Today is the feast day of St. John Neumann, Bishop of Philadelphia (1852-1860). He had the highest regard for the Christian Brothers, bringing them to that city in 1853. He once told the oldest class of boys at St. Alphonsus School in Baltimore that he would gladly exchange his bishop’s attire for the Robe of the Christian Brothers to teach young people, if the Pope would permit it.
Bro. Angelus Gabriel, The Christian Brothers in the United States 1848-1948: A Century of Catholic Education (NY: McMullen, 1948), pp. 231 and 555.
