Charles Steeb

Charles Steeb, known in German as Karl Steeb and in Italian as Carlo Steeb, was born on 18 December 1773 in Tübingen, in the Duchy of Württemberg, into a Lutheran merchant family. Raised in the Protestant faith, he was sent as a young man to Paris to continue his studies. The outbreak of the French Revolution forced him to leave France, and in the early 1790s he settled in Verona in northern Italy. There he encountered Catholic worship and teaching, entered a period of study and spiritual searching, and converted from Lutheranism to the Catholic Church.

After his reception into the Catholic Church he prepared for the priesthood and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Verona in 1796. He remained a diocesan priest for the rest of his life and did not enter a religious order. His ministry was devoted to the poor, the sick, prisoners, and those in spiritual need. He became known in Verona as a confessor, preacher, and spiritual director, and he distinguished himself by practical charity during epidemics, including outbreaks of cholera. He also took an interest in the formation of clergy and in works of education and relief.

In 1840 he collaborated with Luigia Poloni, later known in religion as Maria Vincenza Poloni and subsequently beatified, in founding the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of Verona (Sorelle della Misericordia). The congregation was established to care for the sick and the poor and to undertake the education of girls. Steeb served as co-founder and spiritual guide of the institute while remaining in the diocesan clergy. The sisters continued and expanded the works of mercy with which he had long been associated in the city.

Steeb spent the remainder of his life in Verona and died there on 15 December 1856, a few days before his eighty-third birthday. He was beatified by Pope Paul VI on 6 July 1975. His liturgical memorial is observed on 15 December. He is remembered as a convert from Lutheranism, a priest of practical charity, and a co-founder of a congregation dedicated to works of mercy.