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Cheerful Ascetic: The Life of Francis Xavier Seelos, C.Ss.R
Meet the CHEERFUL ASCETIC, Father Francis Xavier Seelos, a 19th century Redemptorist missionary priest. Many miracles are attributed to Father Seelos' intercession, both during his life and after his death in 1867. His life and virtues have been approved by the church as heroic and he was the only North American to be declared Blessed in the Jubilee Year 2000. This revised and updated second edition captures the totality of Father Seelos' piety and personality and links us to a Powerful Intercessor that we can realistically identify with and hopefully emulate.
- GenresReligion
480 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2002
About the author
Michael J. Curley
18 books1 followerLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. This profile may contain books from multiple authors of this name.
Other authors publishing under this name are:
Michael J. Curley, Archbishop of Baltimore and Washington
Other authors publishing under this name are:
Michael J. Curley, Archbishop of Baltimore and Washington
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Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review
January 1, 2013
“If the Americans were as expert in spiritual matters as they are in business affairs, all of them would be saints.” ~Blessed Seelos
If you are looking for a quick introduction to life of Fr. Francis Xavier Seelos, CHEERFUL ASCETIC, by Father Michael Churley , C.Ss.R. is not the biography you want. On the other hand, if you desire detailed information about mid-nineteenth Catholic American religious life, especially among the Redemptorist order, or want to develop a deeper appreciation of this saintly, self-effacing, accessible, yet largely unknown priest, you will find a treasure trove in this book.
Fr. Churley’s two great loves (after God) are history and the Redemptorist order, or the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, founded in 1732 by St. Alphonsus Liguori, “to strive to imitate the virtues and examples of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer consecrating themselves especially to the preaching of the word of God to the poor” – according to their own rule. Their labors consist principally in missions, retreats, and similar exercises.
Fr. Seelos, the subject of this biography, was a missionary from Germany to America during the mid-nineteenth century. He lived and traveled throughout the eastern half of our country from his ordination in 1844 to his death from yellow fever in 1867 serving as assistant pastor, pastor, prefect for seminarians, superior of his local religious community and roving speaker at parish missions. Once his name was proposed as a candidate for bishop of Pittsburgh.
This extensively and painstakingly researched account of his life undertakes the unenviable task of trying to prove a reticent and genuinely humble man’s sanctity without the advantage of any obvious acts of heroism or grandeur. Showiness and careerism were not Fr. Seelos’s way. Nor was it in his nature to ‘protect his own best interests’ as the saying is usually applied. His popularity among his students, parishioners and penitents was repeatedly and consistently attested to and based not on weakness and leniency, but on his uncommon common sense, ready willingness to listen and abiding charity to all. Yet some peers envied him and some superiors misunderstood or mismanaged his rare and invaluable, God-given gifts. Fr. Seelos never protested disagreeable consequences which affected only him. He saw all such outcomes as Divine favors. He preferred to have less responsible positions allowing for more time for spiritual direction through his extensive correspondence, hearing confessions and availability to those who needed his assistance.
CHEERFUL ASCETIC – The Life of Francis Xavier Seelos, C.Ss.R. is not a quick or light read. I set it aside many times for easier books and yet I was always glad when I returned to it and worked at it again. As a source of inspiration on the small but important ways we can reflect the Gospel message, Fr. Seelos and this biography were rich.
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'Met' Father on the Feast of St. Cecilia, November 22 ... well was really struck by something about his larger-than-life-sized statue in a chapel in St. Louis called Saint Mary of Victories which can be seen by scrolling down here. My sister gave me this book about him the next day.
If you are looking for a quick introduction to life of Fr. Francis Xavier Seelos, CHEERFUL ASCETIC, by Father Michael Churley , C.Ss.R. is not the biography you want. On the other hand, if you desire detailed information about mid-nineteenth Catholic American religious life, especially among the Redemptorist order, or want to develop a deeper appreciation of this saintly, self-effacing, accessible, yet largely unknown priest, you will find a treasure trove in this book.
Fr. Churley’s two great loves (after God) are history and the Redemptorist order, or the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, founded in 1732 by St. Alphonsus Liguori, “to strive to imitate the virtues and examples of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer consecrating themselves especially to the preaching of the word of God to the poor” – according to their own rule. Their labors consist principally in missions, retreats, and similar exercises.
Fr. Seelos, the subject of this biography, was a missionary from Germany to America during the mid-nineteenth century. He lived and traveled throughout the eastern half of our country from his ordination in 1844 to his death from yellow fever in 1867 serving as assistant pastor, pastor, prefect for seminarians, superior of his local religious community and roving speaker at parish missions. Once his name was proposed as a candidate for bishop of Pittsburgh.
This extensively and painstakingly researched account of his life undertakes the unenviable task of trying to prove a reticent and genuinely humble man’s sanctity without the advantage of any obvious acts of heroism or grandeur. Showiness and careerism were not Fr. Seelos’s way. Nor was it in his nature to ‘protect his own best interests’ as the saying is usually applied. His popularity among his students, parishioners and penitents was repeatedly and consistently attested to and based not on weakness and leniency, but on his uncommon common sense, ready willingness to listen and abiding charity to all. Yet some peers envied him and some superiors misunderstood or mismanaged his rare and invaluable, God-given gifts. Fr. Seelos never protested disagreeable consequences which affected only him. He saw all such outcomes as Divine favors. He preferred to have less responsible positions allowing for more time for spiritual direction through his extensive correspondence, hearing confessions and availability to those who needed his assistance.
CHEERFUL ASCETIC – The Life of Francis Xavier Seelos, C.Ss.R. is not a quick or light read. I set it aside many times for easier books and yet I was always glad when I returned to it and worked at it again. As a source of inspiration on the small but important ways we can reflect the Gospel message, Fr. Seelos and this biography were rich.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
'Met' Father on the Feast of St. Cecilia, November 22 ... well was really struck by something about his larger-than-life-sized statue in a chapel in St. Louis called Saint Mary of Victories which can be seen by scrolling down here. My sister gave me this book about him the next day.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review