Peter Joseph Arnoudt
| The Reverend Father Peter Joseph Arnoudt SJ | |
|---|---|
| Born | 17 May 1811 Moere, Belgium |
| Died | 29 July 1865 (aged 54) St. Louis, Missouri |
| Church | Catholic |
| Ordained | 23 September 1843 |
| Writings | The Imitation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus |
Peter Joseph Arnoudt, SJ (or Aernoudt, Arnold) (born at Moere, Belgium, 17 May 1811; died at Cincinnati, 29 July 1865) was a Belgian Jesuit priest and writer on devotional subjects.
Early life
Arnoudt was born at Moere, in the Diocese of Bruges, Belgium, 11 May 1811.[1]
Jesuit formation and teaching
He entered the Society of Jesus at Florissant, Missouri, in 1831. After the usual course of Jesuit training, he was appointed to teach in the colleges in the Missouri province of the Society. While engaged in teaching, he proved himself to be a finished Greek scholar.
He taught at St. Charles College in Grand Coteau, Louisiana from 1839 to 1841.[2]
Works
He composed in Latin the De Imitatione Sacri Cordis Jesu. It was written to promote devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in fulfilment of a vow he had made in a time of illness. He sent the manuscript to Rome in 1846, and ten years later it was approved by Father General Roothaan. The work was published on the Benzinger press at Einsiedeln, 1863. It was translated into English by Joseph Fastre and published at Cincinnati in 1865.[3][4] Translations were also made into French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Flemish, and Hungarian. The French translation, published at Besançon, passed through eighteen editions between the years 1864 to 1887. Sommervogel gives the titles of two English, two Flemish, and four French versions of Arnoudt's work.
According to Pierre-Jean De Smet, Arnoudt left at his death the following manuscripts:
- a Greek epic poem of about 1,200 verses
- a collection of Greek odes
- a Greek grammar
- The Glories of Jesus, an ascetical work
- The Delight of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, an ascetical work
- The Abode of the Sacred Heart, a collection of spiritual retreats
From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia
Peter Joseph Arnoudt — (Also: Aernoudt, Arnold).
Jesuit writer on spiritual subjects, born at Moere Belgium, 17 May, 1811; died at Cincinnati, 29 July, 1865. He entered the Society of Jesus at Florissant, Missouri, in 1831. After the usual course of Jesuit training, he was appointed to teach in the colleges in the Missouri province of the Society. While engaged in teaching he proved himself to be a finished Greek scholar. During a dangerous illness, after his ordination as priest, Father Arnoudt bound himself by vow to labor with zeal to promote devotion to the Scared Heart of Jesus. Upon his recovery he wrote his great work, "De Imitatione Sacri Cordis Jesu". The manuscript of this work he sent to Rome in 1846, but through some mishap it was mislaid for ten years. After this period, having been approved by Father General Roothaan. the work was published "typis et sumptibus fratrum Caroli et Nicoli Benzinger" at Eisiedeln, 1863. It was translated into English by father Fastre and published at Cincinnati in 1865. Translations were made into French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Flemish, and Hungarian. The French translation, published at Besancon, passed through eighteen editions between the years 1864 to 1887. Sommervogel gives the titles of two English, two Flemish, and four French versions of Father Arnouldt's work. Father de Smet, the missionary, is authority for the statement that Father Arnoudt left at his death the following manuscripts — a Greek epic poem of about 1,200 verses, a collection of Greek odes, and Greek grammar, and these ascetical works: "The Glories of Jesus", "The Delight of the Sacred Heart of Jesus", and a collection of spiritual retreats entitled "The Abode of the Sacred Heart".
Vanderspeeten, Notice biographique sur le P. Pierre Arnoudt, de la c. de J. (Tournay, 1873); de Smet in Precis historiques (1866). Also in the London ed. of The Imitation of the Sacred Heart (1867) and the Tournay ed. (1872) are published notices of the author by Russell and Van den Hofstadt respectively. Father Arnouldt's relatives in Belgium have preserved forty-six of his autograph letters.
References
- Back to citation "The Catholic Columbian, Volume 40, Number 30, 23 July 1915". The Catholic Columbian. July 1915. Retrieved 13 May 2026 – via JSTOR.
- Back to citation "The Antebellum Jesuits of the New Orleans Province, 1837-1861". Louisiana History: The Journal of the Louisiana Historical Association. 34 (3): 327–343. Summer 1993.
- Back to citation Online reproduction
- Back to citation "The Cincinnati Enquirer". Newspapers.com. 23 September 1878. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
Bibliography
- Vanderspeeten, Notice biographique sur le P. Pierre Arnoudt, de la c. de J. (Tournay, 1873);
- De Smet in Précis historiques (1866).
- In the London ed. of The Imitation of the Sacred Heart (1867) and the Tournay ed. (1872) are published notices of the author by Russell and Van den Hofstadt respectively.
Arnoudt's relatives in Belgium have preserved forty-six of his autograph letters.
- Attribution