Alphonsus (Spanish Alonso) Rodriguez was born on July 25, 1532 at Segovia to a Spanish merchant family. Married at 27, Alphonsus suffered the successive deaths of his wife, three children, and business — producing the personal-Providential conversion that led him to the Jesuit vocation.
In 1571, at the age of 39, Alphonsus entered the Society of Jesus at Valencia as a lay-brother (non-priestly religious-brother). Because of his lack of formal theological education, Alphonsus was denied priestly ordination — undertaking instead the Jesuit lay-brother vocation.
In 1571, Alphonsus was sent to the Jesuit College of Montesión at Palma de Mallorca — where he served as porter (door-keeper) for the 46 years (1571–1617). Every time the porter's bell rang, Alphonsus answered with the interior prayer: 'I come, Lord!' — undertaking the Jesuit spirituality of finding-God-in-all-things through the hidden humility of the porter's service.
During his 46 years at Montesión, Alphonsus became the personal spiritual director of St. Peter Claver SJ (see his entry) — personally directing the young Claver during his Jesuit formation at Montesión, and personally identifying Claver's vocation to the Colombian slaves' apostolate.
Alphonsus composed multiple spiritual writings — most famously the Autobiography and multiple mystical treatises.
He died at Palma de Mallorca on October 31, 1617 at the age of 85 — after 46 years as porter at Montesión.
Canonized simultaneously with his personal disciple St. Peter Claver on January 15, 1888 by Pope Leo XIII — the double-canonization recognized the Alphonsus-Claver Jesuit spiritual-friendship tradition.