Redemptorist Order
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| Abbreviation | C.Ss.R. |
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| Motto | Copiosa Apud Eum Redemptio (With Him is Plentiful Redemption) Psalms 130:7 |
| Formation | 9 November 1732 |
| Type | Institute of Consecrated Life |
| Headquarters | Rome, Italy |
| Michael Brehl, C.Ss.R. | |
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Key people
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Saint Alphonsus Liguori — founder |
| Website | www.cssr.com |
The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Latin: Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris – C.Ss.R), commonly known as the Redemptorists, is a worldwide congregation of the Catholic Church, dedicated to missionary work and founded by Saint Alphonsus Liguori at Scala, near Amalfi, Italy, for the purpose of labouring among the neglected country people around Naples. Members of the congregation are Catholic priests and consecrated religious brothers and minister in more than 77 countries.
The Redemptorists are especially dedicated to Our Mother of Perpetual Help and were appointed by Pope Pius IX in 1865 as both custodians and missionaries of the icon of that title, which is enshrined at the Redemptorist Church of St. Alphonsus Liguori in Rome. Many Redemptorist churches are dedicated to her.
Alphonsus Liguori was deeply moved by the plight of the poor living in Naples and the surrounding area and established his community with the aim of providing spiritual nourishment. Amongst his companions was Gerard Majella. In 1748 Alphonsus petitioned Pope Benedict XIV, to allow him to establish a congregation to minister to the poor in the area around Naples, who were:
"… the most in need of spiritual help, as frequently they have no one to administer to them the Holy Sacrament or the Word of God; their plight is such that many, for lack of (apostolic) labourers, reach death's door without knowing anything at all of the necessary truths of the faith. This is because the number of priests…is few." Benedict agreed and the congregation was formed in 1749.
Within ten years of the foundation, communities had been established at Nocera, Ciorani, Iliceto, and Caposele. Due to political complications, there was an initial difficulty with the houses in the Papal States being separated from those in the Kingdom of Naples, but this was overcome in 1793 and the Congregation soon opened houses in Sicily and other parts of southern Italy.
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