Redemptus was born Tomás Rodrigues da Cunha in Paredes de Coura, Portugal on 15 March 1598.

[1][2] He first served as a soldier in the Portuguese army in India, where he joined the Carmelites in Goa as a lay brother in 1615, taking the name Redemptus of the Cross.

[3] Redemptus was sent by the superiors of the order to accompany Denis of the Nativity as part of an ambassadorial mission from the Portuguese Empire to the Sultan of Aceh.

The two friars were led to a desolate spot on the seashore, where Redemptus was shot with arrows, after which his throat was slit.

[citation needed] Redemptus of the Cross was beatified on 10 June 1900 by Pope Leo XIII, together with Denis of the Nativity.