Displaying items by tag: frank duff

Founder of the Legion of Mary

Frank Duff was born in Dublin, Ireland, on June 7, 1889. He entered the Civil Service at the age of 18. At 24 he joined the Society of St. Vincent de Paul where he was led to a deeper commitment to his Catholic faith and at the same time he acquired a great sensitivity to the needs of the poor and underprivileged.

The Legion's Origin

In Dublin on 7th September, 1921, fifteen people met to work out together how best to serve God in the form of a Lay Apostolate. After invoking the aid of the Holy Spirit and reciting the Rosary, they decided to visit in pairs the Dublin Union Hospital, where there were many poor, friendless, aged patients, In addition, they decided to hold a meeting each week.

Thus, the Legion was born, with its characteristic features: prayer in common, very definite apostolic work and a weekly meeting.

From this humble beginning, though not worked out at its beginning, but animated by great trust in the Holy Spirit and Mary's power in the work of evangelisation, this form of apostolate has spread throughout the world.

The Legion now operates in more than 1900 dioceses, and it has been estimated that there are now more than three million active legionaries and possibly eight million auxiliary members throughout the world. It counts numbers of martyrs among its members, especially in China and Africa.