- Peter Fourier
Infobox Saint
name= Saint Peter Fourier
birth_date=November 30, 1565
death_date=December 9, 1640
feast_day=December 9
venerated_in=Roman Catholic Church 
imagesize= 200px
caption= "Saint Peter Fourier".Stained glass of the church inXertigny (France ,Vosges ). Artist :Gabriel Loire , 1951.
birth_place=
death_place=
titles=
beatified_date= 1730
beatified_place=
beatified_by=Pope Benedict XIII
canonized_date=1897
canonized_place=
canonized_by=Pope Leo XIII
attributes=
patronage=
major_shrine=
suppressed_date=
issues=Peter Fourier (French: Pierre Fourier) (
November 30 ,1565 -December 9 ,1640 ) was a Frenchsaint in theRoman Catholic Church and priest ofMattaincourt (Vosges ) who founded the order of theDaughters of Our Lady order. [CathEncy|wstitle=St. Peter Fourier]He began his monastic career as a canon in the abbey at
Chaumousey , and was ordained apriest at the extraordinary age of twenty-four. He was a scholastic theologian who knew the "Summa Theologica " by heart. In 1597, he was sent to Mattaincourt to shore up religious orthodoxy (i.e. to counter nascentProtestantism in the area). However, he instituted two major reforms that showed his intelligence and concern for his flock. The first of these was to improve the financial lives of his community by setting up a community bank. His second innovation was in his preaching style, where he employeddialogue s. He had his pupils engage in dialectics on Sundays on the various virtues and vices in practice by the congregation. This style was immensely successful.He founded a Congregation of Notre Dame known as the Daughters of Our Lady. This was exported to
Canada by SaintMarguerite Bourgeoys , and it has been highly successful both there and in theUnited States of America . He was beatified byPope Benedict XIII in 1730 and canonized byPope Leo XIII in 1897. Hisfeast day in the Roman Catholic Church isDecember 9 .References
External links
* [http://www.saintpetersbasilica.org/Statues/Founders/PeterFourier/Peter%20Fourier.htm Founder Statue in St Peter's Basilica]
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