Piarists
Encyclopedia
The Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools or, in short, Piarists (icon), is the name of the oldest Catholic educational order
also known as the Scolopi, Escolapios or Poor Clerics of the Mother of God (in both cases 'Clerics' can also become 'Clerks', from the same etymology). Founded by saint Joseph Calasanctius
, the main occupation of the Piarist fathers is teaching children and youth, the primary goal being to provide free education for poor children. The Piarist practice was taken as a model by numerous later Catholic societies devoted to teaching, while the state-supported public school system in certain parts of Europe also followed their example. The Piarists have had a considerable success in education of physically or mentally disabled persons. Some famous individuals of the last few centuries, including Pope Pius IX, Goya, Mozart, Schubert, Gregor Mendel
, and Victor Hugo
, were taught at Piarist schools.
(also known as Joseph Calasanz or José de Calasanz, and whose religious name
was Josephus a Matre Dei), who was born in 1556 or 1557, founded the order and had it initially recognized as a religious congregation by the Holy See on 25 March 1617.
Calasanz, a native of Peralta de la Sal in the Spanish province of Huesca
in Aragon
, was born on September 11, 1556, studied at Lleida
and Alcalá
, and after his ordination to the priesthood moved to Rome (1592) where he organized, in 1607, a brotherhood. As a member of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine
he went about the country instructing the people, and his experience convinced him of the necessity of providing the children of the poor with religious instruction at an early age. Antonio Brendoni, pastor of Santa Dorotea in Trastevere
, placed two rooms at his disposal and assisted him in the work, in which they were afterwards joined by two other priests.
It was not long before the reputation of the school increased attendance to such an extent that Calasanctius moved it to a building within the city, where he took up residence with his companions. When two years later the school was again moved, this time to the Vestri Palace in the vicinity of Sant' Andrea della Valle, community life was inaugurated among the associates, and Pope Clement VIII
showed his approval of the work by ordering the payment of a yearly allowance of 200 scudi for rent of the house. Criticism ensued which led to an inspection of the schools by Cardinals Antoniani and Baronius, which resulted satisfactorily, the approval of Pope Paul V
was even more pronounced than that of his predecessor. In To the three usual vows they added a fourth, that of dedication to the Christian education of youth.
In 1612 the growth of the schools necessitated the purchase of the Torres Palace, and on 25 March 1617 it became an independent Congregation, numbering at that time fifteen priests, under Calasanz (who changed his name to Joseph of the Mother of God, thus inaugurating the practice of dropping the family name on entering the religious life), as their head; they received the religious habit. The most noted of his early companions were Gaspare Dragonette, who joined the saint at the age of 95 and died in 1628 allegedly at the age of 120; Bernardino Pannicola, later Bishop of Ravello
; Juan Garcia
, afterwards general of the order; the learned Gellio Ghellini; Tomasso Vittoria; Viviandi de Colle; Melchiore Alacchi.
The congregation was made a religious order 18 November 1621 by a Brief
of Pope Gregory XV
, under the name of Congregatio Clericorum regularium pauperum Matris Dei scholarum piarum. The term "Pauline" was dropped by this pope, although it had been part of the original name due to Pope Paul V
. The Constitutions were approved 31 January 1622 by Gregory XV, and had all the privileges of the mendicant orders
conferred upon it, Calasanz being recognized as general superior, his four assistants being Blessed Pietro Casani, Viviano Vivani, Francesco Castelli and Paolo Ottonelli. On 7 May of the same year the novitiate of St. Onofrio was opened.
The pedagogical ideal of Saint Joseph Calasanctius of educating every child, his schools for the poor, his support of the heliocentric sciences of Galileo Galilei, the scandals and persecutions of some of his detractors, and his life of sanctity in the service of children and youth, carried with them the opposition of many among the governing classes in society and in the ecclesiastical hierarchy. In 1642, as a result of an internal crisis in the congregation and outside intrigues and pressures, Calasanz was briefly held and interrogated by the Inquisition
. Problems were exarcebated, however, by Father Stefano Cherubini, originally headmaster of the Piarist school in Naples
who systematically sexually abused the pupils in his care. Father Stefano made no secret about at least some of his transgressions, and Calasanz came to know of them. Unfortunately for Calasanz as administrator of the order, Father Stefano was the son and the brother of powerful papal lawyers; no one wanted to offend the Cherubini family. Father Stefano pointed out that if allegations of his abuse of his boys became public, actions would be taken to destroy the Piarists. Calasanz therefore promoted Father Stefano, to get him away from the scene of the crime, citing only his luxurious diet and failure to attend prayers. However, he knew what Cherubini had really been up to, and he wrote that the sole aim of the plan “... is to cover up this great shame in order that it does not come to the notice of our superiors”.
Superiors in Rome found out, but bowed to the same family ties that had bound Calasanz. Cherubini became visitor-general for the Piarists, able to conduct himself just as he wanted in any school he visited. The Piarists became entangled in church politics, and partially because they were associated with Galileo, were opposed by the Jesuits, who were more orthodox in astronomy
. (Galileo’s views also involved atomism, and were thought to be heretical regarding transubstantiation.) The support for Cherubini was broad enough that in 1643, he was made head of the order and the elderly Calasanz was pushed aside. Upon this appointment, Calasanz publicly documented Cherubini’s long pattern of child molestation, a pattern that he had known about for years. Even this did not block Cherubini’s appointment, but other members of the order were indignant about it, although they may have objected to Cherubini’s more overt shortcomings. With such dissention, the Vatican
took the easy course of suppressing the order. In 1646, the Order was deprived of its privileges by Pope Innocent X.
Calasanz, who died on August 25, 1648, was beatified in 1748, and canonized in 1767. He was declared "Universal Patron of all the Christian popular schools in the world" by Pope Pius XII, in 1948, because he had the glory of opening "the first free tuition, popular, public school in Europe" (Von Pastor) and had proclaimed the right to education of all children, fought for it, and was persecuted because of this.
The order was restored in 1656 by Pope Alexander VIII
who revived the congregation but without its earlier privileges, such as solemn vows granted by Gregory XV and added to the simple vows an oath of perseverance in the congregation.
The privileges of the Order were successively restored in 1660, 1669 and 1698. Pope Clement IX
in 1669, who restored the Piarists to the condition of regulars. But petitions from members who hesitated to bind themselves by solemn vows led Clement X in 1670 to issue a Brief which empowered the general of the Piarists to dispense from solemn vows laymen or clerics in minor orders, while ordained clerics in possession of a sufficient patrimony or a benefice were restored to the jurisdiction of their bishops.
The Piarists are exempt from episcopal jurisdiction and subject only to their general superior, who is elected every six years by the general chapter and with a general procurator with four assistants resides at Rome. In virtue of a Brief of Alexander VIII (1690) they ceased to be discalced
.
The members are divided into professed, novices and lay brethren. The professed usually add the letters "Sch.P." or "S.P." after their name, to connote the name of the order, Scholarum Piarum.
Their habit is very similar to that of the Jesuits, a cassock closed in front and cincture with hanging bands on the left side, although they usually follow the local customs regarding clerical apparel. Their motto is Ad majus pietatis incrementum or Pietas et Litterae.
The order spread rapidly even during the founder's lifetime and in the early 20th century. The Piarists are found chiefly in Italy, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Latin America, Africa, India, and the Philippines. The order is currently present in 4 continents (Europe, Asia, Africa and America) and in 32 countries.
A member of the order, Francis Hermann Czech (d. 1847), was very successful in his work of teaching the deaf and dumb.
One of the most famous Piarist, priest Stanisław Konarski, was the reformer of the Polish education system in the 18th century. To honor his faithful duty, the Polish king Stanisław August Poniatowski created the Sapere Auso medal.
The order's influence led to the subsequent establishment of many other congregations dedicated to education. There are eleven religious teaching orders now in existence that are based on Calasanz's ideas. The founder and order have also had influence on many great educators, such as St. Jean-Baptiste de la Salle
in the eighteenth century, and St. John Bosco
, his great admirer, in the nineteenth century. The influence of the Pious Schools served as the model for State public school systems in some European countries. The order has educated many important figures in modern history, including a number of saints like St. John Neumann
and St. Josemaría Escrivá, figures like Pope Pius IX, Victor Hugo, Mozart, Haydn, Schubert, Johann Mendel, and some Nobel Prize winners like George Hevesy
, George Olah
.
Many members of the order led lives of sanctity. In his Life of St. Joseph Calasanctius, Tosetti gives a list of 54 who between 1615 and 1756 died edifying deaths, among them Blessed Peter Casani (d. 1647), the first novice master of the order; the fourth superior general, Venerable Glicerius Landriani (d. 1618); Cosimo Chiara (d. 1688); Petrus Andreas Taccioni (d. 1672); the lay-brother Philip Bosio (d. 1662); Antonio Muscia (d. 1665); and Eusebius Amoretti (d. 1685). Saint Pompilius Maria Pirroti (d. 1766) was famous for being a saintly spiritual director; Blessed Faustino Miguez (d. 1925) was a famous educator, scientist, and founder of the Calasanzian Sisters in Spain; Blessed Dionisius Pamplona was a holy master of novices, pastor and rector in Buenos Aires and Peralta de la Sal, and was the first piarist killed in the fulfillment of his priesthood during the Spanish civil war (d. 1936). Other piarists known for their sanctity and pedagogical abilities with children in the last century have been Pedro Díez Gil (d. 1983) and Joaquín Erviti (d. 1999).
For Calasanz, see
Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
also known as the Scolopi, Escolapios or Poor Clerics of the Mother of God (in both cases 'Clerics' can also become 'Clerks', from the same etymology). Founded by saint Joseph Calasanctius
Joseph Calasanctius
Saint Joseph Calasanctius , also known as Joseph Calasanz and Josephus a Matre Dei, was the founder of the Pious Schools and the Order of the Piarists.-The Spanish Years:...
, the main occupation of the Piarist fathers is teaching children and youth, the primary goal being to provide free education for poor children. The Piarist practice was taken as a model by numerous later Catholic societies devoted to teaching, while the state-supported public school system in certain parts of Europe also followed their example. The Piarists have had a considerable success in education of physically or mentally disabled persons. Some famous individuals of the last few centuries, including Pope Pius IX, Goya, Mozart, Schubert, Gregor Mendel
Gregor Mendel
Gregor Johann Mendel was an Austrian scientist and Augustinian friar who gained posthumous fame as the founder of the new science of genetics. Mendel demonstrated that the inheritance of certain traits in pea plants follows particular patterns, now referred to as the laws of Mendelian inheritance...
, and Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
, were taught at Piarist schools.
History
Joseph CalasanctiusJoseph Calasanctius
Saint Joseph Calasanctius , also known as Joseph Calasanz and Josephus a Matre Dei, was the founder of the Pious Schools and the Order of the Piarists.-The Spanish Years:...
(also known as Joseph Calasanz or José de Calasanz, and whose religious name
Religious Name
A religious name is a type of given name bestowed for a religious purpose, and which is generally used in religious contexts. Different types of religious names may be in use among the clergy of a religion, as well in some cases among the laity....
was Josephus a Matre Dei), who was born in 1556 or 1557, founded the order and had it initially recognized as a religious congregation by the Holy See on 25 March 1617.
Calasanz, a native of Peralta de la Sal in the Spanish province of Huesca
Huesca
Huesca is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the comarca of Hoya de Huesca....
in Aragon
Aragon
Aragon is a modern autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. Located in northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces : Huesca, Zaragoza, and Teruel. Its capital is Zaragoza...
, was born on September 11, 1556, studied at Lleida
Lleida
Lleida is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital city of the province of Lleida, as well as the largest city in the province and it had 137,387 inhabitants , including the contiguous municipalities of Raimat and Sucs. The metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants...
and Alcalá
Alcalá de Henares
Alcalá de Henares , meaning Citadel on the river Henares, is a Spanish city, whose historical centre is one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites, and one of the first bishoprics founded in Spain...
, and after his ordination to the priesthood moved to Rome (1592) where he organized, in 1607, a brotherhood. As a member of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine
Confraternity of Christian Doctrine
The Confraternity of Christian Doctrine was an association established at Rome in 1562 for the purpose of giving religious education. Its modern usage, often abbreviated CCD or C.C.D., is a religious education program of the Catholic Church, normally designed for children.-History:Until the...
he went about the country instructing the people, and his experience convinced him of the necessity of providing the children of the poor with religious instruction at an early age. Antonio Brendoni, pastor of Santa Dorotea in Trastevere
Trastevere
Trastevere is rione XIII of Rome, on the west bank of the Tiber, south of Vatican City. Its name comes from the Latin trans Tiberim, meaning literally "beyond the Tiber". The correct pronunciation is "tras-TEH-ve-ray", with the accent on the second syllable. Its logo is a golden head of a lion on a...
, placed two rooms at his disposal and assisted him in the work, in which they were afterwards joined by two other priests.
It was not long before the reputation of the school increased attendance to such an extent that Calasanctius moved it to a building within the city, where he took up residence with his companions. When two years later the school was again moved, this time to the Vestri Palace in the vicinity of Sant' Andrea della Valle, community life was inaugurated among the associates, and Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII , born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was Pope from 30 January 1592 to 3 March 1605.-Cardinal:...
showed his approval of the work by ordering the payment of a yearly allowance of 200 scudi for rent of the house. Criticism ensued which led to an inspection of the schools by Cardinals Antoniani and Baronius, which resulted satisfactorily, the approval of Pope Paul V
Pope Paul V
-Theology:Paul met with Galileo Galilei in 1616 after Cardinal Bellarmine had, on his orders, warned Galileo not to hold or defend the heliocentric ideas of Copernicus. Whether there was also an order not to teach those ideas in any way has been a matter for controversy...
was even more pronounced than that of his predecessor. In To the three usual vows they added a fourth, that of dedication to the Christian education of youth.
In 1612 the growth of the schools necessitated the purchase of the Torres Palace, and on 25 March 1617 it became an independent Congregation, numbering at that time fifteen priests, under Calasanz (who changed his name to Joseph of the Mother of God, thus inaugurating the practice of dropping the family name on entering the religious life), as their head; they received the religious habit. The most noted of his early companions were Gaspare Dragonette, who joined the saint at the age of 95 and died in 1628 allegedly at the age of 120; Bernardino Pannicola, later Bishop of Ravello
Ravello
Ravello is a town and comune situated above the Amalfi Coast in the province of Salerno, Campania, southern Italy, with has approximately 2,500 inhabitants. It is a popular tourist destination.-History:...
; Juan Garcia
Juan Garcia
Juan Garcia* Juan Tyrone Garcia, Famous Mexican Marial Artist and actor* Juan M. Garcia, U.S. politician, Texas State Representative* Juan Garcia Abrego drug lord, Gulf Cartel* Juan García Esquivel , Mexican band leader...
, afterwards general of the order; the learned Gellio Ghellini; Tomasso Vittoria; Viviandi de Colle; Melchiore Alacchi.
The congregation was made a religious order 18 November 1621 by a Brief
Brief
Brief or briefs may refer to:* A firefox extension for RSS* A letter* A papal letter less formal than a bull, sealed with the pope's signet ring or stamped with the device borne on this ring...
of Pope Gregory XV
Pope Gregory XV
Pope Gregory XV , born Alessandro Ludovisi, was pope from 1621, succeeding Paul V on 9 February 1621...
, under the name of Congregatio Clericorum regularium pauperum Matris Dei scholarum piarum. The term "Pauline" was dropped by this pope, although it had been part of the original name due to Pope Paul V
Pope Paul V
-Theology:Paul met with Galileo Galilei in 1616 after Cardinal Bellarmine had, on his orders, warned Galileo not to hold or defend the heliocentric ideas of Copernicus. Whether there was also an order not to teach those ideas in any way has been a matter for controversy...
. The Constitutions were approved 31 January 1622 by Gregory XV, and had all the privileges of the mendicant orders
Mendicant Orders
The mendicant orders are religious orders which depend directly on the charity of the people for their livelihood. In principle, they do not own property, either individually or collectively , believing that this was the most pure way of life to copy followed by Jesus Christ, in order that all...
conferred upon it, Calasanz being recognized as general superior, his four assistants being Blessed Pietro Casani, Viviano Vivani, Francesco Castelli and Paolo Ottonelli. On 7 May of the same year the novitiate of St. Onofrio was opened.
The pedagogical ideal of Saint Joseph Calasanctius of educating every child, his schools for the poor, his support of the heliocentric sciences of Galileo Galilei, the scandals and persecutions of some of his detractors, and his life of sanctity in the service of children and youth, carried with them the opposition of many among the governing classes in society and in the ecclesiastical hierarchy. In 1642, as a result of an internal crisis in the congregation and outside intrigues and pressures, Calasanz was briefly held and interrogated by the Inquisition
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
. Problems were exarcebated, however, by Father Stefano Cherubini, originally headmaster of the Piarist school in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
who systematically sexually abused the pupils in his care. Father Stefano made no secret about at least some of his transgressions, and Calasanz came to know of them. Unfortunately for Calasanz as administrator of the order, Father Stefano was the son and the brother of powerful papal lawyers; no one wanted to offend the Cherubini family. Father Stefano pointed out that if allegations of his abuse of his boys became public, actions would be taken to destroy the Piarists. Calasanz therefore promoted Father Stefano, to get him away from the scene of the crime, citing only his luxurious diet and failure to attend prayers. However, he knew what Cherubini had really been up to, and he wrote that the sole aim of the plan “... is to cover up this great shame in order that it does not come to the notice of our superiors”.
Superiors in Rome found out, but bowed to the same family ties that had bound Calasanz. Cherubini became visitor-general for the Piarists, able to conduct himself just as he wanted in any school he visited. The Piarists became entangled in church politics, and partially because they were associated with Galileo, were opposed by the Jesuits, who were more orthodox in astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
. (Galileo’s views also involved atomism, and were thought to be heretical regarding transubstantiation.) The support for Cherubini was broad enough that in 1643, he was made head of the order and the elderly Calasanz was pushed aside. Upon this appointment, Calasanz publicly documented Cherubini’s long pattern of child molestation, a pattern that he had known about for years. Even this did not block Cherubini’s appointment, but other members of the order were indignant about it, although they may have objected to Cherubini’s more overt shortcomings. With such dissention, the Vatican
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
took the easy course of suppressing the order. In 1646, the Order was deprived of its privileges by Pope Innocent X.
Calasanz, who died on August 25, 1648, was beatified in 1748, and canonized in 1767. He was declared "Universal Patron of all the Christian popular schools in the world" by Pope Pius XII, in 1948, because he had the glory of opening "the first free tuition, popular, public school in Europe" (Von Pastor) and had proclaimed the right to education of all children, fought for it, and was persecuted because of this.
The order was restored in 1656 by Pope Alexander VIII
Pope Alexander VIII
Pope Alexander VIII , born Pietro Vito Ottoboni, was Pope from 1689 to 1691.-Early life:Pietro Ottoboni was born of a noble Venetian family, and was the son of Marco Ottoboni, chancellor of the Republic of Venice...
who revived the congregation but without its earlier privileges, such as solemn vows granted by Gregory XV and added to the simple vows an oath of perseverance in the congregation.
The privileges of the Order were successively restored in 1660, 1669 and 1698. Pope Clement IX
Pope Clement IX
Pope Clement IX , born Giulio Rospigliosi, was Pope from 1667 to 1669.-Early life:Born Giulio Rospigliosi to a noble family of Pistoia, Grand Duchy of Tuscany, he was a pupil of the Jesuits. After receiving his doctorate in philosophy at the University of Pisa, he taught theology there...
in 1669, who restored the Piarists to the condition of regulars. But petitions from members who hesitated to bind themselves by solemn vows led Clement X in 1670 to issue a Brief which empowered the general of the Piarists to dispense from solemn vows laymen or clerics in minor orders, while ordained clerics in possession of a sufficient patrimony or a benefice were restored to the jurisdiction of their bishops.
The Piarists are exempt from episcopal jurisdiction and subject only to their general superior, who is elected every six years by the general chapter and with a general procurator with four assistants resides at Rome. In virtue of a Brief of Alexander VIII (1690) they ceased to be discalced
Discalced
Discalced is a term applied to those religious congregations of men and women, the members of which go entirely barefoot or wear sandals, with or without other covering for the feet. These congregations are often distinguished on this account from other branches of the same order...
.
The members are divided into professed, novices and lay brethren. The professed usually add the letters "Sch.P." or "S.P." after their name, to connote the name of the order, Scholarum Piarum.
Their habit is very similar to that of the Jesuits, a cassock closed in front and cincture with hanging bands on the left side, although they usually follow the local customs regarding clerical apparel. Their motto is Ad majus pietatis incrementum or Pietas et Litterae.
The order spread rapidly even during the founder's lifetime and in the early 20th century. The Piarists are found chiefly in Italy, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Latin America, Africa, India, and the Philippines. The order is currently present in 4 continents (Europe, Asia, Africa and America) and in 32 countries.
Education
The Piarists have won distinction in the sphere of education. Their first care is to provide free education for poor children, but they also receive pupils from the middle classes and the nobility, and since 1700 they have taught besides the elementary branches the liberal arts and sciences. At the time of their foundation in Poland and Lithuania, Clement XII formally commissioned them to teach the higher studies. Before the course of study was regulated by the state, a Piarist establishment contained nine classes: reading, writing, elementary mathematics, schola parva or Rudimentorum, schola Principiorum, Grammatica, Syntaxis, Humanitas or Poesis and Rhetorica. The plan of studies is uniform, as are also the textbooks, which to a great extent are compiled by members of the order. Like the Jesuits they devote special attention to the acting of Latin dramas by the students.A member of the order, Francis Hermann Czech (d. 1847), was very successful in his work of teaching the deaf and dumb.
One of the most famous Piarist, priest Stanisław Konarski, was the reformer of the Polish education system in the 18th century. To honor his faithful duty, the Polish king Stanisław August Poniatowski created the Sapere Auso medal.
The order's influence led to the subsequent establishment of many other congregations dedicated to education. There are eleven religious teaching orders now in existence that are based on Calasanz's ideas. The founder and order have also had influence on many great educators, such as St. Jean-Baptiste de la Salle
Jean-Baptiste de La Salle
Saint Jean-Baptiste de La Salle or John Baptist de La Salle was a priest, educational reformer, and founder of Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools...
in the eighteenth century, and St. John Bosco
John Bosco
John Bosco , was an Italian Catholic priest, educator and writer of the 19th century, who put into practice the convictions of his religion, dedicating his life to the betterment and education of street children, juvenile delinquents, and other disadvantaged youth and employing teaching methods...
, his great admirer, in the nineteenth century. The influence of the Pious Schools served as the model for State public school systems in some European countries. The order has educated many important figures in modern history, including a number of saints like St. John Neumann
John Neumann
Saint John Nepomucene Neumann, C.Ss.R., was a Redemptorist missionary to the United States who became the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia and the first American bishop to be canonized...
and St. Josemaría Escrivá, figures like Pope Pius IX, Victor Hugo, Mozart, Haydn, Schubert, Johann Mendel, and some Nobel Prize winners like George Hevesy
George de Hevesy
George Charles de Hevesy, Georg Karl von Hevesy, was a Hungarian radiochemist and Nobel laureate, recognized in 1943 for his key role in the development of radioactive tracers to study chemical processes such as in the metabolism of animals.- Early years :Hevesy György was born in Budapest,...
, George Olah
George Andrew Olah
George Andrew Olah is an American chemist. His research involves the generation and reactivity of carbocations via superacids. For this research, Olah was awarded a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1994...
.
Famous Piarists
Among the writers and learned men of the order are- the general Pietro Francesco of the Immaculate Conception, author of the "Polygraphia sacra seu Eleucidarium biblicum histor.-myst". (Augsburg, 1724);
- Philip of St. James, who edited the chief Sentences of the "Maxima Sanctorum Patrum Bibliotheca" (Lyons, 1719);
- Arn. Zeglicki, whose "Bibliotheca gnomico histor.-symbolic.-politica" was published at Warsaw in 1742;
- Alexis a S. Andrea Alexi (d. 1761), moral theologian;
- Antonius a Santo Justo, author of "Schola pia Aristotelico-Thomistica" (Saragossa, 1745);
- Stanisław Konarski (d. 1773), famous Polish pedagogue, reformer of education;
- Gottfrid a S. Elisabetha Uhlich (d. 1794), professor of heraldry and numismatics;
- Augustine Odobrina, who was actively associated with Gottfried LeibnizGottfried LeibnizGottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was a German philosopher and mathematician. He wrote in different languages, primarily in Latin , French and German ....
; - Adrian Rauch, historian;
- Josef Fengler (d. 1802), Bishop of Raab (now Győr);
- Remigius Döttler, professor of physics at the University of ViennaUniversity of ViennaThe University of Vienna is a public university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world...
; - Franz Lang, rector of the same university;
- the general Giovanni InghiramiGiovanni InghiramiGiovanni Inghirami was an Italian astronomer, and a Piarist religious. There is a valley on the moon named after him as well as a crater.-Life:...
(d. 1851), astronomer; - Johann Nepomuk EhrlichJohann Nepomuk EhrlichJohann Nepomuk Ehrlich was an Austrian theologian and philosopher who was born in Vienna.He initially studied philosophy in Krems , and from 1829 to 1834 studied philosophy and theology at the University of Vienna...
(d. 1864), professor of theology at the University of PragueCharles University in PragueCharles University in Prague is the oldest and largest university in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1348, it was the first university in Central Europe and is also considered the earliest German university...
; - A. Leonetti, author of a biography of Alexander VI (Bologna, 1880);
- Ernesto BalducciErnesto BalducciErnesto Balducci was an Italian Roman Catholic priest and peace activist.-Biographical notes:Balducci was born in Santa Fiora, Tuscany, Italy....
, author, philosopher and peace activist. - Filippo Cecchi;
- Karl Feyerfeil, mathematician;
- and Franz Kraus, philologian.
Many members of the order led lives of sanctity. In his Life of St. Joseph Calasanctius, Tosetti gives a list of 54 who between 1615 and 1756 died edifying deaths, among them Blessed Peter Casani (d. 1647), the first novice master of the order; the fourth superior general, Venerable Glicerius Landriani (d. 1618); Cosimo Chiara (d. 1688); Petrus Andreas Taccioni (d. 1672); the lay-brother Philip Bosio (d. 1662); Antonio Muscia (d. 1665); and Eusebius Amoretti (d. 1685). Saint Pompilius Maria Pirroti (d. 1766) was famous for being a saintly spiritual director; Blessed Faustino Miguez (d. 1925) was a famous educator, scientist, and founder of the Calasanzian Sisters in Spain; Blessed Dionisius Pamplona was a holy master of novices, pastor and rector in Buenos Aires and Peralta de la Sal, and was the first piarist killed in the fulfillment of his priesthood during the Spanish civil war (d. 1936). Other piarists known for their sanctity and pedagogical abilities with children in the last century have been Pedro Díez Gil (d. 1983) and Joaquín Erviti (d. 1999).
Sources and references
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13588a.htm- P. Helyot, Histoire des ordres religieuses (1715), iv. 281
- J. A. Seyffert, Ordensregeln der Piaristen (Halle, 1783)
- J. Schaller, Gedanken über die Ordensfassung der Piaristen (Prague, 1805)
- A. Heimbucher, Orden und Kongregationen (1897) ii. 271
- articles by O. Zockler in Herzog-Hauck's Real-encyklopadie für protestantische Theologie (1904), vol. xv.
- C. Kniel in Wetzer and Welte's Kirchen-lexikon (1895), vol. ix.
For Calasanz, see
- Timon-David, Vie de St Joseph Calasance (Marseilles, 1884)