A Look At St. John Neumann, The Man
St. John Neumann was born in the year 1811 in a small town in Czechoslovakia.
In 1835, prior to his ordination, he sailed for New York City.
Within a month of his arrival, he was ordained by Bishop John Dubois on June 26, 1836, at St. Patrick's Church.
By 1850 St. John Neumann became the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia and two years later, in Hawley, Pennsylvania, he dedicated the newly built church of St. Philomena, the present site of the Queen of Peace Church.
From 1854 through 1858 he confirmed several classes in Hawley, Legedale and Lackawaxen.
During his ten years as Bishop, he continued to visit the poor, the sick and the imprisoned.
For that period, he administered the largest diocese in this country responsible for building new churches at the rate of almost one per month.
On January 5, 1860, he collapsed on an icy street in front of his home and died.
In 1976, one hundred sixteen years after his death, the sacred congregation for the causes of Saints recommended to Pope Paul VI that John Neumann be enrolled in the calendar of Saints in the Roman Catholic Church.
On June 19, 1977, St. John Neumann became the first man from the United States to be canonized.