Saint Philip Neri

Italian religious leader

• Born: July 21, 1515
• Birthplace: Florence (now in Italy)
• Died: May 26, 1595
• Place of death: Rome, Papal States (now in Italy)

As a priest living in Rome during the Counter-Reformation, Saint Philip Neri stood apart from the religious politics of his time and influenced countless Catholics to reform their lives and return to traditional spirituality. Called the Apostle of Rome, he founded the Congregation of the Oratory, which inspired laypersons and clergy to lead lives of holiness and charity.

Early Life

Saint Philip Neri (NAY-ree) was born in a poor section of Florence, ruled at that time by the Medicis. His father, Francesco Neri, was unsuccessful in his career as a notary and thus turned to alchemy, losing the family’s financial security through his improvidence. When Philip was five years old, his mother, Lucrezia da Mosciano, died shortly after giving birth to her fourth child. The household, by all reports a happy one, was thereafter managed by a woman who was either the mother-in-law of Francesco or his second wife.

Young Philip, unlike many other saints, showed no evidence of a precocious interest in religion. Yet even as a child he was noted for his charm and sweetness of disposition, personal qualities that would characterize his relationships with others throughout his life. His nickname was Pippo Buono (good little Philip). His formal schooling with the Dominican fathers probably ended when he was about sixteen, and thereafter he was self-educated. In 1532, he went to San Germano to work for his father’s cousin Romolo Neri, with the understanding that he would eventually take over the family business. Instead, during a period of intense prayer and meditation, he decided to give his life to God. He had no plans to enter the priesthood but intended to live in poverty and offer his service to humankind. Accordingly, in 1533 he left San Germano and traveled to Rome, where he lived in the home of Galeotto Caccia, a customs official from Florence, serving as tutor to Caccia’s two young sons.

Life’s Work

Although Philip would not be ordained a priest until he was thirty-six years old, he quietly began the work to which he would dedicate the rest of his life. Philip lived during the Counter-Reformation, thus called by those who consider it to have been a response to the Protestant movement; it is also known as the Catholic Revival by those who consider it to have been an internal revitalization of the Church begun in the previous century in Spain.

Rome, sacked during an invasion in 1527, was noted for its atmosphere of licentiousness and low moral standards, and was ripe for reform. To Catholic observers, the influence of classical, or pagan, authors was responsible for the weakness of faith in the Church. Abuses within the Church were flagrant, with the Medicis using their political power to control church elections and corrupt clergymen neglecting the spiritual needs of the people. The Council of Trent, meeting from 1545 to 1563, would reform the abuses and clarify church teaching but would be unsuccessful in the attempt to reunite with the Protestants.

Philip, his life newly dedicated to God, became one of the many hermits of the streets of Rome, preaching informally to anyone who would listen. At night, however, he went to the catacombs outside the city to pray and meditate in solitude, beginning his life as a mystic. He also took courses in philosophy and theology at the university but, realizing that he had no calling to the scholarly life, sold his books and gave the money to the poor. He continued to live with the Caccia family, in a small attic room, eating a meager diet of bread and olives.

Soon Philip’s gift for influencing others came to public attention. With his good humor, he succeeded in converting many young men who had come at first to mock his preaching. He also took up charitable work in the public hospitals, offering spiritual comfort to the dying. Although he met Saint Ignatius of Loyola during this time, Philip was not attracted to the Jesuit priesthood and had no intention of seeking ordination himself, even though many of the young men he converted became priests.

In 1544, on the eve of Pentecost, Philip underwent an unusual experience while praying in the catacombs. He reported that a ball of fire entered his mouth and lodged in his heart, creating a swelling or malformation that was visible to others. The autopsy report of his death showed an enlarged heart that had broken several ribs. Whatever the explanation for this phenomenon, observers noticed throughout his life that his heartbeat could be heard across a room and that he would tremble violently when overcome by a mystical experience.

In 1548, Philip laid the foundation for the organization that would eventually become the Congregation of the Oratory. With Father Persiano Rossi, he formed a confraternity of laymen that met at the Church of San Girolomo to pray, read the Scriptures, and discuss the lives of the saints and Church history. In 1551, at the insistence of Father Rossi (and probably because the Church disapproved of lay preachers), Philip was ordained. At that time, no special education was required for ordination, although the Council of Trent was to found the system of seminaries that would educate priests in the future.

Given the power to hear confessions, Philip, contrary to the custom of the time, insisted that his followers receive this sacrament frequently. He was noted for his insights as a spiritual adviser, reportedly knowing what the penitent was thinking before any words were spoken. Despite his need for solitude, he made himself available at all hours, even during the night, to those who asked for his guidance.

Philip’s meetings became famous in Rome, attracting many followers. After the spiritual exercises, the followers would make the pilgrimage to the Seven Churches, a special devotion in Rome, stopping to eat and drink with the enthusiasm of picnickers. Among his followers were the historian Cesare Baronio, Cardinal (later Saint) Carlo Borromeo of Milan, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, and Giovanni Animuccia. These last two composed sacred music for the prayer meetings, originating the musical form of the oratorio, which takes its name from this group.

In 1575, Pope Gregory XIII formally recognized the Congregation of the Oratory. Although Philip had not intended to found a religious congregation, his movement spread to several other cities in Italy. The Congregation of the Oratory differed significantly from other religious organizations in that, although the priests lived in community, they took no vows, kept their personal property, and were free to leave at any time. The pope gave Philip the property of Santa Maria in Vallicella, where he had a new church constructed and lived for the rest of his life. Since he had no wealth of his own, he apparently depended on contributions from the faithful to carry out his work.

Philip’s reputation for clownish behavior might seem at first to contradict his saintly vocation. He often ordered strange penances, such as requiring a follower to sing or dance in the streets or perform humiliating work such as sweeping the church steps while dressed in an outlandish costume. Once, when a penitent asked permission to wear a hair shirt, Philip commanded him to wear it outside his clothing, visible to all. With his belief in the virtue of humility, Philip saw these penances as a way of puncturing the egos of sinners full of self-love. Although he was personally fastidious, his appearance was sometimes laughable. Once he appeared in the streets with half his beard shaved, and sometimes he wore his clothes inside out. When the pope offered him the red hat of a cardinal, Philip took this honor as a joke and tossed the hat around like a ball. This good-humored mockery of his own dignity was taken by Romans as evidence of his saintliness and increased their affection for him.

Throughout his life, Philip wrote poetry, although little remains, as he destroyed his papers before death. As his reputation for sanctity grew, so did stories about his mystical experiences while celebrating Mass. He would often lose himself in contemplation and go into a trancelike state, reportedly rising in the air, then collapse in a state of exhaustion. His followers increased, including not only ordinary people but also cardinals and even several popes.

In his old age, Philip had a luxuriant white beard and bright, childlike blue eyes. His frail appearance became more pronounced; always an ascetic, he ate barely enough to sustain life and in his last years withdrew entirely to a life of contemplation. Philip died in 1595. Popularly acclaimed as a saint during his lifetime, he was canonized by Pope Gregory XV in 1622.

Significance

Saint Philip Neri is an example of the power of a humble man, devoid of any desire for public acclaim or political power, to exert a significant influence on the events of his time. A priest of the Roman Catholic Church during the turbulent years of the Counter-Reformation, his example of personal holiness, balanced with a whimsical (at times eccentric) sense of humor, persuaded countless Romans, from ordinary workers to highly placed churchmen, to reform their lives.

The most significant event during Philip’s lifetime was the Council of Trent, which clarified the doctrines of the Catholic Church, set down the rules for the reform of the clergy, and called on the faithful to lead disciplined lives under the spiritual direction of the Church. Although Philip took no part in the deliberations of the council, he founded the Congregation of the Oratory (Oratorians), a loosely organized group of laymen and priests who gathered to pray, read and discuss the Scriptures, and exhort others to a life of holiness. Some of Rome’s most notable clerics, public figures, and musicians attended these meetings. The Oratorians, unlike members of other religious orders, took no vows.

As is often the case in reports of saints’ lives, controversy arises over the contemporary biographers’ records of miraculous occurrences (ecstasies, prophecies, medical cures) as manifestations of Philip’s holiness. Interpretation of the meaning of these phenomena is a matter of faith. Yet there can be no question that, in a time when the Church produced both illustrious and notorious public figures, Philip stands out as one who, through his considerable personal magnetism and holiness, became a model for personal reform for the countless people who sought his spiritual guidance.

Bibliography

Bouyer, Louis. The Roman Socrates: A Portrait of St. Philip Neri. Translated by Michael Day. Westminster, Md.: Newman Press, 1958. Offers insight into Philip’s spiritual life from the viewpoint of a modern French priest who belongs to the Congregation of the Oratory.

Burke, Peter. “How to Become a Counter-Reformation Saint.” In The Counter-Reformation: The Essential Readings, edited by David M. Luebke. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell, 1999. This study of the canonization of Philip and others is one of nine essays on the state of Counter-Reformation studies since 1945. Includes bibliographic references and index.

Butler, Samuel. “St. Philip Neri.” In Butler’s Lives of the Saints, edited by Herbert Thurston and Donald Atwater. New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1956. An indispensable reference work, which gives a concise overview of Philip’s life and contributions to the history of the Catholic Church.

Daniel-Rops, Henry. The History of the Church of Christ. Vol. 5 in The Catholic Reformation. Translated by John Warrington. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1962. A detailed scholarly study, especially useful in placing Philip’s life and work within the framework of the Catholic Revival, which influenced him and was influenced by him, because so many of his followers were church officials.

Harney, Martin P. “Religious Orders, Old and New.” In The Catholic Church Through the Ages. Boston: Daughters of St. Paul, 1974. A good account of church history for those without scholarly knowledge of the times. Valuable in describing the Congregation of the Oratory against the background of the Council of Trent.

McGinness, Frederick J. Right Thinking and Sacred Oratory in Counter-Reformation Rome. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1995. Exhaustive analysis of the theory and practice of preaching in Rome during the Counter-Reformation. Covers everything from the general strategy of Catholic sermonizing to the physical conditions of the sermon audience. Includes illustrations, bibliographic references, and index.

Maynard, Theodore. Mystic in Motley: The Life of St. Philip Neri. Milwaukee, Wis.: Bruce Publishing, 1946. A lucid biography that draws on sources from Philip’s own time as well as earlier biographies not generally available. Sifts through the technical accounts of canonization procedures and miracles to provide a balanced explanation for many events in Philip’s life.

Schamoni, Wilhelm. “Philip Neri, the Apostle of Rome.” In Face of the Saints, translated by Anne Freemantle. New York: Pantheon Books, 1947. Reprint. Freeport, N.Y.: Books for Libraries Press, 1972. A fascinating collection of images of death masks and portraits of the saints painted during their lives, along with brief biographies. The introduction has a useful explanation of the canonization process for the general reader.

Türks, Paul. Philip Neri: The Fire of Joy. Translated by Daniel Utrecht. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1995. This biography of Philip emphasizes the human qualities, such as sense of humor, that helped him to win back followers of Catholicism by convincing them that the religion had more to do with loving worship than with self-denial and asceticism. Includes bibliographic references and index.