St. Peter Canisius

Their story

Peter Canisius was born in 1521 in Nijmegen, in what is now the Netherlands. While studying in Cologne, he made a retreat with Blessed Peter Faber, one of the first companions of St. Ignatius of Loyola, and in 1543 he became the first Dutchman to join the Jesuits. Peter lived during the Protestant Reformation, when much of Germany and Central Europe was in religious turmoil and many Catholics knew little about their faith. For nearly fifty years he traveled, preached, taught, founded schools and colleges, advised bishops and rulers, and took part in the Council of Trent. He is often called the second apostle of Germany, after St. Boniface. Peter believed that people needed clear, simple teaching. He wrote three catechisms, for scholars, for students and for children, that were printed in hundreds of editions and translated into many languages. They helped generations of Catholics understand and live their faith. In a time of bitter arguments, he urged charity and patience toward those who disagreed. He died in Fribourg, Switzerland, in 1597 and was canonized and named a Doctor of the Church in 1925.