Today marks the feast of St. John Neumann, and a deacon friend reminded me of a visit I made last winter to Ohio and one of the churches where Neumann served.
It’s St. Alphonsus in Peru, OH.
I was there on a bitterly cold March evening to give a talk to deacons from Toledo.
We took a brief tour of the grounds, including the log cabin where the saint lived for a short time. The cabin is now a prayer center, hosting retreats and conferences.
The parish website notes:
In 1841, the parish was again served by the Redemptorists, one of whom was John Nepomucene Neumann, a Redemptorist novice. St. Alphonsus was the only Catholic Church in the area and while the resident pastor was out attending missions the assistants served the needs at the parish proper. It was in this capacity that John Neumann served Peru. His signature appears three times in early parish records of 1841. On October 2 he baptized Francis, son of John Bayer and Marie Cook of Monroeville; October 17, he baptized David, son of David M. Groghan and Margaret King of Thompson; and on November 14, He baptized Anthony, son of Nicolaus Bayer and Angelica Hefel of Norwalk. (22)
He served the spiritual needs of the Huron County immigrants for five months before returning to New York. He eventually became the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia in 1851. He was declared heroic of virtue in 1921; Blessed 1963 and canonized St. John Nepomucene Neumann June 19, 1977
It was a great privilege to visit this little piece of American Catholic history, and walk in the footsteps of a saint.
St. John Neumann, pray for us!