Giacomo Alberione
Encyclopedia
Blessed
Giacomo Alberione or James Alberione (4 April 1884 – 26 November 1971), also known as Santiago Alberione, was an Italian priest and publisher, the founder of the Society of St. Paul
and the Daughters of St. Paul
, besides other orders and institutes of the Pauline Family
.
He was born on 4 April 1884 in San Lorenzo di Fossano, near Cuneo
, northern Italy
.
He was a seminarian in Bra and Alba and was the spiritual director for youth and altar servers in the Alba seminary. While doing nightly Eucharistic adoration in Alba on 31 December 1900 he suddenly felt that he was called to do something for the people of the new century.
He was ordained on 29 June 1907 and became a parish priest in Narzole
. He was a director of the weekly publication Gazzetta d'Alba from September 1913. In 1914 he founded the Society of St. Paul
, and in 1915 the Daughters of St. Paul
, with the support of Mother Thecla. These congregations use modern media technology and published materials to spread the word of God, and help in personal devotions. Later in his life Blessed Giacomo also founded the Pious Disciples of the Divine Master (1924), the Sisters of the Good Shepherd (1938) and the Sisters of the Queen of Apostles (1957), all communities applying Pauline spirituality in various fields. He also founded four lay institutes and the Union of Pauline Cooperators.
Alberione died on 26 November 1971 at 6:26 p.m. in the Generalate House, Rome
, of natural causes.
He was declared venerable
on 25 June 1996 and beatified on 27 April 2003 by His Holiness Pope
John Paul II.
Beatification
Beatification is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a dead person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in his or her name . Beatification is the third of the four steps in the canonization process...
Giacomo Alberione or James Alberione (4 April 1884 – 26 November 1971), also known as Santiago Alberione, was an Italian priest and publisher, the founder of the Society of St. Paul
Society of St. Paul
The Society of St. Paul is a religious congregation founded on 20 August 1914 at Alba in Italy by Fr. Giacomo Alberione and officially approved by the Holy See on 27 June 1949.Its members are known as the Paulines...
and the Daughters of St. Paul
Daughters of St. Paul
The Daughters of St Paul is a Roman Catholic international religious congregation founded in 1915 in Italy.The congregation is part of the worldwide Pauline family, consisting of ten orders and lay institutes, all founded by Blessed Giacomo Alberione, and operates in 50 countries around the world....
, besides other orders and institutes of the Pauline Family
Pauline Family
The Pauline Family is a Roman Catholic congregation of ten orders and lay institutes founded by Blessed James Alberione from 1914 onwards.-Mission:...
.
He was born on 4 April 1884 in San Lorenzo di Fossano, near Cuneo
Cuneo
Cuneo is a city and comune in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the third largest of Italy’s provinces by area...
, northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
He was a seminarian in Bra and Alba and was the spiritual director for youth and altar servers in the Alba seminary. While doing nightly Eucharistic adoration in Alba on 31 December 1900 he suddenly felt that he was called to do something for the people of the new century.
He was ordained on 29 June 1907 and became a parish priest in Narzole
Narzole
Narzole is a comune in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 50 km south of Turin and about 35 km northeast of Cuneo. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 3,341 and an area of 26.4 km²....
. He was a director of the weekly publication Gazzetta d'Alba from September 1913. In 1914 he founded the Society of St. Paul
Society of St. Paul
The Society of St. Paul is a religious congregation founded on 20 August 1914 at Alba in Italy by Fr. Giacomo Alberione and officially approved by the Holy See on 27 June 1949.Its members are known as the Paulines...
, and in 1915 the Daughters of St. Paul
Daughters of St. Paul
The Daughters of St Paul is a Roman Catholic international religious congregation founded in 1915 in Italy.The congregation is part of the worldwide Pauline family, consisting of ten orders and lay institutes, all founded by Blessed Giacomo Alberione, and operates in 50 countries around the world....
, with the support of Mother Thecla. These congregations use modern media technology and published materials to spread the word of God, and help in personal devotions. Later in his life Blessed Giacomo also founded the Pious Disciples of the Divine Master (1924), the Sisters of the Good Shepherd (1938) and the Sisters of the Queen of Apostles (1957), all communities applying Pauline spirituality in various fields. He also founded four lay institutes and the Union of Pauline Cooperators.
Alberione died on 26 November 1971 at 6:26 p.m. in the Generalate House, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, of natural causes.
He was declared venerable
Venerable
The Venerable is used as a style or epithet in several Christian churches. It is also the common English-language translation of a number of Buddhist titles.-Roman Catholic:...
on 25 June 1996 and beatified on 27 April 2003 by His Holiness Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
John Paul II.