Patrick Peyton | |
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| Born | (1909-01-09)9 January 1909 Attymass,County Mayo,Ireland |
| Died | 3 June 1992(1992-06-03) (aged 83) San Pedro,California,United States |
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Patrick Peyton,CSC (9 January 1909 – 3 June 1992), also known as "the Rosary priest", was an Irish-bornCatholic priest of theCongregation of Holy Cross, and founder of theFamily Rosary Crusade. He popularized the phrases "The family that prays together stays together" and "A world at prayer is a world at peace."
Peyton staged massiveRosary rallies in key cities of the world and extensively utilized mass communication, helped by world-recognized celebrities ofHollywood at that time, promoting his ministry of binding families through prayer under the Family Rosary. Peyton was a popular and charismatic figure inLatin America and thePhilippines, where he promoted the rosary and was known for his strongIrish accent.
His cause for canonization was opened in 2001 andPope Francis declared himvenerable on 18 December 2017.
Peyton was born Patrick Joseph Peyton inAttymass,County Mayo,Ireland,[1] tosubsistence farmers John and Mary Gillard Peyton. Peyton was the sixth in a profoundly religious family of five girls and four boys living in a small cottage on a 14-acre (5.7 ha) stony farmland near the foot of the Ox Mountains. Later on, some members of the family migrated to the United States.
Peyton was sent to his mother's relatives inBonniconlon,County Mayo to study at a school run by Tadhg O’Leary in Bofield. As a young man, Peyton was rebellious and had moments of defying authority; as a result, he dropped out of school. Despite the youthful rebellion, he remained close to his family and deeply religious.
By his teens, he was considering apriestly vocation. Although religious recruiters such as theCapuchins and theRedemptorist fathers visited Carracastle in search of young men wanting to pursue the priesthood, Peyton concentrated on helping his family earn a living when their father became too ill to work the farm. Some of his elder sisters were already in America and sent money to help the family in Ireland. In 1927, his sisters sent word that Patrick and his older brother Thomas could sail to the United States and join them inScranton, Pennsylvania. On 13 May 1928, nineteen-year-old Patrick and his brother set sail.[2]
The brothers arrived inNew York after a 10-day trip, traveling by steerage. The two took the train from New York toPennsylvania and lived at the home of their married sister Beatrice, who was working as a housekeeper forThomas J. Baldrige, the state Attorney General. Peyton's sister Nellie had already spoken to Monsignor Paul Kelly ofSaint Peter's Cathedral and mentioned Peyton's interest in pursuing a priestly vocation. Monsignor Kelly told Nellie to bring her younger brother Patrick to the cathedral as soon as he arrived. By June 1928, with hard luck in finding a job, Peyton finally met Monsignor Kelly and was offered a position as the cathedral'ssexton.[3]
Peyton took the job with initial hesitation, but his daily presence at the cathedral brought back the calling for a vocation, and he finally decided to pursue the priesthood. Monsignor Kelly insisted that Peyton complete his high school education before admission to thenovitiate. He and his older brother Thomas both pursued their religious vocations while working at the cathedral. During the spring of 1929, Father Pat Dolan of theCongregation of Holy Cross came to the cathedral in Scranton in search of new seminarians. Peyton and his brother Thomas entered the minor seminary of the Congregation of Holy Cross inNotre Dame, Indiana.[1]
After completing their high school studies at the Holy Cross School inNotre Dame, Indiana, Peyton was admitted to the Moreau Seminary within theUniversity of Notre Dame in 1932, where he pursued aBachelor of Arts degree, and excelled inPhilosophy. He credited Cornelius Hagerty, a professor of ethics, as the one who provided him with counseling. As a young seminarian, Peyton considered becoming a Holy Cross Father.
In October 1938, during Peyton's second year of theology atCatholic University of America, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis. He was transferred back to Notre Dame. Father Cornelius Hagerty was influential in this stage of Peyton's life, encouraging the young seminarian to seek the Blessed Virgin Mary's help. The doctors discovered that the patches in his lungs disappeared.[1]
He immediately packed his bags and left for Washington, D.C., to complete his theology studies and take his final vows. On 15 June 1941, Peyton and his brother Thomas were ordained[2] at theBasilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of Notre Dame as members of the Congregation of Holy Cross.[4]
Peyton was given very light duties following the completion of his theological studies. His first assignment was inAlbany, New York, as the chaplain of theHoly Cross Brothers of the Vincentian Institute. Peyton started sending letters to bishops, the Catholic laity, and other groups promoting the importance of families praying the rosary as the war raged on.
Utilizing radio,films,outdoor advertising, and latertelevision, with the help of celebrities, artists, and advertising practitioners, Peyton was one of the first pioneers of evangelism usingmass media. He would also pioneer in conducting public rallies to bring families to pledge to pray the rosary together. According to historian Hugh Wilford, "Peyton himself was deeply conscious of the political dimension of his mission, proudly proclaiming in a 1946 radio broadcast, 'The rosary is the offensive weapon that will destroy Communism—the great evil that seeks to destroy the faith.'"[5]
Rosary Crusades were duplicated in different dioceses, with attendees growing in numbers. They took Peyton around the globe toBrussels, Belgium,Madrid, Spain,Manila, Philippines,New Zealand,Papua New Guinea,Lima, Peru andRio de Janeiro inBrazil. He conducted his first American rosary crusade on the grounds of St. Ann's Monastery (theBasilica of the National Shrine of St. Ann) inScranton in 1949.[6] With the help of a non-Catholic advertising practitioner, Peyton would popularize the slogan, "The family that prays together stays together." During theMarian year of 1954, Peyton brought the Rosary Crusade to Ireland "...where it was estimated that as many as 445,000 people attended his rallies."[2]
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With theCold War threatening new world peace, Peyton's work in promoting prayer was recognized by the Holy See. His efforts earned him the title "the rosary priest."
Controversy hounded Peyton throughout his ministry as some accused him of being a front for American intelligence during his missions in Latin America. Peyton's Rosary Crusades in Latin America were funded and, to some extent, directed by theCentral Intelligence Agency, which was interested in combating leftist political movements in Latin America. This came about through Peyton's connection toJ. Peter Grace, the great-grandson of the founder ofW.R. Grace and Company, a multinational corporation with interests in transport,sugar, and mining in South America. Peyton had met J. Peter Grace in 1946 on a trans-Atlantic voyage. Grace, who was involved with otherCIA front operations as well, wrote to John Moore, the chair of the Business Advisory Council, and the two men approachedAllen Dulles. Dulles later met with Grace in the White House office of Vice PresidentRichard Nixon, who expressed enthusiasm. The CIA decided for several years where the crusades would take place. CIA funds were expended inChile,Brazil,Venezuela, andColombia, until Peyton's provincial superior, Richard H. Sullivan, learned of the secret funding fromTheodore Hesburgh, the chair of the board of trustees of theUniversity of Notre Dame, in October 1964. It took theVatican more than a year and a half to oblige Peyton to give up his CIA financing.[7] While the CIA determined the Crusades' locations, it did not influence the content or Peyton's goal of promoting family prayer – the rosary and devotion to the Blessed Mother.[citation needed]
Others accused Peyton of living a lavish lifestyle amongst Hollywood artists who volunteered their efforts to promote his mission; Peyton maintained that he never solicited funds for his ministry, and the well-off were more than generous to voluntarily donate a portion of their wealth all in the name of the Virgin Mary.[citation needed]
Peyton died on 3 June 1992, holding a rosary in a small room at the Little Sisters of the Poor Jeanne Jugan Residence inSan Pedro, California. His remains were brought to the Holy Cross Cemetery on the grounds ofStonehill College inEaston, Massachusetts.[citation needed]
Before Peyton died, he continued to work on what was to be the last major Rosary Rally. On 8 December 1992, at theRizal Park inManila,Philippines, Manila Archbishop CardinalJaime Sin led the celebrations for the Golden Jubilee Celebration of theFamily Rosary Crusade; the Archbishop of Los Angeles, CardinalRoger Mahony was sent asPapal Legate on behalf ofPope John Paul II. AmongFilipino Catholics, Peyton is remembered for his Sunday televised shows, where he promoted theRosary andMarian devotion along with his famous slogan. Peyton also encouraged many businesses to make and sell large amounts of Rosaries for distribution, which he gave freely to impoverished Filipinos living in the slums.[citation needed]
Peyton's work continues today in his original ministries – Family Rosary, Family Theater, and Family Rosary International – and the Father Patrick Peyton Family Institute.
On 9 October 2020,Family Theater Productions released a biographical film about Peyton, entitledPray: The Story of Patrick Peyton.[8]
CardinalSeán Patrick O'Malley announced a formal declaration, opening the cause forbeatification of Father Peyton on 1 June 2001, a few days after receiving approval from the Vatican'sCongregation for the Causes of the Saints. The declaration paved the way for the process of determining Peyton's holiness, and he received titleServant of God at this time.[citation needed]
ThePositio was sent to the C.C.S. in 2015 for assessment, and theologians approved his cause on 1 June 2017.Pope Francis named him asvenerable on 18 December 2017.[9]
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