John of Matha

John of Matha (23 June 1160 – 17 December 1213) was a French Catholic priest and co-founder of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity, initially dedicated to ransoming Christians who had been captured by marauders from North Africa.

Background Between the eighth and the 15th centuries, Medieval Europe was in a state of intermittent warfare between the Christian kingdoms of Southern Europe and the Muslim polities of North Africa, Southern France, Sicily and portions of Spain. According to James William Brodman, the threat of capture or kidnapping, either by Muslim pirates or coastal raiders, or during one of the region's intermittent wars, was a continual concern for residents of Catalonia, Languedoc, and other coastal provinces of mediaeval Christian Europe. Raids by Muslim bands and armies was a near-annual occurrence.

The redemption of captives is listed among the corporal works of mercy. The period of the Crusades, during which so many Christians were in danger of falling into the hands of Muslims, witnessed the rise of religious orders vowed exclusively to this pious work.

Statues of John of Matha, Felix of Valois and Saint Ivan, on the Charles Bridge, Prague.

Life and work Most of the story of John of Matha's life is based on legends that circulated after his death. It is reasonably certain that he was born to noble parents Euphemius and Martha at Faucon-de-Barcelonnette, on the borders of Provence on 23 June 1169. He was baptised as John, in honour of John the Baptist. His father Euphemius sent him to Aix-en-Provence, where he learned grammar, fencing, riding, and other skills fit for a young nobleman. It is said that while there, he gave the poor a considerable part of the money his parents sent him, and he visited the hospital every Friday to assist the penniless sick.

He studied theology at the University of Paris and was ordained a priest at the age of 32 in December 1192. According to Trinitarian tradition, John celebrated his first Mass on 28 January 1193. During that Mass, he had a vision of Christ holding by the hand two chained captives, one a Moor, the other a Christian (the Crusades were in full force at the time). The Christian captive carried a staff with a red and blue cross. After the Mass, John decided to devote himself to the task of ransoming Christian captives from the Moors.

Veneration

In 1655, his relics were translated from Rome to Madrid. His cultus was approved in 1665, and his feast day on the current General Roman Calendar is 17 December. Traditional Catholics that observe the Extraordinary Form of the Mass still observe his old feast day on 8 February.

Legacy The Order of the Most Holy Trinity is active on five continents and in many countries.

DeMatha Catholic High School located in Hyattsville, Maryland, US is named after him. It is also sponsored by the Trinitarians.

Saint-Jean-de-Matha is a village in the province of Quebec.

In 1865 American poet John Greenleaf Whittier composed an anti-slavery poem entitled "The Mantle of St. John De Matha".