Saint Pierre Fourier, Musée Lorrain. Huile sur cuivre.
Saint Pierre Fourier
Prêtre à Gray, en Franche-Comté (+ 1640)
Fils d'un marchand lorrain, il fit de bonnes études. A
vingt ans, il entra chez les Chanoines Réguliers de Saint Augustin. Prêtre, il
récusa la charge de professeur de théologie pour devenir curé d'une petite
commune où dominent les protestants au point qu'on appelait sa paroisse de
Mattaincourt, "la petite Genève". Mais cela ne le décourageait pas.
Il réorganise sa paroisse, fonde une caisse de secours mutuel pour venir en
aide aux plus pauvres, crée une association pour l'éducation des filles,
association qui deviendra la Congrégation
Notre-Dame , animée par Alix
Le Clerc à partir de 1628. Il se voit confier la réforme des Chanoines
de Saint Augustin dont il devient le supérieur général. Pendant le même temps,
il parcourt la région pour prêcher, passe ses nuits à écrire des lettres. En
1636, Richelieu l'exile en Franche-Comté où il terminera ses jours.
Né à Mirecourt le 30 novembre 1565, brillant étudiant à l'université de
Pont-à-Mousson, chanoine régulier à Chaumousey, il est ordonné prêtre le 25
février 1589 à Trèves.
Il réforme son abbaye puis devient curé de Mattaincourt pendant 30 ans, mettant
en pratique sa devise : "Ne nuire à personne, être utile à tous".
Avec Alix Leclerc il fonde en 1597 la Congrégation des Chanoinesses de Notre
Dame pour l'éducation chrétienne des jeunes filles.
Il meurt en exil à Gray le 9 décembre 1640. Béatifié le 29 janvier 1730, il est
canonisé par Léon XIII le 27 mai 1897. Son corps est conservé en l'église
paroissiale de Mattaincourt, il est le patron et le modèle des prêtres
vosgiens. (diocèse de Saint-Dié)
Pierre Fourier naquit à Mirecourt, dans les Vosges, le 30 novembre 1565. A
l'âge de vingt ans, il entra chez les chanoines réguliers de Chaumouzez. Comme
curé de Mattaincourt, il régénéra entièrement cette paroisse, grâce à son zèle
pastoral et à l'exemple de ses grandes vertus. Il fonda la congrégation des
Chanoinesses régulières de Notre-Dame, destinée à l'éducation des jeunes
filles. Il introduisit aussi la réforme chez les chanoines réguliers. C'est à
Gray qu'il mourut le 9 décembre 1640. Son corps repose dans l'église
paroissiale de Mattaincourt. (Source: Diocèse de Metz)
Des internautes nous signalent:
- "Saint Pierre Fourier était curé de Mattaincourt en Lorraine. Il est né
à Mirecourt, à côté de Mattaincourt (actuellement département des Vosges).
C'est un fidèle Lorrain comme il a été fidèle à Notre Seigneur. C'est pour
sanctionner cette fidélité au duc de Lorraine que Richelieu l'a exilé à Gray en
Franche Comté en 1636. Il est resté environ 40 ans curé dans cette petite
paroisse rurale de Lorraine parce que c'était son choix."
- "Pierre Fourier a plusieurs fois refusé d'être élevé à l'épiscopat. Il
fait partie des grands saints du 17e siècle fondateurs de congrégation féminine
comme François de Sales et Vincent de Paul."
- "Pierre Fourier n'était pas prêtre à Gray. Il y était en exil (la
Franche-Comté étant alors terre espagnole) préférant être fidèle à son
souverain légitime le duc de Lorraine plutôt que se soumettre au roi de France
dont les armées occupaient sa patrie."
À Gray en Bourgogne, où il s'était retiré en exil, en 1640, le trépas de saint
Pierre Fourier, prêtre. Il avait fait son choix de la paroisse misérable de
Mattaincourt en Lorraine et il en fut un curé admirable; il restaura les
Chanoines réguliers du Saint-Sauveur et fonda l'Institut des Chanoinesses
régulières de Notre-Dame pour l'éducation gratuite des filles.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/240/Saint-Pierre-Fourier.html
Saint Pierre Fourier
Fondateur de la Congrégation de Notre-Dame
(† 1640)
C'est à Mirecourt, en Lorraine indépendante, que naquit, le 30 novembre 1565, Pierre Fourier, de parents foncièrement chrétiens. Ceux-ci voulurent nommer leurs trois fils, Pierre, Jacques et Jean, afin qu'autant de fois ils se souviendraient d'eux-mêmes, ils fussent poussés à ne pas se contenter d'une vertu médiocre.
Pierre mit généreusement à profit ces leçons: ferveur dans la prière, obéissance prompte et affectueuse, douceur inaltérable, fuite des plus innocentes familiarités et des moindres mensonges. A quinze ans son père le conduisit à l'Université de Pont-à-Mousson. Son séjour se résume dans cet éloge décerné par ses maîtres: Ou il prie, ou il étudie.
Pierre Fourier entra ensuite chez les Chanoines Réguliers de Saint-Augustin: il était appelé à travailler à la réforme de cet Ordre alors fort relâché. Après six ans d'études théologiques à Pont-à-Mousson, il rentra au monastère. Sa ferveur fit scandale parmi ses confrères; il dut se retirer, et accepta la petite paroisse de Mattaincourt, aussi indifférente que dépravée.
Le premier sermon du nouveau curé de Mattaincourt fut si pathétique qu'après quarante ans on s'en souvenait encore. Mais personne ne le retint autant que Pierre Fourier lui-même, pour le réaliser dans sa conduite. Brûlant d'amour pour Dieu et le prochain, il se met à l'oeuvre avec un courage et une persévérance qui ne se démentent jamais. Il ménage le temps comme un baume précieux dont il ne faut pas, dit-il perdre une seule goutte à escient.
Attentif au bien des âmes, il l'est aussi à celui des corps: il secourt ses paroissiens dans leurs nécessités, leurs embarras, leurs discordes, leurs intérêts, pour la sauvegarde desquels il fonde la Bourse Saint-Epvre. Il passe des nuits entières auprès des malades. Un jour il prête à l'un ses couvertures, à l'autre ses draps, à un autre la paillasse et le bois du lit. Un pauvre soldat, auquel, le jour de Pâques, il a donné un repas, lui dit: Je suis content. Je prie Dieu de bon coeur, pour l'honneur de Son Église, que tous les curés vous ressemblent!
Mais c'est surtout pour les enfants qu'il déploie son affectueuse sollicitude. Aussi lui rendent-ils amour pour amour. A la vue de l'insuffisance de l'instruction, il crée pour eux une Congrégation de maîtresses, qui, aux exercices de la vie religieuse, à la clôture même, joignent l'enseignement. Quelques jeunes filles, à la tête desquelles est Alix Le Clerc, forment le noyau de l'Ordre des Chanoinesses de Saint-Augustin Notre-Dame.
La fidélité de Pierre Fourier aux Princes lorrains sauva pour un siècle la nationalité de la Lorraine, mais empoisonna ses derniers jours; car Richelieu ne put lui pardonner cet échec à sa politique. Traqué de maison en maison, le curé de Mattaincourt en fut réduit à s'exiler en Franche-Comté et à y passer les quatre dernières années de sa vie. Pendant ce temps, Mattaincourt était pillé à plusieurs reprises.
Réfugié à Gray, Pierre Fourier y fit ce qu'il avait toujours fait; il employa ses dernières forces à secourir et à consoler le prochain. En octobre 1639, il tomba malade, et après deux mois de maladie, il exhala son âme avec ces paroles qu'il avait tant de fois répétées: Nous avons un bon Maître et une bonne Souveraine! C'était le 9 décembre 1640.
J.-M. Planchet, Nouvelle Vie des Saints, p. 478
Fontaine
Saint-Pierre-Fourier, Grande-Rue à Gray (Haute Saône)
Pierre Fourier est né à Mirecourt le 30 novembre 1565 de commerçants aisés. Ayant reçu de ses parents une éducation familiale très soignée, il fit ses premières études dans sa ville natale parmi les « enfants prêtres » (enfants destinés au sacerdoce),puis à partir de 1578, il les continua à l’Université de Pont-à-Mousson où il manifesta d’exceptionnelles qualités intellectuelles en même temps qu’une très vive piété. En 1585, il entra chez les Chanoines réguliers de Chaumouzey près d’Épinal. Ordonné prêtre en 1589, il reprit l’étude de la théologie à Pont-à-Mousson, puis rentra dans son abbaye et en 1597, fut nommé curé de Mattaincourt, gros village commerçant, voisin de sa ville natale.
A une grande austérité de vie, Pierre Fourier joignit une activité pastorale admirable : prédication et enseignement solidement assis sur de vastes connaissances et sur un travail ininterrompu ; charité inépuisable à l’égard de tous ; cérémonies du culte célébrées avec un éclat inaccoutumé.
Pierre Fourier ne limita pas ses activités à la seule paroisse de Mattaincourt. Soucieux de l’instruction des petites filles, il fonda dès 1597, avec le concours de la bienheureuse Alix Le Clerc une association qui devint bientôt la « Congrégation de Notre-Dame », et se répandit rapidement dans le pays, et même en France voisine. Il entreprit également la réforme des Chanoines réguliers, ordre auquel il appartenait, et groupa leurs maisons en une « Congrégation de Notre-Sauveur ». Il fut encore un missionnaire zélé et la région de Badonviller a gardé une vive reconnaissance au « Bon Père » qui, en 1625, la ramena du protestantisme au sein de l’Église catholique. Conseiller volontiers écouté à la cour de Lorraine, Pierre Fourier fut, à la fin de sa vie, victime de son patriotisme. Il dut quitter son pays envahi par les troupes françaises, et mourut en exil à Gray, le 9 décembre 1640. Il a été canonisé par le pape Léon XIII le 27 mai 1897.
Saint Pierre Fourier [1565 - 1640]
Saint lorrain ~ Saint Patron de la Troupe 1ere Nancy
Devise : «Être utile à tous, ne nuire à personne»
Saint Pierre Fourier fait partie des grands saints du 17e siècle.
Sa sainteté s'est déployée à chaque étape de sa vie.
L'enfant
Pierre naît à Mirecourt, en Lorraine indépendante, le 30 novembre 1565, de parents foncièrement chrétiens. Il montre, dès le plus jeune âge, des qualités de ferveur dans la prière et d'obéissance prompte et affectueuse envers ses parents.
L'étudiant
A quinze ans, son père le conduit à l'université de Pont-à Mousson (créée en 1572 par le Duc Charles III) où il suit une formation dirigée par les pères Jésuites. Son séjour se résume dans cet éloge "ou il prie, ou il étudie".
Après six ans d'études théologiques à Pont-à-Mousson, il devient moine au sein d'un monastère de Chanoines réguliers de St Augustin, à l'abbaye de Chaumoussey, près d'Epinal.
Le réformateur
Pierre s'emploie à réformer la vie religieuse de cette abbaye qui était tombée dans un certain laxisme.
Le Curé de Mattaincourt
En 1597, alors qu'il n'a que trente ans, il est nommé curé de la paroisse de Mattaincourt dans les Vosges.
Cette paroisse était surnommée "la petite Genève". En effet, de nombreux protestants y résidaient alors.
Le premier sermon du nouveau curé fut si pathétique qu'après quarante ans, on s'en souvenait encore.
Brûlant d'amour pour Dieu et son prochain, il se met à l'oeuvre avec courage et persévérance.
Il ménage le temps comme un baume précieux, dont il ne faut pas, dit-il, perdre une seule goutte à escient.
Attentif au bien des âmes, il l'est aussi à celui des corps : il secourt ses paroissiens dans leurs nécessités, leurs embaras, leurs discordes et fonde la bourse St Epvre. Il passe des nuits entières auprès des malades. Un jour il prête à l'un sa couverture, à l'autre ses draps, à un autre la paillasse et le bois du lit.
Il prèche dans toute la Lorraine et écrit de nombreuses lettres, à tel point que sa correspondance a été rassemblée dans un ouvrage comptant de nombreux volumes.
Pierre refuse plusieurs fois d'être élevé à l'episcopat.
Le Fondateur
Mais c'est surtout pour les enfants qu'il déploie son affectueuse sollicitude. A la vue de l'insuffisance de l'instruction, il fonde la Congrégation de Notre Dame qu'il confie à Alix le Clerc. Cette congrégation est une école gratuite destinée à instruire les filles.
Il établie aussi, avec des chanoines réguliers et des prêtres, la congrégation de Notre-Sauveur.
Il invente le tableau noir qui se développera ensuite dans toutes les salles de classe.
Le patriote lorrain
Pierre Fourier est un brillant conseiller politique des ducs de Lorraine.
En 1636, Richelieu l'exile à Gray, en Franche-Comté (alors terre espagnole) où il terminera ses jours, préférant être fidèle à son souverain légitime, le duc de Lorraine, plutôt que se soumettre au roi de France, dont les armées occupaient sa patrie.
La fin de sa vie
Il s'éteint à l'âge de 76 ans, le 9 décembre 1640.
En 1853, la basilique néo-gothique Saint Pierre Fourier fut construite à Mattaincourt à la place de l'ancienne église où Pierre avait officié.
Il fut canonisé en 1847 par le Pape Pie IX.
Sa Fête
On le fête le 9 décembre.
Saint Pierre Fourier
Itinéraire d'un fils de marchand drapier, de Mirecourt à Gray en passant par Mattaincourt, qui a consacré sa vie aux enfants, aux pauvres et aux malades.
C’est à Mirecourt, le 30 novembre 1565, que naît Pierre Fourier. Ses parents, profondément chrétiens, nomment leurs trois fils, Pierre, Jacques et Jean, « afin qu’autant de fois ils se souviendraient d’eux-mêmes, ils fussent poussés à ne pas se contenter d’une vertu médiocre. » Pierre a quinze ans quand son père le conduit à l’Université de Pont-à-Mousson. « Ou il prie, ou il étudie, » dit de lui l'un de ses professeurs.
La vie monastique l'attirant, il entre comme novice à l'Abbaye de Chaumousey, près d'Epinal, en 1585. Il y fait profession dans l'Ordre des chanoines réguliers de Saint-Augustin. Lorsqu'il est admis aux ordres majeurs, le siège de Toul est vacant. Il se présente alors à l'archevêque. Le 25 février 1589, il est ordonné prêtre. Ayant le choix entre trois paroisses, il choisit Mattaincourt, parce que la pratique religieuse y est la plus faible. Pierre Fourier a tout juste 30 ans quand il rejoint cette commune vosgienne ouverte aux influences protestantes. ll y demeure plus de 20 ans, entreprenant de réaliser à la lettre sa devise : « Ne nuire à personne, être utile à tous. » Faisant la démonstration d'une grande piété et d'un dévouement total envers les plus pauvres, il est à l’initiative d’une caisse mutuelle, la bourse Saint-Evre, mise en place pour éviter à ses paroissiens d’avoir à emprunter de l’argent aux usuriers ! Il passe également des nuits entières auprès des malades et partage ses effets personnels avec les nécessiteux. On prête à un pauvre soldat, auquel Pierre aurait donné un repas le jour de Pâques, l'éloge suivant : « Je suis content. Je prie Dieu de bon coeur, pour l’honneur de son Église, que tous les curés vous ressemblent ! »
L'école
Constatant l’insuffisance de l’instruction des filles, Pierre Fourier crée pour elles une Congrégation de maîtresses, conjuguant exercices de la vie religieuse et enseignement. La première école ouvre non loin de Mattaincourt, à Poussay. Quelques jeunes filles, à la tête desquelles Alix Le Clerc, forment le noyau de l’Ordre des chanoinesses de Saint-Augustin Notre-Dame. Pierre Fourier ne manque en tout cas pas d'initiatives : d'après l'historien Jean Vartier, on lui doit également l'invention du tableau noir et son introduction dans les classes !
L'exil
Alors que Louis XIII et le cardinal de Richelieu essaient d’annexer le duché de Lorraine, sa fidélité à son souverain légitime, le duc de Lorraine et de Bar Charles IV, lui vaut d’être expulsé en 1636 par le prélat. Il trouve refuge à Gray, en Franche-Comté alors possession espagnole. Il a 71 ans. À son arrivée, il ne trouve pour logement qu'un minuscule réduit dans une vieille tour carrée, ayant seulement 3 fenêtres pour l'éclairage et une vieille cheminée pour se chauffer. Il y meurt quatre ans plus tard, après avoir employé ses dernières forces à secourir son prochain. La postérité fait le reste : il est béatifié le 10 janvier 1730 et canonisé en 1847 par le pape Pie IX.
St. Peter Fourier
Known as LE BON PÈRE DE
MATTAINCOURT, born at Mirecourt, Lorraine, 30 Nov., 1565 died at Gray, Haute-Saône, 9 Dec., 1640. At fifteen he
was sent to the University of Pont-à-Mousson. His piety and learning led many noble families to ask him to educate their sons. He became a Canon Regular in the Abbey of Chaumousey and was ordained in 1589. By order of his abbot he returned to the university and became proficient in patristic theology; he knew the "Summa" of St. Thomas by heart. In 1597 he was made parish priest of
Mattaincourt, a corrupt district threatened with the new heresy. By his prayers,
instructions, and good example, religion was soon restored. Fourier did not neglect
the temporal interests of his parishioners; to help those who through
ill-fortune had fallen into poverty, he established a kind of mutual help bank.
He instituted three sodalities, of St. Sebastian for men, of the Holy Rosary for women and of the Immaculate Conception for girls, or "Children of
Mary". He composed some dialogues which treated of the virtues opposed to
the vices most common among his people. These dialogues the children delivered
every Sunday in
public. To perpetuate his work, Peter founded in 1598 an order of women, the Congregation of Notre-Dame, who teach poor girls gratuitously. The
institute spread and with some modifications was introduced into America by the
Ven. Marguerite Bourgeoys (died 1700).
In 1621, by order of the Bishop of Toul, Fourier undertook the reform of the canons regular in
Lorraine who in 1629 formed the Congregation of Our Saviour. Of this
congregation he was made superior general in 1632. He wished his brother canons
to do for boys what his nuns were doing for girls. In 1625 Peter was entrusted with the
conversion of the Principality of Salm, near Nancy, which had gone over to Calvinism. In six months all the Protestants, whom he called "poor strangers", had returned to the Faith,
On account of his attachment to the House of Lorraine he was driven into exile
at Gray, where he died. In 1730 Benedict XIII published the Decree of his Beatification, and Leo XIII canonized him
in 1897.
Sources
BEDEL, La vie du Très Révérend
Père Pierre Fourier, dit vulgairement, Le Père de Mettaincourt (1645);
CHAPIA, Idea boni parochi et perfecti religiosi; VUILLIMIN, La
Vie de St. Pierre Fourier (Paris, 1897).
Allaria,
Anthony. "St. Peter Fourier." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol.
11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 9 Dec. 2018 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11767b.htm>.
Transcription. This article was
transcribed for New Advent by Douglas J. Potter. Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil
Obstat. February 1, 1911. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New
York.
Copyright © 2020
by Kevin Knight. Dedicated to the
Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Paroisse Saint Pierre
Fourier
11 Rue St Laurent, Pont-à-Mousson, Lorraine, France
Also
known as
- Good
Father of Mattaincourt
- Le
Bon Père de Mattaincourt
Profile
Educated at the University
of Pont-a-Mousson, entering at age 15. Tutor to the sons of
many noble families. AugustinianCanon Regular at
the abbey in
Chaumousey, France. Ordainedin 1589. He returned to university, became a master of
patristic theology, and could recite
the Summa Theologica of Saint Thomas Aquinas by heart.
Reforming priest at Mattaincourt,
Vosges, France, an area noted for
corruption and lax attitudes to heresy; he revitalized the
spiritual life of the district, and established charities and banks for the poor. Spiritual teacher
of Blessed Alix le Clerc. In 1598 he founded
the Daughters
of Our Lady for the education of girls. Founded the Sodality of the Immaculate
Conception, or Children of Mary. His attempt to found a parallel order to teach boys failed. In 1621 he was ordered to
reform his order in Lorraine. In 1625 he was sent to
Salm to preach missions and work
against Calvinism; within six months all
the fallen away Catholics had returned to
the Church. Helped found the Congregation of Our Saviour in 1629 and served as its
superior general in 1632. When the French government ordered
him to swear allegiance to King Louis XIII he
refused, and spent the rest of his life in exile in the town of
Gray, Haute-Saone, France.
Born
St. Peter Fourier
Known as LE BON PÈRE DE MATTAINCOURT, born at Mirecourt, Lorraine, 30 Nov., 1565 died at Gray, Haute-Saône, 9 Dec., 1640. At fifteen he was sent to the University of Pont-à-Mousson. His piety and learning led many noble families to ask him to educate their sons. He became a Canon Regular in the Abbey of Chaumousey and was ordained in 1589. By order of his abbot he returned to the university and became proficient in patristic theology; he knew the "Summa" of St. Thomas by heart. In 1597 he was made parish priest of Mattaincourt, a corrupt district threatened with the new heresy. By his prayers, instructions, and good example, religion was soon restored. Fourier did not neglect the temporal interests of his parishioners; to help those who through ill-fortune had fallen into poverty, he established a kind of mutual help bank. He instituted three sodalities, of St. Sebastian for men, of the Holy Rosary for women and of the Immaculate Conception for girls, or "Children of Mary". He composed some dialogues which treated of the virtues opposed to the vices most common among his people. These dialogues the children delivered every Sunday in public. To perpetuate his work, Peter founded in 1598 an order of women, the Congregation of Notre-Dame, who teach poor girls gratuitously. The institute spread and with some modifications was introduced into America by the Ven. Marguerite Bourgeoys (died 1700).
In 1621, by order of the Bishop of Toul, Fourier undertook the reform of the canons regular in Lorraine who in 1629 formed the Congregation of Our Saviour. Of this congregation he was made superior general in 1632. He wished his brother canons to do for boys what his nuns were doing for girls. In 1625 Peter was entrusted with the conversion of the Principality of Salm, near Nancy, which had gone over to Calvinism. In six months all the Protestants, whom he called "poor strangers", had returned to the Faith, On account of his attachment to the House of Lorraine he was driven into exile at Gray, where he died. In 1730 Benedict XIII published the Decree of his Beatification, and Leo XIII canonized him in 1897.
Sources
BEDEL, La vie du Très Révérend Père Pierre Fourier, dit vulgairement, Le Père de Mettaincourt (1645); CHAPIA, Idea boni parochi et perfecti religiosi; VUILLIMIN, La Vie de St. Pierre Fourier (Paris, 1897).
SOURCE :
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11767b.htm
Basilique
Saint-Pierre-Fourier de Mattaincourt
November
29, 2016
By CAROLE BRESLIN
In the
Catholic Church, there are many examples throughout history of religious orders
that have been reformed or have been in need of reform. After many years the
members of religious orders tend to relax rules until they do not live much
differently than the laity. It seems that discipline and fervor are closely
related — without one you will not have the other.
St. Peter Fourier recognized this truth both in his personal life and the life
of both the parishioners he guided and the order that he later reformed in the
late 1500s.
Peter Fourier was the eldest of three sons, born on November 30, 1565 in
Mirecourt, France. This village was located in the Duchy of Lorraine, a
stronghold of the Catholic Counterreformation. His father was a cloth merchant
and his mother a homemaker — both were faithful and fervent Catholics.
Peter received an education in his younger years, perhaps at home, and at the
age of 15 his father sent him to the new University of Pont-a-Mousson, a Jesuit
institution. Later, it became the University of Lorraine.
In 1585, at the age of 20, Peter entered the novitiate of the canons regular of
the Abbey of Chaumousey. Two years later, in 1587 he professed his vows. In
Treves, Peter was ordained at the unusually young age of 23 on February 24, 1589.
After Peter’s Ordination, his abbot sent him back to the University of
Pont-a-Mousson where he completed his studies as a scholastic theologian. So
great were his abilities that he memorized the entire Summa Theologiae of St.
Thomas Aquinas — a 26-volume work on the teachings of the Catholic Church. This
feat led the university administrators and the count-bishop of Metz to offer
him a high position in the Church there; but Peter refused, preferring to
return to his abbey.
Without delay, Fourier suffered ridicule and persecution from his fellow
canons. Some claim that there were also attempts to poison the saint because
the canons’ animosity for the learned man was so great. This hostile treatment
lasted for two long years during which time Fr. Fourier never complained to his
abbot, bearing the wrongs patiently.
During this era, many abbeys and priories supplied priests to the parishes in
the region to administer the sacraments. Peter Fourier chose to go to a parish
in Mattaincourt, even though he had been offered other more prestigious
positions. Fr. Fourier preferred to work with the people to increase their love
of the faith, and to preach against the influence of Calvinism. He spent the
next two decades working as the vicar to save souls.
To enliven the faith life of his people, Fr. Fourier instituted two major
reforms in the parish which clearly demonstrate his uncommon wisdom and deep
compassion for the people.
First of all, with the objective of improving lives in an economic way, he
began a bank for the community. This enabled people to borrow money without
interest so that they could invest it in ways to provide an income to support
their families.
Secondly, rather than preach from a superior and heightened position, he came
down to their level and engaged them in conversation. Thus he not only
discovered how well — or how little — they knew the basic teachings of
Catholicism. In this manner he could teach by asking questions similar to the
way Jesus did in the Temple during the three days Mary and Joseph searched for
Him.
This method proved successful since his flock did not feel humiliated.
Furthermore, the parishioners did not just listen and then forget what they
heard, but they would take time to reason out the answer and reach the proper
conclusion with his guidance, thus becoming more deeply integrated into the
learning process.
Fr. Fourier also used dialogues and discussions to engage people in considering
the virtues and the vices that they witnessed in their daily lives. Thus they
became more conscious of the short-term and the long-lasting consequences of
their actions — those very things for which we will be judged in eternal life.
As a pastor, Fr. Fourier also led by example. He lived simply, practicing extra
self-denial in many ways. He never employed a cook or a cleaning woman. Even
when his stepmother offered to do housekeeping, he refused her offer. The money
he saved, he gave to the poor of the parish. As any pastor serving God would
do, Fr. Fourier also spent many nights ministering to the sick in his area and
helping the poor.
The parish then became increasingly vibrant and he revitalized the faith of the
people so much that the bishop invited Fr. Fourier to preach at other parishes.
His new responsibility surprised him as he became more exposed to the
deplorable conditions of the people. He wondered how they could know so little
of the faith and be so steeped in superstitions.
In 1597, to help combat the problems he witnessed, he worked with Blessed Alix
Le Clerc and founded the Congregation of Notre Dame of Canonesses Regular of
St. Augustine. These women were dedicated to educating children for free —
their fourth vow, after poverty, chastity, and obedience.
In this endeavor, Father was not just an administrator but also took a great
interest in the welfare of the children. He also taught them in the classrooms
and is credited with being the first person to make use of a chalkboard. In
addition, he is also known to have begun the organization of classrooms based
on knowledge rather than on age.
Once again his efforts, by the grace of God, met with great success. Soon these
schools spread throughout France and then to England and Germany.
His great love of Christ spurred him on to do even more for the glory of God.
Fr. Fourier next directed his efforts to reform his order to increase the
members’ fervor and discipline. Again his success became so well-known that
Bishop Jean des Porcelets of Toul appointed the priest to reform the
communities in the diocese, including the Abbey of St. Remy.
Father joyfully assumed this new responsibility, returning to the quiet of the
abbey that he loved so much. Within four years eight houses had been reformed
under his guidance.
The reform continued and soon the abbeys were organized into new congregations
in 1625. Anyone wishing to join these new congregations, even though they may
have already taken vows, had to begin in the novitiate. On February 11, 1628
the abbeys were formally recognized as the Congregation of Our Savior.
The same year that Fr. Fourier was elected abbot general, 1632, Cardinal
Richelieu, a favorite of King Louis XIII, forced the congregation to flee to
the town of Gray in Burgundy where the priests ministered to the victims of the
plague. Fr. Fourier died in Gray on December 9, 1640. His feast is celebrated
on December 9.
Dear St. Peter Fourier, how you loved the Lord and longed to show others the
way to a deeper love of His Most Sacred Heart. Help us to learn our faith well
and to pass it on to others for the greater glory of God. Amen.
(Carole
Breslin home-schooled her four daughters and served as treasurer of the
Michigan Catholic Home Educators for eight years. For over ten years, she was
national coordinator for the Marian Catechists, founded by Fr. John A. Hardon,
SJ.)
09 DEC SAINT PETER FOURIER, CONFESSOR
Posted at 17:05h in Saints by Eddie Masters
December 9
Today is the feast day of Saint Peter Fourier.
Ora pro nobis.
Peter Fourier was known as LE BON PÉRE DE
MATTAINCOURT, born at Mirecourt, Lorraine, 30 Nov 1565. At fifteen he was
sent to the University of Pont-à-Mousson. His piety and learning led many noble
families to ask him to educate their sons. He became a Canon Regular in the
Abbey of Chaumousey and was ordained in 1589. By order of his abbot he returned
to the university and became proficient in patristic theology; he knew the
“Summa” of St. Thomas by heart. In 1597 he was made parish priest of
Mattaincourt, a corrupt district threatened with the new heresy.
Before saying his first Mass he passed several months
of retreat in the exercises of prayer, penance and tears. He was then sent to
complete his theological studies at the university of Pont-au-Mousson, also in
Lorraine. There Father Jean Fourier, a relative who was Rector of that
University, directed him admirably. His progress in virtue and the sacred
sciences placed him high in the opinion of the Cardinal of Lorraine and Bishop
of Metz, who desired to have him in his diocese; he offered him a parish where
his talents would bring him advancement. But the young priest, wishing to flee
all honors, declined, to return to his Abbey.
There hell instigated against him a persecution; he
was the brunt of raillery, threats, and intrigues, and an effort was made to
poison him, which did not succeed. For two years he lived in the midst of
contradictions without complaining in any way to his abbot, who seemed unaware
of what was happening; he increased in patience and kindness towards his
persecutors. Eventually he was again offered a choice of three parishes, two of
which would provide opportunity for advancement, while the third was in a
village regarded as incorrigible and backward. It was the last one that he
chose. The people there were prosperous but more than indifferent to religion.
The Sacraments were neglected and the feast days profaned; the altars were bare
and the church was deserted when he arrived.
His own parish was gradually being transformed into a
model, and priests came to visit it. One of them reported to his bishop the
marvels of devotion he had seen in Mattaincourt, and said he had asked the
parish priest where he had studied; Saint Peter had answered that he had
studied in the fourth — corresponding in America to about the ninth grade.
Astonished, the visitor was yet more so when he learned that this modest priest
had certainly studied in the fourth, as he had said, but out of horror for
vainglory had wanted to dissimulate his years of higher studies.
The bishops were asking him to visit their parishes to
preach missions where needed; the holy priest obeyed, amid his increasing tears
and penance, as he perceived the vices and ignorance of the populations. He
also was concerned to reestablish the discipline and fervor of his own Order,
an effort which had failed several times. But in 1621 the Bishop of Toul,
Monsignor de Porcelets, entrusted this work to Father Fourier. A house was
found to begin the Reform, the vacant ancient Abbey of Saint Remi, and six
excellent subjects were sent there under his direction. In four years, eight
houses of the Order had adopted the Reform.
A General Superior was named; for a time Father
Fourier was able to avoid that office, but when the good Superior died, he was
obliged to accept its functions. Attacked by the devil, his influence distorted
by calumnies, Saint Peter’s only response was to spread everywhere devotion to
the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin. More than two centuries before
the Miraculous Medal in 1830 and the proclamation of the dogma in 1854, he saw
to the distribution of large quantities of a medal he had struck, on which were
engraved the words: Mary was conceived without sin.
Saint Peter Fourier died in exile as an effect of the
difficulties and political problems of the 1630’s; he found shelter in a
province which was at that time under the Spanish crown, and there he died in
1640. His spiritual sons, his spiritual daughters, the good people of Gray in
Bourgogne, who had welcomed him and whom he had served admirably during an
epidemic of the pestilence, all wanted the honor of possessing his mortal
remains. But so did also the parish of Mattaincourt. To the reformed Order of
Saint Augustine this privilege was granted officially, but the pious women of
Mattaincourt, blocking the church door, would not permit the Canons to resume
their journey with the coffin, after they had stopped in his former parish for
a day or so. His heart had already been left to the parish of Gray. Miracles
have abounded at his tomb, as they did during his lifetime, by his prayers. He
was canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1897.
Image: Statues in Saint Peter’s Basilica. St. Peter
Fourier. Founder Statue by Louis Noel Nicoli, 1899. (5)
Research by Ed Masters, REGINA Staff
http://sanctoral.com/en/saints/saint_peter_fourier.html
http://traditionalcatholic.net/Tradition/Calendar/12-09.html
http://gardenofmary.com/december-9th-st-peter-fourier/
http://www.nobility.org/2016/12/08/st-peter-fourier-4/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2016_-_Statues_in_Saint_Peter%27s_Basilica_14.jpg
SOURCE : https://www.reginamag.com/saint-peter-fourier-priest/
Article
In the year 1730, Pope
Benedict XIII beatified with the usual solemnities, Peter Fourrier, an eminent
servant of our Lord, and the glorious founder of the Congregation or society of
our dear Lady. He was born in 1565 at Mireccur, a small village in France. His
parents were indigent but very pious people, and Peter’s heart seemed from
childhood to be filled with love for the Almighty. At Pont-a-Mousson he devoted
himself to study, and progressed equally in virtue and knowledge. The name of a
learned man, and what is still more, of a Saint, was already then given him.
When twenty years old, he went into the Abbey of the regular canons of Saint
Augustine, desiring to serve God more perfectly. At the end of his probation,
he continued his studies at the above mentioned place and was ordained priest
at his return.
The unusual zeal which
this servant of God manifested in all exercises of virtue caused the less
fervent priests to become tired of him, and endeavor to remove him. Hence three
parishes were found, of which Peter was to select one where he might expend all
his fervor in laboring for the salvation of souls. Not knowing which one to
choose, he asked the advice of a Jesuit, John Fourrier, one of his relatives,
who replied: “The first two arc profitable and quiet: the third yields very
little, but needs a great deal of labor.” Peter reflected no longer, but
seeking only the honor of God and the welfare of men, he chose, without
hesitation, the poor and toilsome parish of Mataincour. The morals of the
inhabitants were so depraved, that is was called “little Geneva”; but the
zealous priest commenced his work of conversion so bravely, that after three
years, by his kind words and constant exhortation, but still more by his bright
example of virtue, Mataincour might serve as a model to all the other parishes.
Not content with the good he did in his own parish, the unwearied servant of
the Lord went to other places, fought against vices, refuted heresies,
destroyed errors and planted the seed of the Christian virtues. In the County
of Salm, where heresy had a free field, he not only converted all the heretics
to the truth of the Catholic religion in six months, but led them also upon the
path of virtue. It cost him, however, far greater labor to reform the abuses which
had crept into several houses of his order: but in this he also succeeded, with
the divine assistance. That which, however, confers the most lasting honor upon
him is the founding of the Society of our Dear Lady. By his advice, dictated by
the zeal he had for the salvation of souls, several pious ladies consecrated
their virginity to God, and obliged themselves at the same time to instruct
children in reading, writing, sewing and other useful knowledge. The
association of these virgins which Peter founded under the protection of the
Blessed Virgin, was sanctioned by the Pope, and rapidly increased, to the great
benefit of youth. After the holy founder had given regulations to this society,
he became Superior of the Canons he had reformed and directed them wisely by
precept and example. At length, during the war in the year 1636, he, with
several of the Canons, was driven away from Lorraine, and coming into Burgundy,
he remained for some time, in a small village named Gray, where he instructed
the young.
The Almighty, desiring
to bestow upon his servant the recompense he had so well merited, sent him a
violent attack of fever. Receiving it as a fore-runner of death, the Saint
prepared himself for his last hour by devoutly receiving the holy Sacraments.
The time still left to him upon earth, he employed in fervent prayers,
sometimes kissing the Crucifix amid pious ejaculations; at others, casting his
eyes upon an image of the Blessed Virgin, and saying: “Mary, prove thyself a
mother, and because I have always regarded thee as such, recognize thou me also
for thy unworthy son.” He desired that they should frequently say to him aloud:
“We have a gracious Lord: we have a gracious Lady.” At other times, he had
pious books read to him, because he would not pass a moment without deriving
some benefit. His joy upon earth was that he was still able to celebrate
devoutly the Festival of the Immaculate Conception. The following day, December
the ninth, he signed himself three times with the holy Cross, and gave his
soul, so richly adorned with virtues, into the charge of the Blessed Virgin, in
whom he had so perfectly confided from his most tender years. Many gave a sworn
testimony, that at the moment of his death, they saw a bright light rising from
his dwelling towards heaven. His whole life, so to say, had been a flame of
devotion fervently rising to the throne of God. His love of God and of his
neighbors, was among his most remarkable virtues. The former was so great, that
at the time of prayer he was seen surrounded by a heavenly light, his face
beaming and his whole being as if raised in ecstasy above the earth. He spoke
of nothing but God and things conducive to His honor. Frequently he was heard
saying with solemn pathos: “My God! I am thine and thou art mine; thou art God,
and my God!” He gave to prayer all the time which was left him after the
discharge of his functions, and was in communion with his Saviour during the
greater part of the night. He undertook nothing, without having first, by
prayer, asked the advice and assistance of the Almighty. All his actions had
but one aim, to further the honor of God. The principal rule by which he was
guided, and which he also recommended to others, was, to consider in all
affairs whether they were pleasing to God. Nothing saddened him more deeply
than when he heard that God had been offended, and he tried to prevent sin,
whenever it was in his power. He himself detest- ed every shadow of what might
displease God: a true sign of his love for Him. Of his love for his neighbor a great
number of examples are related in his life. His parishioners and others in his
charge, he loved as if they had been his own children, and evinced a constant
solicitude for their temporal and spiritual welfare. On account of the
apostolic zeal which he displayed in abolishing abuses, and uprooting vice
which had become habits, he was slandered and persecuted by many, but he was to
all of them as kind and obliging as he was to his best friends. One ruffian,
whom Peter endeavored to turn from the evil path he was pursuing, attacked him
one day, and beat him until some persons hastened to save the servant of God
from his hands. They wished to give the man over to the authorities and have
him punished, but Peter concealed him in his house until peace was restored,
and the wicked man, at his intercession was pardoned. The poor and needy he
assisted as much as his means permitted, carrying the alms into their dwelling
himself, and endeavoring to incite his parishioners to equal works of Christian
charity. The sick he waited on with the most tender care; and when he was
chosen Superior, he reserved to himself the office of nursing them, passing
whole nights in serving them with untiring love. Once, when he was travelling
accompanied by a servant, .the latter became dangerously sick. Peter acted as
nurse, laid him in the bed which had been prepared for himself, fed him, lifted
him in and out of bed, in fact, did everything for him that circumstances
required, until the man was restored. In such a manner he manifested his love
for his neighbors in corporal necessities and afflictions. Still deeper was his
solicitude for their spiritual welfare: his only desire was to lead all those
in his charge to heaven. All his admonitions had this one great end: to cause
them to avoid sin and practise virtue. Many prayers, many penances and masses
he offered to God, for the conversion of heretics and hardened sinners. He
endeavored to move them to repentance by gentleness and kindness. It is known
that with tears in his eyes and on bended knees, he begged some to repent and
do penance. When he perceived that any one was tempted to turn away again from
the narrow path of repentance and piety, he used most ingenious means to
prevent it and to strengthen him in his good resolution. A nun desired to leave
the convent and return to the world. Peter did all in his power to deter her;
and when all his exhortations proved vain, he said: Wander then away; but
before leaving, bid farewell to the Blessed Virgin in the words of a prayer,
which I have written for you upon this paper. The prayer was as follows: I have
come to thank thee, O Lady, that thou didst deign to receive me among thy
daughters. This grace, however, I will no longer enjoy, as the world is dearer
to me than thou and thy Son. Taking farewell of you both, I return into the
world, leaving it to others to serve you, as I no longer desire thus to fulfill
this sacred office. The nun, not knowing what was written upon the paper, took
it joyfully. But when, before an image of the Blessed Virgin, she read what it
contained, she was moved to tears, and repenting of her fault, resolved to
remain in the convent until her death; a promise which she faithfully kept. In
this manner did Peter prove his love towards his neighbor in spiritual affliction.
He often made use of the words of Saint Ambrose: “To be useful to all and
hurtful to none.” His whole conduct was regulated in accordance with this
principle; as he endeavored to further the spiritual and temporal welfare of
all, and not to do the least harm to any one.
This glorious servant of
the Most High is represented, bearing in his hand a lily and a Cross, as
emblems of his two most eminent virtues. The lily indicates his unspotted
innocence and purity; the cross, his unceasing mortification and penance. His
life was truly distinguished by purity and self-immolation. The innocence which
he received in holy baptism, he never lost through a mortal sin. In avoiding
those sins which we call venial he manifested more anxiety than many do to avoid
those that are mortal. Because he loved the Lord, he detested and shunned the
least thing that could displease Him. Angelical purity he preserved during his
whole life, although often in great danger of losing it. As founder and
director of a Congregation of religious virgins, he came constantly in contact
with them but used great precaution. His face bore always an earnest, dignified
expression and he so well controlled his eyes, that they never wandered in
curiosity upon those with whom he conversed. He was never seen laughing or
jesting with any one, and his conversations were never, longer than was
absolutely necessary. He was a bitter enemy of all speeches or songs that were
in the least obscene, and used all his influence to destroy all inclination to
them in his parishioners. From his early youth, he was devout to the Virgin
Mother, in order that by her intercession, he might preserve his purity intact.
For this purpose he constantly macerated his body and used the utmost rigor
with regard to it. His sustenance was roots and vegetables, and he partook of
only one meal during the day. Sometimes, however, no food passed his lips
during three days. He never took wine, until, when advanced in years, it was
prescribed for him. Water was his usual drink, which he did not take to refresh
himself, but only as it was absolutely needed. When, during a sultry
summer-day, he was preaching to the nuns, one of them, remarking that his lips
were so parched that he could hardly speak, brought him some fresh water. Taking
the cup in his hand, he said: “Truly this drink would be refreshing to me, but
it is better that, following the example of King David, I abstain from it out
of love to God.” Thereupon, he poured the water out, consecrating it to the
Almighty as David had done. He wore no linen, but instead of it, a rough
hair-shirt, of which he never divested himself except when it was torn, or
when, during sickness, he was obliged to lay it aside. He scourged himself so
mercilessly, that his back became one deep wound. On one of his feet he had a
sore which he had concealed until he could no longer walk. It took the surgeon
five hours to cut the mortified flesh out of it, and during all this time, not
one word of complaint passed the lips of the Saint. For forty years his bed was
a board, his pillow some books, and his only covering a cloak. In the coldest
days of the winter, his room was heated only when some one came to visit him,
or when he was ill. Thus did this servant of God endeavor to mortify his body
in every possible manner, and to lead a penitential life. And yet it seemed to
him that all this was not sufficient to gain life everlasting. One day when a
certain nobleman said that he would willingly be a poor beggar to be as sure of
salvation as Peter, the latter was horrified, and said: “Oh! Sir, God judges
differently from men. If Saint Paul feared to be cast away by God, how then
should I not fear!” and weeping bitterly after these words, he went away. God
himself proved, to the whole Christian world, the holiness of his servant, by
many miracles.
Practical Considerations
1. You see in the hands
of blessed Peter Founder, a snow-white lily and a cross. You have heard the
reason why he is thus represented. Happy those who are one day able to appear
before God with such emblems of their innocence and penance. One of these two
must a man be in possession of, if he desires to enter heaven; for, these two
roads are the only ones leading to it, namely, that of innocence and that of
penance. Do you hope to walk on both of these, or at least upon one of them?
Will you bear the lily? Ah! it docs not belong to you, if you have lost your
innocence. Or will you bear the Cross? But in what consists your penance? You
seldom repent of your sins; you do not even think of them at all. You will hear
nothing of self-abnegation. You refuse not to your body anything it desires.
You only study how you can give it all that is agreeable. How dare you,
therefore, on account of your penance, hope to gain heaven? How can you show a
cross to the Almighty as an emblem of your penance? Commence from today to
strive for the true spirit of penance, if you earnestly desire to save your
soul.
2. The blessed Peter
endeavored to follow the example of Saint Ambrose, and be useful to all men and
hurtful to none, as well temporally as spiritually. Happy are those who imitate
this example. You can be useful to man, as far as the body is concerned, by
different works of charity. You can be useful to him, concerning his soul, by
exhorting him to do good, by restraining him from evil, by good example,
prayer, and works of spiritual charity. On the contrary, you can harm your
neighbor, as far as temporal or bodily welfare is concerned, by deceit,
falsehood, injustice, false witness, theft, strife, contention, etc. Concerning
his soul, you wrong him, by inciting him to sin, or by advising or assisting
him to do evil; by giving scandal, either in word or deed, by preventing him
from doing good, etc. If you desire to work out your salvation, make use of
every opportunity to benefit your neighbor, and take heed that you never in the
least harm him. The love which you owe to your neighbor requires this; Christ
commands you to love him as you love yourself. Would you like any one to wrong
you? Most certainly not, but quite the contrary. Just so, Christ commands that
we shall love our neighbors as He has loved us. Has Christ loved any one in
soul or body? Most assuredly; He sought to be useful to all in soul and body.
Look on this example and follow it: “This is my commandment, that you love one
another as I have loved you.” (John 15)
MLA Citation
- Father Francis Xavier
Weninger, DD, SJ. “Blessed Peter Fourrier”. Lives
of the Saints, 1876. CatholicSaints.Info. 14 March 2018. Web. 8 December
2020.
<https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-blessed-peter-fourrier/>
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/weningers-lives-of-the-saints-blessed-peter-fourrier/
Statue de Saint Pierre Fourier, bois polychrome du XVIIIe siècle,
Églse abbatiale de Moyenmoutier (Vosges)
San Pietro Fourier Sacerdote
Mirecourt, Francia, 30 novembre 1565
- Gray, Francia, 8 dicembre 1640
Nasce
da una famiglia di commercianti il 30 novembre 1565 a Mirecourt in Lorena, una
regione indipendente e, in piena Riforma protestante, ancora fedele a Roma. Si
presenta all’istituto superiore della Compagnia di Gesù fondato a
Pont-à-Mousson, vicino alla capitale Nancy, nel 1579. Quattro anni dopo,
ritorna a Pont-à-Mousson per farsi prete; verrà ordinato a Treviri (Germania) nel
1589. Dal 1597 è parroco a Mattaincourt, centro dedito al tessile e soffocato
dall’usura. Proprio contro questa piaga si scaglia il nuovo parroco, che cera
un fondo per i prestiti agli artigiani. Combatterà anche contro l’ignoranza
aprendo delle scuole gratuite per bambini e bambine. Alle bambine si dedica una
ragazza di Remiremont, Alessia Leclerq (ora beata Madre Teresa di Gesù). A lei
si uniscono poi altre giovani, che daranno vita all’istituto religioso delle
«Canonichesse di sant’Agostino». E così sarà per i maestri volontari:
diventeranno i «Canonici regolari del Salvatore». Durante la Guerra dei 30 anni
Fourier riceve minacce di morte e deve fuggire a Gray. Morirà qui nel
1640. (Avvenire)
Martirologio
Romano: A Gray in Burgundia, ora in Francia, dove si era rifugiato come
esule, transito di san Pietro Fourier, sacerdote, che scelse la poverissima
parrocchia di Mattaincourt in Lorena e la curò mirabilmente, istituì i Canonici
regolari del Nostro Salvatore e fondò l’Istituto delle Canonichesse regolari di
Nostra Signora per impartire un’istruzione gratuita alle fanciulle.
I suoi genitori
commerciano in tessuti, che all’epoca sono una delle grandi risorse dei
lorenesi, come le miniere di ferro e l’agricoltura. Il ducato di Lorena è uno
Stato indipendente (sarà unito alla Francia solo nel 1766); nella grande crisi
religiosa aperta dalla Riforma di Martin Lutero è rimasta unita alla Chiesa di
Roma, diventando anzi un luogo di nuova irradiazione cattolica, con centri di
preparazione e di studio destinati a formare sacerdoti meglio preparati.
Nell’istituto superiore della Compagnia di Gesù fondato a Pont-à-Mousson,
vicino alla capitale Nancy, si presenta nel 1579 il quattordicenne Pietro
Fourier, mandato dai genitori per gli studi classici, fino al 1585. Quattro
anni dopo, ritorna a Pont-à-Mousson per farsi prete. Ne esce sei anni dopo, ben
ferrato in teologia e in diritto, dopo aver ricevuto l’ordinazione a Treviri
(Germania) nel 1589.
La scuola lo ha preparato a lavorare per la riforma cattolica, come l’ha
delineata il Concilio di Trento. Può aspirare a mansioni importanti nella
Chiesa. Ma per lui l’importanza non sta più nei buoni posti, nelle cariche e
nei titoli. Numero uno nella Chiesa, ai suoi occhi, è chiunque comunichi la
fede. Numero uno è il parroco, dunque. Ed eccolo parroco, infatti, a partire
dal 1597.
La parrocchia è quella di Mattaincourt (vicino a Mirecourt, suo luogo nativo),
paese di uomini e di donne specializzati nelle cento maniere del filare, del
tessere, del ricamare, maestri di panno e di merletto. Artigiani eccellenti, ma
vittime dell’usura. Gli strozzini li inchiodano all’eterna povertà, e sinora
nessuno li ha difesi. Ora li difende lui, il parroco Pietro, costituendo un
banco di credito che presta denaro agli artigiani senza interessi. Alla
lettera, padre Fourier ha creato un fondo per questi crediti, e riesce ad
alimentarlo con lasciti ereditari, offerte occasionali, insistendo, alzando la
voce in chiesa e fuori.
L’altro nemico pubblico è l’ignoranza. Secondo lui, un parroco degno della sua
missione dev’essere il primo a combatterla. E difatti la parrocchia di
Mattaincourt vede nascere le scuole gratuite per bambini e bambine, che
funzionano con l’aiuto di volontari. Alle bambine si dedica una ragazza di
Remiremont, Alessia Leclerq (ora beata Madre Teresa di Gesù), consigliata da
padre Fourier, che è il suo direttore spirituale. A lei si uniscono poi altre
giovani, che daranno vita all’istituto religioso delle “Canonichesse di
sant’Agostino”, sviluppando via via la loro attività e ottenendo i
riconoscimenti ecclesiastici. E così sarà per i maestri volontari: diventeranno
i “Canonici regolari del Salvatore”. Due comunità presenti e attive anche nel
terzo millennio.
Dal 1630 al 1648 si combatte in Europa la guerra dei Trent’anni, con atrocità
inaudite, eccidi, saccheggi, torture. Ci sono anche casi di cannibalismo per
fame. C’è un cardinale di Santa Romana Chiesa (Richelieu) che sostiene e
incoraggia eserciti protestanti contro eserciti cattolici. Anche la Lorena
viene invasa da truppe francesi, e il parroco Fourier, che dice la loro ai
sovrani e ai porporati, riceve minacce di morte. Deve andarsene, e trova
rifugio a Gray, nella Franca Contea che all’epoca è sotto dominio spagnolo. E
qui muore, ben prima di veder finire la guerra. Leone XIII lo proclamerà santo
nel 1897.
Autore: Domenico Agasso
Неизвестный автор. Портрет Пьера Фурье (XVIII век)
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