Bl. Kaspar Stangassinger, C.Ss.R. - September 26

Redemptoristtv. Blessed Kaspar Stanggassinger (12 January 1871 - 26 September 1899) was a German Roman Catholic priest and a professed member from the Redemptorists.[1] His inclination to the priesthood manifested from his childhood and he soon became a seminarian before deciding not be just a diocesan priest but one part of a religious order after a spiritual experience directed him towards the Redemptorist charism. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1895 and soon began teaching and overseeing new seminarians despite his desire to go out to the missions in Brazil.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger
The beatification cause commenced in 1960 and he later became titled as Venerable upon the confirmation of his life of heroic virtue in 1986; he was later beatified not long after this in 1988.
Kaspar Stanggassinger was born in 1871 as the second of sixteen children to Kaspar Stanggassiner and Crescencia Hamberger. His father was a farmer who dabbled in stone since he owned one of the quarries close to their home and who was also a well-respected man in their town.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger
In his childhood the pious Stanggassinger announced that he would become a priest in due course when he grew older and he often liked to pretend that he was a priest. He liked to gather other children and adolescents during periods of vacation and would go to Mass with them or hike or do other activities.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger On one occasion a friend was in danger of falling while mountain climbing but he risked his life to see him safe and sound. In 1887 he made a private vow to remain chaste and in 1889 contracted a serious illness but recovered and so consecrated himself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger He first attended a high school in Freising and completed his studies there on 7 January 1890 before beginning his studies for the priesthood on 22 November 1890 in the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising. But he struggled with his studies and so his father issued him with an ultimatum: finish his studies and buckle down or leave and find work someplace.[1] He In 1890 he visited Vienna and Innsbruck and made other trips to places such as Munich and Salzburg. On 2 April 1892 he received the tonsure and the minor orders. That summer he went on pilgrimage to a Marian shrine in the nation's south and there experienced a strong urge to join the Redemptorists.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger
He entered the novitiate in the order at Gars in 1892 and entered with the intention of preaching the Gospel to the most abandoned. On 16 October 1893 he made his vows and was later ordained to the priesthood on 16 June 1895 in Regensburg. He had hoped to be part of a mission band in Brazil but was sent instead to Dürrnburg to teach high school students. In addition to teaching he provided pastoral assistance at the churches in neighboring villages and preached for the most part.[1] He was devoted to the Eucharist and in his preaching invited all to have recourse to the Blessed Sacrament in times of need and trouble. In 1899 the order opened a new institute for prospective seminarians in Gars and he was transferred there as its director on 22 September 1894. He had time to preach one retreat to the students and participate in its opening.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger
He fell ill with what was a fatal case of peritonitis and later died of it on 26 September 1899. He was buried in the Redemptorist convent at Gars am Inn; his remains were later relocated on 1 September 1935.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaspar_Stanggassinger