Cosme Muñoz Pérez

The major work of Father Cosme Muñoz Pérez is intimately linked to the foundation and organization of the College of Our Lady of Piety (Colegio de Nuestra Señora de la Piedad) in Cordoba, intended for the education of orphaned and destitute young girls.

In 1607, the Bishop of Cordoba, Fray Diego de Mardones, moved by the plight of several young girls abandoned after the death of Isabel de la Cruz (who had initiated a similar reception work before passing away in 1605), entrusted Father Cosme with the mission of taking over and structuring this work. Father Cosme accepted this charge with immense dedication. To design a solid educational model, he studied the rare regulations of female institutions then existing in Spain, notably in Santiago de Compostela and Toledo.

He thus founded the College of Piety, which became the first institution in Cordoba dedicated specifically to the free and comprehensive instruction of poor young girls, who were then particularly exposed to poverty and prostitution. With the support of King Philip III of Spain, he managed to ensure the establishment's longevity.

The education provided at the college was based on a preventive and comprehensive pedagogy. The boarders learned reading, writing, arithmetic, singing, and music (notably the organ and the harp for those with the aptitude), as well as skilled manual labor (sewing, embroidery). Father Cosme introduced a major social innovation: the young girls learned to evaluate and sell their work externally, and the community returned 50% of the profits to them, which they learned to manage themselves. After ten years of training, the college provided them with a dowry of 200 ducats to allow them to integrate with dignity into society.

Father Cosme Muñoz Pérez died in Cordoba on December 3, 1636, after a life entirely consumed in the service of the poorest. His funeral lasted three days and gathered an immense crowd that came to venerate his remains.

The reputation for holiness of Father Cosme Muñoz Pérez was established during his lifetime and was confirmed at his death. His cause for beatification and canonization was introduced as early as the 17th century to the Roman Curia, before experiencing long periods of latency.

The cause was revived and reached decisive stages at the beginning of the 21st century. On October 15, 2020, the Particular Congress of Theological Consultors gave a favorable opinion on the heroic nature of his virtues. On March 16, 2021, the Ordinary Session of Cardinals and Bishops of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints confirmed this judgment.

On March 17, 2021, Pope Francis received in audience Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, and authorized the promulgation of the decree recognizing the heroic virtues of the Servant of God Cosme Muñoz Pérez, thus conferring upon him the title of Venerable.

Cosme Muñoz Pérez is currently recognized as Venerable by the Catholic Church. For his beatification to be pronounced, the official recognition by the Holy See of a miracle attributed to his intercession is required. To this day, no miracle has been the subject of a decree of approval, and the cause is following its course in Rome.

Father Cosme's spirituality was deeply Christocentric and Marian, marked by an absolute trust in the protection of the Virgin Mary, whom he invoked under the titles of Our Lady of Piety and Our Lady of the Patronage. His pastoral action stemmed from an active charity and constant attention to the material and spiritual needs of the most vulnerable people of his time.

His pedagogical and spiritual legacy has been perpetuated through the centuries. Although the colleges founded according to his model remained autonomous for a long time, a historical turning point occurred in 1919. The Bishop of Córdoba, Msgr. Ramón Guillamet y Comá, decided to merge the College of Piety of Córdoba with another similar institution, the College of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, founded in 1712 in Villafranca de Córdoba by the priest Luis Pérez Ponce (1666-1721).

This merger gave birth on January 9, 1919, to the Congregation of the Daughters of the Patronage of Mary (Hijas del Patrocinio de María), a religious institute of pontifical right (having received its decree of praise on April 22, 1958, under the pontificate of Pius XII). The religious sisters of this congregation still continue Father Cosme's educational and social mission among the youth today, particularly in Spain, Colombia, and Venezuela.

In October 2008, on the occasion of the fourth centenary of the founding of the College of Piety, the municipality of Córdoba paid tribute to Father Cosme by erecting a monument sculpted by José María Serrano Carriel on the Plaza de las Cañas, representing the holy priest surrounded by young girls.