Msgr Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

. Victor Scheppers (25 April 1802 in

Mechelen Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...

– 7 March 1877 in Mechelen) was the founder of the Brothers of Mercy of Mechelen and the Scheppersinstituut Mechelen. He was declared "venerable" by the Roman Catholic Church in March 1987. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

is 7 March, the date of his death.

Biography

Victor Scheppers was the youngest of four children. His parents were wealthy landowners, his father owned a brewery near Mechelen. Victor attended primary school in Mechelen and then studied in Aalst. His mother died in 1813, his sister in 1815 and his brother in 1817. He took over the management of the brewery. He made several pilgrimages to the Shrine de Notre Dame de Montaigu before deciding to become a priest. Scheppers was ordained in 1832 and celebrated his first Mass at the Cathedral of Mechelen. As Belgium was in the midst of an industrial revolution, the poor youth of the cities were confronted with alcoholism, prostitution, delinquency and misery. Very early his vocation is oriented towards neglected youth. His father buys him a house in Mechelen so that he can take care of boys from the working classes. By 1835 he extended his educational institution to an all-day school. He teaches classes and opens a free professional workshop, then organizes a Sunday school for young people aged 17–18.

Foundation

Scheppers visited the prisons and directs his apostolate especially to the minors' quarters. He developed the idea to care for and train the prisoners in order to reduce crime. But for this he needed support. During his annual pilgrimage to Scherpenheuvel, Canon Scheppers decided to found a "Merciful Brotherhood", whose main task would be the care of prisoners. The Minister of Justice of Belgium supported this activity and also promised financial support. With borrowed money Scheppers bought a house and converted it into a monastery building. In March 1838 the first two brothers - two simple craftsmen - joined this order. Engelbertus Cardinal Sterckx helped him to found his congregation and on January 25, 1839, transferred the leadership to Brother Victor Scheppers and approved the rules of the order and the robe. In 1851 he established a day school in the monastery on the Melaan in Mechelen and expanded it into a boarding school. Soon the boarding school was known as the "Scheppersinstitut". Cardinal Pecci calls him to Perugia to open an establishment, and Bishop de Merode presents it to

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

in 1854, who conferred on him the title of prelate of His Holiness in 1856 (Monsignor). Soon the congregation spread to England, Manitoba, Spain and the Netherlands. Later it also worked in Africa. A small group of brothers obtained special permission to enter the priesthood in 1949, with the obligation to respect the lay spirit of the congregation. After an extremely difficult period in the years 1970–1990, the congregation continues today in seventeen houses in Belgium, Italy, Argentina, Uruguay and Burundi . Victor Scheppers was declared venerable by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

on 16 March 1987.

Bibliography

* Collective, Bishop Scheppers. Founder of the Brothers and Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy. Liege / Mechelen, Dessain, 1906, 429 pp.

External links

Biography at ''Manitoba Belgians''Biography
People from Mechelen Belgian Roman Catholic saints 1802 births 1877 deaths 19th-century Christian saints Venerated Catholics by Pope John Paul II {{saint-stub