Juan Maria was born in 1780 in France and had five brothers. He studied on his own until 1801 when he moved to Paris to be ordained as a deacon and priest. He then decided to study history, literature, and theology at Chesnaie for two years. After completing his studies, he began helping poor people and providing education to children engaged in stealing. He founded a congregation with 19 small schools. A few years later, the congregation grew to over 600 members. Later in life, he celebrated his first mass at age 74 and two of his brothers went to Polynesia to give him his last rites. When Juan Maria died in 1860, the congregation had grown to 852 members managing