St. Peter Canisius

St. Peter Canisius (born May 8, 1521, Nijmegen [now in the Netherlands]—died December 21, 1597, Fribourg, Switzerland; canonized 1925; feast day December 21) was a 16th-century Jesuit scholar and a strong opponent of Protestantism. He has been called the second apostle of Germany (with St. Boniface being the first) for his ardent defense of Roman Catholicism there during the Counter-Reformation. He was canonized in 1925 by Pope Pius XI, who also declared him a doctor of the church, a title granted to saints whose writings and teachings are of particular importance. St. Peter Canisius is venerated as a patron saint of Germany; he is also patron of Catholic media, schools and educators, and laypeople.

Educated at the University of Cologne, Canisius became a Jesuit (1543) and taught at the universities of Cologne, Ingolstadt, and Vienna. He founded colleges at Munich (1559), Innsbruck (1562), Dillingen (1563), Würzburg (1567), Augsburg, and Vienna.

Perhaps more than any of his contemporaries, Canisius delayed the advance of Protestantism by his participation in the religious discussions at Worms (1557) and at the Council of Trent and the Diet of Augsburg (1559). He sought to renew the Roman Catholic Church in Germany by means of his friendship with the Holy Roman emperor and numerous magnates, by his zealous preaching in various German towns, by the extension of the Jesuit order, and especially by his desire to provide worthy and scholarly priests. His German missions won him fast friendships with persons in all walks of life, including the emperor. He did important work in southern Germany and Austria, Bohemia, and Switzerland, where in 1580 he settled in Fribourg and founded a Jesuit college (now the University of Fribourg).

Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.

SIGN UP

By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

His major work was the Triple Catechism (1555–58), containing a lucid exposition of Roman Catholic dogma. It became the most famous catechism of the Counter-Reformation, going through 400 editions in 150 years.