Blessed Anton Maria Schwartz

Anton Maria Schwartz (28 February 1852 – 15 September 1929), born Anton Schwartz, was an Austrian Roman Catholic priest and the founder of the Congregation of the Christian Workers of Saint Joseph Calasanz. He entered the novitiate of the Piarists but left due to fear of German suppression, so instead became a diocesan priest for the Archdiocese of Vienna. He championed the rights and the welfare of the workers and aimed his order at serving labourers. He received beatification from Pope John Paul II on 21 June 1998. Anton Schwartz was born in Baden in 1852 as the fourth of fourteen children. He served in a choir as a child. Schwartz's father died during his adolescence when he was fifteen which resulted in hardship and struggling for Schwartz and his siblings. He commenced his education in Baden in 1858 and later at a school of music in Heiligenkruetz. In 1865, he relocated to Vienna with his aunt and attended high school there though decided his true path in life was to the priesthood. At the age of seventeen he commenced his time of novitiate in the Piarists where he maintained a strong devotion to its founder. However he left not long after he entered due to the advice of his superiors who feared the institute would see suppression from the German Empire. He commenced his studies for the priesthood in 1871 and was ordained as such on 25 July 1875 from Cardinal Joseph Othmar Rauscher; he chose "Maria" as his middle name on 8 December 1873. His poorness saw him have to borrow a chalice and vestments for his first Mass. His period of studies before ordination saw him suffer a serious lung infection that bought him to the point of near-death. Prior to his ordination he was told he should have had his portrait taken as a memorial picture for his impending funeral due to the graveness of his ailment. Despite all odds he managed to recover and continue with his education.