August 1 is the feast of St. Alphonsus. The relationship between the Vincentians and the Redemptorists goes much deeper than the fact that Saint Alphonsus Liguori was born on the feast of Vincent dePaul.
Alphonsus’ radical conversion dates back to a Vincentian retreat, his earliest supporters were Vincentians, his common rule closely modeled on that of that of Vincent and both communities dedicate themselves to the preaching of so-called “popular missions.
In the first place, biographers write of St. Alphonsus that: “It was during a Vincentian retreat in 1722 that [St. Alphonsus] Liguori experienced a radical conversion. Although he was a lawyer at the time, he rejected his secular lifestyle for a more spiritual one, and made a personal vow of celibacy”
In the second place, one of St. Alphonsus’ earliest supporters was Father Vincent Cutica, a Vincentian priest ().
Thirdly, like Vincentian missionaries, Redemptorists dedicate themselves also to preaching the so-called popular missions.
Fourthly, their rules are inspired by the Common Rule written by Vincent.
Const. 1: The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, founded by Saint Alphonsus, is a clerical missionary religious institute approved by the Holy See. Its purpose is to”follow the example of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, by preaching the word of God to the poor, as He declared of Himself: ‘He sent me to preach the Good News to thepoor.'”
Const. 3: Evangelization of the poor.The most abandoned, to whom in particular the Congregation is sent, are those forwhom the Church has not yet been able to provide sufficient means of salvation, thosewho have never heard the Church’s message, or at least do not receive it as the “GoodNews,” and finally those who suffer harm because of division in the Church.
Const. 21 and 22: The Community.To fulfill their mission in the Church, Redemptorists perform their missionary workas a community … An essential law of life for the members is this: That they live incommunity and carry out their apostolic work through community.The whole purpose of community life is to have members, like the apostles, in a spiritof genuine brotherly union, combine their prayers and deliberations, their labours andsufferings, their successes and failures, and their material goods as well, for theservice of the Gospel
Formed over 250 years ago, Redemptorists remain inspired by the missionary goal of their founder: To follow the example of Jesus the Redeemer by preaching the Word of God to thepoor, as he declared of himself, “He sent me to preach the Good News to the poor.” An Introduction to the Redemptorists PDF http://www1.rism.ac.th/2005/PDF/Intro%20Redemptorists.pdf
