<p>St. Alphonsus was a Spanish Jesuit lay brother that is now venerated as a saint.&nbsp; He was a native of Segovia.&nbsp; He was the son of a wool merchant who had been reduced to poverty when Alphonsus was still young, leaving the business to him when he was only 23.&nbsp; At the age of 26, he married Maria Suarez, and they had three children.&nbsp; At the age of 31, he found himself a widower with one surviving child.&nbsp; The other two had died.&nbsp; From that time on he began a life of prayer and mortification, and he separated from the world around him.&nbsp; Soon after, his third child passed, and his thoughts turned to a life in a religious Order. &nbsp;</p> <p>He had previous encounters with the first Jesuits who had come to Spain, Blessed Peter Faber among others, but he knew it was impossible to carry out entering without education.&nbsp; At the age of 39, he attempted to make up his education by taking a course at the College of Barcelona, but with no success.&nbsp; His austerities had also undermined his health.&nbsp; After consideration and delay, he was finally admitted into the Society of Jesus as a Lay Brother on January 31, 1571 at the age of forty. &nbsp;</p> <p>After six months he was sent to the recently founded college at Majorca, where he remained in the humble position of Porter, for 46 years, exercising a marvelous influence on the sanctification not only of the members of the household, but upon a great number of people who came to the porter&rsquo;s lodge for advice and direction. &nbsp; St. Peter Clavier lived with him for some time at Majorca, and followed his advice in asking for the missions of South America. &nbsp;</p> <p>He imposed bodily mortifications to himself that were extreme.&nbsp; His obedience was absolute, and his absorption of spiritual thing was amazing.&nbsp; It is believed that he was the author of the well-known &ldquo;Little Office of the Immaculate Conception&rdquo;.&nbsp; He died on October 31, 1617.&nbsp; He was declared venerable in 1626, and in 1760, Pope Clement XIII decreed, &ldquo;the virtues of the Venerable Alonso were proved to be of a heroic degree&rdquo;.&nbsp; He was Beatified in 1825, and Canonized in 1887.&nbsp; His remains are enshrined at Majorca. &nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong>Practical Take Away</strong></span></p> <p>St. Alphonsus Rodriguez was a pious man that was raised in poverty.&nbsp; He went on to marry and they had three children.&nbsp; All three of his children passed away, and by the age of 31 he became a widower.&nbsp; He turned from the world, and retreated to prayer and communion with God.&nbsp; He tried to enter the religious life as a Jesuit, but because of his lack of education, he was only received as a Lay Brother.&nbsp; He was a Porter for 46 years, and gave spiritual advice to many.&nbsp; He held heroic virtues that were noted by Pope Clement XIII.&nbsp; His live shows us that with the loss of his wife, and all three of his children, he turned to God and worked to help others.&nbsp; Many times life throws us terrible situations, but with God by our side, we, like St. Alphonsus Rodriguez can overcome them, and be a blessing to others.&nbsp; &nbsp;</p>