Francis Mary of the Cross Jordan

Venerable Francis Mary of the Cross Jordan, S.D.S
A statue of Jordan at the Salvatorian residence of Steinfeld Abbey, Kall, Germany
Priest, religious and founder
Born	16 June 1848 Gurtweil, Grand Duchy of Baden
Died	8 September 1918 Tafers, Canton of Fribourg, Switzerland
Venerated in	Catholic Church (Society of the Divine Savior)
Major shrine	Salvatorian Motherhouse, Rome, Italy

Francis Mary of the Cross Jordan, S.D.S. (16 June 1848 – 8 September 1918), was a German Catholic priest and the founder of the Society of the Divine Savior, commonly called the Salvatorians. His life is currently under review by the Holy See, for his possible canonization.

He was born John Baptist Jordan in the town of Gurtweil, in the Grand Duchy of Baden (now part of the city of Waldshut-Tiengen, Germany), the second son of Lorenz Jordan and Notburga Peter. Though he felt called to serve as a priest as an early age, the poverty of the family did not allow him to do the required studies. Instead he became an itinerant laborer and painter. Through his travels throughout Germany, he became aware of the effects of the German government's official policies restricting the activities of the Catholic Church, known as the Kulturkampf, which was resulting in the loss of many of the faithful.

Finally spurred by the situation, Jordan gave up his work and began the academic studies required for Holy Orders. He initially had private lessons from local clergy and then attended a secondary school in Constance. Despite his struggle with the sciences, he developed a talent for foreign languages. For his graduation examination, he presented one essay in eight European languages and another one in four other languages. Having successfully completed his initial studies, he then proceeded to enroll at the Albert-Ludwigs University in Freiburg to do his higher studies in the fields of theology and philology. After receiving his degree from the university, he enrolled in the nearby St. Peter Seminary

On 21 July 1878, he was ordained a priest for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Freiburg. He was then sent by the archbishop to Rome to study Greek and Semitic languages. During this period, he had a growing conviction that he was being called by God to found a new apostolic work in the Church, which had as its goal the unification of groups of priests and laity in spreading and defending the Catholic faith throughout the world. This conviction became even stronger during a trip to the Middle East in 1880.