Saint Anthony Mary Claret
A Catalan weaver turned itinerant preacher, religious founder and archbishop in Cuba
- Rank
- Saint
- Kind
- Bishop, Founder, Missionary
- Life
- 1807 – 1870
- Era
- 19th century
- Feast
- 24 October
- Countries
- Spain, Cuba
Life story
Anthony Mary Claret was born on 23 December 1807 in Sallent, in Catalonia, Spain, into a family of textile workers. He learned the trade and worked in weaving workshops in Barcelona. He later decided to enter the seminary, was ordained a priest in 1835 and worked in parish ministry in his home region.
He travelled to Rome in 1839 intending to volunteer for foreign missions, but returned to Catalonia and preached itinerant mission weeks in many villages and then in the Canary Islands. He also wrote and printed a great many small religious books. In 1849 he and a group of fellow priests founded a missionary community at Vic, later known as the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, commonly called the Claretians.
In 1849 he was named archbishop and in 1850 consecrated archbishop of Santiago de Cuba. He stayed in Cuba until 1857, visiting the whole diocese, preaching and organising help for the poor. In 1856, at Holguín, he was attacked with a knife but survived. After returning to Spain he became confessor to Queen Isabella II and lived in Madrid.
In 1868 a revolution forced the queen into exile, and he went to France as well. He took part in the First Vatican Council in Rome, then fell ill, and died on 24 October 1870 at the abbey of Fontfroide in southern France. He was canonised by Pope Pius XII in 1950.
Works and witness
- Worked as a weaver in Barcelona before the seminary; ordained a priest in 1835
- Preached mission weeks in Catalonia and the Canary Islands
- Founded the Claretians at Vic in 1849
- Archbishop of Santiago de Cuba until 1857
- Attended the First Vatican Council and died at Fontfroide in 1870
Saints from the same country
References
- Martyrologium Romanum
- Dicastery for the Causes of Saints – biographical profile
- Anthony Mary Claret, Autobiografía
Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.