Whosoever receives this child in My Name receives Me

Today we commemorate St. Joseph Calasanctius, founder of the Order of Poor Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools or Piarists.

Born into a noble Spanish family as the youngest of five children, after completing classical studies he took up philosophy and jurisprudence, earning a doctorate in law, then completed his theological studies. While studying theology he overcame the wiles of a noble woman, preserving his virginity which he vowed to God. His father desired him to be a soldier and marry but God interfered by sending him a near fatal illness, during which he examined his life and discovered a religious vocation. After his ordination he was appointed secretary to the bishop, distinguishing himself in reviving zeal among the laity and discipline among the clergy, eventually becoming vicar-general. Once again God intervened in his life, calling him to renounce his inheritance and journey to Rome.

In Rome he found a protector in Cardinal Colonna, who retained him as an adviser and tutor for his nephew. Such was the saint's love for the works of mercy, he made the visit to the seven churches every night to honour the Roman martyrs and during several plagues had a holy rivalry with St Camillus in aiding the sick and burying the dead. Upon joining the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, St. Joseph dedicated himself to instructing neglected and homeless children, eventually opening the first free public school in Europe. With the support of the pope, the saint gathered together a small community at S. Andrea della Valle and laid the foundation of the Piarists. In 1612 the community moved to near S. Pantaleone, where St. Joseph remained for the rest of his life.

During its foundation, the Order faced many obstacles due to St. Joseph's friendship with Galileo, objections from the ruling class to the education of the poor and objections from other religious who feared the Piarists would take over their work. In later years the Order was torn apart by accusations of incompetence against St. Joseph and dissent. The saint was even led as a criminal through Rome and imprisoned. Despite being acquitted by a papal commission and reappointed superior, in 1646 Pope Innocent X dissolved the Piarists and placed its priests under their local bishops. Eight years after the saint's death, the Order was reorganized and after another thirteen years restored.

Dr Pius Parsch notes it was Christ who first revealed the sanctity of childhood, as the state closest to the kingdom of God. The Church continues to express this by her maternal care but above all in the sacraments and sacramentals. She is at pains to confer as soon as possible the sacrament of baptism. She seeks to call the child at an early age to confirmation and communion. She has numerous blessings for children, mothers during pregnancy, before childbirth, for sick children, for children to obtain the mercy of God and for children publicly presented in church. Above all it is the burial of infants which shows how much they are treasured, for there they are clothed in the white of innocence and honoured with the joyous Mass of the Angels.