St. Joseph Calasanz

Their story

Joseph Calasanz was born in 1557 in Aragon, Spain, the youngest child of a noble family. He studied law and theology and was ordained a priest in 1583. After serving in several dioceses in Spain, he went to Rome in 1592, hoping for a position in the Church there. In the poor neighborhoods of Rome, Joseph saw crowds of children who received no education at all and were growing up in ignorance and poverty. He tried to persuade others to teach them, but no one would take on the task. So in 1597 he opened a school himself in two rooms of a parish church. It was free for the poor, and it is considered the first free public school in Europe. The school quickly grew, and Joseph gathered teachers who eventually became a religious order, the Piarists, devoted to educating children, especially the poor. He was a friend and supporter of the scientist Galileo. Joseph's last years were full of suffering. Jealous members of his own order spread lies about him, and at the age of 85 he was removed as its leader. In 1646 the order was even suppressed. Joseph bore it all with remarkable patience and forgiveness, trusting that God would restore his work. He died on August 25, 1648, at the age of 90. Not long after, the order was restored, and it still runs schools around the world. He was canonized in 1767 and is the patron of Catholic schools.