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The Piarists (), officially named the Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools (), abbreviated SchP, is a
religious order A religious order is a subgroup within a larger confessional community with a distinctive high-religiosity lifestyle and clear membership. Religious orders often trace their lineage from revered teachers, venerate their Organizational founder, ...
of
clerics regular In the canon law of the Catholic Church, clerics regular or clerks regular are clerics (mostly priests) who are members of a religious order under a rule of life (regular). Clerics regular differ from canons regular in that they devote themselves ...
of the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
founded in 1617 by Spanish priest Joseph Calasanz. It is the oldest religious order dedicated to education, and the main occupation of the Piarist fathers is teaching children and youth, the primary goal being to provide free education for poor children. The Piarist practice was to become a model for numerous later Catholic societies devoted to teaching, while some state-supported public school systems in Europe also followed their example. The Piarists have had a considerable success in the education of physically or mentally disabled persons. Notable individuals who have taught at Piarist schools include
Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...
, Goya,
Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...
,
Gregor Mendel Gregor Johann Mendel Order of Saint Augustine, OSA (; ; ; 20 July 1822 – 6 January 1884) was an Austrian Empire, Austrian biologist, meteorologist, mathematician, Augustinians, Augustinian friar and abbot of St Thomas's Abbey, Brno, St. Thom ...
,
Tadeusz Kościuszko Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko (; 4 or 12 February 174615 October 1817) was a Polish Military engineering, military engineer, statesman, and military leader who then became a national hero in Poland, the United States, Lithuania, and ...
, and
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician. His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...
.


History


Joseph Calasanz

Joseph Calasanz, a native of Peralta de la Sal in the Spanish province of
Huesca Huesca (; ) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Aragon between 1096 and 1118. It is also the capital of the Spanish Huesca (province), ...
in
Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...
, was born on 11 September 1557. The youngest of eight children, he studied at
Lleida Lleida (, ; ; '' see below'') is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital and largest town in Segrià county, the Ponent region and the province of Lleida. Geographically, it is located in the Catalan Central Depression. It ...
and Alcalá, and after his ordination to the priesthood on 17 December 1583 by the Bishop of Urgel he moved to Rome (1592) where he organized, in 1607, a brotherhood. In November 1597, he opened the first free public school in Europe at Santa Dorotea. While it was considered a school of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, it was unique from the 22 other schools of the Confraternity, which just taught Catechism classes. The school opened by Calasanz also taught secular subjects. The Pious Schools expanded and were financially supported by Popes Clement VIII () and
Paul V Pope Paul V (; ) (17 September 1552 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a mem ...
(

On 6 March 1617, the Piarist Fathers became an independent congregation called the "Pauline Congregation of the Poor of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools" when Pope Paul V issued his brief "Ad ea per quae". On 25 March 1617, Calasanz and fourteen other priests became the first members of the new community when they received the religious habit."About the Piarist Fathers", The Piarist Fathers' Appalachian Mission
/ref> Calasanz was placed in charge of the new congregation, and he changed his name to "Joseph of the Mother of God", thus inaugurating the practice of dropping the family name on entering the religious life."History of the Order", The Piarist Fathers
The new congregation was the first religious institute dedicated to teaching. To the three usual vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, the new congregation added a fourth vow, that of dedication to the Christian education of youth, especially of the poor. Soon the Pious Schools began to expand outside of Rome. In June 1616, Calasanz opened a foundation of the Pious Schools at
Tusculum Tusculum is a ruined Classical Rome, Roman city in the Alban Hills, in the Latium region of Italy. Tusculum was most famous in Roman times for the many great and luxurious patrician country villas sited close to the city, yet a comfortable dist ...
() in the summer resort of Frascati. The school, which is still in operation, opened in August 1616, and Calasanz brought to it a painting of the Mother of God, Our Lady of Grace. He then opened schools in Narni (1618), which is located 43 miles (70 Kilometers) from Rome and is where he completed writing his Constitutions, Moricone (1619), Magliano (1620), and Norcia, Carcare, and Fonano (all 1621). The congregation received papal approval on 18 November 1621 by a brief of
Pope Gregory XV Pope Gregory XV (; ; 9 January 1554 – 8 July 1623), born Alessandro Ludovisi, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 February 1621 until his death in 1623. He is notable for founding the Congregation for the ...
, under the name of ''Congregatio Clericorum Regularium Pauperum Matris Dei Scholarum Piarum''. The term "Pauline" was omitted by this pope, although it had been part of the original name due to
Pope Paul V Pope Paul V (; ) (17 September 1552 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a mem ...
. Gregory XV approved the constitutions on 31 January 1622, and the Piarists received all the privileges of the
mendicant orders Mendicant orders are primarily certain Catholic Church, Catholic religious orders that have vowed for their male members a lifestyle of vow of poverty, poverty, traveling, and living in urban areas for purposes of preacher, preaching, Evangelis ...
, with Calasanz recognized as general superior, his four assistants being Blessed Pietro Casani, Viviano Vivani, Francesco Castelli and Paolo Ottonelli. On 7 May of the same year the novitiate of St. Onofrio opened. The Order began growing rapidly. It soon expanded into
Liguria Liguria (; ; , ) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is roughly coextensive with ...
, and between 1621 and 1632, established schools at Carcare, Savona, two at
Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
, and a short-lived one at Carmagnola. The first Piarist province was established in 1623 in Liguria. The Roman Province would be formally established in 1626. Meanwhile, in Rome, Cardinal Tonti (1566-1622), the titular Archbishop of Nazareth, bequeathed a property to St. Joseph, which opened in 1630 with 8 students as . It soon became the flagship school of the Pious Schools in Rome. There was a failed attempt in 1625 to establish schools in Naples, but after another attempt, the province of Naples would be established in 1627. Between 1630 and 1641), several schools were opened in Tuscany. They were closed briefly following an outbreak of the plague, but they were soon reopened, and Tuscany would become a province in 1630. One of the most famous of these schools was the school at Abacus, which emphasized mathematics and science. It also offered an Algebra course for adults, and it opened a School for Nobles. The four Italian provinces were to merge into a single Italian Province in 2007. aint Joseph Calasanctius.Madrid: Paseo De La Direccion 5, 17 July 1974/ref> Outside Italy, the Pious schools expanded into Central Europe. Cardinal Dietrichstein invited the Pious Schools to come to Moravia, which is now part of the Czech Republic. On 2 April 1631, the Laurentine School was opened in Nikolsburg (
Mikulov Mikulov (; ) is a town in Břeclav District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,600 inhabitants. From the 16th to the 19th century, it was the cultural centre of the Jewish community of Moravia. The historic centr ...
) with eight teachers and nine students. Within a week the number of students increased to sixteen, and within a month there were over 100 students. In 1634, a novitiate was opened in
Lipník nad Bečvou Lipník nad Bečvou (; ) is a town in Přerov District in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 8,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reser ...
, and in 1640 a school was opened in
Litomyšl Litomyšl (; ) is a town in Svitavy District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 10,000 inhabitants. It is a former bishopric and Latin Catholic titular see. Litomyšl is known for the château-type castle complex of the Lit ...
in Bohemia. The first Piarist province established outside of Italy was the province of Bohemia and Moravia, which was established in 1634. Jerzy Ossoliński was instrumental in bringing the Pious Schools into Poland and Hungary, which soon became the countries with the two largest number of Piarist Foundations in Central Europe, with 28 foundations in Poland and 29 in Hungary. In 1642, King Ladislaus IV invited the Pious Schools to establish a foundation in
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
, followed by a school in Podolinec. The Piarist Province of Germany and Poland was established in 1642. Prince Stanisław Lubomirski introduced the Order into Poland, and he is considered the creator of the province of Hungary, which came about from the school in Podolinec, located on the boundary line with Poland. The first Piarist school was opened in Hungary in 1642. The Pious Schools next expanded to the two major islands off the coast of Italy where they opened houses in Palermo and Messina in Sicily and then opened two houses at Cagliari in Sardinia. There was one attempt to open a house in the homeland of the founder during his lifetime. In 1637, the order tried to open a house in Guissona in Spain, but the first actual house to open in Spain opened forty years later, in 1677, in Barbastro. The first Spanish province was the province of Aragon, which was established in 1742. The Province of Catalonia was established in 1751, as was the province of Austria. Three more provinces would be added in Spain, one in each of the next three centuries: Castile (1753), Valencia (1833), and Vasconia (1933). Added to them was the General Delegation of Spain in 1929. rdo Scholarum Piarum Catalogus Generalis. Apud Curiam Generalem, Piazza de' Massimi 4, 1 September 2014 The pedagogical ideal of Calasanz of educating every child, his schools for the poor, his support of the heliocentric sciences of
Galileo Galilei Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642), commonly referred to as Galileo Galilei ( , , ) or mononymously as Galileo, was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a poly ...
, the scandals and persecutions of some of his detractors, and his life of sanctity in the service of children and youth, carried with them the opposition of many among the governing classes in society and in the ecclesiastical hierarchy. In 1642, as a result of an internal crisis in the Order and outside intrigues and pressures, Calasanz was briefly held and interrogated by the
Inquisition The Inquisition was a Catholic Inquisitorial system#History, judicial procedure where the Ecclesiastical court, ecclesiastical judges could initiate, investigate and try cases in their jurisdiction. Popularly it became the name for various med ...
. According to Karen Liebreich, problems were exacerbated by Father Stefano Cherubini, originally headmaster of the Piarist school in
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
who sexually abused the pupils in his care. Father Stefano made no secret about at least some of his transgressions, and Calasanz came to know of them. Unfortunately for Calasanz as administrator of the order, Cherubini was the son and the brother of powerful papal lawyers; no one wanted to offend the Cherubini family. Cherubini pointed out that if allegations of his abuse of his boys became public, actions would be taken to destroy the Piarists. Calasanz, therefore, promoted Cherubini, to get him away from the scene of the crime, citing as the motive only his luxurious diet and failure to attend prayers. However, he knew what Cherubini had really been up to, and he wrote that the sole aim of the plan "... is to cover up this great shame in order that it does not come to the notice of our superiors."Karen Liebreich, ''Fallen Order:Intrigue, Heresy and Scandal'', London, 2005 Superiors in Rome may have suspected, but it seems that they also bowed to the same family ties that had bound Calasanz. Cherubini became visitor-general for the Piarists, able to conduct himself just as he wanted in any school he visited. The Piarists became entangled in Church politics, and partially because they were associated with Galileo, were opposed by the
Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
. (Galileo's views also involved
atomism Atomism () is a natural philosophy proposing that the physical universe is composed of fundamental indivisible components known as atoms. References to the concept of atomism and its Atom, atoms appeared in both Ancient Greek philosophy, ancien ...
, and was thought to have heretical ramifications regarding
transubstantiation Transubstantiation (; Greek language, Greek: μετουσίωσις ''metousiosis'') is, according to the teaching of the Catholic Church, "the change of the whole substance of sacramental bread, bread into the substance of the Body of Christ and ...
.) The support for Cherubini was broad enough that in 1643, he was made the head of the order and the elderly Calasanz was pushed aside. Upon this appointment, Calasanz publicly documented Cherubini's long pattern of child molestation, a pattern that he had known about for years. Even this did not block Cherubini's appointment, but other members of the order were indignant about it, although they may have objected to Cherubini's more overt shortcomings. With such dissension, the
Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...
took the easy course of suppressing the order. In 1646, the order was deprived of its privileges by Pope Innocent X, but the order was restored ten years later by
Pope Alexander VII Pope Alexander VII (; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death, in May 1667. He began his career as a vice- papal legate, and he held various d ...
(). Joseph Calasanz, died on 25 August 1648. Beatified in 1748 and
canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sa ...
in 1767, he was declared "Universal Patron of all the Christian popular schools in the world" by
Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII (; born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli; 2 March 18769 October 1958) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death on 9 October 1958. He is the most recent p ...
in 1948, because he had the glory of opening "the first free tuition, popular, public school in Europe" and had proclaimed the right to education of all children, fought for it, and was persecuted because of this.


Expansion of the order

The Piarists first established a community outside the continent of Europe in 1767 when the Piarist Father Basilio Sancho was appointed as the 17th Archbishop of Manila in 1765, having been recommended for the position by King Charles III. Sancho and four other Piarists arrived in Manila in March 1767. The four other Piarists helped Sancho plan the First Provincial Synod of Manila. Sancho established a diocesan seminary in which the first native diocesan priests were trained. The Piarists worked in the seminary as well as at St. Joseph's School, which had previously been run by the Jesuits. Following Sancho's death in 1787, the Piarists returned to Spain. They wouldn't return to the Philippines until 1995, and they now have communities on the islands of Luzon, Cebu, and Mindanao. Two attempts were made to establish a Piarist presence in the Caribbean in the 19th century. Following the Spanish War of Independence, which ended in 1812, many Piarists left Spain and went to Cuba, where they worked in various ministries. Bishop Anthony M. Claret asked the Piarists to establish a college for the formation of Cuban teachers in Guanabacoa, and the first canonical foundation established in the Americas was in Cuba in 1857. In 1941, the first Piarist Cuban novitiate was opened in Guanabacoa, all previous Cuban novices having gone to Spain for their novitiate. In 1897, the Piarists established the first teacher's college in Puerto Rico in Santurce, but the fathers returned to Spain following the Spanish–American War. The Piarists would return to Puerto Rico in June 1956 to work at Our Lady of Montserrat parish in Salinas and at The Catholic University of Puerto Rico in 1960. The parish was quite large with 20,000 parishioners, and after the Piarists left the parish in 1961, eight Piarists began teaching Cuban refugee children. The Provincial Delegation of New York and Puerto Rico was erected on 30 August 1960, and the House of Ponce was canonically established on 26 November 1960. The Piarists opened a community in San Juan in 1966. Meanwhile, the Piarists from Spain began establishing communities throughout Central and South America, establishing vice-provinces in Colombia (1956), Brasil (1958), Central America (1960), Chile (1960), and Venezuela (1960). The first Piarist Province in the Americas was established in 1964 in Argentina, which was followed by the establishment of the Piarist Province of the United States (1975) and Mexico (1990). The Piarists established a presence in Bolivia in 1992, which became a Vicariate in 2007. In 2017, the Piarists opened a House in Peru. The Piarists established their first school in the United States in New Orleans in the early 20th century, but it did not last long. They would try again in New Orleans in 1963, but after one year they departed. It would not be until the beginning of World War II that they would succeed in establishing a foundation in the United States. In the summer of 1940, a Spanish Piarist, Fr. Enrique Pobla went to Los Angeles to examine the possibilities for a foundation. In October 1944, Archbishop John Cantwell of Los Angeles offered the Piarists the care of St. Martha Parish in Vernon, and Fr. Pobla celebrated his first Mass at the parish on the Saturday before the Solemnity of Christ the King. In May 1947, the Piarists were offered the care of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Pasadena, and in 1951, the Archbishop entrusted to them Mary Help of Christians Parish in east Los Angeles. The rectory was too small, so in 1953, they purchased a house near the parish for $15,500. It was the first property owned by the Piarists in California. In 1955, Fr. Angel Torra became the first Piarist assigned to teach at a diocesan high school. In 1960, Cardinal McIntyre entrusted them with St. Bernard High School in Playa del Rey.Jose P. Burgues,"The Piarist Fathers in the U.S.A. 60 Years of Service", Miami, 2007 Following the second world war, Piarists from eastern Europe were sent to the United States, with the first four arriving in Los Angeles in 1949, but the archbishop said that he did not have work for them to do since they could not speak English well. Meanwhile, Bishop John O'Hara of Buffalo was contacted by two different Piarists and said that he would welcome the Piarists into his diocese. Father Joseph Batori arrived in New York City on 16 June 1949, and after a couple of days left for Lackawanna, where there were many Hungarian refugees living in the area. He was assigned to St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, where he celebrated daily Mass and assisted on weekends, and he taught Latin at Bishop Timon, a diocesan high school. More Hungarian Piarists soon arrived, and after the summer of 1950, Bishop O'Hara offered the Piarists the use of a farmhouse in Lackawanna. By the end of the year, there were eleven Piarists (nine from Hungary and two from Poland) living in the farmhouse as a community, and they called themselves "The Founding Fathers." Father Batori found a house that he liked in Derby, that had been designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, and in 1951, it became the first canonical Piarist house. On 8 May 1954, Father Louis Kovari became the first Piarist ordained in the United States. That same year, the Piarists established a House of Studies in Washington, D.C., and the following year, the Piarists bought the former Lea Estate in Devon, PA and opened Devon Preparatory School in it the following year. The following year, the Piarists opened a School for Gifted Children in Buffalo. In 1961, Bishop Coleman Carroll of Miami offered the Piarists Cardinal Gibbons High School, which had just been built in Fort Lauderdale. The Province of the U.S.A. was established in 1975, and in 2011 it merged with the Vice Province of New York and Puerto Rico to become the province of the United States and Puerto Rico. In 1990, Back in New York City, in 1953, the Piarists were given permission to reside in the rectory of St. Nicholas Church, and in 1957, Cardinal Spellman gave his permission to create a canonical house. The Piarists bought the building, and they owned it until 1978 when they were entrusted with Annunciation Parish in upper Manhattan. The Piarists were entrusted with St. Helena Parish and St. Helena School in the Bronx in 2014. Africa is the most recentcontinent on which the Piarists established communities and schools. The Piarists first went to Africa in 1963, establishing an apostolic mission in Senegal, which became a vice-province in 1997 and then part of the West African province in 2013, along with Guinea-Gabon. They began working in Equatorial Guinea in 1970, and in 1990, some priests from Poland began working in the Cameroon, which became a vicariate in 2000, a vice-province in 2007, and the Central African province in 2013. The two newest African countries in which the Piarists opened communities are the Congo in 2014 and Mozambique in 2017.


Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools

The order was restored in 1656 by Pope Alexander VIII who revived the congregation but without its earlier privileges, such as solemn vows granted by Gregory XV and added to the simple vows an oath of perseverance in the congregation. In addition to the usual three vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. The privileges of the order were successively restored in 1660, 1669 and 1698. In 1669,
Pope Clement IX Pope Clement IX (; ; 28 January 1600 – 9 December 1669), born Giulio Rospigliosi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 20 June 1667 to his death in December 1669. Giulio Rospigliosi was born into the noble Ro ...
restored the Piarists to the condition of regulars. The Piarists are exempt from episcopal jurisdiction and subject only to their general superior, who is elected every six years by the general chapter. A general procurator with four assistants resides at Rome. In virtue of a brief of Alexander VIII (1690) they ceased to be
discalced A discalced (/dɪsˈkælst/, ''dis-KALST'') religious order is one whose members go barefoot or wear sandals. These orders are often distinguished on this account from other branches of the same order. The custom of going unshod was introduced int ...
. The members are divided into professed, novices and lay brethren. Their habit is very similar to that of the Jesuits, a cassock closed in front and a cincture with hanging bands on the left side, although they usually follow the local customs regarding clerical apparel. Their two mottos are ''Ad majus pietatis incrementum'' ("For the greater growth of piety") and ''Pietas et Litterae'' (“Piety and learning"). Today, there are over 1,400 Piarist religious found chiefly in Italy, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Latin America, West Africa, India, and the Philippines. There is also a growing number of Piarist lay associates. The Order is currently present on five continents (Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, and South America) and in 36 countries. In 2017, the Order will celebrate the 400th anniversary of the establishment of the religious community on 25 March 1617, as well as the 250th anniversary of the canonization of Saint Joseph Calasanz, which took place on 17 July 1767. Pope Francis imparted a special Apostolic Blessing on 27 November 2016, the opening day of the Jubilee Year. He also declared that a special Plenary Indulgence would be granted in all churches, chapels, shrines, and parishes where the Piarist Fathers are present to all of the faithful on the occasion of a jubilee celebration, provided they have fulfilled the other necessary requirements to gain the indulgence.


Education

Before the course of study was regulated by the state, a Piarist establishment contained nine classes: reading, writing, elementary mathematics, ''schola parva'' or ''rudimentorum'', ''schola principiorum'', grammatica, syntaxis, humanitas or poesis and rhetorica. One of the most famous Piarists, priest Stanisław Konarski, was the reformer of the Polish education system in the 18th century. To honor his faithful duty, the Polish King
Stanisław August Poniatowski Stanisław II August (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, and as Stanisław August Poniatowski (), was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuani ...
created the ''Sapere Auso'' medal. The order's influence led to the subsequent establishment of many other congregations dedicated to education. There are eleven religious teaching orders now in existence that are based on Calasanz's ideas. The founder and order have also had influence on many great educators, such as Saint Jean-Baptiste de la Salle in the eighteenth century, and Saint John Bosco, his great admirer, in the nineteenth century. The influence of the pious schools served as the model for state public school systems in some European countries. The order has educated many important figures in modern history, including a number of saints like Saint John Neumann and Saint Josemaría Escrivá, figures like Pope Pius IX, Victor Hugo, Haydn, Schubert, Johann Mendel. Piarist Gymnasium in Budapest is noted for a number of exceptional students, two of them
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...
winners,
George de Hevesy George Charles de Hevesy (born György Bischitz; ; ; 1 August 1885 – 5 July 1966) was a Hungarian radiochemist and Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate, recognized in 1943 for his key role in the development of radioactive tracers to study ch ...
and George Olah.


Motto

The motto of the Piarist Fathers is "Pietas et Litterae" (Piety and Learning), and at the bottom of most Piarist documents are the initials "AMPI," which when translated mean "For the Glory of God and the Service of our Neighbor.” The special Piarist motto for the 400th anniversary jubilee year in 2017 is "to educate, announce, and to transform.".Piarist Fathers USA Province
/ref>


Saints, Blesseds, and other holy people

Saints * Joseph Calasanz (11 September 1557 – 25 August 1648), founder, canonized on 16 July 1767 * Pompilio Maria Pirrotti di San Nicola (29 September 1710 – 15 July 1766), priest, canonized on 19 March 1934 * Manuel Míguez González (Faustino of the Incarnation) (24 March 1831 - 8 March 1925), founder of the founder, Calasanzian Institute, Daughters of the Divine Shepherdess, canonized on 15 October 2017 Blesseds * Pietro Casani della Natività di Maria (8 September 1570 – 17 October 1647), priest and friend of Joseph Calasanz, beatified on 1 October 1995 * Dionisio Pamplona Polo of Saint Barnabas and 12 Companions (died 1936), Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War, beatified on 1 October 1995 Venerables * Glicerio Landriani (1 March 1588 - 15 February 1618), cleric, declared Venerable on 31 May 1931 * Pedro Díez Gil of the Virgin of Mount Carmel (14 April 1913 - 14 December 1983), priest, declared Venerable on 20 May 2023 Servants of God * Raffaele (Celestino) Zini (16 December 1825 - 19 April 1892), Archbishop of Siena and founder of the Calsanzian Sisters, declared as Servant of God on 31 July 2004 * Salvador Lizana Torres of the Virgin of Los Pueyos and 25 Companions (died 1936 to 1938), Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War, declared as Servant of God on 21 March 2006 * Antonio Rodríguez Bañuls of Our Lady of the Abandoned and 6 Companions (died 1936), Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War, declared as Servant of God on 5 February 2001 * Francesc Sagrera Riera (8 February 1895 - 22 February 1940), priest, declared as Servant of God on 3 September 1993 * Bruno Martínez Sacedo (9 November 1907 - 29 December 1972), priest, declared as Servant of God on 1 July 1993 * Joaquín Erviti Lazcano of the Virgin of Puy (12 October 1912 - 21 March 1999), priest, declared as Servant of God on 22 September 2004


Notable Piarists

* Ottavio Assarotti, Italian philanthropist and founder of the first Italian school for the deaf * Stanisław Konarski (d. 1773), famous Polish pedagogue, reformer of education; * Giovanni Inghirami (d. 1851), astronomer; * Johann Nepomuk Ehrlich (d. 1864), professor of theology at the University of Prague; * Ernesto Balducci, author, philosopher and peace activist; * Sergio Gutiérrez Benítez, Mexican priest who founded an orphanage and famously supported it by becoming a
lucha libre ''Lucha libre'' (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term for the style of professional wrestling originating in Mexico. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has develope ...
wrestler


Notable students of Piarist schools

* Ferenc Deák (1803-1876) Hungarian statesman and minister of justice * Péter Esterházy (1950-2016) Hungarian writer * Loránd Eötvös (1848-1919) Hungarian physicist *Lorenzo Ganganelli (1705-1774), later
pope Clement XIV Pope Clement XIV (; ; 31 October 1705 – 22 September 1774), born Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 May 1769 to his death in September 1774. At the time of his elec ...
(1769-1774) *
Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is '' The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life and career L ...
(1870-1948) Austro-Hungarian composer *
Sándor Petőfi Sándor Petőfi ( []; né Petrovics; ; ; 1 January 1823 – most likely 31 July 1849) was a Hungarian poet and Classical Liberalism, liberal revolutionary. He is considered Hungary's national poet, and was one of the key figures of the Hungari ...
(1823-1849) Hungarian poet and liberal revolutionary * Károly Zipernowsky (1853-1942) Hungarian
electrical engineer Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...
In his ''Life of St. Joseph Calasanctius'', Tosetti gives a list of 54 who between 1615 and 1756 died edifying deaths, among them Peter Casani (d. 1647), the first
novice master In the Christian Church, a novice master or master of novices (), is a member of an institute of consecrated life who is responsible for the training and government of the novitiate in that institute. In religious institutes for women, the novice ...
of the order; the fourth superior general, Glicerius Landriani (d. 1618); Cosimo Chiara (d. 1688); Petrus Andreas Taccioni (d. 1672); the lay brother Philip Bosio (d. 1662); Antonio Muscia (d. 1665); and Eusebius Amoretti (d. 1685). Saint Pompilius Maria Pirroti (d. 1766) was famous for being a saintly spiritual director. Faustino Miguez (d. 1925) was a famous educator, scientist, and founder of the Calasanzian Sisters in Spain. Dionisius Pamplona was a holy master of novices, pastor and rector in Buenos Aires and Peralta de la Sal, and was the first Piarist killed in the fulfillment of his priesthood during the Spanish Civil War (d. 1936). Other Piarists known for their sanctity and pedagogical abilities with children in the last century have been Pedro Díez Gil (d. 1983) and Joaquín Erviti (d. 1999).


Notes


Sources and references

* * P. Helyot, ''Histoire des ordres religieuses'' (1715), iv. 281 * J. A. Seyffert, ''Ordensregeln der Piaristen'' (Halle, 1783) * J. Schaller, ''Gedanken über die Ordensfassung der Piaristen'' (Prague, 1805) * A. Heimbucher, ''Orden und Kongregationen'' (1897) ii. 271 * articles by O. Zockler in Herzog-Hauck's ''Real-encyklopadie für protestantische Theologie'' (1904), vol. xv. * C. Kniel in ''Wetzer and Welte's Kirchen-lexikon'' (1895), vol. ix. For Calasanz, see * Timon-David, ''Vie de St Joseph Calasance'' (Marseilles, 1884)


External links


General Curia of the Piarists: Official website

Piarists in the U.S.A.

Piarists in Spain

Piarists in Poland

Piarists in Austria

Piarists in Hungary

Piarists in Italy

Piarists in Slovakia





Piarist Vocations
{{Authority control 1597 establishments in Europe Religious organizations established in the 1590s Christian religious orders established in the 16th century