His name at birth was Henri Grouès, and was born into a prosperous and devout Catholic family in Lyon. He joined the Capuchin monks in 1930. Then he became a priest in Grenoble. In 1942, he joined the resistance and helped to hide Jewish members of the community from the Nazi's and Vichy police. In the post war period he decided to set up a charity Emmaus in 1949. His charity was aimed at helping the homeless to find shelter. He appeared to transcend religious and political differences of the country and was appreciated by a variety of sources.