Edmund Ignatius Rice
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Blessed Edmund Ignatius Rice (born 1 June 1762, died 11 a.m. 29 August 1844) was a Catholic missionary and educationalist who was Beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 6, 1996 [1]. Blessed Edmund is the founder of two orders of religious brothers: The Congregation of Christian Brothers and the Presentation Brothers.
Rice was born as a Catholic in Ireland at a time when they faced oppression at the hands of the English (See Penal Laws). He forged a successful career in business and, after the tragic accident which killed his wife and left his daughter disabled, devoted his life to the education and service of the poor.
Congregation of Christian Brother schools around the world follow the traditions of Rice. See Congregation of Christian Brothers for a list of schools founded by the Brothers.
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[edit] Early life and career
He was born in Westcourt of Callan, County Kilkenny, in the heart of Ireland, when Irish Catholics were oppressed by the weight of anti-Catholic Penal laws initiated by the English Parliament; a time of great troubles. He was the fourth of seven sons; and he had two step-sisters, one of whom was Joan Murphy.
At the age of 25 in 1785 he married Mary Elliot. She died in January 1789 when the horse driving her carriage panicked. She was killed because of a fever brought on after being thrown from the carriage. Pregnant at the time, a daughter was delivered on her deathbed. The daughter (also named Mary) was born handicapped. So after only four years he was a widower responsible for an infant daughter in delicate health.
[edit] Vocation
Rice devoted himself to prayer and charitable work, particularly with the poor and marginalised. In 1802, when he established a makeshift school in a converted stable in New Street, Mount Sion, Waterford, a thriving river-port in the south-east of Ireland he found the children were so difficult to manage that the teachers resigned. This prompted him to give up his own business and devote himself to training teachers who would dedicate their lives to prayers and to teaching the children free of charge.
In 1808, seven of the staff including Edmund Rice, took religious vows under Bishop Power of Waterford. They were called Presentation Brothers. This was the first congregation of men to be founded in Ireland and one of the few ever founded in a Church by a layman. Following the example of the Presentation Sisters (cf Nano Nagle),Gradually an extraordinary transformation took place in the "quay kids" of Waterford. Edmund and his Brothers educated, clothed and fed them. Other Bishops in Ireland supplied him with men whom he prepared for religious life and a life of teaching. In this way the Presentation Brothers spread throughout Ireland.
However, the groups in separate dioceses were under the Bishop’s and not Edmund's control. This created problems when Brothers were needed to be transferred from school to school. So Edmund sought and ultimately obtained approval from Pope Pius VII for his Brothers to be made into a pontifical congregation with Edmund as Superior General; he was then able to move Brothers to wherever they were most needed. In the 1820s further difficulties owing to the expansion of the society becoming two distinct congregations. From this time on they were called Christian Brothers and the Presentation Brothers. The motto of the Christian Brothers was : "The Lord has given, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord forever”. Job1:21.
In 1828, the North Richmond Street house and schools in Dublin, Ireland - were founded by Edmund Rice with the foundation stone laid by the Daniel O’Connell. The building housed the brothers’ headquarters for many years. The present residence incorporated the original house built by Edmund Rice, who lived here from 1831 to until his death in 1844.
[edit] Retirement and death
At the age seventy-six, Rice retired but was suffering from arthritis and had to spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.
After falling into a coma, Rice died at 11am on August 29, 1844 at Mount Sion, Waterford, where his remains lie in a casket to this day. Large crowds filled the streets around his house in Dublin to honour the great Man.
[edit] Beatification
The first attempt to introduce Edmund's cause towards sainthood was in 1911 by Brother Mark Hill. He travelled Waterford and other parts of Ireland collecting statements (on why Edmund should be made a saint) from the people, but very little progress was made. The cause was started up again by the efforts of Pius Noonan, who was the Superior General at the time. With the help of Monsignor Montini (the future Pope Paul VI), the cause was officially opened in Dublin in 1957.
In 1976 the Historical Commission of the Dublin Archdiocese and Father Kevin Kennedy now as secretary recommended that Edmund's cause be brought to Rome. Roman theologians agreed to look into Edmund's cause. Three Brothers had the burden of investigating archives and collecting evidence on why Edmund should be a saint. They were Mark Hill, David Fitzpatrick and Columba Normoyle, with assistance from John Carroll, Austin Connolly and Donal Blake. After the commissions unanimous approval the Pope declared Edmund worthy of his cause in 1993.
In November 1993 Pope John Paul II declared Edmund Rice venerable and two years later approved the miracle, the curing of a young Newry man, Kevin Ellison, who was thought to have had only 48 hours to live, which was attributed to Edmund Rice. This paved the way to his beatification on October 6, 1996 to become known as Blessed Edmund Ignatius Rice. His official feast day is May 5.
[edit] External link
- Edmund Ignatius Rice entry at the Catholic Encyclopedia
[edit] References
- Holy Spirit Province Australia
- St. Mary's Province Australia
- St. Francis Xavier Province Australia
- St. Columba's School Unofficial Website
- Edmund Rice Online
- Brother Rice High School (Chicago)
- Brother Rice High School (Bloomfield Township, MI)
