21.Oct.1890. Province of St. Joseph.
This good Father was born in Spira a town in Germany in 1858 and was known as Eugene Frederick Hermanny. He had the misfortune of being brought up in the Protestant heresy, but he had no sooner left the guardianship of his parents than he abjured his errors and embraced the Catholic Faith.
He was very learned in the Latin classics and his great talents had rendered him master of secular philosophy, which he learned to be vanity of vanities when practiced for itself alone. Reflecting with the author of the Imitation of Christ that on the Day of Judgment “God will not examine us as to what we have read but upon what we have done, nor upon how learnedly we have spoken but how religiously we have lived”, he abandoned all that the world could offer him and asked to be admitted into our Congregation.
He was received at St. Mary’s preparatory college Harborne, and appointed to teach Latin to his companions who were aspiring to the same end. In the following year he was sent to Belgium to make his Novitiate where he was clothed on the 27th of July and professed in the following year. Having returned to the Province of St. Joseph England, and being already possessed of the necessary knowledge he was ordained priest and appointed lector. He was unable to continue in that office long as the symptoms of consumption soon manifested themselves and he was obliged to leave off teaching to the great sorrow of the students. Little by little he wasted away and knowing that his end was approaching fully resigned to the Divine Will he prepared himself with great earnestness to appear without stain before his God.
Having received most devoutly the last Sacraments he slept in the peace of the Lord at the early age of thirty-two years, five of which he had spent in the Congregation in which he was loved by all as his edifying conduct was conformable to the Rule he had professed. There is no doubt that he has gone to join in Heaven his brethren in religion, the Passionists who have already received their reward.