Basilica of St. Alphonsus
The burial place of St. Alphonsus Liguori.
St. Alphonsus Liguori → Plan a trip hereThe Story
The Basilica of Sant'Alfonso Maria de' Liguori in Pagani, near Naples in southern Italy, is the burial place of St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787), founder of the Redemptorists and one of the Church's greatest moral theologians. A brilliant Neapolitan lawyer who left the courts for the altar, Alphonsus founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer in 1732 to preach the Gospel to the poor and abandoned of the countryside. As a writer he was tireless: his Moral Theology shaped the Church's pastoral practice, while devotional classics such as The Glories of Mary and Visits to the Blessed Sacrament formed generations of the faithful. He also composed the beloved Italian Christmas carol "Tu scendi dalle stelle." Made bishop of Sant'Agata dei Goti, he spent his final years among his Redemptorist confreres at Pagani, where he died in 1787. The basilica that holds his tomb was begun in 1756 to designs the saint himself reviewed, and completed in 1824. His relics rest in a chapel near the high altar, beneath a lifelike figure of the saint, and the adjoining Redemptorist house preserves his rooms and memorabilia. Canonized in 1839 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871, Alphonsus remains the patron of confessors and moral theologians. Pilgrims come to Pagani to pray at the tomb of a saint who joined rigorous learning to tender devotion, and whose sons still serve the shrine.
Church Recognition
Pope Pius X raised the church to the rank of minor basilica in 1908; St. Alphonsus was canonized in 1839, declared a Doctor of the Church in 1871, and named patron of confessors and moral theologians by Pope Pius XII.
Catholic Teaching
The shrine reflects the Church's veneration of the saints and their relics (CCC 1674; 946-962), while St. Alphonsus's own writings illuminate the Church's teaching on conscience, the moral life, and the mercy of God offered in the sacrament of Penance (CCC 1776-1794; 1422-1470).
Plan Your Visit
Practical
Additional Information
Pilgrims venerate the tomb of St. Alphonsus in the basilica and may visit the adjoining Redemptorist community's museum, which preserves the saint's rooms and personal effects. Devotion peaks around his feast on August 1, and the shrine remains a center of Redemptorist life in southern Italy.
Go Deeper
St. Alphonsus's Visits to the Blessed Sacrament and The Glories of Mary are widely available in English; see also the Catechism on the sacrament of Penance (CCC 1422-1470), the ministry his moral theology so deeply shaped, and the Redemptorists' resources at cssr.news.
Location
See it on the interactive map →Pilgrim Photos
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In the Area
Other sacred sites within 40 miles.