Thomas Frederick Price
Encyclopedia
Thomas Frederick Price (August 19, 1860 - September 12, 1919) was the co-founder of the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America, better known as the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers
.
, North Carolina
, the eighth child of Alfred and Clarissa Bond Price. His parents were converts to the Catholic
faith, and he was raised as a devout Catholic in the midst of Southern apathy toward Catholicism. As a youth, Price was deeply influenced by the priests of his parish (St. Thomas, Wilmington, North Carolina). One priest who figured prominently in his early life was Bishop James Gibbons, newly appointed first Vicar Apostolic of North Carolina. Gibbons established his headquarters at St. Thomas Church; Price often served Mass for Gibbons and accompanied him on official trips throughout the Vicariate.
With his religious background (especially the deep devotion of his mother to the Blessed Virgin Mary), Price soon felt an attraction to the priesthood. He confided his interest to the parish priest, Fr. Mark Gross, and arrangements were made for him to enter St. Charles Seminary at Catonsville
, Maryland, in August, 1876. On route to the seminary by ship, Price escaped death in the shipwreck of the 'Rebecca Clyde'. Price attributed his survival to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. After the accident, he returned home until January 1877.
Price attended St. Charles' Seminary from January 1877, until his commencement on June 28, 1881. On September 1881, he entered St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 20, 1886, by Bishop Northrup at the pro-cathedral in Wilmington, North Carolina. (Both of Price's parents had died before his ordination.) Price was the first North Carolinian to be ordained to the priesthood, and he was assigned to missionary work in the eastern section of his native state.
, a famous Paulist preacher.
One of Price's tools for evangelization was the publication of the magazine Truth, which he began to edit and publish in April 1897.
A second tool was the establishment of Nazareth Orphanage in 1898. Price's plan was first to help the underprivileged of an area and thereby win the favor of the general population who would then be more inclined to listen to the message of the missioner.
Following the success of the Nazareth Orphanage, Price organized summer catechizing teams of seminarians. Finally, in 1902, Price opened a missionary training house at Nazareth. It was a preparatory seminary whose sole purpose was the education and formation of missioners for the home missions. It was called Regina Apostolorum. From 1902 to 1909, Price directed the Regina Apostolorum and acted as its primary teacher and spiritual director.
, of Boston, was developing the same idea in the pages of The Field Afar. At the Eucharistic Congress in Montreal
in 1910, the two priests met and began to formulate plans for the establishment of a seminary for foreign missioners. With the approval of the American hierarchy, the two priests traveled to Rome in June 1911, to receive final approval from Pope Pius X
for their project.
After meeting with the Holy Father, Price traveled to Lourdes for the first time. During his stay at Lourdes, Price had a spiritual experience that he refers to in his personal diary: he maintained a special devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes and to Bernadette Soubirous until his death.
Returning to the United States, Price and Walsh began the plans for the establishment of the new seminary and the foreign mission society. After a brief stay at Hawthorne, New York
, property was purchased at Ossining, New York
, for the site of the new foundation: the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (popularly known as Maryknoll).
, Francis Xavier Ford
, and Bernard F. Meyer) were ready for the foreign missions in China. On September 7, Price went with them as superior to the new mission. From the time of the foundation of Maryknoll, Price had understood that Walsh was the one capable of administering and directing the seminary itself. Price himself had always hoped to be chosen as one of Maryknoll's first missioners, and his dream was realized.
This group of first four American missioners in China arrived in Hong Kong in Oct 1918. They then settled down in Yeungkong (now called Yangjiang) on the South China Coast. Because of his age, Price had great difficulty learning the Chinese language.
Fr Price also suffered from physical ailments. Towards the latter part of 1919, Fr Price became seriously ill. As there were no adequate medical facilities in that area, he was brought to Hong Kong for hospitalization. After a trying trip, Fr Price arrived in the British Colony and was immediately taken to St. Paul’s Hospital in Causeway Bay, an institution conducted by the Sisters of St. Paul de Chartre. The long and arduous journey from Yeungkong to Hong Kong by primitive means of travel aggravated Fr. Price’s advanced and serious case of appendicitis. He entered the Hospital on 19 Aug 1919 and was operated on 8 Sept 1919. However, it was too late and on the 12 Sept, the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, he died as a result of a burst appendix. His body was buried in the priests’ plot in St. Michael’s Cemetery in Happy Valley, Hong Kong. The date of his death was rather significant for he had great devotion to Our Lady. He was only 59 years of age
.
A solemn requiem Mass was celebrated on the 18 Sept 1919 at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral for the happy repose of his priestly soul. At this ceremony, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong
, Fr Pozzoni, gave the last absolution and a large concourse of priests and Sisters attended
In 1923, a French missioner returned to France with Father Price's heart and gave it to St. Bernadette's religious order, the Sisters of Charity of Nevers
. It was placed in a niche in the wall near the saint's body in the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Nevers. This was Fr Price’s own request for he had a very great devotion to Sister Bernadette. Father Price's body was exhumed in 1936 and transferred to Maryknoll Cemetery in Ossining, New York. In 1955, his remains, together with those of Bishop James A. Walsh, were finally interred in the crypt below the Maryknoll Seminary Chapel.
Maryknoll
Maryknoll is a name shared by three organizations that are part of the Roman Catholic Church and whose joint focus is on the overseas mission activity of the Catholic Church in the United States...
.
Youth and Education
Price was born in WilmingtonWilmington, North Carolina
Wilmington is a port city in and is the county seat of New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. The population is 106,476 according to the 2010 Census, making it the eighth most populous city in the state of North Carolina...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, the eighth child of Alfred and Clarissa Bond Price. His parents were converts to the Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
faith, and he was raised as a devout Catholic in the midst of Southern apathy toward Catholicism. As a youth, Price was deeply influenced by the priests of his parish (St. Thomas, Wilmington, North Carolina). One priest who figured prominently in his early life was Bishop James Gibbons, newly appointed first Vicar Apostolic of North Carolina. Gibbons established his headquarters at St. Thomas Church; Price often served Mass for Gibbons and accompanied him on official trips throughout the Vicariate.
With his religious background (especially the deep devotion of his mother to the Blessed Virgin Mary), Price soon felt an attraction to the priesthood. He confided his interest to the parish priest, Fr. Mark Gross, and arrangements were made for him to enter St. Charles Seminary at Catonsville
Catonsville, Maryland
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:In 2010 Catonsville had a population of 41,567...
, Maryland, in August, 1876. On route to the seminary by ship, Price escaped death in the shipwreck of the 'Rebecca Clyde'. Price attributed his survival to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. After the accident, he returned home until January 1877.
Price attended St. Charles' Seminary from January 1877, until his commencement on June 28, 1881. On September 1881, he entered St. Mary's Seminary, Baltimore. He was ordained to the priesthood on June 20, 1886, by Bishop Northrup at the pro-cathedral in Wilmington, North Carolina. (Both of Price's parents had died before his ordination.) Price was the first North Carolinian to be ordained to the priesthood, and he was assigned to missionary work in the eastern section of his native state.
Early years of priesthood
Within the first year of his ordination, Price was appointed pastor of the few Catholics in and around the towns of Asheville and New Bern. Within a few years, he obtained permission from Bishop Haid, his ordinary, to begin a statewide evangelization program. His methods were influenced by Fr. Walter ElliottWalter Elliott
Walter Elliott was an American Roman Catholic priest and missionary, who authored the controversial 1891 book Life of Father Hecker, a biography of the missionary Isaac Hecker, which sparked the Americanism controversy.- External links :...
, a famous Paulist preacher.
One of Price's tools for evangelization was the publication of the magazine Truth, which he began to edit and publish in April 1897.
A second tool was the establishment of Nazareth Orphanage in 1898. Price's plan was first to help the underprivileged of an area and thereby win the favor of the general population who would then be more inclined to listen to the message of the missioner.
Following the success of the Nazareth Orphanage, Price organized summer catechizing teams of seminarians. Finally, in 1902, Price opened a missionary training house at Nazareth. It was a preparatory seminary whose sole purpose was the education and formation of missioners for the home missions. It was called Regina Apostolorum. From 1902 to 1909, Price directed the Regina Apostolorum and acted as its primary teacher and spiritual director.
Plans for a Foreign Mission Seminary
As time went on, Price began to emphasize more and more often in the pages of Truth the need of a seminary for the training of young American men for the foreign missions. At the same time, Rev. James Anthony WalshJames Anthony Walsh
James Anthony Walsh was the co-founder of Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers.- Background :The son of James Walsh and Hanna Shea, James Anthony was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts...
, of Boston, was developing the same idea in the pages of The Field Afar. At the Eucharistic Congress in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
in 1910, the two priests met and began to formulate plans for the establishment of a seminary for foreign missioners. With the approval of the American hierarchy, the two priests traveled to Rome in June 1911, to receive final approval from Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X
Pope Saint Pius X , born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 257th Pope of the Catholic Church, serving from 1903 to 1914. He was the first pope since Pope Pius V to be canonized. Pius X rejected modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, promoting traditional devotional practices and orthodox...
for their project.
After meeting with the Holy Father, Price traveled to Lourdes for the first time. During his stay at Lourdes, Price had a spiritual experience that he refers to in his personal diary: he maintained a special devotion to Our Lady of Lourdes and to Bernadette Soubirous until his death.
Returning to the United States, Price and Walsh began the plans for the establishment of the new seminary and the foreign mission society. After a brief stay at Hawthorne, New York
Hawthorne, New York
Hawthorne is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place located in the town of Mount Pleasant in Westchester County, New York. The population was 4,586 at the 2010 census.-History:...
, property was purchased at Ossining, New York
Ossining (village), New York
Ossining is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 25,060 at the 2010 census. As a village, it is located in the Town of Ossining.-Geography:Ossining borders the eastern shores of the widest part of the Hudson River....
, for the site of the new foundation: the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (popularly known as Maryknoll).
Foreign missions begin
Price made an around-the-country tour of America to gain support for the new endeavor. By 1918, three young priests (Frs. James Edward WalshJames Walsh (priest)
James Edward Walsh was an American Roman Catholic priest and a bishop in China. He was a member of the Maryknoll order, and a missionary in China....
, Francis Xavier Ford
Francis Xavier Ford
Francis Xavier Ford, M.M. was an American Roman Catholic bishop and Maryknoll missionary in China. Because of his torture by the Communist Chinese and death in prison in 1952, he is considered a martyr, and his cause for canonization is pending.-Early life and priesthood:Francis Xavier Ford was...
, and Bernard F. Meyer) were ready for the foreign missions in China. On September 7, Price went with them as superior to the new mission. From the time of the foundation of Maryknoll, Price had understood that Walsh was the one capable of administering and directing the seminary itself. Price himself had always hoped to be chosen as one of Maryknoll's first missioners, and his dream was realized.
This group of first four American missioners in China arrived in Hong Kong in Oct 1918. They then settled down in Yeungkong (now called Yangjiang) on the South China Coast. Because of his age, Price had great difficulty learning the Chinese language.
Fr Price also suffered from physical ailments. Towards the latter part of 1919, Fr Price became seriously ill. As there were no adequate medical facilities in that area, he was brought to Hong Kong for hospitalization. After a trying trip, Fr Price arrived in the British Colony and was immediately taken to St. Paul’s Hospital in Causeway Bay, an institution conducted by the Sisters of St. Paul de Chartre. The long and arduous journey from Yeungkong to Hong Kong by primitive means of travel aggravated Fr. Price’s advanced and serious case of appendicitis. He entered the Hospital on 19 Aug 1919 and was operated on 8 Sept 1919. However, it was too late and on the 12 Sept, the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, he died as a result of a burst appendix. His body was buried in the priests’ plot in St. Michael’s Cemetery in Happy Valley, Hong Kong. The date of his death was rather significant for he had great devotion to Our Lady. He was only 59 years of age
.
A solemn requiem Mass was celebrated on the 18 Sept 1919 at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral for the happy repose of his priestly soul. At this ceremony, Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong
Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong
The Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong is a Latin Rite ordinary diocese of the Catholic Church headed by Bishop John Tong Hon. Though the bishop is subject to the Roman Pontiff, he is not the vicar of the latter: he governs it in his own name. The diocese takes its name from the see city, the community...
, Fr Pozzoni, gave the last absolution and a large concourse of priests and Sisters attended
In 1923, a French missioner returned to France with Father Price's heart and gave it to St. Bernadette's religious order, the Sisters of Charity of Nevers
Sisters of Charity of Nevers
The Sisters of Charity of Nevers , also known as Sisters of Charity and Christian Instruction, is a religious order founded in 1680 in Nevers, Nièvre department, France, at the instigation of Jean-Baptiste Delaveyne. The motherhouse, the convent at St...
. It was placed in a niche in the wall near the saint's body in the Motherhouse of the Sisters of Nevers. This was Fr Price’s own request for he had a very great devotion to Sister Bernadette. Father Price's body was exhumed in 1936 and transferred to Maryknoll Cemetery in Ossining, New York. In 1955, his remains, together with those of Bishop James A. Walsh, were finally interred in the crypt below the Maryknoll Seminary Chapel.