germany, where he was one of the main Catholic theologians at the
In Christ The King – Lord of History by Anne W. Carroll, it states:
Protestantism had made much headway in Germany because many intellectuals had adopted it, making Catholicism appear to be the religion of the ignorant. By his debates, his writing and his teachings, Peter showed that Catholicism was thoroughly rational, that the Protestant arguments were not convincing.
By his efforts, Peter won Bavaria (southern Germany) and the Rhineland (central Germany) back to the Catholic Church. He also won converts in Austria, Hungary, Bohemia and Poland. Poland had become largely Protestant, but thanks to the efforts of Peter and other Jesuits, it returned to the Church and is still Catholic today despite Communist persecution.
By the time he left Germany, the Society of Jesus in Germany had evolved from a small band of priests into a powerful tool of the Counter-Reformation. Canisius spent the last twenty years of his life in Fribourg, where he founded the Jesuit Collège Saint-Michel, which trained generations of young men for careers and future university studies.[5] During this period, Canisius's work "was translated into almost every language of Europe";[6] for example, his Summa Doctrinae Christianae (1554) was translated into Scots by Adam King and published in 1588.[7]
In 1591, at the age of 70, Canisius suffered a stroke which left him partially paralyzed, but he continued to preach and write with the aid of a secretary until his death in Fribourg.[8]
He was initially buried at the Church of St. Nicholas. His remains were later transferred to the church of the Jesuit College, which he had founded and where he had spent the last year of his life, and interred in front of the main altar of the church; the room he occupied during those last months is now a chapel open for the veneration of the faithful.[9]
Pastoral strategy
Canisius lived during the height of the
If you treat them right, the Germans will give you everything. Many err in matters of faith, but without arrogance. They err the German way, mostly honest, a bit simple-minded, but very open for everything Lutheran. An honest explanation of the faith would be much more effective than a polemical attack against reformers.[10]
He rejected attacks against
Mariology of Canisius
Canisius taught that, while there are many roads leading to Jesus Christ, for him the
Canisius published an applied Mariology for preachers, in which Mary is described in tender and warm words.[15] He actively promoted the sodalities of our Lady and the rosary associations.
Theologically, Canisius defended Catholic Mariology in his 1577 book, De Maria Virgine Incomparabili et Dei Genitrice Sacrosancta Libri Quinque.[citation needed] The book was ordered by Pope Pius V to present a factual presentation of the Catholic Marian teachings in the Bible, the early Christians, the Church Fathers and contemporary theology. Canisius explains and documents Church teachings through the ages regarding the person and character of Mary, her virtues and youth.[16] He traces historical documents about the perpetual virginity of Mary, and her freedom from sin.[17] He explains the dogma of "Mother of God" with numerous quotations from the fathers after the Council of Ephesus. He shows that Church teaching has not changed.[18] He answers the sola scriptura arguments of Protestants by analyzing the biblical basis for mariology.[19] Book five explains the Catholic view of the assumption as living faith for centuries, supported by most prominent Church writers.
From today's perspective, Canisius clearly erred in some of his sources, but, because of his factual analysis of original sources, it is considered as representing one of the best theological achievements in the 16th century.[20]
Veneration
Canisius was
Legacy
In recognition there of Canisius' early work in the establishment of Jesuit education, there are multiple educational institutions named for him. Among them is the Canisius College for seminarians in
In addition, there is a primary school: Basisschool Petrus Canisius in Puth in Limburg, Netherlands. In 1850 the Canisius Hospital was established on the corner of the Houtmarkt and the Pauwelstraat in Nijmegen. In 1974 it merged with Wilhelmina Hospital located at the Weg door Jonkerbos in Nijmegen, to become Canisius-Wilhemina Hospital.[citation needed]
The Apologetisch Vereniging St. Petrus Canisius (St. Peter Canisius Association for Apologetics) was founded in the Netherlands in 1904 to defend the Catholic Church against socialism and liberalism.[citation needed]
From the middle of the nineteenth century on German churchmen, including Michael Cardinal von Faulhaber (1869–1952), considered Canisius as a new "Apostle of Germany", a successor of Saint Boniface, for his importance for German Christianity.[23]
Works
- (1555) Summa doctrinae christianae (A Summary of Christian Teachings)
The longer version (with quotes from authority):
- Vol. 1: Faith, Hope, Charity, the Precepts of the Church
- Vol. 2: The Sacraments
- Vol. 3: Christian Justification, good works, Cardinal Virtues, Gifts and Fruits of the Holy Ghost, Eight Beatitudes, Evangelical Counsels, etc.
- (1556) Catechismus minor (A Smaller Catechism)
- (1558) Parvus catechismus catholicorum (A Little Catechism for Catholics)
- (1577) De Maria virgine incomparabili (On the Incomparable Virgin Mary)
See also
References
- S2CID 170005470.
- ^ a b c Braunsberger, Otto. "Blessed Peter Canisius", The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911.
- ^ a b c "Saint Peter Canisius". Franciscan Media. 21 December 2015. Archived from the original on 11 August 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
- ^ "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: University of Innsbruck". www.newadvent.org. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- canton, the college, now known as St. Michael College, continues to exist as a coeducational preparatory institution.
- William Blackwood and Sons. pp. lvi.
- ^ Law LLD, Thomas Graves (1901). Catholic Tractes of the Sixteenth Century (1573-1600) (PDF). William Blackwood and Sons. pp. xxvi.
- ^ Ghezzi, Bert. "St. Peter Canisius, SJ (1521-1597)", ignatianspirituality.com' accessed 27 June 2017.
- ^ "CSM - l'Historique" (in French). Archived from the original on 9 September 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Burg, Kontroverslexikon, Essen, 1903, p. 224
- ^ Burg 225
- ^ a b Stegmüller, 1052)
- ^ Streicher, 95,245,267
- ^ Cf. his Catechism of 1555 (Streicher Catechismi, I, 12). One form or another of the sentence was already present, though, in certain Italian writings from the previous century (cf. Herbert Thurston, “Hail Mary”, Catholic Encyclopedia (New York: Robert Appleton, 1910), vol. 7, New Advent.
- ^ Meditaciones, 1591-1593
- ^ in Book One
- ^ in Book Two
- ^ Book Three
- ^ Book Four
- ^ Otto Stegmüller 1063
- ^ *"Lives of the Saints, For Every Day of the Year" edited by Rev. Hugo Hoever, S.O.Cist., PhD, New York: Catholic Book Publishing Co., 1955, p. 164
- ^ "Quality of education slides". Archived from the original on 23 February 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- ^ Heid, Stefan. "Der vereinnahmte Bonifatius: vom apostolischen Völkermissionar zum "Apostel der Deutschen"". Trierer Theologische Zeitschrift (in German). 116: 238–72.
Sources
- Petrus Canisius, (Ed. Bourassee) De Maria Virgine Incomparabili et Dei Genitrice Sacrosancta Libri, 1577 Quinque. Paris, 1862.
- Petrus Canisius, (ed. Friedrich Streicher), Meditaciones seunatae in evangelicas lectiones, 1591–1593, (Fribourg, Switzerland, 1939, 1955)
In addition to the listed institutions worldwide, there is Peter Canisius College in Sydney, Australia (suburb of Pymble at 102 Mona Vale Road).