Early life Joseph-Marie Timon-David was born on 29 January 1823 in
Marseille, into a wealthy and deeply Christian family, which had experienced the trials of the
French Revolution. His father spent much of Joseph's youth abroad. In 1833 his father died; then cholera struck Marseille. In 1835, his mother decided to send him to study at the Jesuit
Collège Saint-Michel in Friborg, Switzerland. Friborg made a deep impression on him. There he met religious teachers in education and immersed himself in their educational methods. For him, Collège Saint Michel would be "the prototype of a house of education".
Priesthood In 1842,
Bishop Eugene de Mazenod sent Timon-David to Paris to the seminary of Saint Sulpice. At St. Sulpice Joseph would become an
ultramontanist in reaction to the
Gallicanism at the time. There he met
Dom Guéranger, restorer of
Solesmes Abbey, who would open to him the meaning and beauty of the liturgy. Shortly before his ordination, providential meetings in Paris and Marseilles made him aware of the spiritual needs of the working class. He was ordained as a
Roman Catholic priest in June 1846. He observed that most of the young people had not received a basic religious training from their parents. Following the example of Alexande-Raymond Devie,
Bishop of Belley, Timon-David sought to simplify religious education and often used biblical stories, insisting on "education through the heart". Timon-David devoted the next twenty-three years to the apostolate of young workers. Gradually, through painful and unsuccessful attempts, he decided to adopt the methods a priest of Marseille, Jean-Joseph Allemand, had applied to train the youth of the bourgeoisie. As a way to offer amusements and draw the young workers away from dangerous activities, he established a young men's club, which sponsored a brass band, and put on theatricals. There was also a series of lectures on winter evenings on various topics, such as attendance at Mass. Timon-David strove to instill in the attendees solid virtues. His style was festive. ==Foundation of the Timon David Fathers==