William joseph chaminade biography of abraham

Bl. William Joseph Chaminade was born in Périgueux, France, in 1761. He was the 14th child of a deeply Christian family:  besides William Joseph, three of his brothers were priests.

In 1771 he entered the minor seminary of Mussidan and four years later made private vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. He was ordained a priest in 1785.

In 1790 after the outbreak of the French Revolution, he moved to Bordeaux, where he spent most of his life.

William joseph chaminade biography of abraham lincoln

In 1791 he refused to take the oath of the so-called Civil Constitution of the Clergy and clandestinely exercised his priestly ministry, putting his life in constant danger. At this time he came to know the Ven. Marie-Thérèse Charlotte de Lamourous (1754-1836), who was one of his closest collaborators and whom he later helped to found the Miséricorde in Bordeaux to aid fallen women.

In 1795 he was given the delicate task of receiving back into the Diocese priests who, hav