Basilica of St. John Neumann

The Story

The National Shrine of St. John Neumann, in the lower church of St. Peter the Apostle Church in Philadelphia, holds the remains of the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia, the first man from the United States to be canonized a saint. John Nepomucene Neumann was born in 1811 in Prachatice, Bohemia (in the modern Czech Republic). Eager for missionary work among immigrants, he sailed to America in 1836 and was ordained a priest in New York, serving scattered rural parishes near Niagara Falls. In 1842 he became the first member of the Redemptorist congregation to profess vows in the United States, and in 1852 he was named Bishop of Philadelphia. As bishop, Neumann organized what became the first unified diocesan Catholic school system in the country, multiplied parishes for German, Irish, and other immigrant communities, promoted the Forty Hours Devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, and founded a congregation of religious sisters. Known for plain speech, many languages, and tireless pastoral visits, he collapsed and died on a Philadelphia street on January 5, 1860, at the age of forty-eight. Pope Paul VI beatified him in 1963 and canonized him on June 19, 1977. His remains rest beneath the altar of the shrine's lower church in a glass-sided reliquary casket, where pilgrims come to pray. The shrine, in the care of the Redemptorists, remains a center of devotion, healing prayer, and the quiet, practical holiness that marked Neumann's life.

Church Recognition

St. John Neumann was canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1977, and his memorial on January 5 is observed on the liturgical calendar in the United States; his remains are venerated at the National Shrine of St. John Neumann at St. Peter the Apostle Church in Philadelphia.

Catholic Teaching

Veneration of the saint's body reflects the Church's teaching on relics and popular piety (CCC 1674) and on the communion of saints, whose intercession aids the pilgrim Church (CCC 956); Neumann's life models the universal call to holiness in ordinary, faithful labor.

Plan Your Visit

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Practical

1 Additional Information ▾

The National Shrine of St. John Neumann is at St. Peter the Apostle Church.

Go Deeper

Visit the shrine's official website at https://stjohnneumann.org, and see CCC 946–962 on the communion of saints; the shrine's small museum introduces Neumann's life, and biographies of the saint are available from the Redemptorists.