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<img height='150' src='http://vaticanstamps.org/VPS/images/296/1021.jpg'> Saint Alfonsus Liguori Scott 1021 (1996)</center>
 
Saint Alphonsus Liguori is one of the 37 Doctors of the Church. He was given the title Doctor zelantissimus (or Most Zealous Doctor). Born in 1696 in Marianella, Kingdom of Naples, he was a Catholic Bishop, but he was also a prolific writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, philosopher, and theologian. Initially a lawyer, in 1723, following a serious professional disappointment, he left the bar and, following a mystical experience, was ordained a priest in 1726. He best-known work is his nine-volume Moral Theology, where he uses his pastoral experiences to respond to the practical questions posed by the faithful and to address their everyday problems. He also wrote many other devotional and ascetic works and letters, including The Glories of Mary and The Way of the Cross, which is still used today during the Lenten season. In addition, he founded the Redemptorists Order in November 1732. Saint Alphonsus Liguori died in 1787 in Pagani, Italy.
 
Vatican City has issued two philatelic items in his honor. In 1987, aerogramme A25 was issued to commemorate the second centenary of his death, and in 1996, Scott 1021 (shown above) was issued on the 300th anniversary of his birth.

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