Blessed Francisco Palau

Francisco Palau y Quer, OCD (Catalan: Francesc Palau i Quer; religious name Francisco of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, 29 December 1811 – 20 March 1872) was a Catalan Discalced Carmelite priest. Growing up in the chaos of the Peninsular War in Spain, he followed both the life of a hermit and of a missionary preacher in the rural regions of Catalonia. He founded the School of Virtue, which was a model of catechetical teaching for adults, in Barcelona. In 1860 he founded a Carmelite Third Order congregation for both men and women, in the Balearic Islands. The legacy of this foundation is carried on by two religious congregations for women who serve throughout the world. Working from his tradition of Carmelite spirituality, Palau tried to promote the need of basing the spiritual life on recognizing and returning God's love, as opposed to the rationalist doctrines of the theology of his day. He was beatified in 1988. One of his spiritual followers was his great-niece, Teresa of Jesus Jornet, who founded a religious congregation of Carmelite sisters dedicated to caring for the poor aged. She is honored as a saint. He was born on 29 December 1811 in Aitona, Lerida, the 7th of the nine children of Joseph Palau and Maria Antònia Quer, who were fervent royalists and devoted Catholics. They were a humble farming family who would gather together to pray the rosary after their day's labors. He was baptized that same day in keeping with local custom. He was born into a period of widespread hunger and chaos due to the devastation wrought by the French invasion of Spain, which had reached the region the previous year. The entire Palau family was active in the parish life and fervent in the reception of the sacraments. The father and all the children were members of the parish choir. Francisco initially studied at the town school. At the age of 14, Palau decided to become a priest. Through the help of his sister Rosa, he pursued higher education for this goal in the City of Lleida.