120 Martyrs of China Feast date: Jul 09 On July 9 the Church celebrates the feast of the 120 Martyrs of China. Religious persecution has a long history in China, especially persecution of Christians, thousands of whom have died for their faith in the last millennium. On October 1, 2000, Pope John Paul II canonised […]
ADRIAN II A member of the same family as Popes Stephen IV and Sergius III, Adrian II had twice refused the papacy before his election in 867. Born in 792, he was married before his election, and some scholars say that he refused celibacy. His papacy was troubled: the Duke of Spoleto inexplicably pillaged Rome […]
ADRIAN IV Adrian IV, Nicholas Breakspear, was the only Englishman elected to the bishopric of Rome. Born 1100, he became a monk at the monastery of St. Rufus near Avignon and became the abbot in 1137. More than ten years later, the monks complained to Eugene III about the severity of their abbot. Eugene removed […]
ADRIAN V Adrian V, Ottobono Fieschi, nephew of Innocent IV, was born in Genoa 1205. His uncle appointed him cardinal deacon of St. Adrian in 1251, and in 1265, Clement IV sent Cardinal Fieschi to England to settle a dispute between Henry III and his barons, who insisted the king should honor the Magna Carta, […]
All Saints of the Seraphic Order (Feast) Feast date: Nov 29 On November 29, the Church celebrates the many Franciscan saints who followed in the footsteps of St. Francis. It is a special day for all Franciscans to celebrate the feast of ‘All the Saints of the Seraphic Order.’ According to tradition, St. Francis of […]
All Saints' Day Feast date: Nov 01 The Solemnity of All Saints is celebrated on the first of November. It was instituted to honour all of the saints, both known and unknown, and, according to Pope Urban IV, to supply any deficiencies in the faithful’s celebration of saints’ feasts during the year. In the early days of the […]
All Souls Day Feast date: Nov 02 The commemoration of all the faithful departed is celebrated by the Church on November 2, or, if this falls on a Sunday or a solemnity, the feast is celebrated on November 3. The Office of the Dead must be recited by the clergy on this day, and all the […]
BI. ADALBERO A bishop and defender of papal authority who endured trials for his loyalty. Adalbero was the son of an Austrian count of Lambach and studied in Paris. He was named the bishop of Wurzberg, Germany, but was forced into exile after defending Pope Gregory VII against King Henry IV. He retired to the […]
BI. ADRIAN Dominican martyr in Dalmatia. Adrian and twenty-seven others were executed by Muslims for confessing Christ. Died: Thirteenth century, Feastday: December 21. rosary.team
BI. AGNELLO of PISA The founder of the English Franciscan province, Blessed Agnello, was admitted into the Order by St. Francis himself on the occasion of his sojourn in Pisa. He was sent to the Friary in Paris, of which he became the guardian, and in 1224, St. Francis appointed him to found an English […]
SAINT PADRE MIGUEL PRO Martyr| With God| Reunited| Operations| Final Month| Martyr’s Crown| Apostle MODERN MARTYR Padre Miguel Pro was born to Josefa on January 13, 1891, in the town of Guadalupe, Mexico. Don Miguel and his wife were the happy parents of eleven children. Miguel, Jr., was the third born. Four died in infancy. […]
Bl. Jane of Toulouse Feast date: Mar 31 Blessed Jane lived in the French town of Toulouse during the 13th century. A Carmelite monastery was founded in the same town in 1240 which exposed Jane to the Carmelite lifestyle and spirituality. In 1265 when St. Simon Stock, a 13th century reformer of the Carmelites, was […]
Blessed Anton Martin Slomshek Feast date: Sep 24 Anton Martin Slomshek who was born November 26, 1800 at Ponikva, Slovenia is the first Slovenian to be beatified. Slomshek is known as a great educator, largely responsible for the nearly 100% literacy rate among Slovenians, a remarkable turn around from the very poor state of the […]
Blessed Antoni Julian Nowowiejski Feast date: May 28 Archbishop Antoni Julian Nowowiejski was was born in 1858, and beatified by Pope John Paul II on June 13, 1999, along with another 107 Poles who were martyred during World War II. The late archbishop of Plock, Poland, was arrested by the occupying Germans in 1940. He […]
Blessed Antonia Mesina Feast date: May 17 Antonia Mesina was born into a poor family in a small town in Sardinia, Italy, in 1919. She was the second of 10 children and she had to leave school after only four years to help her bed-ridden mother who suffered from a heart condition tend to the […]
Blessed Apollinaris Franco Feast date: Sep 12 Blessed Apollinaris was born in Old Castile, Spain where he joined the Franciscan order. He was sent to Japan to head the Japanese Franciscan mission in 1614, the year that the new Japanese shogun had instituted a nationwide ban on Christianity and declared being a Christian a capital […]
Feast date: Oct 05 “My only desire is to see Mary who saved me and who will save me from the clutches of Satan.” – Blessed Bartholomew Longo’s last words Perhaps one of the most remarkable conversions in the history of the Church was that of Bartholomew Longo, who went from being a Satanist […]
Blessed Basil Hopko Feast date: Jun 23 Blessed Basil Hopko is considered one of the many priests and religious martyred by Communism. He was born in Slovakia to poor parents. His father died when he was a year old and his mother left for the United States when he was four in seach of work. […]
Feast date: Nov 05 Blessed Bernhard Lichtenberg was a martyr during the Second World War. Born in 1875, he was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Berlin, Germany. He served in the Cathedral of Berlin and was an outspoken critic of the Nazis and their anti-Semitic campaign. He organized protests outside concentration camps, led public prayers […]
Feast date: Oct 12 Several things to know about his life. He had an advanced awareness of the meaning of life and how to live well. “To be always united to Jesus is my program of life,” he declared. In contrast to contemporary narcissism, he said that happiness comes from keeping “one’s face turned toward God” […]
Blessed Charles of Austria Feast date: Oct 21 Charles was born in 1887 in Lower Austria to Archduke Otto and Princess Maria Josephine of Saxony. He grew up in a Catholic family, received a solid Catholic education, and developed a strong devotion to both the Eucharist and the Sacred Heart of Jesus. As a young […]
Feast date: Mar 02 Charles was a son of Canute IV of Denmark and Adela of Flanders. When he was only five years old, his father was assassinated in St. Alban´s Church, Odence. He was taken by his mother to the court of Robert, his maternal grandfather and Count of Flanders as a suitable place […]
Feast date: Oct 26 Born the son of a wealthy Italian family, Damian was kidnapped as an infant by a man who suffered from a mental illness. His parents prayed fervently to the Virgin Mary for help, and searchers were led to the unharmed boy by a miraculous light. Damian later became a Dominican priest, and […]
Blessed Edmund Rice Feast date: May 05 May 5 is the feast of Blessed Edmund Rice, an Irish businessman who was so moved by the plight of children in the port city where he worked that he founded schools and eventually a religious order to serve them. Edmund was born in 1762 in Callan, Ireland. […]
Blessed Edward Poppe Feast date: Jun 10 Blessed Edward Poppe is a contemporary saint. He died at the young age of 33. He was an energetic child and an excellent student. His mischievousness saw him often knock things over even putting himself at risk of being harmed. He was also quite stubborn and never left […]
Feast date: Aug 05 The greatest desire and prayer of Blessed Frederic Janssoone was to help others come closer to God. His ministry as a Franciscan help him to do that, and took him to many places, from Europe, to the Holy Land and then to North America, where he died. He was born in Flanders […]
Blessed James Oldo Feast date: Apr 19 James Oldo experienced a radical conversion that led him to become a Franciscan tertiary, and later a priest.He was born in 1364 into a rich family in Lodi, Italy. He married at a young age, and he and his wife both led a very self-indulgent lifesyle. One day, […]
Blessed John Licci Feast date: Nov 14 John Licci is one of the longest living holy men of the Church. His 111 years on this earth in a small town near Palermo, Sicily, were filled with many miracles. His mother died during childbirth, and his father was a poor peasant who had to work the fields, […]
Feast date: Dec 02 Elisa Angela Meneguzzi was born on September 12, 1901, to poor and humble farming family in Padua, Italy. She manifested an ardently spiritual soul and spent hours in prayer, attended Mass every day and taught catechism. In 1926, willing to totally donate her life to God, she joined the Sisters Congregation of Saint […]
Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani Feast date: Feb 25 Blessed Maria Adeodata Pisani was born into a noble family in Naples, Italy in 1806. Her father was an alcoholic and was exiled after being involved in a revolt. Maria’s grandmother raised her. When her grandmother died, the 10 year-old was sent to a boarding school until […]
Blessed Maria Caridad Brader Feast date: Feb 27 Mother Maria Caridad Brader was born into a pious family in Kaltburn, Switzerland, in 1860. Maria was unusually intelligent and her mother, a widow, went through great pains to give her a good education. Despite her mother’s opinion, Maria entered a Franciscan convent in 1880. She made […]
Feast date: Oct 29 Helen Kafka was born in 1894 to a shoemaker and grew up in Vienna, Austria. At the age of 20, she decided to join the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity and took the name Restituta after an early Church martyr. In 1919, she began working as a surgical nurse in Austria. When the […]
Blessed Maria Romero Meneses Feast date: Jul 07 Blessed Maria Romero Meneses is a saint of the new millennium. She was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2002. Maria was born in Granada, Nicaragua, in 1902 to a wealthy family, her father being a government minister. At the age of 12, she became extremely sick and was paralysed […]
Blessed Marie-Anne Blondin Feast date: Apr 18 April 18 commemorates the feast of Blessed Marie-Anne Blondin, a Canadian woman whose life was a story of obedience in the face of personal setbacks. Esther Blondin was born in 1809 to a pious, French-Canadian farm family in southern Quebec. When she was old enough, she began to […]
Feast date: Jul 27 Mary Magdalen Martinengo da Barco was born as the daughter of a noble family, her father being Fidelis, who was the son of noble parents, in Brescia, Italy. Her mother died when she was only 5 months old, and her childhood was lived with many psychological disturbances. However, she later joined the Capuchinesses of […]
Blessed Miguel Pro Juarez Feast date: Nov 23 Born in Guadalupe on January 13, 1891, Miguel Pro Juarez was one of 11 children. Miguel was, from an early age, intensely spiritual and equally intense in his mischievousness, frequently exasperating his family with his humor and practical jokes. As a child he had a daring precociousness […]
Feast date: Dec 05 Bl. Phillip Rinaldi was born on May 28, 1856 in Piedmont, Italy. He met Don Bosco when he was just five years old, and intuitively recognized that he was a man with a great mission. At the age of 22, he entered the Salesian Order at the end of a tremendous vocational […]
Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati Feast date: Jul 04 July 4 marks the feast day of Pier Giorgio Frassati, a well-known young blessed of modern times. Born on April 6, 1901 in Turin to a wealthy agnostic family, he early in life found himself drawn to the faith and serving Christ in the poor. He was […]
Feast date: Apr 06 Pierina Morosini is the patron saint of rape victims and a martyr to chastity. She was born into a poor family of eight children in 1931 in the Diocese of Bergamo, Italy. She was trained to be a seamstress and began to work in a factory at 15 years of age. Pierina had […]
Blessed Pope Innocent XI Feast date: Aug 12 Benedetto Odescalchi was born at Como on May 16, 1611, and died in Rome, August 11, 1689. He was educated by the Jesuits at Como, and studied jurisprudence at Rome and Naples. Urban VIII appointed him successively prothonotary, president of the Apostolic Camera, commissary at Ancona, administrator of Macerata, […]
Blessed Pope Urban V Feast date: Dec 19 Blessed Pope Urban V was born Guillaume de Grimoard at Grisac in Languedoc, 1310. He studied canon law and theology in Avignon and became a Benedictine monk. He was named abbot of his monastery in 1352, and served as a papal diplomat and was eventually sent as […]
Feast date: Sep 07 Blessed Ralph Corby was born into a devout Irish Catholic family in Maynooth, Ireland, on March 25, 1598. All of Ralph’s family took religious vows, including his parents who decided to do so after their children had all joined various orders. Ralph’s father became a Jesuit lay brother and his mother […]
Blessed Rickard Thirkeld Feast date: May 29 Richard Thirkeld was ordained a priest in France in April of 1579, and returned to his homeland of York, England, soon after to serve as a home missionary. There he was arrested on the eve of the Annunciation in 1538 for the crime of being a priest. He was […]
Blessed Thomas Maria Fusco Feast date: Feb 24 Thomas was born to a noble family in 1831 in Pagani, Italy. He was the seventh of eight children. When he was only six years old, his mother died of cholera. A few years later, his father also died. His uncle, a primary school teacher, took charge […]
Blessed Thomas Tzugi Feast date: Sep 06 Born to nobility and educated by the Jesuits of the Arima province around 1571, Thomas entered the Jesuit order upon the completion of his schooling at around 17 years old. He quickly developed a reputation for his excellent preaching and evangelical zeal. He was exiled to the […]
Blessed Villana de'Botti Feast date: Feb 28 Villana de’Botti was a wife and a Third Order Dominican. She was born in Florence in 1332. She was a very pious child, and at age 13 she ran away from home to join a convent. She was refused and returned home. Soon after, her family married her […]
Feast date: Jul 26 Blessed Willam Ward was born William Webster in mid-16th century England. He was raised Protestant and converted to Catholicism in Spain, after having traveled there with a friend. He returned to England, where he successfully converted his mother. There, he was also frequently imprisoned for his faith. At 40, he went […]
Chair of Saint Peter Feast date: Feb 22 The Feast of the Chair of St. Peter celebrates the papacy and St. Peter as the first bishop of Rome. St. Peter’s original name was Simon. He was married with children and was living and working in Capernaum as a fisherman when Jesus called him to be […]
Conversion of St. Paul Feast date: Jan 25 The great apostle was a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin. He surpassed all his peers in zeal for the Jewish law and their traditions, which he thought to be the cause of God, and became one of the most fierce enemies and persecutors of Christians. He was […]
Dedication of St. John Lateran Feast date: Nov 09 The feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran is celebrated by the entire Church. It marks the dedication of the cathedral church of Rome by Pope Sylvester I in 324. This church is the cathedra (or chair) of the bishop of Rome, […]
Dedication of the Churches of Peter and Paul Feast date: Nov 18 This feast celebrates the dedications of two of the four major basilicas of Rome. Saint Peter’s Basilica was originally built in 323 by the emperor Constantine. The basilica was constructed over the tomb of Peter the Apostle, the Church’s first Pope. After standing […]
Easter Sunday Feast date: Apr 12 Easter is the principal feast of the ecclesiastical year. Leo I (Sermo xlvii in Exodum) calls it the greatest feast (festum festorum), and says that Christmas is celebrated only in preparation for Easter. It is the centre of the greater part of the ecclesiastical year. To have a correct […]
Easter Vigil Feast date: Apr 11 The Easter Vigil is the high point of the Easter triduum celebrating the passion and resurrection of Jesus. With a rich display of symbols, rites and readings, the church in worship expresses her faith in the mystery that brings her into being. Light conquers darkness The vigil opens with […]
English Carthusian Martyrs Feast date: May 04 These 18 Carthusian monks were put to death in England under King Henry VIII between 1535-1540 for maintaining their allegiance to the Pope. The Carthusians, founded by St. Bruno in 1054, are the strictest and most austere monastic order in the western Church. They live an austere […]
Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary Feast date: Oct 07 On October 7, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the yearly feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Known for several centuries by the alternate title of “Our Lady of Victory,” the feast day takes place in honor of a 16th century naval victory which […]
Feast of St. Joseph the Worker Feast date: May 01 St. Joseph has two feast days on the liturgical calendar. The first is March 19—Joseph, the Husband of Mary. The second is May 1—Joseph, the Worker. “Saint Joseph is a man of great spirit. He is great in faith, not because he speaks his own […]
Feast of the Ascension Feast date: May 24 The Feast of the Ascension is the fortieth day after Easter Sunday, which commemorates the Ascension of Christ into heaven, according to Mark 16:19, Luke 24:51, and Acts 1:2. In the Eastern Church this feast was known as analepsis, “the taking up”, and also as the episozomene, […]
Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast date: Nov 21 The Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, celebrated annually on November 21st, commemorates the presentation of the Blessed Virgin as a child by her parents in the Temple in Jerusalem. Before Mary’s birth, her parents received a heavenly message […]
Feast of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary Feast date: May 31 Assuming that the Annunciation and the Incarnation took place around the time of the vernal equinox, Mary left Nazareth at the end of March and went over the mountains to Hebron, south of Jerusalem, to wait upon her cousin Elizabeth. Because Mary’s presence, and even […]
Forty Martyrs of England and Wales Feast date: Oct 25 This feast, the feast of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales, honors the hundreds of British men and women who died for their faith in wake of the dispute between the Pope and King Henry VIII during the 16th century. Many loyal Catholics were tortured […]
Good Friday Feast date: Apr 10 On Good Friday, the entire Church fixes her gaze on the Cross at Calvary. Each member of the Church tries to understand at what cost Christ has won our redemption. In the solemn ceremonies of Good Friday, in the Adoration of the Cross, in the chanting of the ‘Reproaches’, […]
Holy Innocents Feast date: Dec 28 The Holy Innocents are the children mentioned in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 2:16-18. Herod, perceiving that he was deluded by the wise men, was exceeding angry, and sent his soldiers to kill all male children ages two and under that were in Bethlehem and on the boarders, according to the time which he had […]
Holy Thursday Feast date: Apr 09 Holy Thursday is the most complex and profound of all religious observances, saving only the Easter Vigil. It celebrates both the institution by Christ himself of the Eucharist and of the institution of the sacerdotal priesthood (as distinct from the ‘priesthood of all believers’) for in this, His last […]
Martyrs of Damascus Feast date: Jul 10 Beatified by Pope Pius XI in 1926, these eight Franciscan friars and three Maronite laymen were offered the choice of converting to Islam or suffering death in Damascus on July 9, 1860. Thousands of Maronite Christians had already been killed by the Druz in Southern Lebanon in that […]
Martyrs of September Feast date: Sep 02 The September Martyrs are a group of 191 faithful Christians who were martyred at the hands of the French Revolution on September 2 and 3, 1792. After refusing to take an oath in support of the civil consititution of the clergy, an act condemned by the Vatican which […]
Nuestra Senora del Pilar (Our Lady of the Pillar) Feast date: Oct 12 The first Marian apparition in history appeared to Saint James the Apostle, the brother of Saint John the Evangelist, on the bank of the river Ebro in Saragossa, Spain. Unlike every other recorded apparition, this one took place during the earthly life […]
Our Lady of Good Counsel Feast date: Apr 26 On the Feast of St. Mark, April 25, 1467, at the close of a festival in Genazzano, Italy, a cloud descended upon an ancient 5th-century deteriorated church, dedicated to Our Lady of Good Counsel. When the cloud disappeared, the festive crowd found a small, fragile image […]
Our Lady of Lourdes Feast date: Feb 11 On Feb. 11, the Catholic Church celebrates the liturgical memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, recalling a series of 18 appearances that the Blessed Virgin Mary made to a 14-year-old French peasant girl, Saint Bernadette Soubirous. The Marian apparitions began Feb. 11, 1858, ended July 16 that […]
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Feast date: Jul 16 On July 16 the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Mount Carmel is the mountain in the middle of the plain of Galilee on which the prophet Elijah called down a miracle of fire from the Lord, to show the people of […]
Our Lady of Sorrows Feast date: Sep 15 The feast of Our Lady of Sorrows commemorates the seven great sorrows which Mary lived in relation to Her Son, as they are recorded in the Gospels or through Tradition. Today we are invited to reflect on Mary’s deep suffering: 1. At the prophecy of Simeon: “You […]
Pope Saint John Paul II Feast date: Oct 22 Saint John Paul II is perhaps one of the most well-known pontiffs in recent history, and is most remembered for his charismatic nature, his love of youth and his world travels, along with his role in the fall of communism in Europe during his 27-year papacy. […]
Pope Saint John XXIII Feast date: Oct 11 Born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli at Sotto il Monte, Italy on 25 November 1881, Pope John XXIII was elected Pope on October 28, 1958. He died June 3, 1963 in Rome and was beatified by Pope John Paul II on September 3, 2000. Angelo was the fourth child of 14, born to […]
Pope St. Clement I Feast date: Nov 23 On Nov. 23 Roman Catholics remember the fourth Pope, St. Clement I, a disciple of the apostles who inherited the authority of St. Peter in the first century. Eastern Catholics celebrate his feast on Nov. 25. The details of Clement’s life, before his conversion and even afterward, […]
Pope St. Damasus Feast date: Dec 11 Saint Damasus was born in Rome at the beginning of the fourth century. His father, a widower, had received Holy Orders there and served as parish priest in the church of St. Laurence. Damasus was archdeacon of the Roman Church in 355 when the Pope, Saint Liberius, was […]
Pope St. Gregory VII Feast date: May 25 On May 25 the Catholic Church celebrates Pope St. Gregory VII, who sought to reform the Church and secure its freedom against the intrusion of civil rulers during his 11th century pontificate. Born in the Italian region of Tuscany sometime between 1020 and 1025, the future Pope […]
Pope St. Leo the Great Feast date: Nov 10 Nov. 10 is the Roman Catholic Church’s liturgical memorial of the fifth-century Pope Saint Leo I, known as “St. Leo the Great,” whose involvement in the fourth ecumenical council helped prevent the spread of error on Christ’s divine and human natures. St. Leo intervened for the […]
Pope St. Martin I Feast date: Apr 13 Catholics celebrate the memory of Pope St. Martin I on April 13. The saint suffered exile and humiliation for his defense of orthodoxy in a dispute over the relationship between Christ’s human and divine natures. Martin was born in the Italian city of Tuscany, during either the […]
Pope St. Pius X Feast date: Aug 21 Pope Pius X, born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the first Pope elected in the 20th century. He came to the papal office in 1903 and died 11 years later in 1914, just as World War I was beginning. He was born in 1835 at Riese, near Venice, […]
Presentation of the Lord Feast date: Feb 02 At the end of the fourth century, a woman named Etheria made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Her journal, discovered in 1887, gives an unprecedented glimpse of liturgical life there. Among the celebrations she describes is the Epiphany (January 6), the observance of Christ’s birth, and the gala […]
Queenship of Mary Feast date: Aug 22 In this feast, particularly cherished by the Popes of modern times, we celebrate Mary as the Queen of Heaven and Earth. Pope Pius XII in the Papal Encyclical Ad Coeli Reginam proposed the traditional doctrine on the Queenship of Mary and established this feast for the Universal Church. Pope […]
SAINT AARON Saint Aaron, a native of Britain, went to Brittany where he became a hermit on Cesabre (St. Malo) island. Saint Aaron attracted numerous disciples, among them St. Malo of Wales, and became their Abbot. His feast day is June 22. rosary.team
SAINT ABBAN Abbot and Irish missionary. An Irish prince, Abban was the son of King Cormac of Leinster. He is listed as the nephew of St. Ibar. Abban founded many churches in the old district of Ui Cennselaigh, in modern County Wexford and Ferns. His main monastery is Magheranoidhe, in Adamstown, Ireland. This monastery’s fame […]
SAINT ABBAN Saint Abban an Irish hermit whose life is largely undocumented. Born in Ireland, Alban resided in Abingdon, England before the era of St. Patrick. Abban is part of the great panorama of early Irish Christians who served as models for European monasticism and faith. He is especially revered in Abingdon, England. Feastday: May […]
SAINT ABBAN OF MURNEVIND Abbot and missionary, called Ewin, Evin, Neville, or Nevin. He is listed as a nephew of St. Kevin and is confused with St. Abban of Magh-Armuidhe. Abban is best known for his association with the monastery of Rosmic-Treoin of New Ross. He is also called Abban of Murnevin. Died: Fifth Century, […]
SAINT ABBO OF AUXERRE Bishop and abbot of Auxerre, France. He entered the monastery of St. Germain and was elected abbot of the institution. In 857, Abbo was appointed the bishop of Auxerre, in France, serving in that capacity for only two years. He is revered in Auxerre and in St. Germain. Died: 860, Feastday: […]
SAINT ABBO OF FLEURY Monastic leader and papal representative, sometimes called Abbo of Fleury and Abbon. He was born in the region of Orléans, France, circa 945, and entered the Benedictine order at Fleury-sur-Loire after studying at Orléans, Paris, and Remis. St. Oswald of Worcester, England, brought Abbo to Ramsey, Huntingdonshrine, England, in 986. Abbo […]
SAINT ABDAS Bishop and martyr, also called Audas. A Persian bishop, Abdas was arrested with seven priests, nine deacons, and seven consecrated virgins. These arrests initiated the persecution of Christians in Persia in that era. Abdas and his companions went to their deaths professing Christ. Died 420, Feastday: May 16. rosary.team
SAINT ABDIESUS Also called Hebed Jesus, a deacon in the Christian community of Persia who was caught up in the persecutions conducted by King Shapur II. Records indicate that Abdiesus was accompanied in his martyrdom by Abrosimus, Acepsimus, Azadanes, Azades, Bicor, Mareas, Milles, and a women named Tarbula. Some were Persian courtiers, others priests and […]
SAINT ABDON A Persian nobleman who suffered martyrdom with his companion, St. Sennen. Abdon, also called Abdo or Abdus in some lists, is recorded in the Acta of the saints dating to the ninth century, but he and St. Sennen were venerated as early as the third century. The martyrs were exposed to persecutions in […]
SAINT ABEL Archbishop and Benedictine abbot. Abel was probably born in Ireland, and was a noted churchman, accompanying St. Boniface on his missions to the European Continent. He was chosen as archbishop of Remis by Pope St. Zachary, a nomination ratified by the Council of Soissons in 744. However, a usurper named Milo occupied the […]
SAINT ABERCIUS MARCELLUS Bishop and apologist whose hagiography dates to the second century. The bishop of Hieropolis in Phrygia, he made a visit to Rome at the age of seventy-two. In Rome, Abercius was supposedly commanded by Emperor Marcus Aurelius to rid his daughter, Lucilla, of a demon, Following this event, Abercius is recorded as […]
SAINT ABIBAS A convert to the faith, supposedly the second son of Gamaliel, the famed Jewish teacher of St. Paul. Gamaliel was a member of the Sanhedrin that tried Jesus and condemned him to death. Gamaliel is recorded as having become a Christian, and Abibas is traditionally listed as an early convert to the Church. […]
SAINT ABIBUS Deacon and martyr with Sts. Gurias and Samonas. Abibus served the Church in Edessa, in Syria, where he was arrested during the persecutions of co-Emperor Licinius. The three were burned alive and buried together. Died: 323 Feastday: November 15. rosary.team
SAINT ABILIUS Thrid bishop of Alexandria, Egypt. He succeded Sts. Mark and Anianus. Eusebius reported the Abilius was appointed bishop circa 84. Died: 98 Feastday: February 22. rosary.team
SAINT ABRA Consecrated virgin, the daughter of Saint Hilary of Poitiers, born before he became a bishop. Little is known about Abra, who became a consecrated virgin, dedicated to good works among the Christians of Poitiers, in France. Abra died at the age of eighteen. Feastday: December 12. rosary.team
SAINT ABRAHAM A hermit and confessor born neat the Euphrates River in modern Iraq. While traveling to Egypt to visit monastic communities, Abraham was taken prisoner by bandits and held as a slave for five years. He escaped and made his way to Gaul where he became a hermit. Recognized for his sanctity, he was […]
SAINT ABRAHAM The archbishop of Ephesus, Greece, and a learned theologian who authored many treatises that influenced his contemporaries. He erected monasteries in Jerusalem and Constantinople. The monastery in Constantinople was involved in a dispute with the Byzantine Emperor, Theophilus. The monks in the abbey were called Abrahamites, after the founding saint, and they refused […]
SAINT ABRAHAM A bishop of Arbela in Assyria who suffered martyrdom during the persecutions conducted by King Shapur II of Persia. He is recorded as being executed at a site called Telman. Died: 345 Feastday: February 5. rosary.team
SAINT ABRAHAM of CARRHAE Hermit, bishop, and missionary who was born in Cyrrhus, Syria. He became a recluse in the desert near Mount Lebanon and tried to convert the local people. Reviled for his efforts, Abraham continued his apostolate, eventually winning over his neighbors to the faith. Unable to pay their taxes, the locals were […]
SAINT ABRAHAM of KIDUNAJA Hermit and apostle who faced the pagan priests of Edessa in Mesopotamia. Born in that city, Abraham refused to enter into a marriage arranged by his prosperous parents and went out into the nearby desert to live in a sealed cabin. Food was provided for him through a single opening by […]
SAINT ABRAHAM of KRATIA Bishop and hermit, who faced the trials and upheavals of his era. Born in Emessa, Syria, Abraham entered a monastery in the city but was forced to flee to Constantinople, now Istanbul, Turkey, because of raids by local pagan brigands. In Constantinople, Abraham entered another monastery, and at the age of […]
SAINT ABRAHAM of ROSTOV Apostle to the Russian people, founder of religious institutions. He received many graces even before converting to Christianity and becoming a model of the faith. born in Galicia, Russia, Abraham followed the pagan beliefs of the region. He was stricken with a severe disease and called upon Christ in his sufferings, […]
SAINT ABRAHAM of SMOLENSK Biblical scholar and monk who endured many trails in his lifetime. Born to a wealthy family in Smolensk, Russia, Abraham was orphaned while young and gave away his inheritance to become a monk. He entered the Bogoroditskaya Monastery and developed a genuine apostolate for the sick and poor of the region. […]
SAINT ABRAHAM THE POOR A holy hermit, listed in some records as “the Poor” of “the Child,” allusions to his purity of heart and to the simplicity of his lifestyle. He was born in Menuf or Minuf, Egypt, a site northwest of Cairo in the Delta region of the Nile, and became a disciple of […]
SAINT ABUDIMUS Greek martyr also called Abudemius. He was born on the island of Tenedos in the Aegean. When Emperor Diocletian enforced a persecution, Abudimus was tortured and put to death. Died: 4th century Feastday: July 15. rosary.team
SAINT ABUNDIUS A martyr and miracle worker in Rome. Abundius was a priest who was arrested with his deacon, St. Abundatius. Died: 304 Feastday: September 16. rosary.team
SAINT ABUNDIUS Confessor and sacrist. Abundius served in St. Peter’s in Rome. Pope St. Gregory I the Great wrote of his life, which was filled with many graces and spiritual gifts. Died: 564 Feastday: April 14. rosary.team
SAINT ABUNDIUS A priest and martyr of Spain who faced Islamic persecution. Abundius, who was a pastor in Ananelos, was arrested in Córdoba, Spain, when he refused to abandon his Christian faith. Brought before the Caliph, the Muslim ruler of the city, he preached about Christianity and the Church. the Caliph condemned him and beheaded […]
SAINT ABUNDIUS A bishop and noted theologian who was born in Thessaloncia. He became the bishop of Como, Italy and attended the Council of Constantinople in 450. As a result of his obvious intellect and holiness he was sent by Pope St. Leo I the Great to the Emperor Theodosius II as an envoy of […]
SAINT ACACIUS Acacius was a priest at Sebaste, Armenia, during Diocletian’s persecution. He was arrested and executed under the governor Maximus with seven women and Hirenarchus, who was so impressed with the devotion to their faith he became a Christian and suffered the same fate. Feastday: November 27. rosary.team
SAINT ACACIUS Acacius was a Cappadocian by birth, also known as Agathus. He was a enturian in the imperial army, was arrested for his faith on charges by Tribune Firmus in Perinthus, Thrace, tortured and then brought to Byzantium (Constantinople), where he was scourged and beheaded. Feastday: May 8. rosary.team
SAINT ACACIUS Acacius was bishop of Amida (Diarbekir), Mesopotamia. He sold the sacred vessels of his church to aid victims of the Persian persecution. His actions so impressed King Bahram V that he is reported to have ordered an end to the persecution of the Christians. Feastday: April 9. rosary.team
SAINT ACCA Bishop and scholar, a companion of early English saints and missionaries. Acca was born in Northumbria, England, and was educated in the company of St. Bosa, a Benedictine apostle of great courage. He also met St. Wilfrid, who appointed him the abbot of St. Andrew’s Monastery in Hexham, England. Acca joined St. Wilfrid […]
SAINT ACEOLUS Martyrs of minor orders. Acius was a deacon and Aceolus was a subdeacon, both probably studying for the priesthood. They were taken prisoner during Emperor Diocletian’s persecution near Amiens, France. Both are revered in Amiens. Died: 303 Feastday: May 1. rosary.team
SAINT ACEPSIMAS Bishop and martyr, a victim of the Persian persecutions in Hnaita, Persia. He was arrested during the anti-Christian campaigns of King Shapur II and was taken before a court where he publicly announced his faith. Records indicate that Acepsimas, the local bishop, was more than eighty when he was arrested. As a result […]
SAINT ACESTES A soldier assigned to escort St. Paul, the great Apostle, to his death. Acestes and two other soldiers were converted by Paul during their brief encounter. The three Romans, horrified by Paul’s execution, declared their faith before the onlookers and were promptly beheaded. Died: 1st Century, Feastday: July 2. rosary.team
SAINT ACHARIUS A monk and bishop who was instrumental in encouraging other holy men in his era. Acharius served St. Eustace in a monastery in Luxeuil, France and soon gained a reputation for holiness and administrative abilities. As a result, he was appointed the bishop of Noyon-Tournai in 621. There he aided St. Amandus in […]
SAINT ACHATIUS Acacius, is also known as Achatius; the facts of his life are uncertain. He may have been bishop of Antioch or of Militene and may not have been a bishop at all. He was prominent in Christian circles in Antioch and when summoned to appear before the local Roman official, Martian, a dialogue […]
SAINT ACHILLAS Hermit in Egypt with Amoes. They lived in a desert region of Egypt for decades, secluded and praying there. For this reason they are called “the Flowers of the Desert” by the Greek Church. Achillas and Amoes are especially venerated at the start of the season of Lent. Died: 4th Century, Feastday: January […]
SAINT ACHILLAS Bishop and theologian who lived in an era of dispute in the Church. Achillas was the bishop of Alexandria, Egypt, one of the most powerful cities in the world at the time. Succeeding a man named St. Peter the Martyr as the bishop, Achillas ordained Arius, who was to begin the influential heresy […]
SAINT ACHILLAS Metropolitan bishop, also called Achilles or Achillius. He was metropolitan of Larissa in Thessaly, Greece, serving humbly but with courage and wisdom. He is reported as attending the first Council of Nicaea. Since 978, Achillas’ relics have been venerated at Presba in Bulgaria. Died: 330, Feastday: May 15. rosary.team
SAINT ACHILLEUS KEWANUKA One of the Martyrs of Uganda, with Charles Lwanga. Achilleus served King Mwanga of Uganda. A convert to the faith taught by the White Fathers, Achilleus was martyred in June1886. He was burned alive with his companions. These martyrs were canonized in 1964. Died: 1886, Feastday: June 3. rosary.team
SAINT ACISCLUS A martyr whose life is mentioned by St. Eulogius, alongside the sufferings of his sister, Victoria. This martyr lived in Córdoba, Spain. When arrested, Acisclus and Victoria clearly maintained their Christian faith and were condemned to death after prolonged torture. Victoria was shot by arrows and Acisclus was beheaded. Some records indicate the […]
SAINT ACIUS Martyrs of minor orders. Acius was a deacon and Aceolus was a subdeacon, both probably studying for the priesthood. They were taken prisoner during Emperor Diocletian’s persecution near Amiens, France. Both are revered in Amiens. Died: 303, Feastday: May 1. rosary.team
SAINT ACYNDINUS With Pegasius, Aphthonius, Elpidephours, and Anempodistus, Persian Christians, ordained priests and with their companion clerical assistants; These Christians were arrested and slain for the faith during the persecution of Christians during the reign of King Shapur II. Died: 345, Feastday: November 2. rosary.team
SAINT ADA Abbess and dedicated virgin, noted in France as a patroness of religious women. Ada was a niece of St. Engebert, the bishop who was murdered by his own cousin. Raised in a pious household and influenced by her uncle, Ada joined a convent in Soissons, France. She later became the abbess of St. […]
SAINT ADALAR Priest and martyr, also called Adalher. A monk, Adalar served as a companion of St. Boniface in his missionary labors. He was martyred at Dokkum in Frisia with Boniface. Died: 755, Feastday: June 5. rosary.team
SAINT ADALARD Patron of French churches and towns. A nephew of Charles Martel, he was raised as a nobleman at the court of his cousin Charlemagne. At age twenty Adalard entered the monastery of Cordie in Picardy, but then went to Monte Cassino, staying there in seclusion until Charlemagne insisted he return to court. At […]
SAINT ADALBALD of OSTREVANT Noble and martyr, who faced some of the most vicious in-laws ever recorded. Adalbald was the son or grandson of St. Gertrude of Hamage and was born in Flanders. He was a nobleman at the court of Dagobert I of France. Going to Gascony, France to put down a local rebellion […]
SAINT ADALBERO A bishop, Adalbero was a Benedictine who influenced his own era. He started his career as a monk in Gorze and was appointed the bishop of Verdun, France in 984. He was transferred to Metz the same year where he founded Cluniac monasteries. Died: 1005, Feastday: December 15. rosary.team
SAINT ADALBERT A missionary in Ireland whose tomb became a center for pilgrims. Adalbert was born in Northembria, England, and was educated at Rathmelgisi Monastery. Accompanying St. Willibrord and others to Friesland, he gained many converts in an area called Egmont. Adalbert was also a companion of St. Egbert to Ireland. It is believed that […]
SAINT ADALBERT of MAGDEBURG The Apostle of the Slavs and an archbishop. A German monk of the Benedictine Monastery of St. Maximin in Tréves, he was consecrated a bishop and sent to Russia in 961. Princess Olga of that land had asked Emperor Otto I the Great to provide her with a missionary. The son […]
SAINT ADALBERT of PRAGUE The first bishop of Prague to have been born in Bohemia, St. Adalbert was born Voytech c. 956 into a noble family. He was sent to Magdeburg to be educated and took the name of his catechist when he was baptized. After the death of his mentor in 981, Adalbert, who […]
SAINT ADALGIS A missionary and monastic founder born in Ireland. As part of the heroic undertakings of the early Irish monks Adalgis, who was a disciple of St. Fursey, sailed form his home to France. He did missionary work in Arras and Laon and founded a monastery in Picardy. Died: 686, Feastday: June 2. rosary.team
SAINT ADALGIS Bishop and influential churchman. From 830 to circa 850, Adalgis served the diocese of Novara, Italy. He also served Emperor Lothair I of the Franks. Died: 850, Feastday: October 7. rosary.team
SAINT ADALGOTT of DISSENTIS Saint Adalgott, a monk of Einsiedeln, became abbot of Dissentis Monastery in Switzerland in 1012. Died: 1031. rosary.team
SAINT ADALSINDIS Saint Adalsindis became the abbess of a convent at Beze, France. Died 680, Feastday May 3. rosary.team
SAINT ADALSINDIS Benedictine nun and the daughter of Saints Adalbald and Rictrudis. Her sister was Saint Eusebia the abbess of the Benedictine convent at Hamayles-Marchiennes, France which she entered. Died: 715, Feastday: December 25. rosary.team
SAINT ADAM Saint Adam lived as a hermit in a cave on the slopes of Mount Vissiano. Adam entered San Sabine Monastery. His rigorous self-discipline and prayer led to his election as abbot. Died: 1210, Feastday: May 16. rosary.team
SAINT ADAMNAN Saint Adamnan was born in Ireland. Saint Ceolfrid persuaded him to adopt the Roman calendar for Easter. Adamnan worked to get Irish monks and monasteries to replace their Celtic practices with those of Rome. He convinced the Council of Birr that women should be exempt from wars and that women and children should […]
SAINT ADAMNAN of COLDINGHAM Saint Adamnan was born in Ireland. Adamnan arrived on the southwest coast of Scotland where he met Saint Ebba at the Monastery of Coldingham where he became a monk. He was noted for the gift of prophecy until his death. Died: 680, Feastday: January 31. rosary.team
SAINT ADAUCUS Saint Adaucus was a nobleman of Italian birth. Emperor Diocletian commanded that Adaucus’ town (Astandro, Phrygia) be burned to the ground by Roman soldiers. All the Christians including Adaucus perished and were martyred. Died: 304, Feastday: February 7. rosary.team
SAINT ADAUCTUS Saint Adauctus and his daughter, Callisthene, were victims in the persecutions of Maximinus Daia . Adauctus was executed in Ephesus. His daughter, Callisthene, spent the rest of her life doing works of mercy. Died: 312, Feastday: October 4. rosary.team
SAINT ADDAL According to legend King Abgar the Black, the second century Osroene ruler, wrote to Christ asking Jesus to cure him of an intolerable and incurable illness. Saint Thomas sent Addal to the court of King Abgar and Addal cured Abgar and converted the king and his people. Died: 180, Feastday: August 5. rosary.team
SAINT ADELA Saint Adela, the youngest daughter of William the Conqueror. She endowed churches and monastic institutions. Died:1137, Feastday: February 24. rosary.team
SAINT ADELA Saint Adela the daughter of King Dagobert II and the sister of Saint Irmina. She founded a monastery at Pfazel, France. Died: 734, Feastday: December 24. rosary.team
SAINT ADELA Saint Adela entered the Benedictines convent near Ypres after the death of her husband, Count Baldwin IV of Flanders. Adela served as a nun until her death. Died: 1071, Feastday: September 8. rosary.team
SAINT ADELAIDE Saint Adelaide also known as Aleydis was born in Schwaerbeek, Belgium. At age seven she was placed in a Cistercian convent at La Cambre. Saint Adelaide contracted leprosy and was forced to isolation. Many miracles were credited to her intercession. Died: June 11,1250, Feastday: June 15. rosary.team
SAINT ADELAIDE Saint Adelaide became interested in evangelism and established many monasteries and churches. She founded the convent at Seltz where she died. Saint Adelaide was canonized in 1097. Born: 931, Died: 999. rosary.team
SAINT ADELAIDE OF BELLICH Saint Adelaide entered the Ursuline Convent in Cologne. She became abbess in the Convent of Villich near Bonan which was founded by her parents and introduced the Rule of Saint Benedict. Saint Herbert, the archbishop of Cologne, appointed Saint Adelaide the abbess of Saint Mary’s Convent. Adelaide did not give up […]
SAINT ADELARD Saint Adelard, grandson of Charles Martel, nephew of King Pepin and first cousin to Charlemagne. He became a monk at Corbie in Picardy in 773. He was chosen abbot, and became Charlemagne’s counselor. He was forced by the king to quit the monastery and work for him as chief minister for his son […]
SAINT ADELE Saint Adele, daughter of King Dagobert II of Germany, became a nun upon the death of her husband. She founded a convent at Palatiolum near Trier and became its first Abbess. Died: 730, Feastday: December 24. rosary.team
SAINT ADELELMUS Saint Adelelmus, disciple of St. Bernard of Thiron, was born in Flanders, Belgium. He founded the monastery of Etival-en-Charnie. Died: 1152, Feastday: April 27. rosary.team
SAINT ADELINA Saint Adelina, granddaughter of William the Conqueror, became the abbess of the Benedictine Convent of La Blanche in Normandy, a religious community founded by her brother. Died: 1125, Feastday: October 20. rosary.team
SAINT ADELINE Saint Adeline, sister of Blessed Vitale, became the first Abbess of the monastery founded at Mortain in 1105 or 1115 by Count William of Mortain. Because of the color of their habit the religious came to be called the “White Ladies.” Died: 1125, Feastday: October 20. rosary.team
SAINT ADELOGA Saint Adeloga was a Frankish princess who founded the Benedictine convent of Kitzingen in Franconia. Died: 745, Feastday: February 2. rosary.team
SAINT ADELPHUS Saint Adelphus, the grandson of Saint Romaricus, served as Saint Romaricus successor as abbot of Remiremont. Died: 670, Feastday: September 11. rosary.team
SAINT ADELPHUS Saint Adelphus, Bishop and confessor at Metz, France, is listed in the pre-1970 Roman Martyrology. Died: 5th century, Feastday: August 29. rosary.team
SAINT ADEODATUS I Saint Adeodatus I was born in Rome and had been a priest for forty years when he was elected to the papal throne in 615. He was the first pope to use leaden bullae to seal papal documents, which have been called bulls ever since. Died: 618. rosary.team
SAINT ADOLPHUS LUDIGO-MLASA Martyr of Uganda. Died: 1885, Feastday: June 3. rosary.team
SAINT ADERALD Saint Aderald the was archdeacon at Troyes when he led a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Saint Aderald built the Benedictine Abbey of Saint Sepulchre at Samblières to place the relics he brought make with him. Died: 1004, Feastday: October20. rosary.team
SAINT ADHERITUS Saint Adheritus was made bishop of Ravenna. His remains are venerated in the Benedictine Basilica of Classe near Ravenna, Italy. Died: 2nd century, Feastday: September 27. rosary.team
SAINT ADJUTOR Saint Adjutor was captured by the Muslims during the First Crusade but managed to escape from slavery. He returned to France and entered the abbey of Tiron. Died: April 30, 1131, Feastday: April 30. rosary.team
SAINT ADO of VIENNE Saint Ado was born in Sens and educated at the Benedictine abbey of Ferrieres. Saint Ado renounced his inheritance and became a Benedictine. He was assigned to the monastery of Prum, near Trier, Germany where his enemies forced to leave. He went to Rome on a pilgrimage and for two years […]
SAINT ADOLF of OSNABRUCK Saint Adolf became a canon in Cologne, Germany. In 1216 he was named the bishop of Osnabruck. Died: June 30, 1224, Feastday: February 11. rosary.team
SAINT ADOLPHUS Saint Adolphus the son of an Islamic father and a Christian mother was caught in the persecutions conducted by the Caliph of Córdoba and was martyred in Córdoba. Died: 850, Feastday: September 27. rosary.team
SAINT ADOLPHUS LUDIGO-MKASA One of many martyrs of Uganda. Died: 1885, Feastday: June 3. rosary.team
SAINT ADRIAN According to legend Adrian was a pagan officer at the imperial court of Nicomedia. Impressed by the courage of a group of Christians who were being tortured, he declared himself a Christian and was imprisoned with them and suffered excruciating tortures before he was put to death. His young wife, Natalia, who was […]
SAINT ADRIAN Martyr and disciple of St. Landoald. He was begging for alms when set upon by thieves and slain near Maastricht, Netherlands. Died: 668, Feastday: March 19. rosary.team
SAINT ADRIAN A bishop and missionary, possibly of royal blood. Adrian was born in Pannonia, in modern Hungary, and was appointed bishop of the local diocese. He resigned to undertake a missionary project. After laboring among the Scots, he retired to a monastery in the area of Firth of Forth. He and his fellow religious […]
SAINT ADRIAN A missionary and martyr who was caught up in the persecutions conducted by Emperor Galerius. With a companion, Eubulus, he was arrested in Caesarea, in modern Israel. The local governor, Firmilian, tried Adrian and his fellow missionary who had come to the region to counsel the local Christians. Both of these men endured […]
BI. ADRIAN FORTESCUE Martyr who opposed the divorce of King Henry VIII of England from Catherine. A cousin of Anne Boleyn, Adrian was born in Punsborne, England, and was married twice. When his first wife Anne Stonor died in 1499, Adrian raised their two daughters. Twelve years later he married Anne Rede, who gave him […]
SAINT ADRIAN III The life and sanctity of Pope St. Adrian III remains obscure. He was born in Rome and was elected to the papacy in 884. During his brief reign of sixteen months, violent vendettas that arose from the assassination of John VIII continued. George of the Avertine, a priest whom John had exiled […]
SAINT ADRIAN VAN HILVARENBEEK Martyr in the religious wars of Holland during the difficult years of the Reformation. He was born and educated in Hilvarenbeek, and joined the Premonstratensians for a time before becoming a parish priest. One of the Martyrs of Gorkum, Adrian was arrested with Jacob Lacops and Andreas Wouters. The three were […]
SAINT ADRIAN, ABBOT Born in Africa, Adrian became abbot of the monastery at Nerida, near Naples. He declined an appointment as archbishop of Canterbury, but accompanied St. Theodore to England when the latter was appointed Archbishop. Theodore appointed him Abbot of SS. Peter and Paul Monastery (later changed to St. Augustine’s) in Canterbury, and during […]
SAINT ADRIO Martyr of Alexandria, Egypt, with Basilla and Victor. No details of their suffering are known. Died: Unknown, Feastday: May 17. rosary.team
SAINT ADULF Bishop and missionary, venerated with his brother, Butulf. They were nobles of Saxon or Irish lineage who became monks. Both went as missionaries to Germany. There Adulf was made the bishop of Utrecht. Butulf returned to England and founded a religious house in 654, becoming widely respected for his holiness. Died: 680, Feastday: […]
SAINT AEDESIUS Martyr and brother of St. Apphian. Aedesius, a Christian of some note in Caesarea, now part of modern Israel, witnessed the persecution of Christians, the result of Emperor Diocletian’s policies. He publicly rebuked the local Roman officials who were placing Christian virgins in brothels as part of the persecutions. Arrested, Aedesius was tortured […]
SAINT AEDH MacBRICC Miracle worker and founder who reputedly cured St. Brigid of a headache. Aedh was the son of Bricc, or Breece, of the Hy Neill. He was robbed of his inheritance by his brother and came under the influence of bishop Illathan of Rathlihen, Offay. Admitted into the monastic life, Aedh founded a […]
SAINT AELRED of RIEVAULX St. Aelred of Rievaulx, born in 1109, early showed signs of promise. The son of Eilaf, a Saxon priest, Aelred was educated at Roxburgh, the ancient Scottish capital, where he was known for his intellectual talents. The DNB notes that as a child, Aelred prophesied the death of a bad archbishop […]
SAINT AENGUS Called Dengus and “the Culdee,” a hermit and author of the Festlology of the Saints of Ireland, The Felire. The term Culdee refers to Aengus’ love of solitude: Ceile De was a name given to the hermits of the time. Aengus, born in Clonengh, Ireland, became a solitary monk on the banks of […]
SAINT AFAN An obscure bishop of Brecknock, Wales. All that is known of this saint comes from an inscription in a churchyard in Lanafan Fawr, Brecknock. The inscription notes that St. Afan, bishop, was interred at this site. Died: 6th Century, Feastday: November 16. rosary.team
SAINT AFRA Martyr and penitent, listed in some records as the daughter of the king of Cyprus. Afra was caught up in the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian in Roman Augsburg. She is listed in the Martyrology Hieronymianum. Afra possibly operated a brothel in Augsburg or served as a prostitute in the temple of Venus, living […]
SAINT AFRA Martyr of Brescia, Italy, traditionally associated with Sts. Faustinus and Jovita. Feastday: May 24. rosary.team
SAINT AFRICUS Confessor of Comminges in southern France. His seventh-century shrine was destroyed by Calvinists, but he is recorded as being the bishop of Comminges. Died: 7th Century, Feastday: November 16. rosary.team
SAINT AGABIUS Bishop of Verona, Italy. No details of his life are known. Died: 250: Feastday: August 4. rosary.team
SAINT AGABUS Martyr and one of the seventy-two disciples mentioned by St. Luke. He was a Jewish convert to the faith, noted as a prophet. Agabus predicted a famine in the Roman Empire and probably Paul’s imprisonment. Agabus was unable to dissuade Paul from going to Jerusalem. The martyr died for the faith in the […]
SAINT AGANUS Benedictine abbot of St. Gabriel’s in Campania, Italy. Died: 1100, Feastday: February 16. rosary.team
SAINT AGAPE Martyr and follower of St. Valentine. She belonged to a group of virgins started by St. Valentine. A church in Termi was dedicated to her until the twelfth century, and she is listed in early martyrologies. Died: 273, Feastday: February 15. rosary.team
SAINT AGAPE Agape and her sisters Chionia and Irene, Christians of Thessalonica, Macedonia, were convicted of possessing texts of the Scriptures despite a decree issued in 303 by Emperor Diocletian naming such possessions a crime punishable by death. When they further refused to sacrifice to pagan gods, the governor, Dulcitius, had Agape and Chionia burned […]
SAINT AGAPITUS Martyr, deacon, and companion of Pope Sixtus II in death. He was with the pope when seized during the persecutions of Emperor Valerian. Agapitus and five other deacons-Felicissimus, Januarius, Magnus, Stephen, and Vincent- were martyred. Died: 258, Feastday: August 6. rosary.team
SAINT AGAPITUS Martyr in the reign of Emperor Aurelian. Buried in Palestrina, in Italy, Agapitus is traditionally identified as a fifteen-year old caught in the persecutions of the Christians in Antioch. He was brought before the governor when he announced his faith. The young man was tortured and beheaded. The tale is perhaps apocryphal, and […]
SAINT AGAPIUS Martyr and valiant defender of the faith. A Christian in Caesarea, Palestine, Agapius was taken prisoner in the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian. Three times he suffered imprisonment for the faith, released after enduring torture each time. Arrested a fourth, he was offered a pardon if he denied Christ. When he refused, he was […]
SAINT AGAPIUS Martyr and probably a bishop, caught up in the persecutions of Emperor Valerian. Agapius and a companion, Secundus, by tradition Spaniards, were exiled by the Romans to Africa. There they were martyred with Emilian, Tertulla, Antonia, and others at Citra. Died: 259, Feastday: April 29. rosary.team
SAINT AGATHA Nun and missionary aide to St. Boniface. Agatha was a member of a Benedictine convent in England, a disciple of St. Lisba. When St. Boniface was conducting his missionary labors, Agatha went to Germany to assist him. Died: 790, Feastday: December 12. rosary.team
SAINT AGATHA Although we have evidence that Agatha was venerated at least as far back as the sixth century, the only facts we have about her are that she was born in Sicily and died there a martyr. In the legend of her life, we are told that she belonged to a rich, important family. […]
SAINT AGATHA LIN Chinese martyr. She was born in 1817 at Ma-Tchang, China. A teacher at a Christian school, Agatha was beheaded for the faith in Mao-kin on January 28, 1858. She was beatified on May 2, 1909. Died: 1858, Feastday: February 18. rosary.team
SAINT AGATHANGELO NOURY Martyr and reformer, a Franciscan missionary, also called Agathangelus. He was born Francis at Vendome, France, and entered the Capuchin monastery in Le Mans. He was ordained a priest in 1625. Agathangelo was sent to Aleppo, Syria, where he became known as an Arabic scholar, publishing Catholic works in Arabic. In 1633 […]
SAINT AGATHANGELUS Martyr baptized by St. Clement of Ancyra. Agathangelus met Clement in Rome. When Clement was taken to Ancyra, Agathangelus went with him, sharing in his martyrdom there. Died: 309, Feastday: January 23. rosary.team
SAINT AGATHO A Sicilian cleric, Pope/St. Agatho was born c. 577 and was elected to the Roman see in 678. He had been a monk before his election and was well-versed in Latin and Greek. Although the exarch of Ravenna, Theodore, desired independence from Rome, he eventually submitted to Agatho’s rule. In 678, Bishop Wilfrid […]
SAINT AGATHO Early Christian hermit and abbot. Agatho lived in the Egyptian desert. He is mentioned frequently in the Lives of the Fathers of the Desert. Such saints evolved the modern monastic ideals in their own eras, using the Egyptian wilderness as their hermitage. Died: 4th Century, Feastday: October 21. rosary.team
SAINT AGATHOCLIA Virgin martyr, a patroness of a region in Aragon, Spain. Agathoclia was an abused slave who suffered for the faith in a public trial. Feastday: September 17. rosary.team
SAINT AGATHOPUS Martyr, caught up in the persecutions conducted by co-Emperor Maximian (r. 286-305), also called Agathopodes. He was a deacon in Thessalonica, modern Greece, working with a doctor named Theodulus. Arrested for possessing Christian Scriptures and for professing the faith, the two were tried by Faustinus, the governor of the region. They were condemned […]
SAINT AGERANUS Martyr, caught up in the Norman invasion of his era. A Benedictine monk in the monastery of the Order of Beze Côte-d’Or, France, Ageranus chose to defend the sacred precincts of the monastery when a Norman army arrived on the scene. He was accompanied by four other monks, Gerard, Genesius, Rodron, and Silfrard, […]
SAINT AGERICUS Bishop and miracle worker of Verdun, France. Born about 521 in that city, he is sometimes listed as Airy or Algeric. In 554, after serving in a local parish, Agericus succeeded St. Desiderius as bishop of Verdun. He became an advisor to King Childebert II and a patron of the poor of the […]
SAINT AGIA Benedictine and wife of St. Hiduiphus of Hainault, also called Aye or Austregildis. She entered the nunnery at Mons when St. Hidulphus became a monk. Died: 714, Feastday: April 18. rosary.team
SAINT AGIA Widow, also called Aja and Aye. She is reported as being the sainted mother of St. Lupus of Sens. Died: 6th Century, Feastday: September 1. rosary.team
SAINT AGILBERT Agilbert was a Frank (bishop) who had studied under abbot Ado at Jouarre monastery in Ireland . He was invited by King Coenwalh of the West Saxons to remain in Wessex as bishop. He was active in missionary activities, ordained St. Wilfrid, and with him was a leader among those seeking to replace […]
SAINT AGILBERTA Abbess and relative of Sts. Ebrigisil, Ado, and Agilbert. Agilberta was the second abbess of Jouarre monastery, founded in 660. St. Ado founded Jouarre. Died: 680, Feastday: August 10. rosary.team
SAINT AGILEUS Martyr honored by St. Augustine. Agileus was a Christian and lived in North Africa. He is listed as being martyred in the city of Carthage during the local persecutions. St. Augustine memorialized him on his birthday with a sermon. Died: 300, Feastday: October 15. rosary.team
SAINT AGILULFUS Also called Agilulf, a martyr and the archbishop of Cologne, Germany. He also served as abbot of Stavelot, and his life was written by a monk of the Benedictine house located in Malmedy, France. Agilulfus was from a good family and gained a reputation at Stavelot. Named archbishop of Cologne, he tried to […]
SAINT AGILUS Also called Ayeul, a missionary and abbot. He was from a noble family and educated St. Columbanus at Luxeuil, France. He also served as missionary in the region of Bavaria, Germany. Agilus ended his career as the abbot of Rebais near Paris. Died: 650, Feastday: August 30. rosary.team
SAINT AGNELLUS Miracle worker and abbot, a patron of the city of Naples, Italy. He started his religious career as a hermit but then became the abbot of San Gaudioso near Naples. Died: 596, Feastday: December 14. rosary.team
SAINT AGNELLUS of PISA Franciscan founder and diplomat. He was born in Pisa, a member of the noble Agnelli clan. St. Francis of Assisi personally received Agnellus into his order and sent him to Paris to start a Franciscan mission there. Agnellus also attended the “Chapter of Mats” and was then sent by St. Francis […]
SAINT AGNES Saint Agnes was held in high regard by the primitive Christian Church, and her name has remained a symbol of maidenly purity through the ages. Saint Agnes was twelve or thirteen years old when Diocletian began his persecutions. She was sentenced by a judge to a house of ill fame. A young man […]
SAINT AGNES of ASSISI Abbess and miracle worker, the younger sister of St. Clare of Assisi. Born in Assisi, Agnes was the youngest daughter of Count Favorino Scifi and Countess Hortulana (now Blessed). On March 18, 1212, Clare renounced her inheritance and family and founded the Poor Clares, the Franciscan cloistered Order. Agnes joined her […]
SAINT AGNES of BOHEMIA Agnes was the daughter of King Ottokar of Bohemia. She was engaged to Boleslaus when she was three and when he died, to Henry, son of Emperor Frederick II, when she was nine. She was overjoyed when Henry married the daughter of the Duke of Austria, as she had offered herself […]
SAINT AGNES DE Vietnamese Christian martyr. She was born in Baiden and was raised in a Christian family. Agnes was arrested and died in prison at Namdinh on July 12. Agnes was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1988. Died: 1841, Feastday: July 12. rosary.team
SAINT ALOYSIUS GONZAGA Saint Aloysius Gonzaga was born Luigi Gonzaga, the eldest son of Farrante, the Marquis of Castiglione, on the 9th of March, 1568. From the earliest age, the young saint was given to prayer, including the Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the seven Penitential Psalms and other devotions. In 1577, his father […]
SAINT ANDREW, APOSTLE Saint Andrew was a native of Bethsaida, a town in Galilee, upon the banks of the lake of Genesareth. He was the son of Jonas, or John, a fisherman of that town, and brother to Simon Peter. They had afterwards a house at Capharnaum, where Jesus lodged when he preached in that […]
SAINT ANGELO Saint Angelo, a member of the Carmelite Order, suffered martyrdom for the Faith at Leocata, Sicily. His parents were Jews of Jerusalem and was converted to Christianity by a vision of our Lady. She told them that the Messias which they were awaiting had already come and had redeemed His people. She promised […]
SAINT ANNE MOTHER OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Saint Anne is not mentioned in the New Testament, and we must depend on apocryphal literature, chiefly the Protoevangelium of James, which dates back only to the second century. In this document we are told that Saint Anne, wife of Joachim, was advanced in years and that […]
SAINT ANTHELM Saint Anthelm was born in 1107 in the Castle Chigin in Gaul, France. Saint Anthelm took the habit of Saint Bruno in 1137, and during his novitiate he was sent to the Grande Chartreuse (house) of the Order. The monastery was heavily damaged by an avalanche, and the managerial abilities of this young […]
SAINT ANTHONY MARY CLARET Eary Years| Frustration| Wonder-Worker| New Mission| Prophet| Last Mission| Last Days EARLY YEARS Catalonia, a region of Spain with a dialect all its own, lies against the Pyrenees in the northeastern corner of that country. It was there, in the town of Sallent, that Senor Juan Claret made a special visit […]
SAINT ANTHONY OF PADUA Saint Anthony was born in Portugal. He originally joined the Augustinian order but became a Franciscan when he was 26 because of the death of 5 Franciscan protomartyrs in Morocco, North Africa. Anthony wished to be a martyr just like 5 Franciscans. He is called the “Hammer of Heretics” because of […]
Saint Aristides Feast date: Aug 31 Not much is known about the life of St. Aristides, excpet that he lived during the second century and was an avid confessor of the faith and Athenian philosopher. He wrote an Apologia for Christianity, which he presented to Emperor Hadrian in 125. His text was included in a work by Sts. Barlaam and […]
SAINT AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO Saint Augustine of Hippo is the patron of brewers because of his conversion from a former life of loose living. His turnaround and conversion has been an inspiration to many who struggle with a particular vice or habit. This famous son of Saint Monica was born in Africa and spent many […]
SAINT AVA Saint Ava was the daughter of King Pepin. She was cured of blindness by Saint Rainfredis and became a Benedictine nun at Dinart, Hainault. She was elected Abbess. Her feast day is April 29th. rosary.team
SAINT BABYLAS Martyred bishop with companions Urban, Prilidian, and Epolonius. Babylas became the bishop of Antioch, Turkey, about 240. St. John Chrysostom related that Babylas refused permission for Emperor Philip the Arab to enter his church until he performed penances. Philip had murdered his predecessor Gordian III. Babylas and his companions, young students of his, […]
SAINT BADILO Benedictine abbot. Badilo was a monk at Vezelay in France and became the abbot of Leuze in Hainault, Belgium. Died: 870, Feastday: October 8. rosary.team
SAINT BADULFUS A Benedictine abbot, mentioned in the Proprium of Lyons. He was abbot of Ainay, Lyons, France. Died 850, Feastday: August 19 rosary.team
SAINT BAGLAN Two Welsh saints bear this flame, Churches have been dedicated to their labors in Wales, and both are commemorated in litanies dating to the earliest Christian eras of that land. Details of their lives have not survived. Died: 5th Century. rosary.team
SAINT BAGNE Bishop and disciple of St. Wandrille, called Bain or Bagnus in some lists. He was a Benedictine monk at Fontenelle Abbey in France in 689 when he was named a bishop. Bagne served as a missionary in the area of modern Calais, in France. After twelve years he resigned his see and returned […]
SAINT BAITHIN Abbot and cousin of St. Columba, also listed as Comm or Cominus in some lists. Baithin was abbot of Tiree Abbey in Ireland, succeeding St. Columba as abbot of lona in Scotland in 597. He wrote about his saintly cousin and is said to have died on the anniversary of St. Columba’s death. […]
SAINT BALBINA Martyr baptized by Pope St. Alexander. The daughter of Quirinus the martyr, Balbina died for the faith and was buried on the Appian Way. Her relics were later enshrined in St. Balbina’s Church on the Aventine. Died: 130, Feastday: March 11. rosary.team
SAINT BARTHOLOMEW, APOSTLE Saint Bartholomew is mentioned in the synoptic gospels and Acts as one of the twelve apostles. His name, a patronymic, means son of Tolomai and scholars believe he is the same as Nathanael mentioned in John, who says he is from Cana and that Jesus called him an Israelite incapable of deceit. […]
Saint Beatrice da Silva Meneses Feast date: Sep 01 St. Beatrice was born to Portuguese nobility in Cuerta, Portugal, in 1424. She was the daughter of the Count of Viana, and the sister of Saint Amadeus of Portugal. She was raised in the household of the future Queen Isabel of Portugal and spent some time […]
SAINT BEDE CONFESSOR Saint Bede was born on the lands of the monastery of Wearmouth and Jarrow, which stood on the River Tyne in northeastern England. At the age of seven he was given by his relatives to the Abbot Benedict to be educated. From that time he spent his whole life in the monastery […]
SAINT BENEDICT ABBOT Saint Benedict was born about the year 480 at Nursia, in the province of Umbria, in north central Italy, and that his family was probably of noble lineage. We also know that he had a sister called Scholastica, who from childhood vowed herself to God. Saint Benedict was sent to Rome to […]
SAINT BERNADETTE Also known as: Maria Bernadette; Marie Bernarde; Sleeping Saint of Nevers; Bernardette; Bernardetta; Bernada; Bernardette Soubirous Bernadette Soubirous was born to Francois and Louise Soubirous on January 7th 1844. At that time the family were living in the Boly Mill and Francois was running the mill. The Boly mill had belonged to Louise’s […]
SAINT BERNARD Saint Bernard was born in Burgundy, France. He attended college at Chatillon where he was conspicuous for his remarkable piety and spirit of recollection. He entered upon the studies of theology and Holy Scripture. After the death of his mother he resolved to embrace the newly established institute of the Cistercian Order. In […]
SAINT BLAISE According to tradition Saint Blaise was a bishop of Sebaste, Armenia, in the early part of the fourth century. Saint Blaise suffered martyrdom under the Roman emperor Licinius who had commanded the governor of the province, Agricolaus, to prevent the spread of Christianity in his territory. Saint Blaise fled to the mountains and […]
SAINT BONIFACE Saint Boniface was born into a Christian family of noble rank about the year 680. Winfrid, his baptized name, was a very small boy when he found himself listening to the conversation of some monks who were visiting his home and he resolved to enter the Church. Winfrid went to the abbey of […]
Saint Boniface I, Pope Feast date: Sep 04 Though few details are known of Boniface’s early life, he was elected Pope on December 28, 418. He is believed to have been ordained a priest by Pope Damasus I (366-384) and to have served as representative of Innocent I at Constantinople (c. 405). Boniface was highly […]
SAINT BRIDGIT, OR BRIDGET Saint Bridget, by contraction Bride, was born at Fochard in Ulster. She received the religious veil in her youth from Saint Mel, nephew and disciple of Saint Patrick. She built herself a cell under a large oak, called Kill-dara or cell of the oak. Joined by several of her own sex […]
SAINT CAMILLUS de LELLIS Saint Camillus de Lellis was born in 1550 in the Abruzzi region of Italy. He grew to be 6’6″ tall and of large stature. When old enough, Camillus went to fight with the Venetians against the Turks. However, he was struck with an ailment that would persist with him the rest […]
Saint Catherine Laboure Feast date: Nov 28 On November 28, the Church honors St. Catherine Labouré, the humble Daughter of Charity to whom Mary appeared, requesting that the Miraculous Medal be stamped so that all who wear it would receive great graces. Saint Catherine Labouré was born in France on May 2, 1806. She was […]
SAINT CECILIA Virgin and martyr, patroness of church music, died at Rome. This saint, so often glorified in the fine arts and in poetry, is one of the most venerated martyrs of Christian antiquity. The oldest historical account of St. Cecilia is found in the “Martyrologium Hieronymianum”; from this it is evident that her feast […]
Saint Celestine V, Pope Feast date: May 19 Celestine is a saint who will always be remembered for the unique manner in which he was elected Pope, for his spectacular incompetence in that office, and for the distinction of being the first pontiff ever to have resigned. Pietro di Murrone was born in born 1215 in […]
SAINT CESIDIO GIACOMANTONIO Cesidio Giacomantonio was born on August 30, 1873 in Fossa Aqulina, Italy. His parents were Giovanni Giacomantonio and Maria Antonucci and his baptismal name was Angelo. As a boy he made frequent visits to the Franciscan monastery of St. Angelo in Ocre, and felt God’s call for him to join the monastery. […]
SAINT CHRISTOPHER Saint Christopher a martyr, probably of the third century. Although Saint Christopher is one of the most popular saints in the East and in the West, almost nothing certain is known about his life or death. The legend says: A heathen king (in Canaan or Arabia), through the prayers of his wife to […]
Saint Clare of Assisi Feast date: Aug 11 “Go forth without fear, Christian soul, for you have a good guide for your journey. Go forth without fear, for He that created you has sanctified you, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother.” – Saint Clare, on her deathbed in 1253 Saint Clare […]
SAINT CLEMENT MARIA HOFBAUER Road To Rome| House Divided| St. Benno| Spiritual Rebirth| Closer Look| Enemy Aroused| Last Days Catholic Movement| Enemy Return| Battles| Final Journey| Called Home Born in Tasswitz, Austria, on December 26, 1751—the eve of the feast of the Apostle who Jesus loved—he was christened John. But he would become known to […]
SAINT CRONAN, ABBOT Saint Cronan was born in the territory of Ely O’Carroll and died on April 28, 640. After spending his youth in Connacht, he returned to his native district about the year 610 and founded Abbey Roscrea. The Acts of Saint Cronan abound in miracles. The most surprising is the transcribing of the […]
SAINT CRONAN, MOCHUA Saint Cronan Mochua was born in 596 and died March 30, 637. He Founded the See of Balla, which was merged into Tuam, Ireland. His acts are of a legendary character. It appears that he was educated at Bangor, under St. Comgall, and founded a monastery at Gael, among the Feara Rois […]
SAINT CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA The ‘Doctor of the Incaration’ is hailed in the Syrian and Maronite Mass as the “tower of truth and interpreter of the Word of God made flesh”. Saint Cyril of Alexandria is known to have read of the Faith adhering to orthodoxy, but read profane writers as well, this being known […]
SAINT DOMINIC Saint Dominic was born in1170 at Calaruega, Spain to Felix Guzman and Bl. Joan of Aza. He studied at the University at Palencia and was appointed canon at Osma in 1199. In 1203 he accompanied Bishop Diego de Avezedo of Osma to Languedoc where Dominic preached against the Albigensians and helped reform the […]
SAINT ELIZABETH Saint Elizabeth has the distinction of being one of the first to know about Mary’s great blessing as the Mother of God. Zachary was a priest in Jerusalem whose wife, Elizabeth Mary’s cousin was beyond child bearing age. He was told by an angel in a vision that they would have a son […]
SAINT ELIZABETH ANN SETON Eary Years| Mrs. William Seton| Italy| Conversion| Apostolate| Sorrows| Last Trial EARLY YEARS Elizabeth Bayley was born on August 28, 1774. The previous December had witnessed the dramatic Boston Tea Party, and the following September would see the decisive meeting of the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia. Her father, Richard Bayley, […]
Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity Feast date: Nov 08 St. Elizabeth of the Trinity was born Elizabeth Catez in Bourges, France, in 1880. Her father, a military captain, died when she was only seven, leaving her mother to raise Elizabeth and her sister, Marguerite. Elizabeth was a very lively girl and a gifted pianist, […]
SAINT EPHREM The primary vocation of St. Ephrem was to be a teacher. Immediately after his conversion to Christianity at the age of 18 he placed himself under the tutelage of the local bishop, St. James of Nisibis, a city in Upper Mesopotamia. St. James accepted Ephrem as a pupil into his household and gave […]
SAINT FERDINAND III In 1217 Ferdinand became King of Castile. In 1230 he succeeded to the crown of Leon. In 1219 Ferdinand married Beatrice, the daughter of Philip of Swabia, King of Germany. Ferdinand and Beatrice had six sons and one daughter. The highest aims of Ferdinand’s life were the propagation of the Faith and […]
SAINT FIACRE (Fiachra) Saint Fiacre is said to have been born in Ireland and that he sailed to France in quest of closer solitude. He arrived at Meaux and dwelled in a forest which was his own patrimony, called Breuil, in the province of Brie. There is a legend that Saint Faro, the Bishop of […]
SAINT FIDELIS Saint Fidelis was born in 1577 at Sigmaringen, a town in the principality of Hohenzollern. In 1612 he received Holy Orders and soon afterward entered the Capuchin Order at Fribourg. He changed his baptismal name Mark to Fidelis. At the request of the Congregation of Propaganda he and eight Fathers of his Order […]
SAINT FINBAR Saint Finbar was the son of an artisan and a lady of the Irish royal court. Born in Connaught, Ireland, and baptized Lochan, he was educated at Kilmacahil, Kilkenny, where the monks named him Fionnbharr (white head) because of his light hair. He is also known as Bairre and Barr. On a visit […]
SAINT FLORA Saint Flora was born in France in 1309. In 1324 she entered the Priory of Beaulieu of the Hospitaller nuns of Saint John of Jerusalem. Some of her religious sisters made sport of her and she fell into a depressed state. She never ceased to find favor with God and was granted many […]
SAINT FLORIAN Saint Florian was an officer of the Roman army who occupied a high administrative post in Noricum. Saint Florian suffered death for his Faith during the days of Diocletian. He gave himself up at Lorch to the soldiers of Aquilinus where they were rounding up the Christians. After making a bold confession he […]
SAINT FRANCES OF ROME St. Frances of Rome Saint Frances was born in Rome in 1384 to a wealthy noble family. Her father had promised her in marriage to the son of another wealthy family. She stubbornly prayed to God to prevent the marriage until her confessor pointed out, “Are you crying because you want […]
SAINT FRANCES XAVIER CABRINI Saint Frances Cabrini was born in Lombardi, Italy in 1850. At eighteen she desired to become a Nun but poor health stood in her way. She helped her parents until their death and then worked on a farm with her brothers and sisters. One day a priest asked her to teach […]
SAINT FRANCIS de SALES Saint Francis de Sales was Born in France in 1567. Francis was a patient man. His biggest concern on being ordained was that he had to have his curly gold hair cut off. Just over the mountains from where Francis lived was Switzerland, a Calvinist territory. Francis decided that he should […]
SAINT FRANCIS XAVIER Saint Francis Xavier was born on April 7, 1506 in the Castle of Xavier. He died on December 2, 1552 on the Island of Sancian near the coast of China. In 1525 Francis Xavier went to Paris where he entered the college de Sainte-Barbe. At college he met Pierre Favre and the […]
SAINT FRANCIS de SALES Saint Frederick was trained in piety and sacred learning among the clergy of the Church of Utrecht. After being ordained a priest he was charged by Bishop Ricfried with the care of instructing converts. In 825 he was chosen to succeed him as bishop of Utrecht. Saint Frederick became involved in […]
SAINT GABRIEL THE ARCHANGEL Four appearances of Gabriel are recorded: In Dan., viii, He explains the vision of the horned ram as portending the destruction of the Persian Empire by the Macedonian Alexander the Great, after whose death the kingdom will be divided up among his generals, from one of whom will spring Antiochus Epiphanes. […]
SAINT GREGORY THE GREAT Gregory’s youth was a sad one. All of his boyhood Rome was under siege by one barbarian conqueror after another. Within a period of twenty years Rome was taken and retaken six times. Roman senators and people of Rome were massacred. He entered Saint Andrew’s Monastery. After his third year at […]
SAINT HELENA Saint Helena, mother of Constantine I, was born of humble parents in the Roman province of Moesia, a land on the western shore of the Black Sea. Constantine’s father, Constantius Chlorus who had risen to the throne by way of military success was also a native of that region. According to Saint Ambrose, […]
SAINT HENRY Saint Henry, son of Henry, Duke of Bavaria, and of Gisella, daughter of Conrad, King of Burgundy, was born in 972. Saint Henry succeeded his father as Duke of Bavaria. In 1002 upon the death of his cousin, Otho III, he was elected emperor. Saint Henry was most watchful over the welfare of […]
SAINT INNOCENT I Saint Innocent I was born at Albano, Italy. On December 22, 401 he succeeded Pope Saint Anastasius I. He emphasized papal supremacy and commended the bishops of Africa for referring the decrees of their councils at Carthage and Millevis in 416 condemning Pelagianism. It was his confirmation of these decrees that caused […]
SAINT IRENAEUS Saint Irenaeus is one of the Pillars of Truth in the Church. He was born in Asia Minor in about AD 125. This time and place were still permeated with the teachings and power of the Apostles themselves, and was led by the immediate disciples of the apostles. He was well versed in […]
SAINT JAMES THE GREATER, APOSTLE Saint James, the son of Zebedee, is called the Greater, as the other James is called the Less. He is called the Greater because he was called earlier by Christ and because of his intimacy with Christ. Our Lord seems to have held this James in closer friendship than the […]
SAINT JAMES THE LESS, APOSTLE To distinguish Saint James from the other apostle of the same name, the son of Zebedee, was called the Less. He is also known by the title of James the Just. He was the son of Alpheus and Mary, the sister of the Blessed Virgin and seems to have been […]
Saint Jane Frances de Chantal Feast date: Aug 12 “In Madame de Chantal I have found the perfect woman, whom Solomon had difficulty finding in Jerusalem”. – St. Francis de Sales, her spiritual director. St. Jane Frances de Chantal was born in Dijon, France, on January 28, 1572, and died at the Visitation Convent Moulins on December 13, 1641. […]
Saint Jean Gabriel Perboyre Feast date: Sep 11 St. Jean Gabriel was born in Puech, France, on January 6th, 1802, to a pious family of eight children. Including Jean Gabriel, five of the Perboyer children became consecrated religious – three priests and two nuns. Accompanying his younger brother Louis while he was entering the seminary, Jean-Gabriel discovered […]
Saint Jean-Theophane Venard Feast date: Nov 06 On November 6, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Jean-Théophane Vénard, a French missionary to Vietnam who was martyred for the faith. Famous for having inspired St. Therese of Lisieux, who said of St. Jean-Théophane that he was someone who had lived her own image of a […]
Saint Jeanne Jugan Feast date: Aug 30 On Aug. 30, the Catholic Church celebrates Saint Jeanne Jugan, also known as Sister Mary of the Cross. During the 19th century, she founded the Little Sisters of the Poor with the goal of imitating Christ’s humility through service to elderly people in need. In his homily for […]
SAINT JEROME Saint Jerome was born Eusebius Hieronymous Sophronius about the year 342 at Stridonius, a small town at the head of the Adriatic. Jerome was baptized by Pope Liberius in 360. With his friends, Innocent, Heliodorus, and Hylas, a freed slave, he started overland for Syria. On the way they visited Athens, Bithynia, Galatia, […]
SAINT JESSICA Saint Jessica is a derivation of Joanna. She was one of the women who helped provide for Jesus and the Apostles and was one of the three women who discovered the empty tomb of Jesus on the first Easter morning. Her feast day is May 24th. rosary.team
SAINT JOACHIM FATHER OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Saint Joachim is not mentioned in the New Testament, and we must depend on apocryphal literature. Saint Joachim was a man of Galilee and the husband of Saint Anne. Saint Joachim was away from home when he had a vision that Saint Anne was to be blessed […]
SAINT JOHN THE APOSTLE The Only One Of The Twelve Not To Forsake The Savior In The Hour Of His Passion, Standing At The Foot Of The Cross. Made guardian of Our Lady by Jesus, he took her into his home. Upon hearing of the Resurrection, he was the first to reach the tomb. When he […]
SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST The principal sources of information concerning the life and ministry of St. John the Baptist are the canonical Gospels. Of these St. Luke is the most complete, giving as he does the wonderful circumstances accompanying the birth of the Precursor and items on his ministry and death. St. Matthew’s Gospel stands […]
Saint Jose Manyanet y Vives Feast date: Dec 17 St. Jose Manyanet y Vives was born on January 7, 1883 in Catalonia, Spain. At the age of five, José’s mother dedicated him to the Virgin Mary, and later entered the seminary while still a youth. He was ordained in 1859 and served as the secretary of the bishop […]
SAINT JOSEPH Watchful Guardian of The Holy Family Because you were the watchful guardian of the Holy Family, please watch over us, Christ’s chosen offspring. Like an alert father kindly keep far from us every taint of error or corruption. From your place of glory on high come to aid us in our conflict with […]
SAINT JUDE I. The Author and the Authenticity of the Epistle: (1) Jude in the Books of the New Testament; (2) Tradition as to the Genuineness and the Canonicity of the Epistle; (3) Difficulties Arising from the Text; (4) The Relation of Jude to the Second Epistle of St. Peter; (5) Vocabulary and Style; II. […]
SAINT JULIANA FALCONIERI In 1270 Saint Juliana Falconieri was born a late birth an answer to a prayer of the noble Falconieri family of Florence. Her parents, Chiarissimo and Riguirdata Falconieri, paid for the construction of the church of the Annunziata. Although her father died when she was still fairly young she was never given […]
SAINT LAZARUS Saint Lazarus is the poor man at the gate of the rich man in Christ’s parable related in Luke. (Luke 16:19-31) His name was perpetuated in the Middle Ages by such words as Lazaretto (hospital), Lazarone (a beggar in the street), and the Order of Saint Lazarus, which though a military order, had […]
SAINT LEO THE GREAT Pope Saint Leo the Great 440-461 is the first Pope who is a Doctor of the Church. Saint Leo followed after the glorious Popes: Saints Damasus, Siricius, Anastasius I, Innnocent I, Zosimus, Boniface I, Celestine I and Sixtus III, all of whom, as with one voice, had proclaimed that when they […]
SAINT LOUIS MARIE de MONTFORT Eary Years| Works| Apostle| Teachings Early Years Louis was twelve when he entered St. Thomas’s, a Jesuit college in Rennes. He eagerly devoted himself to the care of the poor and the infirm. It was here that he received his vocation to the priesthood. His abandonment of worldly attachments by […]
SAINT MACRA Virgin martyr of Reims, in France. She was tortured cruelly and martyred at Tismes, Champagne, in the persecutions conducted by Emperor Diocletian. Died 287. Feast day January 6. rosary.team
SAINT MACRINA THE YOUNGER Saint Macrina the Younger was the granddaughter of Macrina the Elder and sister of Saint Basil, Saint Gregory of Nyssa, and Saint Peter of Sebastea. She was well educated, especially in scripture. She was engaged to be married when she was twelve but when her fiance died she decided to dedicate […]
SAINT MARIA GORETTI Born October 16, 1890, in Corinaldo, a little town in Ancona, a province of Northern Italy on the Adriatic, the third of seven children of Assunta and Luigi Goretti. Luigi became a share-cropper of Count Mazzoleni at Ferriere and lived with his family in the cascina antica, the old cheese factory. However, […]
SAINT MARK Saint Mark’s mother was a prominent member of the infant Church at Jerusalem; it was to her house that Peter turned on his release from prison; the house was approached by a porch there was a slave girl to open the door and the house was a meeting place for the brethren, “many” […]
SAINT MARY MAGDALEN The Gospel of Saint Luke tells us that Saint Mary Magdalen learned that Jesus was dining at the house of Simon, a Pharisee, and without waiting for an invitation or an introduction of any kind, she burst through the guests to get to Him. Mary Magdalen, the daughter of a rich and […]
SAINT MATTHEW, APOSTLE Saint Matthew is spoken of five times in the New Testament; first in Matt., ix, 9, when called by Jesus to follow Him, and then four times in the list of the Apostles, where he is mentioned in the seventh (Luke, vi, 15, and Mark, iii, 18), and again in the eighth […]
SAINT MAXIMILIAN KOLBE Apparition| Religious Life| Militia| Marytown| Crown Bestowed Apparition Our Lady’s apparitions occurred shortly after the turn of the present century. It happened in Poland. The ten year old child who received this exceptional blessing was not exceptional himself. He was as mischievous as any other boy of his age. His name was […]
Saint Maximus Feast date: Aug 13 “To harbor no envy, no anger, no resentment against an offender is still not to have charity for him. It is possible, without any charity, to avoid rendering evil for evil. But to render, spontaneously, good for evil – such belongs to a perfect spiritual love.” – Saint Maximus. […]
SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL St. Michael is one of the principal angels; his name was the war-cry of the good angels in the battle fought in heaven. His name is recorded four times in Scripture: 1. Daniel 10:13 sqq., Gabriel says to Daniel, when he asks God to permit the Jews to return to Jerusalem: […]
SAINT NICHOLAS Saint Nicholas called of Bari, Bishop of Myra in theFourth Century, has been honored for many ages and the number of altars and churches which have been everywhere dedicated in his memory are testimonials to his holiness and of the glory which he enjoys with God. He is said to have been born […]
SAINT NINA Saint Nina was born in Cappadocia. Scholars believe she was a relative of Saint George who travelled to Iberia to convert the people to Christianity. She has also been identified as Christiana. She cured Queen Nana of a seemingly incurable disease and converted her. Nina continued to preach throughout Georgia converting many people […]
SAINT NOEL Saint Noel was born on February 2 near Mende, France. He joined the Jesuits in 1630 and by 1643 he was a missionary to the Huron Indians in France. He became assistant to Father Charles Garnier at the Indian village of Etarita in 649. He was murdered on December 8 by an apostate […]
SAINT ODILIA Saint Odilia was born in France in the seventh century. She was born blind and her father wanted to have her put to death. Because of her mother’s pleas it was agreed to give Odilia away anonymously to a peasant. At the age of twelve Odilia was placed in a convent at Baume. […]
SAINT OLGA Saint Olga was born in 879 and married in 903 to Prince Igor I or Kieve, Russia. She was a cruel and barbarous woman she scalded her husband’s murderers to death in 945 and murdered hundreds of their followers. She was baptized at Constantinople in 957. She then requested Emperor Otto I to […]
SAINT OLYMPIAS Saint Olympias was born into a wealthy noble Constantinople family. She was orphaned and was given over to the care of Theodosia by her uncle, the prefect Procopius. She married Nebridius, also a prefect, who died and left her a widow. Refusing several offers of marriage her fortune was put into a trust […]
SAINT OUEN Saint Ouen is also known as Owen and Audoenus. He was the son of Saint Authaire and was born at Sancy near Soissons, France. He was educated at Saint Medard Abbey and served at the courts of King Clotaire II and his son, Dagobert I. In 641 he was consecrated archbishop of Rouen. […]
SAINT PAUL, APOSTLE Saint Paul was born into a well-to-do Jewish family of Tarsus, the son of a Roman citizen, Saul, as we shall call him until after his conversion, was sent to Jerusalem to be trained in the famous rabbinical school headed by Gamaliel. In the year 35 Saul appears as a self-righteous young […]
SAINT PETER I. Until the Ascension of Christ II. St. Peter in Jerusalem and Palestine after the Ascension III. Missionary Journeys in the East; The Council of the Apostles IV. Activity and Death in Rome; Burial-place V. Feasts of St. Peter VI. Representations of St. Peter I. UNTIL THE ASCENSION OF CHRIST Bethsaida St. Peter’s […]
SAINT PHILIP, APOSTLE Saint Philip was of Bethsaida, in Galilee, and called by our Saviour to follow him the day after Saint Peter and Saint Andrew. He was at that time a married man and had several daughters. Philip had no sooner discovered the Messias, than he was desirous to make his friend Nathanael a […]
Saint Pius V, Pope Feast date: Apr 30 St. Pius V was born Michele Ghislieri in 1504 to poor parents of noble lineage at Bosco, near Alexandria, Lombardy on January 17, 1504. He worked as a shepherd until the age of 14 when he encountered two Dominicans who recognized his intelligence and virtue. He joined […]
Saint Pontian and Saint Hippolytus Feast date: Aug 13 St. Pontian became Pope in the year 230. Five years later, after Pope Urban I, he was exiled to the mines of the Italian island of Sardinia during a period of Christian persecution. There, he decided to resign from his papal office and died a martyr […]
SAINT QUENTIN Saint Quentin was also known as Quintinus. He was a Roman. He went to Gaul as a missionary with Saint Lucian of Beauvais and settled at Amiens in Picardy. He was so successful in preaching that he was imprisoned by prefect Rictiovarus, tortured, and then brought to Augusta Veromanduorum. He was again tortured […]
SAINT QUITERIA Saint Quiteria, virgin martyr, has a large following at Aire in Gascony where her reputed relics were preserved until they were scattered by the huguenots. Her name appears in the Roman Martyrology. She is popularly supposed to have been the daughter of a Galician prince who fled from her home because her father […]
SAINT RAPHAEL Saint Raphael is one of seven Archangels who stand before the throne of the Lord. He was sent by God to help Tobit, Tobiah and Sarah. Tobit was blind and Tobiah’s betrothed, Sarah, had seven bridegrooms perish on the night of their weddings. Raphael accompanied Tobiah into Media disguised as a man named […]
Feast date: Aug 31 Raymond became a priest due to his quiet persistence in prayer and study. He was born to a noble Spanish family in 1204. His mother died during child birth and his father had high expectations for Raymond to serve in the country’s Royal Court. However, the young Raymond felt drawn […]
SAINT RICHARD Saint Richard was the father of Saints Willibald, Winnebald, and Walburga. He was on a pilgrimage to Rome from his native Wessex, England with his two sons when he was stricken and died at Lucca, Italy. Miracles were reported at his tomb and he became greatly venerated by the citizens of Lucca who […]
SAINT RITA Born at Rocca Porena in the Diocese of Spoleto, 1386; died at the Augustinian convent of Cascia, 1456. Feast, 22 May. Represented as holding roses, or roses and figs, and sometimes with a wound in her forehead. According to the “Life” (Acta SS., May, V, 224) written at the time of her beatification […]
SAINT ROSE OF LIMA Saint Rose of Lima , a South American Saint’s whose real name was Isabel. Her mother put a wreath of flowers on her head to show off her loveliness to friends. But Rose had no desire to be admired, for her heart had been given to Jesus. She became afraid that […]
SAINT FINA (Seraphina) Saint Fina or Seraphina a young girl whose claim to be recognized as a saint lay in the perfect resignation with which she accepted bodily suffering. Poor as she was she always kept half her food to give to those who were worse off than herself. Saint Fina was attacked by a […]
SAINT SERVAN Saint Servan also known as Servanus, Serf, or Sair. He was from Ireland and received consecration as bishop from Saint Palladius. He is honored as the patron of the Orkney Islands although it is unlikely that he was ever there. He is called the Apostle of West Fife. Patron of the Orkney Islands. […]
SAINT STEPHEN One of the first deacons and the first Christian martyr; feast on 26 December. In the Acts of the Apostles the name of St. Stephen occurs for the first time on the occasion of the appointment of the first deacons (Acts, vi, 5). Dissatisfaction concerning the distribution of alms from the community’s fund […]
SAINT TERESA OF AVILA Teresa Sanchez Cepeda Davila y Ahumada, born at Avila, Old Castile, 28 March, 1515; died at Alba de Tormes, 4 Oct., 1582. The third child of Don Alonso Sanchez de Cepeda by his second wife, Doña Beatriz Davila y Ahumada, who died when the saint was in her fourteenth year, Teresa […]
SAINT THOMAS MORE Scholar| Writer| Friends| King Henry Divorce| Avoid Divorce Issue| Martyrdom A Scholar Saint Thomas More was born February 7, 1478 and died July 6, 1535 at fifty-seven. Thomas went to St. Anthony’s School in London and then was taken to serve as a page in the household of the famous Cardinal Morton, […]
SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE The Apostle| Translation of the Gospel| Frequently Asked Questions Saint Thomas the Apostle who is called Didymus, the twin, said to his fellow disciples when Jesus announced His intention of returning to Judea to visit Lazarus, “Let us also go, that we may die with him”. John 11:16 It was Saint […]
SAINT URBAN Saint Urban, Pope and Martyr, succeeded Saint Calixtus in the year 223. In the acts of Saint Cecily Saint Urban is said to have encouraged the martyrs and converted many idolaters. It appears from Fortunatus and several ancient missals that the festival of Saint Urban was celebrated in France with particular devotion in […]
SAINT UST Saint Ust, patron saint of the church of Saint Just, Cornwall, England, also called Justus. It is possible that several saints’ lives are present in the accounts of Saint Ust’s life. He was as a hermit and martyr. rosary.team
SAINT VALENTINE Saint Valentine was a martyr with a group in 305 along with Navalis, Concordius and Agricola at Ravenna, Italy. There is some question as to whether they were actually martyred in that city. Saint Peter Chrysologus wrote that Saint Apollinaris was the only person martyred at Ravenna. It is also possible that they […]
SAINT VALENTINE Saint Valentine was a holy priest in Rome. He and Saint Marius assisted the martyrs in the persecution under Claudius II. He was apprehended and because he would not renounce his faith he was beaten with clubs and beheaded on February 14, 270. Pope Julius I built a church near Ponte Mole in […]
SAINT VERONICA Saint Veronica is the woman of Jerusalem who wiped the face of Christ with a veil while he was on the way to Calvary. The cloth was imprinted with the image of Christ’s face. There is no historical evidence or scriptural reference to this event but the legend of Veronica became one of […]
SAINT VINCENT de PAUL Saint Vincent was born in 1576 at Pouy, southwest France to Jean de Paul and Bertrande de Moras. His father sent him to be educated by the Cordelier Brothers at Dax. Saint Vincent continued his education at the Spanish University of Saragossa, and then returned to France to attend the University […]
SAINT VINTILA Saint Vintila was a Benedictine monk and hermit. He was a recluse who had a hermitage in Pugino, Galicia, Spain. Saint Vintila drew many disciples and pilgrims because of his great holiness and austere ways. rosary.team
SAINT WALDEBERT Saint Waldebert, Benedictine abbot, sometimes is listed as Walbert and Gaubert. He was born a Frankish nobleman and gave up the aristocratic and military life to enter the monastery of Luxeuil, France. After the death of Abbot Saint Eustace he was elected abbot in 628. He was head of the monastery for some […]
SAINT WIRO Saint Wiro, a holy Irish bishop, traveled to Rome with Saint Plechelm and the deacon Otger. He afterwards preached the faith of Christ to the pagans in the Low Countries. Prince Pepin of Herstal was a great admirer of his sanctity and bestowed on him a lonely wood called the Mount of Saint […]
SAINT WISDOM Saint Wisdom, a Roman widow, and her three daughters are said to have suffered for the Faith under the Emperor Hadrian. Saint Faith, age 12, was scourged, thrown into boiling pitch, taken out alive, and beheaded. Saint Hope, age 10, and Saint Charity, age 9, being unhurt in a furnace, were also beheaded. […]
SAINT YMAR Saint Ymar, Benedictine martyr of England. Saint Ymar was a monk in Reculver Abbey Kent, England. He was put to death by marauding Danes. Feastday is November 12. rosary.team
SAINT ZACHARY FATHER OF JOHN THE BAPTIST Saint Zachary, whose wife is Saint Elizabeth, was of the tribe of Abia and a member of the priestly class. It was customary for the priests whose week it was to serve in the temple to cast lots each day for the performance of the various rituals. Saint […]
SAINT ZITA Saint Zita’s older sister became a Cistercian nun and her uncle Graziano was a hermit whom the local people regarded as a saint. At the age of twelve Saint Zita became a housekeeper in the house of a rich weaver in Lucca, Italy and stayed with that family for the last forty-eight years […]
SAINTS ABRAHAMITES Monks and martyrs of the monastery founded by Abraham in Constantinople, Turkey. During the iconoclastic dispute, these monks refused to demolish the sacred images of their monastery. Emperor Theophilus had them arrested and executed. Died: 835 Feastday: July 8. rosary.team
SAINT ABRAN Hermit also called Gibrian. From Ireland, Abran, the eldest of five brothers and three sisters, sailed to Brittany with his siblings. There all of them continued their hermitages and greatly influenced the people of the area. Abran and his brothers and sisters were all declared saints. Died: 515 Feastday: May 8. rosary.team
Servant of God Francis Garces and Companions Feast date: Jul 17 A contemporary of the American Revolution and of Blessed Junipero Serra, Francisco Garcés was born in 1738 in Spain, where he joined the Franciscans. After ordination in 1763, he was sent to Mexico. Five years later he was assigned to San Xavier del Bac […]
Seven Founders of the Order of Servites Feast date: Feb 17 These seven men were born in Florence, Italy and led lives as hermits on Monte Senario. They had a special devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. On Friday, April 13, 1240, the hermits received a vision of Our Lady. She held in her hand a black […]
Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Feast date: Jan 01 The title “Mother of God” goes back to the third or fourth century, but the Greek term Theotokos (“The God-bearer”) was officially consecrated as Catholic doctrine at the Council of Ephesus in 431, thus becoming the first Marian dogma. At the end of the Council […]
Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord Feast date: Mar 25 The Solemnity of the Annunciation celebrates the coming of the Angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary to announce to her the special mission God had chosen for her in being the mother of His only son. We are continually reminded of the importance of […]
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast date: Dec 08 “The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain […]
Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Feast date: Jun 03 The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ is also known as the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, which translates from Latin to “Body of Christ.” This feast originated in France in the midthirteenth century and was extended to […]
St. Abraham Kidunaia Feast date: Oct 29 St. Abraham Kidunaia was born to a wealthy family during the third century. After receiving an excellent education, Abraham was encouraged to get married. He followed the wishes of his parents, but after the wedding ceremony, he told his bride his desire to remain a virgin and dedicate […]
St. Adalbert of Prague Feast date: Apr 23 Originally given the name of Wojtech, the boy who would be known as St. Adalbert was born to a family of nobility in the Central European region of Bohemia during the mid-900s. When Wojtech became seriously ill during his childhood, his parents resolved that they would offer […]
St. Adelaide Feast date: Dec 16 Born in 931 in Burgundy, France as the daughter of King Rudolph II of Burgundy, Adelaide was promised in marriage when she was only two years old, to a man named Lothaire, the son and heir of his enemy, Hugh of Provence. Lothaire was killed when still young, and Adelaide was […]
St. Adrian of Canterbury Feast date: Jan 09 The famous Abbot of St. Augustine’s in Canterbury, was likely born in Libya Cyrenaica, North Africa. Adrian decided to become a monk early in life and eventually abbot of Nerida, not far from Naples. Adrian became a valuable advisor to the pontiff and, three years later, was offered the […]
St. Agnes Feast date: Jan 21 On Jan. 21, the Roman Catholic Church honors the virgin and martyr St. Agnes, who suffered death for her consecration to Christ. Although the details of Agnes’ life are mostly unknown, the story of her martyrdom has been passed on with reverence since the fourth century. On the feast […]
St. Agnes of Montepulciano Feast date: Apr 20 St. Agnes of Montepulciano was born in 13th-century Tuscany. At the age of six, Agnes began trying to convince her parents to allow her to join a convent. She was finally admitted to the Dominican convent at Montepulciano at age nine despite it generally being against Church law […]
St. Agnes of Prague Feast date: Mar 02 St. Agnes was born in Prague in the year 1200, and probably died in the year 1281. She was the daughter of Ottocar, King of Bohemia and Constance of Hungary, who was a relative of St. Elizabeth. At an early age she was sent to the monastery of Treinitz, where […]
St. Alban Feast date: Jun 20 St. Alban was the first Christian martyr in Britain during the early 4th century. He is the patron saint of converts and torture victims. Although he was not a man of faith, St. Alban was very hospitable and compassionate. As a soldier, he sheltered a persecuted priest, Amphibalus, during […]
St. Albert Chmielowski Feast date: Jun 17 Founder of the Albertine Brothers and Sisters, and one of the saints who inspired the vocation of the young Karol Wojtyla, the future Pope John Paul II was born on August 20, 1845 in (near Kraków) as Adam Hilary Bernard Chmielowski. Born into a wealthy and aristocratic family, […]
St. Albert the Great Feast date: Nov 15 St. Albert the Great is a Doctor of the Church and the patron saint of scientists. The native German joined the newly formed Order of Preachers (Dominicans) in the early 13th century. He earned a doctorate from the University of Paris and taught theology there and in […]
St. Alexander Feast date: Feb 26 St. Alexander succeeded St. Achillas as bishop of Alexandria in 313. Alexander was a champion of orthodox Catholic teaching. The majority of his ministry was dedicated to fighting against the Arian heresy. Arius, a priest of Alexandria, claimed Jesus was not truly God and that there was a time […]
St. Alonso Rodriguez Feast date: Oct 30 On October 30, the Catholic Church honors a man whose humble occupation gave the world only glimpses of his extraordinary holiness. During his lifetime, Brother Alonso Rodriguez never became a priest, published a book, or advanced professionally. But writings discovered after his death revealed a true mystic, who […]
St. Amalberga Feast date: Jul 10 St. Amalberga, otherwise Amelia, was born at Brabantrelated, and was in some way related to Pepin of Landen. Whether she was a sister or niece, the Bollandists are not sure. She was married to Witger and became the mother of three saints: Gudila, Reinelda, and Emembertus. The Norman chroniclers speak […]
St. Ambrose Feast date: Dec 07 Today the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of St. Ambrose, the brilliant Bishop of Milan who influenced St. Augustine’s conversion and was named a Doctor of the Church. Like Augustine himself, the older Ambrose, born around 340, was a highly educated man who sought to harmonize Greek and Roman […]
St. Anastasius of Sinai Feast date: Apr 20 On April 20, Eastern Catholics of the Byzantine tradition honor Saint Anastasius of Sinai, a seventh-century monk and priest known for his scriptural commentaries and defenses of Church teaching. The Roman Catholic Church has traditionally celebrated St. Anastasius on the following day, April 21, though this memorial […]
St. Andrew Bobola Feast date: May 16 Andrew Bobola is a Polish-born martyr. He was born in Sandormir, Poland, in 1591 to a noble family. He was ordained a Jesuit in 1622 and three years later became a parish priest in Vilna, Lithuania, the town in which he had studied. He also served as superior […]
St. Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions Feast date: Nov 24 During his papacy, Pope John Paul II canonized a group of 117 martyrs who died for the Roman Catholic Faith in Vietnam during the nineteenth century. The group was made up of ninety-six Vietnamese, eleven Spaniards, and ten French. Eight of the group were bishops, fifty […]
St. Andrew of Crete Feast date: Jul 04 Celebrated by Eastern Catholics of the Byzantine tradition on July 4, Saint Andrew of Crete was a seventh-and eighth-century monk, bishop, and hymn-writer. Among Eastern Christians he is best known as the author of the “Great Canon,” a lengthy prayer service traditionally offered as a penitential practice […]
St. Andrew, Apostle Feast date: Nov 30 On Nov. 30, Catholics worldwide celebrate the feast of St. Andrew, apostle and martyr. A fisherman from Bethsaida and brother of Simon Peter, St. Andrew is said to have spread Christianity in Russia and Asia minor after Pentecost in the first century. He was crucified by the Romans in […]
St. Angela of the Cross Feast date: Mar 02 St. Angela of the Cross is the Foundress of the Institute of the Sisters of the Company of the Cross. Born on January 30, 1846 in Seville, Spain, and given the baptismal name “Maria of the Angels” Guerrero Gonzalez, the future Saint was affectionately known as […]
St. Anthony Claret Feast date: Oct 24 Anthony Claret was born in Spain in 1807 and like his father, he was a weaver by trade. In his spare time, he studied Latin, and at the age of 22, he entered the seminary, and was ordained in 1835. He preached and worked in the missions for 10 […]
St. Anthony Mary Gianelli Feast date: Jun 07 Anthony grew up in a poor but pious family in a small farming village in Lombardy, Italy. The owner of his family farm paid for Anthony’s seminary education because he was such a promising student. He was very young for ordination and required a special dispensation, however he […]
St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria Feast date: Jul 05 On July 5, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Anthony Mary Zaccaria. A renowned preacher and promoter of Eucharistic adoration, he founded the order of priests now known as the Barnabites. In 2001, the future Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, wrote the preface for a book on […]
St. Anthony of Egypt Feast date: Jan 17 On his Jan. 17 feast day, both Eastern and Western Catholics celebrate the life and legacy of St. Anthony of Egypt, the founder of Christian monasticism whose radical approach to discipleship permanently impacted the Church. In Egypt’s Coptic Catholic and Orthodox Churches, which have a special devotion […]
St. Anysius Feast date: Dec 30 Saint Anysius was a Martyr of Greece. She was a wealthy woman of Salonika, in Thessaly, who used her personal funds to aid the poor. A soldier accosted her in the street and tried to drag her to a pagan sacrifice. Anysius resisted and was killed when the soldier […]
St. Apollinaris Feast date: Jan 08 St. Apollinaris was one of the first great martyrs of the church. He was made Bishop of Ravenna by St. Peter. The miracles he conducted in Ravenna soon attracted official attention, for they and his preaching won many converts to the faith. However, at the same time, his words […]
St. Apollonia of Alexandria Feast date: Feb 09 St. Apollonia was a holy virgin who suffered martyrdom in Alexandria during a local uprising against the Christians in the early 3rd century. During festivities commemorating the founding of the Roman Empire, a mob began attacking Christians. The great Dionysius, then Bishop of Alexandria (247-265), related the […]
St. Arnulf of Metz Feast date: Jul 01 A statesman and bishop under the Merovingians, St. Arnulf was born in 580 and died in 640. His parents belonged to a distinguished Frankish family, and lived in Austrasia in the eastern section of the kingdom founded by Clovis. In the school where Arnulf was placed as a boy, he excelled through his talent and […]
St. Arsenius Feast date: Jul 19 St. Arsenius, an Anchorite, was born in 354 at Rome and died in 450 at Troe, in Egypt. Theodosius the Great, having requested the Emperor Gratian and Pope Damasus to find him in the West a tutor for his son Arcadius, decided on Arsenius, a man well read in Greek literature, a member […]
St. Athanasius, doctor of the Church Feast date: May 02 Catholics honor St. Athanasius on May 2. The fourth century bishop is known as “the father of orthodoxy” for his absolute dedication to the doctrine of Christ’s divinity. St. Athanasius was born to Christian parents living in the Egyptian city of Alexandria in 296. His […]
St. Augustine Feast date: Aug 28 Today, August 28, the Church honors St. Augustine. St. Augustine was born at the town of Thagaste (now Souk-Ahras in modern day Algeria) on November 13, 354 and grew to become one the most significant and influential thinkers in the history of the Catholic Church. His teachings were the foundation […]
St. Augustine of Canterbury Feast date: May 27 An Italian Benedictine monk who became the “Apostle of the English,” Saint Augustine of Canterbury is honored by the Catholic Church on May 27. Under the direction of Pope Saint Gregory the Great, Augustine founded the famous See of Canterbury and preached the Catholic faith to the […]
St. Aurea Feast date: Mar 11 St. Aurea was born around the year 1042 in the village of Villavelayo, Spain. As a youth, Aurea studied the Scriptures and the lives of the early martyrs of the Church. Her favorite saints to meditate upon and imitate were Agatha, Eulalia and Cecilia. As a young woman, Aurea […]
St. Barnabas, apostle Feast date: Jun 11 Catholics celebrate the memory of St. Barnabas on June 11. The apostle and missionary was among Christ’s earliest followers and was responsible for welcoming St. Paul into the Church. Though not one of the 12 apostles chosen by the Lord, Jesus, he is traditionally regarded as one of […]
St. Bernadette Soubirous of Lourdes Feast date: Apr 16 St. Bernadette Soubirous is the renowned visionary of Lourdes. She was born into a poor family in Lourdes, France, in 1844 and was baptized with the name Mary Bernard. Our Lady first appeared to the 14-year-old Bernadette on Feb. 11, 1858, in a cave on the banks of the […]
St. Bernard de Clairvaux Feast date: Aug 20 On August 20 the Church celebrates the feast day of St. Bernard of Clairvaux, a Doctor of the Church thanks to his writings and sermons which greatly influenced Europe during the 12th century, and his numerous efforts which helped to avoid a schism in the Church in 1130. […]
St. Bernard of Menthon Feast date: May 28 The Church remembers St. Bernard of Manthon on May 28. He was born in 923, probably in the castle Menthon near Annecy, in Savoy, and died at Novara, 1008. He was a descendant from a rich, noble family and received a thorough education. He refused to enter […]
St. Bernardine of Siena Feast date: May 20 The Catholic Church honors St. Bernardine of Siena on May 20. A Franciscan friar and preacher, St. Bernardine is known as “the Apostle of Italy” for his efforts to revive the country’s Catholic faith during the 15th century. Bernardine Albizeschi was born to upper-class parents in the […]
St. Bernward Feast date: Nov 20 Saint Bernward served as the thirteenth Bishop of Hildesheim, Germany during the middle of the tenth century. His grandfather was Athelbero, Count Palatine of Saxony. After having lost his parents, Bernward was sent to live with his uncle Volkmar, who was the Bishop of Utrecht. His uncle enlisted the assistance of […]
Feast date: Oct 20 Anna Francesca Boscardin was born October 6, 1888 in Brendola, Italy. She lived a very difficult childhood in a poor peasant family with a violently abusive alcoholic father. She had very little education, and worked as a house servant as a girl and was considered not to be very intelligent. Her family […]
St. Bibiana Feast date: Dec 02 The earliest mention in authentic historical authority of St. Bibiana, a Roman female martyr, occurs in the “Liber Pontificalis” where in the biography of Pope Simplicius (468-483) it is stated that this pope “consecrated a basilica of the holy martyr Bibiana, which contained her body”. This basilica still exists […]
St. Blaise Feast date: Feb 03 Blaise was a hard-working bishop dedicated to encouraging the spiritual and physical health of his people in Sebastea, Armenia. Although the Edict of Toleration which granted freedom of worship in the Roman empire had been signed five years prior, religious persecution still raged in the country. According to a legend, […]
St. Bridget of Sweden Feast date: Jul 23 Today, July 23, the Church celebrates the feast day of St. Bridget of Sweden. Bridget received visions of Christ’s suffering many times throughout her life, and went on to found the order of the Most Holy Savior. Daughter of Birger Persson, the governor and provincial judge of Uppland, […]
St. Brigid of Ireland Feast date: Feb 01 On Feb. 1 Catholics in Ireland and elsewhere will honor Saint Brigid of Kildare, a monastic foundress who is – together with Saint Patrick and Saint Columcille – one of the country’s three patron saints. St. Brigid directly influenced several other future saints of Ireland, and her […]
St. Bruno, founder Feast date: Oct 06 On Oct. 6, the Catholic Church commemorates Saint Bruno of Cologne, founder of the Carthusian order of monks who remain notable for their strictly traditional and austere rule of contemplative life. Born in 1030, Bruno is said to have belonged to a prominent family in the city of […]
St. Cajetan Feast date: Aug 07 Saint Cajetan was one of the great reformers of the Church during the period of the Reformation, remaining loyal to the Church regardless of the corruptions and excesses that led many others to betray Her. He was born inOctober 1480 into a noble family, and received a rigorous education guided by his mother, […]
St. Callistus I Feast date: Oct 14 Pope Callistus I is celebrated in churches throughout the world as a saint and martyr on October 14. The saint caused a major controversy, including a schism that lasted almost two decades, by choosing to emphasize God’s mercy in his ministry. However, the early Pope’s model of leadership […]
St. Canutus, King of Denmark Feast date: Jan 19 Saint Canutus, King of Denmark, succeeded his elder brother Harold on the throne of Denmark in the year 1080. He began his reign by a successful war against the enemies of the state, and by planting the faith in the conquered provinces. Amid the glory of […]
St. Casimir of Poland Feast date: Mar 04 On March 4, the Catholic Church honors Saint Casimir Jagiellon, a prince whose life of service to God has made him a patron saint of Poland, Lithuania, and young people. In 1984, Pope John Paul II addressed Lithuanian pilgrims commemorating the 500th anniversary of the prince’s death. […]
St. Catherine de Ricci Feast date: Feb 13 The Ricci are an ancient family in Tuscany. Catherine was born at Florence in 1522, and called at her baptism Alexandrina, but she took the name of Catherine at her religious profession. Having lost her mother in her infancy, her father placed her in the Convent of […]
St. Catherine of Alexandria Feast date: Nov 25 Catholics and other Christians around the world celebrate today, Nov. 25, the memorial of St. Catherine of Alexandria, a revered martyr of the fourth century. St. Catherine was the subject of great interest and devotion among later medieval Christians. Devotees relished tales of her rejection of marriage, […]
St. Catherine of Sweden Feast date: Mar 24 St. Catherine was born near the beginning of the fourteenth century to parents Ulfo and St. Bridget of Sweden. At the age of seven, Catherine was sent to the Abbey at Risburgh by her parents and placed under the care of the abbess to receive an education […]
St. Cecilia Feast date: Nov 22 St. Cecilia’s family was one of the principle families of Rome. According to the cultural custom of the time, Cecilia’s family betrothed her to a pagan nobleman named Valerian despite St. Cecelia’s consecration to God. On their wedding night, Cecilia told Valerian that she had sworn to remain a […]
St. Chaeromon Feast date: Dec 22 Not much is known about the life of St. Chaeromon except that he was a bishop of Nilopolis in Egypt who was already advanced in age when Emperor Trajanus Decius began the intense persecution of Christians. Chaeromon and his companions fled to Arabia, and are believed to have been […]
St. Charbel Makhlouf Feast date: Jul 24 On July 24, the Catholic Church celebrates the life of St. Charbel Makhlouf, a Maronite Catholic priest, monk, and hermit who is known for working miracles both during his life and after his death. On the occasion of his beatification in 1965, the Eastern Catholic hermit was described […]
St. Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs of Uganda Feast date: Jun 03 St. Charles and many other martyrs for the faith died between November 15, 1885 – January 27, 1887 in Namugongo, Uganda. St. Charles and his companions were beatified in 1920 and canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1964. In 1879 Catholicism began spreading in […]
St. Charles of Sezze Feast date: Jan 18 Saint Charles was born John Charles Marchioni in Sezze, Italy on October 19, 1613. His family was extremely pious. They lived in a rural area and as a child Saint Charles worked as a shepherd. Due to his lack of education, it is said he learned only […]
St. Christopher Magallanes and Companions Feast date: May 21 “Long live Christ the King and the Virgin of Guadalupe!” This was the slogan of the “Cristero” uprising in the 1920’s against the anti-Catholic government of Mexico which had instituted and enforced laws against the Church in an absurd attempt to eradicate the Catholic faith in […]
St. Claude de la Colombière Feast date: Feb 15 On Feb. 15 the Catholic Church honors Saint Claude de la Colombiere, the 17th century French Jesuit who authenticated and wrote about Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque’s visions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. When he canonized St. Claude in 1992, Blessed John Paul II upheld him […]
St. Clement of Alexandria Feast date: Dec 04 Dec. 4 was once the traditional feast day of an early Christian theological author whose legacy is controversial, but who is cited as a saint in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and has been described as such in several addresses of Pope Benedict XVI. The writer […]
St. Cloud Feast date: Sep 07 On Sept. 7, the Catholic Church honors the memory of Saint Clodoald, popularly known as Saint Cloud, who escaped from violent political intrigue to pursue holiness as a monk and priest. Born in 522, Clodoald was the grandson of the Frankish King Clovis I, whose conversion to orthodox Christianity […]
St. Colette Feast date: Mar 06 St. Colette was the founder of the Colettine Poor Clares (Clarisses) Colette was born January 13, 1381 as the daughter of a carpenter named DeBoilet at Corby Abbey in Picardy, France. Orphaned at seventeen, she distributed her inheritance to the poor. She became a Franciscan tertiary, and lived at Corby […]
St. Columba of Iona Feast date: Jun 09 On June 9, the Catholic Church commemorates the sixth-century Irish monk and missionary Saint Columba of Iona, also known as St. Columcille. One of Ireland’s three patron saints (together with Saint Patrick and Saint Brigid), he is also sometimes called the “Apostle of the Picts” for his […]
St. Columbanus Feast date: Nov 23 An originator of Ireland’s unique monastic tradition, who went on to serve as a missionary to continental Europe during the early Middle Ages, the abbot Saint Columbanus – also known as St. Columban – is honored by the Catholic Church on Nov. 23. Despite their similar names and biographies, […]
St. Conrad of Piacenza Feast date: Feb 19 Conrad was born into a noble family in northern Italy. He married the daughter of a nobleman, Euphrosyne. One day, while he was hunting, Conrad ordered his attendants to make a fire. The wind carried the flames, which set fire to nearby fields, forests, towns and villages. Upon […]
St. Cornelius, Pope, Martyr and St. Cyprian, Bishop, Martyr Feast date: Sep 16 Saint Cornelius was elected Pope in 251 during the persecutions of the Emperor Decius. His first challenge, besides the ever present threat of the Roman authorities, was to bring an end to the schism brought on by his rival, the first anti-pope […]
St. Crispin and St. Crispinian Feast date: Oct 25 Sts. Crispin and Crispinian were brothers. Together, they evangelized Gaul in the middle of the third century. Working from Soissons, they preached the streets by day and made shoes by night. Their charity, piety, and contempt of material things impressed the locals and many were converted […]
St. Cyril of Alexandria Feast date: Jun 27 On June 27, Roman Catholics honor St. Cyril of Alexandria. An Egyptian bishop and theologian, he is best known for his role in the Council of Ephesus, where the Church confirmed that Christ is both God and man in one person. The Eastern churches celebrate St. Cyril […]
St. Cyril of Jerusalem Feast date: Mar 18 On March 18, the Roman Catholic Church honors St. Cyril of Jerusalem, a fourth-century bishop and Doctor of the Church whose writings are still regarded as masterful expressions of Christian faith. St. Cyril is also remembered for his exhaustive Biblical knowledge, and his endurance in the face […]
St. Damien of Moloka'i Feast date: May 10 The Catholic Church remembers St. Damien of Molokai on May 10. The Belgian priest sacrificed his life and health to become a spiritual father to the victims of leprosy quarantined on a Hawaiian island. Joseph de Veuser, who later took the name Damien in religious life, was […]
St. Denis Feast date: Oct 09 Saint Denis was a missionary and the first bishop of Paris. He was killed for his Christian faith by pagans on what is known as the “Montmartre” – the mount of martyrs – in 258, along with Eleutherius and Rusticus, a priest and a deacon. He is the patron saint of France. […]
Feast date: Mar 25 St Dismas is the man known as the “Good Thief” who was crucified with Christ alongside another criminal on Calvary. He is described in Luke’s Gospel (29: 39-43) as repenting from his sins and asks Jesus to “remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Jesus replied to him, “Amen, I […]
St. Dominic of Silos Feast date: Dec 20 Saint Dominic was born in 1000 in Cañas, Navarre, Spain. He was born a peasant, and as a youth worked as a shepherd until he entered the Benedictine monastery in Navarre. When Dominic refused to hand over the monastery lands at the King of Navarre’s demands, he was forced […]
St. Edmund Campion Feast date: Dec 01 Edmund Campion was born in London on January 25, 1540. He was raised as a Catholic, and had such a powerful and flamboyant intellect that at the age of only 17, he was made a junior fellow at Saint John’s College of Oxford University. On visiting the university, Queen […]
St. Edward the Confessor Feast date: Oct 13 St. Edward was born in 1003 as the son of the Duke of Normandy and nephew of King Edmund Ironside of England. He grew up in exile in Normandy from the age of 10 when the Danes gained control of England, and the early experience of loss, coupled with […]
Feast date: Dec 01 St. Eligius was born in Chaptelat, near Limoges, France around 590 A.D. to Roman parents. At a young age, his father recognized that his son had an unusual talent and sent him to the famous goldsmith, Abbo, who was the master of the mint at Limoges. Later on, Eligius went on […]
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Feast date: Jan 04 Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton was the foundress and first superior of the Sisters of Charity in the United States. She was born to Episcopalian parents into New York City high society on August 28, 1774. Her father, Dr. Richard Bayley was the first professor of anatomy at […]
St. Elizabeth of Portugal Feast date: Jul 04 On July 4, the Catholic Church celebrates St. Elizabeth of Portugal, a queen who served the poor and helped her country avoid war during the 13th and 14th centuries. Elizabeth of Portugal was named for her great-aunt, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, who was canonized in 1235. Their […]
St. Elizabeth of Schonau Feast date: Jul 18 St. Elizabeth was a Benedictine visionary, who had the gift of prophecy. She also suffered the assaults of demonic forces. Elizabeth was born in Bonn, Germany, in 1126. She was raised and educated in a Benedictine monastery near her birthplace from the age of 12. Elizabeth came […]
St. Emily de Rodat Feast date: Sep 19 Emily was born in 1787 at Rodez, France. She was educated at Villefranche, became a teacher at the age of 18 and, realizing that many of the children of the poor were not going to school because they could not afford to, she opened a school for […]
Feast date: Aug 05 St. Emygdius lived during the second century. He was consecrated as bishop by Pope St. Marcellus, and sent forth to preach the Gospel. He received the crown of martyrdom for the confession of Christ under the persecution of Emperor Diocletian. Emygdius was a very successful missionary to Trier, Germany. However, when he began […]
St. Enda Feast date: Mar 21 On March 21, four days after the feast day of Ireland’s patron Saint Patrick, the Catholic Church honors Saint Enda of Aran, a warrior-turned-monk considered to be one of the founders of Irish monasticism. Born during the fifth century, Enda inherited control of a large territory in present-day Northern […]
St. Engelbert of Cologne Feast date: Nov 07 St. Engelbert, was born in Berg around the year 1185 to Engelbert, Count of Berg and Margaret, daughter of the Count of Gelderland. He studied at the cathedral school of Cologne and, while still a boy, was made provost of the churches of St. George and St. Severin […]
St. Ephrem Feast date: Jun 09 On June 9, the Roman Catholic Church honors Saint Ephrem of Syria, a deacon, hermit, and Doctor of the Church who made important contributions to the spirituality and theology of the Christian East during the fourth century. Eastern Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christian celebrate his feast on January 28. […]
St. Epiphanius of Salamis Feast date: May 12 On May 12 the Catholic Church honors Saint Epiphanius of Salamis, an early monk, bishop and Church Father known for his extensive learning and defense of Catholic teachings in the fourth century. During a 2007 visit with the Orthodox Archbishop of Cyprus, Pope Benedict XVI praised Epiphanius […]
Feast date: Jun 23 St. Etheldreda, commonly known as Audry, was Queen of Northumbria. She was born at around 630, and while still very young she was given in marriage by her father, Anna, King of East Anglia, to a subordinate prince, who gave her a piece of land locally known as the Isle of […]
St. Eulalia of Mérida Feast date: Dec 10 St. Eulalia descended from one of the most prominent families in Spain in 290 AD. She was educated in the Christian religion and was taught the sentiments of perfect piety. From her infancy she distinguished herself by an admirable sweetness of temper, modesty and devotion. She showed a great love […]
Feast date: May 23 St. Euphrosyne was born in Polacak, Belorussia, in 1110, and died 1173. Pradslava, the only East Slav virgin saint, was the granddaughter of Prince Polacak Usiaslau, from whom she inherited a strong will and a determined spirit. As proof of this and of her determination to devote her life to God, she refused […]
St. Evaristus, Pope Feast date: Oct 26 St. Evaristus was the son of a Greek Jew, originally from Bethlehem, and was the sixth Pope of the Catholic Church. He is traditionally considered a martyr, but there is no documentation of the event. He is buried in the Vatican, near Saint Peter. Saint Evaristus succeeded Saint Anacletus as pope. […]
St. Evodius of Antioch Feast date: May 06 Evodius was one of the 72 disciples of Christ, and Catholic tradition has always held that he was the first bishop of Antioch after St. Peter. However, we are not sure in what year he assumed the position. As bishop of Antioch, he was the first to coin […]
St. Faustina, Virgin Feast date: Oct 05 On October 5, the church celebrates the Memorial of St. Mary Faustina Kowalska, virgin. St. Faustina was born Helena Kowalska on August 25, 1905 to a poor but devout Polish family in 1905. At the age of 20, with very little education, and having been rejected from several […]
St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen Feast date: Apr 24 A former lawyer who left his profession to become a Capuchin Franciscan priest, Saint Fidelis of Sigmaringen has his liturgical memorial on April 24. Fidelis’ life bridged the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, a time of religious conflict in Western Europe. He died at the hands of a […]
Feast date: Oct 11 St. Firminus was born circa 480 in Narbonne, France on October 11. He was born to the senator and aristocrat Tonnatius Ferreolus, otherwise known as Tonance Ferréol the Second, and his wife Industria. St. Firminus was well-educated by his 80-year-old uncle, Roricius (Ruricius or Rorice), who was a patrician. His uncle […]
St. Flavian Feast date: Feb 18 On Feb. 18, the Roman Catholic Church remembers Patriarch Saint Flavian of Constantinople, who is honored on the same date by Eastern Catholics of the Byzantine tradition and by Eastern Orthodox Christians. Known to Eastern Christians as “St. Flavian the Confessor,” the patriarch endured condemnation and severe beatings during […]
St. Foillan Feast date: Oct 31 St. Foillan was born in 7th-century Ireland and was the brother of St. Fursey and St. Ultan. He joined them in England, where they were working as missionaries, and had established a monastery near Yarmouth. During a war between the Mercians and Anglo-Saxons, c.650, the monastery was destroyed and many of […]
St. Frances Cabrini Feast date: Nov 13 On November 13, the universal Church honors St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, an Italian missionary who spent much of her life working with Italian immigrants in the United States. Mother Cabrini, who had a deathly fear of water and drowning, crossed the Atlantic Ocean more than 30 times in […]
St. Frances of Rome Feast date: Mar 09 St. Frances was born into a noble Roman family in the year 1384. From an early age, Frances felt drawn to the religious life, but at the age of thirteen her parents forced her into marriage. As Frances became acquainted with her in-laws she found that the […]
St. Francesco Antonio Fasani Feast date: Nov 27 St. Francesco (Francis) Antonio Fasani was born as Giovanneillo in Lucera, Italy in 1681, the son of Giuseppe Fasani and Isabella Della Monaca. He entered the Conventual Franciscans in 1695 and took the names of St. Francis and St. Anthony. He spent much of his time studying, […]
St. Francis Borgia Feast date: Oct 10 Francis Borgia was born October 28, 1510 in Gandia, Valencia, Spain as the son of the Duke of Gandia, the great grandson, from his father’s side, of Pope Alexander VI, the notorious Borgia pope, and from his mother’s side, the great grandson of King Ferdinand of Aragon.Francis’ grandmother joined her […]
St. Francis Caracciolo Feast date: Jun 04 “Zeal for Thy house has consumed me!” Born in Villa Santa Maria, Italy on October 13, 1563, Francis Caracciolo was given the name Ascanio at his baptism. His mother was a relative of St. Thomas Aquinas. He lived a virtuous life as a youth and seemed inclined towards […]
St. Francis of Paola Feast date: Apr 02 Catholics will remember St. Francis of Paola on April 2. The saint founded a religious order at a young age and sought to revive the practices of the earliest monks during a period of corruption in the Church. Francis was born in the Southern Italian region of […]
St. Frumentius of Ethiopia Feast date: Oct 27 St. Frumentius helped in a great capacity to bring Christianity to Ethiopia. He was born in Lebanon, and was shipwrecked in East Africa while voyaging on the Red Sea. Only he and his brother, Aedeius, survived. They were taken to the king at Axum, Ethiopia, and became members […]
St. Fulbert Feast date: Apr 10 St. Fulbert was a scholar and philosopher, and was also the bishop of Chartres, France. He spent much of his time as bishop rigorously defending monasticism and orthodoxy. He was born in Italy in the 10th century and studied at Rheims, France, under the celebrated philosopher Gerbert, who later became Pope […]
St. Gaspar Bertoni Feast date: Jun 12 St. Gasper was born in Verona, Italy in 1777. He was baptized the day after. It is known that he was from an affluent family, and that his family’s faith-life was also quite notable. Gasper was an only child as his baby sister passed away. He had the […]
St. Gatian of Tours Feast date: Dec 18 Not much is known about the life of Saint Gatian, but we do know that he was the first bishop of Tours in France, and is said to be a disciple of Saint Denis of Paris. Arriving in Gaul, a pagan land, completely untouched by the Good News, […]
Feast date: Dec 05 St. Gerald was an English monk, and the bishop of Mayo. The date of his birth is unknown, however we do know that after the Synod of Whitby in 664, he followed St. Colman to Ireland, and settled in Innisboffin, in 668. After some time, dissensions arose between the Irish and […]
St. Germaine Cousin Feast date: Jun 15 June 15 is the feast day of St. Germaine Cousin, a simple and pious young girl who lived in Pibrac, France in the late 1500s. Germaine was born in 1579 to poor parents. Her father was a farmer, and her mother died when she was still an infant. […]
St. Gildas the Wise Feast date: Jan 29 St. Gildas was probably born around 517 in the North of England or Wales. His father’s name was Cau (or Nau) and, came from noble lineage, and he most likely had several brothers and sisters. There is writing which suggests that one of his brothers, Cuil (or Hueil), was […]
St. Godfrey of Amiens Feast date: Nov 08 St. Godfrey was the son of Frodon, a prominent citizen in a small town. He was raised from the age of 5 in the Benedictine abbey of Mont-Saint-Quentin where his godfather Godefroid was abbot. He immediately donned a Benedictine habit and lived as a tiny monk, and took his vows when he […]
St. Gregory of Nyssa Feast date: Jan 10 The son of two saints, Basil and Emmilia, young Gregory was raised by his older brother, St. Basil the Great, and his sister, Macrina, in modern-day Turkey. Gregory’s success in his studies suggested great things were ahead for him. After becoming a professor of rhetoric, he was […]
Feast date: Nov 17 St. Gregory was born to a distinguished pagan family at Neocaesarea, Pontus in 213, and studied law there. In about 233, he and his brother, Athenodorus, accompanied his sister, who was joining her husband in Caesarea, Palestine, while they continued on to Beirut to continue their law studies. They met Origen along the way, […]
St. Helena Feast date: Aug 18 Not much is known about Saint Helena but it is probable that she was born in the middle of the third century in Asia Minor. She worked as a stable maid as a young woman, according to Saint Anselm. Helena later married a young Roman official, Constantius Chlorus, who […]
St. Henry II Feast date: Jul 13 On July 13, the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of St. Henry II, a German king who led and defended Europe’s Holy Roman Empire at the beginning of the first millennium. St. Henry was born in 972 to Duke Henry of Bavaria and Princess Gisela of Burgundy. During […]
St. Herbert Feast date: Mar 20 Not much is known about the life of St. Herbert, other than he was a Hermit of England and a good friend of St. Cuthbert. Herbert was a priest, and lived as a recluse on an island in Lake Derwentwater, England which later became St. Herbert’s in his honor. Herbert […]
St. Hermann Contractus Feast date: Sep 25 Born February 18, 1013, at Altshausen (Swabia), St. Hermann Contractus was born crippled and unable to move without assistance. It was an immense difficulty for him to learn to read and write, however he persisted and his iron will and remarkable intelligence were soon manifested. Upon discovering […]
St. Hilary of Arles Feast date: May 05 On May 5, Catholics celebrate Saint Hilary of Arles, a fifth-century bishop who gave up wealth and privilege in favor of austerity and sacrifice for the sake of the Church. Hilary was born during the year 401, most likely in the present-day French region of Loraine. He […]
St. Hilary of Poitiers Feast date: Jan 13 On January 13, Catholics celebrate St. Hilary of Poitiers, a fourth-century philosopher whose studies made him a champion of Orthodox Trinitarian theology during one of the most difficult periods of Church history. He protected the Church and its members by brilliantly defending the sacred humanity of Jesus while […]
St. Hunna Feast date: Apr 15 Known as “the Holy Washerwoman”, St. Hunna was a 7th century noblewoman who cared for and bathed the poor of Strasbourg, France. Pope Leo X canonized her in 1520. She is the patroness of laundry workers and laundresses. Saint of the Day – rosary.team
St. Hyacinth Feast date: Aug 17 St. Hyacinth was one of the first members of the Dominicans (the Order of Preachers) and the “apostle of the North”, and is also called the “Apostle of Poland.” Hyacinth was born into nobility in 1185 at the castle of Lanka, at Kamin, in Silesia, Poland, and received an […]
St. Hyacintha of Mariscotti Feast date: Jan 30 Born of a noble family near Viterbo (Italy,) Hyacintha entered a local convent of sisters who followed the Third Order Rule. However, she supplied herself with enough food, clothing and other goods to live a very comfortable life amid these sisters who had pledged to mortification. At one point […]
Feast date: Jul 12 St. Ignatius Delgado, whose feast we celebrate on July 12, was a Spanish missionary and is now one of the martyrs of Vietnam. He was born in Villafeliche, Spain, in 1761, and was raised in a pious family. He became a Dominican priest and served as a missionary in Vietnam for almost 50 […]
St. Ignatius of Laconi Feast date: May 11 St. Ignatius of Laconi was a Capuchin Friar. He was born in 1701 and died in 1781. He was canonized 1951 by Pius XII. Born the second of seven children in a poor farming family, Francis Ignatius Vincent Peis was so named because his safe delivery through a difficult pregnancy was […]
St. Ildephonsus Feast date: Jan 23 St. Ildephonsus was the Archbishop of Toledo, and died 23 January, 667. He was born of a distinguished family and was the nephew of St. Eugenius, his predecessor in the See of Toledo. At an early age, despite the determined opposition of his father, he embraced the monastic life in the monastery […]
St. Irenaeus Feast date: Jun 28 Celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church on June 28, and by Eastern Catholics of the Byzantine tradition on August 23, Saint Irenaeus of Lyons was a second-century bishop and writer in present-day France. He is best known for defending Christian orthodoxy, especially the reality of Christ’s human incarnation, against […]
St. Irene Feast date: Oct 20 St. Irene was a Portuguese nun who was martyred in defense of her chastity in the year 653. Saint Irene’s body was miraculously recovered after being thrown into the river. She was canonized as a Catholic saint because of the great amount of miracles that occured at her tomb. Her shrine, […]
St. Irene of Rome Feast date: Apr 03 St. Irene of Rome was the widow of the martyr Saint Castulus, a Roman military officer who was killed for spreading the Christian faith in 286. She lived in the Roman Empire during the reign of Diocletian, and died in 288. According to legend, she attended to the wounded St. […]
St. Isidore Feast date: May 15 Isidore was born in 1070 in Madrid, Spain. His family was poor, and he labored as a farmer on the land owned by a rich man named John de Vergas. He was very pious and such a good worker that de Vergas allowed him to worship daily in the […]
Feast date: May 19 St. Ives was born at Kermartin, near Tréguier, Brittany, October 17, 1253 and was the son of Helori, lord of Kermartin, and Azo du Kenquis. In 1267, Ives was sent to the University of Paris where he graduated with a degree in civil law, and he then went on to Orléans in 1277 to study […]
St. James Feast date: Jul 25 James, the brother of John the Evangelist, was the first Apostle to be martyred. He was beheaded by order of Herod of Agrippa. The Gospels tell us that the two brothers left their father, Zebedee, and followed Jesus as soon as He called out to them. James was one of […]
St. James Intercisus Feast date: Nov 27 A soldier and courtier to King Yezdigerd I of Persia in the early fifth century, James was a Christian who, during Yezdigerd’s persecution of Christians, renounced his faith for fear of death. His family, who had not apostacized, contacted James upon the death of the king, and thus […]
St. James of the Marches Feast date: Nov 28 St. James of the Marches was a Franciscan priest in the 15th century. He was born into a poor family in Monteprandone, Italy in 1391 and was educated by his uncle who was a priest. He continued his education, eventually achieving the degree of Doctor in Canon and […]
St. Jane Antide Thouret Feast date: May 23 On May 23 the universal Church celebrates the feast day of St. Jane Antide (Jeanne-Antide) Thouret, a Sister of Charity who worked tirelessly for the faith amidst persecution during the French Revolution. Jane was born in Sancey, France, in 1765 to a poor family. Her mother died […]
St. Jeanne Elizabeth des Bichier des Anges Feast date: Aug 26 St. Jeanne was born July 1773 at La Blanc, France and died August 26, 1838. She was canonized in 1947 by Pope Pius XII. Born to nobility and educated in a convent school, Jeanne Elizabeth witnessed closely and was personally affected by the events of the […]
St. John Baptist de la Salle Feast date: Apr 07 St. John Baptist de la Salle is known for promoting and reforming Christian education, especially amongst the poor. He is also the founder of the Institute of the Brothers of Christian Schools, which now teaches around the world. The French priest was one of the first pedagogues […]
Feast date: Jul 23 The Church celebrates the feast of St. John Cassian on July 23, an eastern monk and theological writer. He went to Palestine in 380 with a companion, Germanus, and became a monk in Egypt. In 400 he entered into the discipleship of St. John Chrysostom, going to Rome to defend the […]
St. John Climacus Feast date: Mar 30 St. John Climacus was born around the year 525 in Palestine. As a youth, he excelled in his studies and was highly regarded by his peers for his knowledge. At the age of 16, John decided to leave the world and retired to a hermitage near the base […]
St. John Francis Regis Feast date: Jun 16 On June 16 the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of Saint John Francis Regis, a 17th-century French Jesuit known for his zealous missionary efforts and his care for the poor and marginalized. In a 1997 letter to the Bishop of Viviers, Pope St. John Paul II commemorated […]
St. John Gualbert Feast date: Jul 12 Born in Florence, Italy, around the year 993, John was born into a noble family, and led a predictably frivolous life as a youth, being concerned only with the pursuit of vain amusements and romantic intrigues. However, when he was still a young man, his elder brother Hugh was murdered, […]
St. John I, Pope Feast date: May 18 On May 18, the Catholic Church honors the first “Pope John” in its history. Saint John I was a martyr for the faith, imprisoned and starved to death by a heretical Germanic king during the sixth century. He was a friend of the renowned Christian philosopher Boethius, […]
St. John Joseph of the Cross Feast date: Mar 05 Self-denial is never an end in itself but is only a help toward greater charity—as the life of Saint John Joseph shows. John Joseph was very ascetic even as a young man. He devoted himself even at his youngest years to a life of poverty […]
Feast date: Oct 09 On Oct. 9, the Catholic Church honors the memory of Saint John Leonardi, who studied to become a pharmacist but eventually chose the life of the priesthood. He founded a religious order, and helped establish the Vatican department now known as the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. Declared the patron […]
St. John Mary Vianney Feast date: Aug 04 On August 4, the Church celebrates the feast day of St. John Vianney, patron of priests. John Vianney, also known as the Holy Curé de Ars, was born May 8, 1786 in Dardilly, near Lyon, France to a family of farmers. He was ordained a priest in […]
St. John Nepomucene Neumann Feast date: Jan 05 John Neumann was born on March 28, 1811, in Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic. His parents were Philip and Agnes Neumann. He had four sisters and a brother. After college, John entered the seminary. When the time came for his ordination, the bishop was sick […]
St. John of Beverley Feast date: May 07 St. John of Beverley was the Bishop of Hexham, and later of York. He was born in Harpham, Yorkshire, and died in Beverley on May 7, 721.As a youth, John manifested a strong desire to devote his life to God, and eventually left his native Yorkshire and traveled Kent where […]
St. John of Capistrano Feast date: Oct 23 On Oct. 23, the Catholic Church celebrates the life of Saint John of Capistrano, a Franciscan priest whose life included a political career, extensive missionary journeys, efforts to reunite separated Eastern Christians with Rome and a historically important turn at military leadership. Invoked as a patron of […]
St. John of Damascus Feast date: Dec 04 Catholics remember and celebrate the life of the great Arab Church Father St. John of Damascus on Dec. 4. Eastern Orthodox Christians and Eastern Catholics, whose tradition has been particularly shaped by his insights, celebrate the saint’s feast on the same day as the Roman Catholic Church. Among […]
St. John of God, Confessor Feast date: Mar 08 The Catholic Church celebrates the extraordinary life of St. John of God on March 8. The saint lived through decades of sin and suffering before a profound conversion that led him to embrace poverty, humility and charity. John was born in Portugal during the year 1495 […]
St. John Ogilvie Feast date: Mar 10 March 10 is the liturgical memorial of Saint John Ogilvie, a 16th- and 17th-century Scotsman who converted from Protestantism to Catholicism, served as a Jesuit priest, and died as a martyr at the hands of state officials. St. John was executed for treason, refusing to accept King James […]
St. John the Apostle Feast date: Dec 27 St. John, the son of Zebedee and brother of St. James the Great, was called to be an Apostle by our Lord in the first year of His public ministry. He became the “beloved disciple” and the only one of the Twelve who did not forsake the […]
St. Josaphat Feast date: Nov 12 Today, on the day of his martyrdom, Nov. 12, Roman Catholics and some Eastern Catholics remember St. Josaphat Kuntsevych, a bishop and monk whose example of faith inspired many Eastern Orthodox Christians to return to full communion with the Holy See. Other Eastern Catholics, including the Ukrainian Catholic Church, […]
St. Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer Feast date: Jun 26 On June 26, the Catholic Church commemorates the life of Saint Josemaría Escrivá, priest and founder of The Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei. He was born in Barbastro, Spain on January 9, 1902 into a pious family. When he was young, he one […]
St. Joseph Moscati Feast date: Nov 16 On November 16, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Joseph Moscati, the first modern medical doctor to be canonized. Born on July 25, 1880 in Benevento, Italy, he lived out the Gospel through his position as a teacher and physician. There are a number of stories of […]
St. Joseph of Arimathea Feast date: Mar 29 St. Joseph of Arimathea is a disciple of Jesus Christ who is mentioned in each account of the Passion narrative. After the Passion of the Lord, Joseph, a member of the Jewish council went to Pilate and asked for possession of the body of Jesus. After receiving […]
St. Joseph of Cupertino Feast date: Sep 18 On September 18, the Church celebrates the life of St. Joseph of Cupertino, a mystic who was perhaps most famous for his ability to fly. His father, a poor carpenter, died before his birth and his mother, who was unable to pay the debts, lost her home […]
St. Joseph of Leonissa Feast date: Feb 04 Joseph of Leonissa, OFM Cap.; was the third of eight children born at Leonessa (Italy) on January 8, 1556. At baptism he was given the name Eufranio. Impressed by the example of Matthew Silvestri, who had left the medical profession to embrace the Capuchin life and whose […]
St. Juan Diego Feast date: Dec 09 On Dec. 9, Roman Catholics celebrate St. Juan Diego, the indigenous Mexican Catholic convert whose encounter with the Virgin Mary began the Church’s devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe. In 1474, 50 years before receiving the name Juan Diego at his baptism, a boy named Cuauhtlatoatzin — “singing […]
St. Jude Thaddeus and St. Simon the Zealot, Apostles Feast date: Oct 28 St. Jude Thaddaeus St. Jude, known as Thaddaeus, was a brother of St. James the Lesser, and a relative of Jesus. Ancient writers tell us that he preached the Gospel in Judea, Samaria, Idumaea, Syria, Mesopotamia, and Lybia. According to Eusebius, he […]
St. Julian the Hospitaller Feast date: Feb 12 St. Julian the Hospitaller, or “the Poor Man,” came from a wealthy, noble family in the early 4th century and is a popular saint in Western Europe. According to a legend, while Julian was a baby, he was cursed to one-day kill his own parents. His father […]
St. Julie Billiart Feast date: Apr 08 St. Julie Billiart, co-foundress of the Congregation of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, came to her religious vocation late in life, at the age of 51. She was born in 1751, the fifth of seven children. As a child, she developed a great love for Jesus […]
St. Justin Martyr Feast date: Jun 01 “We are slain with the sword, but we increase and multiply; the more we are persecuted and destroyed, the more are deaf to our numbers. As a vine, by being pruned and cut close, shoots forth new suckers, and bears a greater abundance of fruit; so is it […]
St. Ladislaus Feast date: Jun 27 St. Ladislaus was the King of Hungary, born 1040 and died at Neutra, July 29, 1095 as one of Hungary’s national Christian heroes. He was the son of Béla I, and the nobles, after the death of Geisa I, passed over Solomon, the son of Andrew I, and chose Ladislaus […]
St. Lawrence Feast date: Aug 10 “‘Just as Christ laid down his life for us, so we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.’ My brethren, Lawrence understood this and, understanding, he acted on it. In his life he loved Christ; in his death he followed in his footsteps.” – St. Augustine, in a […]
St. Lawrence O'Toole Feast date: Nov 14 St. Lawrence O’Toole was born around 1128 in County Kildare, Ireland. His father was the chief of Hy Murray, and his mother one of the Clan O’Byrne. At the age of 10, Lawrence was given up as a hostage to King Mac Murehad of Leinster, who treated him […]
St. Lawrence of Brindisi Feast date: Jul 21 St. Lawrence of Brindisi, whose feast we celebrate on July 21, is a Doctor of the Church. He was born Caesar de Rossi in 1559 in Naples. As a boy, he studied with the Conventual Franciscans and later went to study in Venice. There he discerned a call to enter […]
St. Lea Feast date: Mar 22 March 22 is the liturgical memorial of Saint Lea of Rome, a fourth-century widow who left her wealth behind, entered consecrated life, and attained great holiness through asceticism and prayer. Though not well-known as a figure of devotion in modern times, she was acknowledged as a saint on the […]
St. Leo III, Pope Feast date: Jun 12 (December 26, 795 – June 12, 816) Leo came from a modest family in southern Italy. He was elected to the office of St. Peter unanimously by the clergy of Rome following the death of Pope Hadrian. The papacy had dramatically changed over the 8th century, and many Pope’s had separated themselves […]
St. Leo IV Feast date: Jul 17 The universal Church celebrates the life of St. Leo IV on July 17. Both a Roman and the son of Radoald, Leo was unanimously elected to succeed Sergius II as Pope. At the time of his election, there was an alarming attack of the Saracens on Rome in 846, which caused the people […]
St. Leonard of Noblac Feast date: Nov 06 St Leonard of Noblac was a Frank courtier, and during a certian invasion which they were losing, the Queen suggested to Leonard that he invoke the help of God to repel the invading army. He did, and the tide of battle turned, naming Clovis victorious. Saint Remigius, bishop of Rheims then […]
St. Leonard of Port Maurice Feast date: Nov 26 St. Leonard was born on December 20, 1676 in Porto Maurizio, Italy. He was given the name Paul Jerome Casanova by his father, Domenico Casanova, a sea captain, and his mother, Anna Maria Benza. When he was 13, he was placed with his uncle Agostino to […]
St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort Feast date: Apr 28 On April 28, the universal Church celebrates the feast day of Louis-Marie de Monfort, a 17th century saint who is revered for his intense devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. St. Louis-Marie is perhaps most famously known for his prayer of entrustment to Our Lady, “Totus […]
St. Louise de Marillac Feast date: Mar 15 St. Louise de Marillac was born on August 15, 1591 near the town of Meux, France. Louise received an education from the Dominican convent at Poissy and eventually discerned that she was called to religious life. After consulting her confessor concerning her plans to enter the religious […]
St. Lucy Feast date: Dec 13 St. Lucy is a virgin and martyr of Syracuse in Sicily, whose feast is celebrated on December 13th. According to tradition, Saint Lucy was born to rich and noble parents in the year 283. Her father was of Roman origin, but his early death left her dependent upon her […]
Feast date: Oct 05 St. Luigi Scrosoppi’s life bears witness to a great trust in Divine Providence. He was born in the year 1804 in Udine, Italy and entered the diocesan seminary at 12 years old. He was ordained at age 23. The famine and poverty in Udine inspired Fr. Luigi to care for those most in […]
St. Luke the Evangelist Feast date: Oct 18 On October 18, Catholics and other Christians around the world will celebrate the feast of St. Luke, the physician and companion of St. Paul whose gospel preserved the most extensive biography of Jesus Christ. St. Luke wrote a greater volume of the New Testament than any other […]
St. Lutgardis Feast date: Jun 16 St. Lutgardis is the patron saint of the blind and physically disabled. Born in the 12th century, she came to her vocation in part due to her father’s bad business sense. Her father lost her dowry in a failed business venture and sent her to a Benedictine convent at […]
St. Marcellin Champagnat Feast date: Jun 06 “All to Jesus through Mary, and all to Mary for Jesus.” – St. Marcellin Champagnat Marcellin Champagnat was born on May 20, 1789, the year of the French Revolution, and died on June 6, 1840. He was a priest of the Society of Mary and the founder of […]
St. Marcellus, Pope Feast date: Jan 16 Nothing of Marcellus’ life before his papacy has survived the centuries. He became Pope at the end of the persecutions of Diocletian in aound 308-309. The persecutions had disrupted the Church so much that there had been a gap of over a year with no Pope. Once he was elected, […]
St. Margaret of Antioch Feast date: Jul 20 Saint Margaret, whose feast is celebrated on July 20, is a virgin and martyr. She is also called “Marina”. Margaret belonged to Pisidian Antioch in Asia Minor, where her father was a pagan priest. Her mother died soon after Margaret’s birth, so she was nursed by a pious woman who lived about […]
St. Margaret of Clitherow Feast date: Mar 26 St. Margaret Clitherow was born in Middleton, England around the year 1555 to a protestant family. Margaret was known throughout the town for her wit and good looks, and in 1571 she married John Clitherow, and together they bore two children. Several years after her marriage to John, […]
St. Margaret of Scotland Feast date: Nov 16 On November 16, the Church celebrates the feast day of St. Margaret, Queen of Scotland. Her feast day was originally June 10, but was moved to November 16, the day of her death, upon the renewal of the Church’s Lirutgical calendar. Some continue to celebrate her feast […]
St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Feast date: Jan 12 On Jan. 12, Roman Catholics remember Saint Marguerite Bourgeoys, who not only founded a religious congregation, but was also instrumental in establishing the Canadian city of Montreal. Marguerite Bourgeoys was born on Good Friday of 1620 during a period of both colonial expansion and religious strife for Europe. […]
St. Marianne Cope Feast date: Jan 23 St. Marianne Cope was born in western Germany in 1838. She entered religious life in Syracuse, N.Y. in 1862. She served as a teacher and principal in several schools in the state and established two of the first hospitals in the central New York area: St. Elizabeth Hospital […]
St. Mark, the Evangelist Feast date: Apr 25 St. Mark, the Evangelist, is the author of the second Gospel and the patron saint of notaries. He wrote the Gospel in Greek for the Gentile converts to Christianity. Tradition says the Romans asked St. Mark to record the teachings of St. Peter about Jesus. St. Mark […]
St. Martha Feast date: Jul 29 “Jesus loved Martha, and her sister Mary, and Lazarus” (John 11:5). Saint Martha is mentioned in three Gospel passages: Luke 10:38-42, John 11:1-53, and John 12:1-9, and the type of friendship between her and her siblings, Mary and Lazarus, with the Lord Jesus is evident in these passages. In […]
St. Martin de Porres Feast date: Nov 03 St. Martin de Porres was born in Lima, Peru in 1579 as the son of Spaniard Juan de Porres, and a freed colored-woman from Panama, Ana Velasquez. Being of mixed race, Martin was of a lower social caste, though his father looked out for him and made sure the […]
St. Martin of Tours Feast date: Nov 11 On Nov. 11, the Catholic Church honors St. Martin of Tours, who left his post in the Roman army to become a “soldier of Christ” as a monk and later bishop. Martin was born around the year 316 in modern-day Hungary. His family left that region for […]
St. Mary Magdalene Feast date: Jul 22 On July 22, the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Mary Magdelene, one of the most prominent women mentioned in the New Testament. Her name comes from the town of Magdala in Galilee, where she was born. Scripture introduces her as a woman “who had been healed of […]
St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi Feast date: May 25 On May 25, the Catholic Church celebrates Saint Mary Magdalene de Pazzi, an Italian noblewoman of the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries who became a Carmelite nun distinguished for her intense prayer life and devotion to frequent Holy Communion. In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI marked the […]
St. Mary of Egypt Feast date: Apr 01 April 1 is the feast of a little-known saint whose story demonstrates the power of the Church as the home of forgiveness, redemption and mercy. St. Mary of Egypt was a prostitute for 17 years before she received the Eucharist and chose the life of a hermit. […]
Feast date: Oct 22 Like the Jewish greeting “Shalom” and the Arab “Salaam,” Salome is based on an Aramaic word meaning health and peace. It would be hard to think of a more fitting name for a mother. It is quite probable that Salome was the sister of the Blessed Virgin, and it is certain […]
St. Matilda Feast date: Mar 14 Matilda, Queen of Germany and wife of King Henry I was the daughter of Count Dietrich of Westphalia and Reinhild of Denmark. She was born about 895 and was raised by her grandmother, the Abbess of Eufurt convent. Matilda married Henry the Fowler, son of Duke Otto of Saxony, in the […]
St. Matthew, Apostle Feast date: Sep 21 Saint Matthew, the first-century tax collector turned apostle who chronicled the life and ministry of Christ in his Gospel, is celebrated by the Church today, September 21. Although relatively little is known about the life of St. Matthew, the account he wrote of Christ’s ministry – traditionally considered […]
St. Matthias, Apostle Feast date: May 14 Matthias, whose name means “gift of God”, was the disciple chosen to replace Judas as one of the twelve Apostles. The Acts of the Apostles state that he was also one of the 72 disciples that the Lord Jesus sent out to preach the good news. Matthias was […]
Feast date: Sep 22 Saint Maurice was a member of the Theban Legion, a Roman legion said to have been constituted by Christian soldiers from Africa, which was called to put down a revolt in Aaunum, located in modern day Switzerland, in the year 287. Two legends exist about the martyrdom of St. Maurice […]
St. Maximinus Feast date: May 29 St. Maximinus was the Bishop of Trier, and was born at Silly near Poitiers. He died there either on May 29, 352 or Sept. 12, 349. He was educated and ordained a priest by St. Agritius, whom he succeeded as Bishop of Trier in 332 or 335. At that time Trier […]
St. Medard, bishop Feast date: Jun 08 St. Medard was born around 456 in Salency, France. His father Nectard was a noble Frenchman, and his mother, Protogia, descended from a Roman family that settled in Gaul. He was ordained at the age of 33, and did not wish to be made a bishop, but reluctantly […]
St. Methodius of Constantinople Feast date: Jun 14 St. Methodius worked for unity and reconciliation in the Eastern Church and served as the Patriarch of Constantinople the last five years of his life. Born in Syracuse, he first felt the call to enter religious life while in Constantinople, where he had gone to seek a […]
St. Monica Feast date: Aug 27 On August 27, one day before the feast of her son St. Augustine, the Catholic Church honors St. Monica, whose holy example and fervent intercession led to one of the most dramatic conversions in Church history. Monica was born into a Catholic family in 332, in the North African […]
St. Mother Théodore Guérin Feast date: Oct 03 St. Théodore Guérin, SP, was born Anne-Therese Guerin at Etables, Brittany in France on October 2, 1798. As she was growing up, the French government was virulently anti-clerical, closing down seminaries and churches and arresting priests and religious. Her cousin was a seminarian who lived in hiding […]
St. Narcissus Feast date: Oct 29 St. Narcissus was born towards the end of the first century, and he was nearly 80 years old when he was named as the 30th bishop of Jerusalem. In 195, he and Theophilus, bishop of Caesarea in Palestine, presided together over a council of the bishops of Palestine held at Caesarea around […]
St. Nicholas of Flue Feast date: Mar 21 Today, the universal church celebrates the feast of St. Nicholas of Flue. During his lifetime, the Swiss saint had 10 children, became a hermit and later prevented a civil war. Nicholas was born in 1417 near the Lake of Lucerne in Switzerland. In addition to his duties as […]
St. Nicholas of Myra Feast date: Dec 06 On Dec. 6, the faithful commemorate a bishop in the early church who was known for generosity and love of children. Born in Lycia in Asia Minor around the late third or fourth century, St. Nicholas of Myra is more than just the inspiration for the modern day […]
St. Nicholas of Tolentino Feast date: Sep 10 Born in 1246 in Sant’ Angelo, Italy, Nicholas became an Augustinian friar at the age of 18 after hearing an Augustinian hermit preach. He was ordained seven years later and quickly gained a reputation as a great preacher and confessor.He practiced severe mortifications and fasted strictly. He […]
St. Nicodemus Feast date: Aug 03 St. Nicodemus was a secret disciple of Jesus. As a member of the Sanhedrin, he would meet Jesus by night so that the others would not see him with Jesus. Eventually, it was Nicodemus who reminded the Sanhedrin that Jesus had the right to a trial. Together with St. […]
St. Norbert Feast date: Jun 06 On June 6 the Catholic Church honors Saint Norbert of Xanten – who started out as a frivolous and worldly cleric, but was changed by God’s grace into a powerful preacher and an important reformer of the Church during the early 12th century. He is the founder of the […]
St. Olympias Feast date: Dec 17 Born sometime between 360-365, this pious, charitable, and wealthy disciple of St. John Chrysostom came from an illustrious family in Constantinople. Her father (called by the sources Secundus or Selencus) was a “Count” of the empire. One of her ancestors, Ablabius, filled the consulor office in 331, and was also […]
St. Onesimus Feast date: Feb 16 St. Onesimus was a slave to Philemon, an influential man who had been converted by St. Paul. Onesimus offended Philemon and fled in order to escape any sort of retribution. He then met St. Paul while Paul was in a Roman prison. Shortly after, Onesimus was baptized. Paul then […]
St. Optatus Feast date: Jun 04 The church remembers St. Optatus on June 4. As a convert from paganism, he is best known for his opposition to the heresy of Donatism, and his six treatises composed against them. One of them, against Parmenian, is still extant, and was mentioned by St. Jerome in his De Viris Illustribus […]
St. Osanna Andreasi Feast date: Jun 18 St. Osanna was a Dominican tertiary, who spent her adult life serving the poor and the sick and offering spiritual direction to many. However, she was also a mystic and a visionary, eventually bearing the pain and red marks of the stigmata, though not the bleeding. She was […]
St. Oswald Feast date: Feb 29 St. Oswald was a king of Northumbria from 634 until his death and is venerated as a saint. Oswald spread the Christian faith throughout Northumbria. He had a cult following, and was generous with the poor. There are many legends surrounding his reign. Saint of the Day – rosary.team
St. Otto, Bishop Feast date: Jul 02 On July 2, the Church celebrates the life and work of St. Otto. He was born in 1060 in Swabia, and died on June 30, 1139. He was the Bishop of Bamberg, an indefatigable evengelizer, and the apostle of the Pomeranians. He was born of noble rank and ordained a priest […]
St. Pachomius Feast date: May 09 St. Pachomius can justifiabley be called the founder of cenobitic monasticism, monks who live in community. Even though St. Antony the Great was the first to go into the desert to live a life of seclusion pursuing evangelical perfection, he lived a heremitic life, that is, a primarily solitary […]
St. Panteleon Feast date: Jul 27 St. Panteleon, whose feast we celebrate on July 27, is the patron saint of bachelors and physicians. As lifelong layperson, he was the physician for emperor Maximinianus. At one point in his life he had abandoned his faith, but he eventually returned to the Church, and gave his fortune to the poor, providing […]
Feast date: Sep 11 On Sept. 11, the Catholic Church honors Saint Paphnutius, an Egyptian monk who became a bishop, endured torture for the faith, and participated at the Ecumenical Council of Nicea in its confirmation of Christ’s divinity. While there is no record of Paphnutius’ early life, it is known that he – like […]
St. Pascal Baylon Feast date: May 17 Pascal was born at Torre-Hermosa, in the Kingdom of Aragon, on May 24, 1540. He was born on the Feast of Pentecost, which in Spain is called “the Pasch of the Holy Ghost”, which is why he received the name Pascal. He died at Villa Reale, May 15, 1592, on Whitsunday. His parents, […]
St. Patrick of Ireland Feast date: Mar 17 On March 17, Catholics celebrate St. Patrick, the fifth century bishop and patron of Ireland, whose life of holiness set the example for many of the Church’s future saints. St. Patrick is said to have been born around 389 AD in Britain. Captured by Irish raiders when […]
St. Paul Miki and Companions Feast date: Feb 06 On Feb. 6, the Catholic Church honors the 26 Martyrs of Nagasaki, a group of native Japanese Catholics and foreign missionaries who suffered death for their faith in the year 1597. During the 16th century, the Catholic faith reached Japan by the efforts of the Jesuit […]
St. Paul of Thebes Feast date: Jan 15 On Jan. 15, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Paul of Thebes, whose life of solitude and penance gave inspiration to the monastic movement during its early years. Surviving in the Egyptian desert on a small amount of daily food, St. Paul the Hermit lived in close communion […]
St. Paulinus of Nola Feast date: Jun 22 On June 22, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Paulinus of Nola, who gave up his life in politics to become a monk, a bishop, and a revered Christian poet of the 5th century. In a December 2007 general audience on St. Paulinus, Pope Benedict XVI remarked on […]
Feast date: Oct 08 St. Pelagia was head of a dance troupe in Palestinian Antioch, and lived a life of frivolity and prostitution. One day while she was still a dancer, Pelagia was passing by a church dressed with her very elegant and provocative clothing. Bishop Nonnus of Edessa was preaching at that moment. Even […]
St. Pelagius Feast date: Jun 26 St. Pelagius was a thirteen year old Christian who was martyred for refusing to denounce his faith and convert to Islam in Cordoba, Spain in 925. 10th century Cordoba was the most powerful and glorious time in the world for the muslim caliphates and they boasted the largest mosque outside of the […]
St. Peter Gonzalez Feast date: Apr 14 Public humiliation led Peter Gonzalez to a true conversion experience and set him on the road to sainthood. Peter was born into a noble family in Castile, Spain, in 1190, and he became a priest as a step to high office. One Christmas Day, during a grand entrance […]
St. Peter of Alexandria Feast date: Nov 26 Local commemorations of the fourth-century martyr Saint Peter of Alexandria will take place on Nov. 25 and 26. Although his feast day in the Western tradition (on the latter date) is no longer a part of the Roman Catholic Church’s universal calendar, he remains especially beloved among […]
St. Peter of Tarantaise, bishop Feast date: May 08 Peter was born near Vienne, France in 1102 and died at Bellevaux, France in 1175. He was canonized in 1191. At the age of 20 he entered the Cistercian Order, and convinced his family to enter along with him. His two brothers and his father entered the religious community […]
St. Pio of Pietrelcina Saint of the Day – rosary.team
St. Polycarp of Smyrna Feast date: Feb 23 On Feb. 23, the Catholic Church remembers the life and martyrdom of St. Polycarp, a disciple of the apostle and evangelist St. John. Polycarp is celebrated on the same date by Eastern Orthodox Christians, who also honor him as a Saint. Polycarp is known to later generations […]
St. Pope Benedict XI Feast date: Jul 07 Nicholas Boccasini was born at Treviso, Italy, in 1240. Hhe entered the Dominican Order at the age of 14. After 14 years of study, he became lector of theology, an office he filled for several years. In 1296 he was elected Master General of the Order. At this […]
St. Raphael Kalinowski Feast date: Nov 19 Saint Raphael was born in 1835 as Joseph, son of Andrew and Josepha Kalinowski in present day Lithuania. Saint Raphael felt a call to the priesthood early in his life, but decided to complete his education. He studied zoology, chemistry, agriculture, and apiculture at the Institute of Agronomy […]
Feast date: Aug 31 Raymond became a priest due to his quiet persistence in prayer and study. He was born to a noble Spanish family in 1204. His mother died during child birth and his father had high expectations for Raymond to serve in the country’s Royal Court. However, the young Raymond felt drawn […]
St. Raymond of Penafort Feast date: Jan 07 Saint Raymond of Penafort, a Dominican priest who worked to aid Christian captives during the era of the Crusades and also helped organize the Church’s legal code, will be celebrated liturgically on Jan. 7. A contemporary of Saint Thomas Aquinas, he inspired the theologian to write the […]
St. Richard Feast date: Feb 07 St. Richard was orphaned at a young age. His brother inherited his parents’ estate after he was of age, but the death tax was so great that they were sent into poverty, and Richard had to work on his brother’s farm. He was set to be next in line […]
St. Rita of Cascia Feast date: May 22 On May 22, the Church celebrates the feast day of St. Rita of Cascia, who the late John Paul II called “a disciple of the Crucified One” and an “expert in suffering.” Known in Spain as “La Santa de los impossibiles” (the saint of the impossible), St. […]
St. Robert Southwell Feast date: Feb 21 Saint Robert Southwell, SJ (c. 1561 – February 21 1595,) an English Roman Catholic Jesuit priest, is one of the 40 martyrs of England & Wales murdered during the English anti-Catholic Reformation. Robert was born in Norfolk, the youngest of eight children in a well-to-do family with Catholic […]
St. Roderick Feast date: Mar 13 Roderick, also known as Ruderic, was a priest in Cabra, Spain during the persecution of Christians by the Moors. Roderick had two brothers, one was a Muslim and the other was a fallen-away Catholic. One day, he tried to stop an argument between his two brothers. However, his brothers turned on him […]
St. Romuald Feast date: Jun 19 Saint Romuald, who founded the Camaldolese monastic order during the early eleventh century, has his liturgical memorial on June 19. Working within the Western Church’s Benedictine tradition, he revived the primitive monastic practice of hermit life, allowing for greater solitude in a communal setting. Born into an aristocratic family […]
St. Rosa Venerini Feast date: May 07 On May 7, the Church celebrates the recently-canonized Italian educator Saint Rosa Venerini, who founded Catholic schools for girls and young women during the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Her work is continued today by the “Venerini Sisters.” St. Rosa (also known as St. Rose) was declared […]
St. Rupert Feast date: Mar 27 On March 27 the Catholic Church remembers the monk and bishop Saint Rupert, whose missionary labors built up the Church in two of its historic strongholds, Austria and Bavaria. During his lifetime, the “Apostle of Bavaria and Austria” was an energetic founder of churches and monasteries, and a remarkably […]
St. Sava, Archbishop of Serbia Feast date: Jan 14 Originally Prince Rastko Nemanjic, he was the first Patriarch of Serbia (1219-1233) and is an important Saint in the Serbian Orthodox Church. In his youth (around 1192) St. Sava escaped from home to join the Orthodox monastic colony on Mount Athos and was given the name […]
St. Scholastica Feast date: Feb 10 On Feb. 10, the Catholic Church remembers St. Scholastica, a nun who was the twin sister of St. Benedict, the “father of monasticism” in Western Europe. The siblings were born around 480 to a Roman noble family in Nursia, Italy. Scholastica seems to have devoted herself to God from […]
St. Sebastian Feast date: Jan 20 Sebastian was the son of a wealthy Roman family. He was educated in Milan and became an officer of the imperial Roman army, and Captain of the Guard. He was a favorite of Emperor Diocletian. During Diocletian’s persecution of the Christians, Sebastian visited them in prison, bringing both supplies […]
St. Simon Feast date: Feb 18 A relative of Jesus’, possibly a first cousin. He is in the Gospel of Matthew, and is one of the brethren of Christ mentioned in Acts who was present at the birth of the Church on the first Pentecost. Reported to have been at the martyrdom of Saint James […]
St. Simon Stock Feast date: May 16 On May 16, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Simon Stock, a twelfth- and thirteenth-century Carmelite monk whose vision of the Virgin Mary is the source of the Brown Scapular devotion. Simon was born during 1165 in the English county of Kent. He is said to have been strongly […]
St. Sixtus III, Pope Feast date: Mar 28 Not much is known about the history and youth of St. Sixtus, but we do know that he was born in Rome, Italy and ascended to the papacy in 432. As the 44th Pope, he approved the results of the Council of Ephesus and actively protested against the […]
St. Sophronius Feast date: Mar 11 A courageous leader of the Jerusalem Church during the Islamic conquests of the seventh century, Patriarch Saint Sophronius I has his liturgical memorial on March 11. Though he is acknowledged and celebrated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church, St. Sophronius is more commonly venerated among Eastern Catholics […]
Feast date: Apr 17 St. Stephen Harding is regarded as the founder of the Cistercian monasteries. He was born in Dorset, England, and educated at Sherborne Abbey. After studying in Paris and Rome, he visited the monastery of Molesme. Impressed by its holy abbot, Robert of Molesme, and the prior, Alberic (both of which were later canonized), […]
St. Stephen of Hungary Feast date: Aug 16 On Aug. 16, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast day of King Saint Stephen of Hungary, the monarch who led his country to embrace the Christian faith during the 11th century. Before the future saint’s birth in 975, his mother, the duchess Sarolt, is said to have […]
St. Sylvester, Pope Feast date: Dec 31 Saint Sylvester was born in Rome around the year 250. Not much is known about him, but legends surround him. Some legends state that at a young age, Sylvester was put under the care of a priest to be formed in the practice of religion and sacred literature. He […]
St. Teresa of Kolkata Feast date: Sep 05 The Church celebrates on Septermber 5 the feast of Mother Teresa, a universal symbol of God’s merciful and preferential love for the poor and forgotten. Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu on August 26, 1910, in Skopje, Macedonia, the youngest of three children. She attended a youth group […]
St. Theodosius Abbot Feast date: Jan 11 Born to a pious family in 423 A.D., Theodosius began his studies at an early age, and became a lector while still an adolescent. The example of Abraham led him to leave home in order to properly follow God. He met Saint Simeon Stylites in Antioch, and Simeon recognized him […]
St. Theophanes the Chronicler Feast date: Mar 12 St. Theophanes was born in Samothrace, Greece around the year 759. He was orphaned while still a young child, but was left a large inheritance. At age twelve, Theophanes’ guardian coerced him to marry, however he and his wife vowed themselves to celibacy. They lived together for […]
St. Therese of the Child Jesus Feast date: Oct 01 On October 1, Catholics around the world honor the life of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, or St. Thérèse of Lisieux on her feast day. St. Thérèse was born January 2, 1873 in Alençon, France to pious parents, both of whom are scheduled to […]
St. Thomas Becket Feast date: Dec 29 St. Thomas was born in London, England around the year 1117. He was the son of pious parents, and his mother converted to Christianity through the example and teachings of his father. From his early youth, Thomas was educated in religion and holiness. After his childhood, Thomas was then […]
St. Thomas More Feast date: Jun 22 On June 22, the Catholic Church honors the life and martyrdom of St. Thomas More, the lawyer, author and statesman who lost his life opposing King Henry VIII’s plan to subordinate the Church to the English monarchy. Thomas More was born in 1478, son of the lawyer and […]
St. Thomas of Villanova Feast date: Sep 22 On Sept. 22, the Catholic Church remembers Saint Thomas of Villanova, a 16th century Spanish Augustinian monk and archbishop who lived a life of austerity in order to provide for the spiritual and material needs of his people. Born during 1488 in the Spanish region of Castile, […]
St. Thomas, Apostle Feast date: Jul 03 On July 3, the Church celebrates the feast day of St. Thomas the Apostle. Best known for his initial unwillingness to believe the other apostles in their claim that Jesus had risen from the dead, St. Thomas can teach the faithful about believing without seeing. As an apostle, […]
St. Thorlak of Iceland Feast date: Dec 23 The Scandinavian island nation of Iceland celebrates its national patron, St. Thorlak Thorhallsson, on Dec. 23. Although Iceland’s national assembly declared him a saint in 1198, only five years after his death, this “unofficial” canonization did not become an official part of the Church’s liturgical calendar until […]
St. Turibius de Mogrovejo Feast date: Mar 23 Catholics in Latin America and throughout the world will celebrate the life and ministry of St. Turibius of Mogrovejo on March 23. The 16th century bishop upheld the rights of Peru’s indigenous peoples, and became one of the first canonized saints of the Americas. Turibius was born […]
St. Ulric of Augsburg Feast date: Jul 04 St. Ulric was born in 890 at Kyburg, Zurich, Switzerland and died on July 4, 973 at Augsburg of natural causes. He was buried in the Church of Saint Afra. St. Ulric was born in 890 at Kyburg, Zurich, Switzerland as the son of Count Hucpald and […]
St. Ursula and the Virgins of Cologne Feast date: Oct 21 In the fourth century the pagan Saxons began to invade England, intent on destroying the Catholic Faith and violating the purity of all young English virgins. It was in the midst of this that a group of remarkable English girls fled from England to the Continent. This […]
St. Valentine Feast date: Feb 14 The love of God reigns in the hearts of all saints, but there is one who has the joy of being the patron saint of lovers: St. Valentine. According to a tradition, St. Valentine risked his life to marry couples in a Christian way during the time of persecution. […]
St. Victor I, Pope Feast date: Jul 28 The date of birth of St. victor is unknown, but we do know that he was Pope from 189 to 199. Victor was a native African, and his father’s name was Felix. He is known for having obtained the release of many Christians who had been deported to the mines of […]
Feast date: Feb 24 On February 24, the Church remembers St. Victorinus. Not much is known about the life and history St. Victorinus, but we do know that he died in 284 A.D. as a martyr with companions. He was a citizen of Corinth, Greece, and was exiled with a group of fellow Christians to Egypt during […]
St. Vincent Feast date: Jan 22 St. Vincent was Deacon of Saragossa, and a martyr under Diocletian in 304. This most renowned martyr of Spain is represented in the dalmatic of a deacon, and has as emblems a cross, a raven, a grate, or a fire-pile. He is honored as patron in Valencia, Saragossa and Portugal. […]
St. Vincent Ferrer Feast date: Apr 05 Roman Catholics celebrate the missionary efforts of St. Vincent Ferrer on April 5. The Dominican preacher brought thousands of Europeans into the Catholic Church during a period of political and spiritual crisis in Western Europe. Vincent Ferrer was born in Valencia, Spain, during 1357. His parents raised him […]
St. Vincentia Gerosa Feast date: Jun 28 Vincentia Gerosa was declared a saint in the 20th century. She came to her vocation as a religious sister late in life. She was born Caterina Gerosa in Lovere, Italy, in 1784. She was orphaned as a young girl and spent 40 years as a homemaker and lay woman, […]
St. Virginia Centurione Bracelli Feast date: Dec 15 Born in Genoa Italy on April 2, 1587, Virginia was raised in an aristocratic family which was nonetheless pious, and from a young age she longed to consecrate herself to God in the religious life. However, she was pressured into an arranged marriage at the age of […]
St. Waudu Feast date: Apr 09 St. Waudu, also known as St. Waltrude, came from an extremely saintly family in Belgium. Her parents, her husband and her three children were declared saints. Her husband was the Count of Hennegau – and after their children were born, she convinced him to become a monk. He later founded […]
St. Wenceslaus Feast date: Sep 28 On Sept. 28, the Catholic Church honors Saint Wenceslaus, a Central European ruler who died at the hands of his brother while seeking to strengthen the Catholic faith in his native Bohemia. During his 2009 visit to the Czech Republic, Pope Benedict XVI called the country’s patron saint “a […]
Feast date: Oct 12 St. Wilfrid the son of a Northumbrian thegn in 634 in Northumbria, England. His mother died when he was a boy, and he never got along with his step-mother. At age 14, partly to escape the miserable family life, he was sent to the court of King Oswy, King of Northumbria. In this […]
St. William of Vercelli Feast date: Jun 25 Image courtesy of William Hart McNichols via Fine Art America. William was born in 11th-century Italy to a noble family. He was orphaned as an infant and raised by relatives. At the young age of 14, he made a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Spain, and […]
St. Wolfgang, Bishop Feast date: Oct 31 Oct. 31, though best known as the Vigil of the Solemnity of All Saints (All Hallows’ Eve) in the Western church, is also the liturgical feast day of St. Wolfgang of Ratisbon, who was regarded as one of the greatest German saints of his time The Benedictine monk […]
St. Zita of Lucca Feast date: Apr 27 On April 27 the Catholic Church honors Saint Zita, a 13th century Italian woman whose humble and patient service to God has made her a patron saint of maids and other domestic workers. Born into poverty during the early 1200s, Zita was taught by her mother from […]
St.Thais Feast date: Oct 08 Saint Thais was a penitent woman of Egypt in the fourth century. While little is known of her life, she was a sinful woman converted by a monk, perhaps Paphnutius of Thebes, who then lived three years in a narrow cell in most profound penitence. It is said that she […]
Sts. Andrew Kim Taegon, Paul Choñg Ha Feast date: Sep 20 Pope John Paul II said this of the Catholic Church in Korea: “The Korean Church is unique because it was founded entirely by laypeople. This fledgling Church, so young and yet so strong in faith, withstood wave after wave of fierce persecution. Thus, in […]
Sts. Anne and Joachim Feast date: Jul 26 On July 26 the Roman Catholic Church commemorates the parents of the Virgin Mary, Saints Joachim and Anne. The couple’s faith and perseverance brought them through the sorrow of childlessness, to the joy of conceiving and raising the immaculate and sinless woman who would give birth to […]
Sts. Aquila and Priscilla Feast date: Jul 08 Saints Aquila and Priscilla were a Jewish couple from Rome who had been exiled to Corinth, and were friends of St. Paul in the first century. They hosted St. Paul on his visit to that city and were probably converted by him. They are mentioned a few times […]
Sts. Caius and Soter Feast date: Apr 22 Cauis and Soter, Popes of the early Church, are both venerated in tradition as martyrs, though no reliable account of their martyrdom survives today. St. Soter was born in Fundi, in Italy. The date of his birth is unknown but we know that he was Pope for […]
Sts. Cosmas and Damian Feast date: Sep 26 Saints Cosmas and Damian were twins born to Christian parents in Arabia, in the third century. They lived in the region around the border between modern day Turkey and Syria. They were physicians who were renowned for their skill as well as their refusal to charge for […]
Sts. Cyril and Methodius Feast date: Feb 14 On Feb. 14, the universal Church honors two brothers, Sts. Cyril and Methodius, who are called the “Apostles of the Slavs” for their tireless work in spreading the Gospel throughout Eastern Europe in the ninth century. Such was their influence in Church history, through their evangelization efforts, […]
Sts. Donatian and Rogatian Feast date: May 24 Donatian and Rogatian were brothers who were martyred for their faith in the third century. Donatian was the first to convert to Christianity, becoming an ardent witness to the faith after receiving baptism. His witness was said to be so inspiring that his brother, Rogatian, who had […]
Sts. Elizabeth and Zachariah Feast date: Nov 05 Sts. Elizabeth and Zachariah were the parents of John the Baptist. She was a relative of Mary the Mother of God; no one knows the exact biological relationship between them, but tradition often says that they were cousins. The Gospel of Luke states that though Elizabeth had […]
Sts. Francisco and Jacinta Marto Feast date: Feb 20 Francisco, 11, and Jacinta, 10, are the youngest non-martyrs to be canonized in the history of the Church. The brother and sister, who tended to their families’ sheep with their cousin Lucia Santo in the fields of Fatima, Portugal, witnessed the apparitions of Mary, now commonly […]
Sts. Marcellinus and Peter Feast date: Jun 02 On June 2, the Catholic Church remembers two fourth-century martyrs, Saints Marcellinus and Peter, who were highly venerated after the discovery of their tomb and the conversion of their executioner. Although the biographical details of the two martyrs are largely unknown, it is known that they lived […]
Sts. Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Archangels Feast date: Sep 29 The three Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael are the only angels named in Sacred Scripture and all three have important roles in the history of salvation.Saint Michael is the “Prince of the Heavenly Host,” the leader of all the angels. His name is Hebrew for “Who […]
Feast date: May 12 Nereus and Achilleus were Roman soldiers of the Praetorian Guard (the emperor’s bodyguards) who were martyred at the end of the first century, and were said to have been baptized by St. Peter himself. When they became Christians they gave up their posts which they saw as immoral and were exiled […]
Sts. Perpetua and Felicity and their Companions Feast date: Mar 07 Saints Perpetua and Felicity were martyrs who died for the faith around the year 203. St. Perpetua was a young, well-educated, noblewoman and mother living in the city of Carthage in North Africa. Her mother was a Christian and her father was a pagan. […]
Sts. Peter and Paul Feast date: Jun 29 On June 29 the Church celebrates the feast day of Sts. Peter & Paul. As early as the year 258, there is evidence of an already lengthy tradition of celebrating the solemnities of both Saint Peter and Saint Paul on the same day. Together, the two saints […]
Sts. Philip and James the Less, Apostles Feast date: May 03 Philip was born in Bethsaida in Galilee and was one of the 12 Apostles that Jesus called. Immediately, Philip began to convert others, finding his friend Nathaniel and telling him that Jesus was the one whom Moses and the other prophets had foretold. James […]
Sts. Timothy and Titus Feast date: Jan 26 On Jan. 26, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the liturgical memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, close companions of the Apostle Paul and bishops of the Catholic Church in its earliest days. Both men received letters from St. Paul, which are included in the New Testament. […]
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast date: Aug 15 Today, Catholics and many other Christians celebrate the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This significant feast day recalls the spiritual and physical departure of the mother of Jesus Christ from the earth, when both her soul and her body were […]
The Beheading of John the Baptist Feast date: Aug 29 On this day, the universal Church marks the beheading of John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Jesus. As an adult, he lived as a hermit in the wilderness. After the Spirit inspired him, he went about preaching that the people should repent of their […]
The Epiphany Of Our Lord Feast date: Jan 06 The Epiphany of Our Lord is the Christian feast observed on Jan. 6, 2016. The word “epiphany” comes from the Greek epiphainen, a verb that means “to shine upon,” “to manifest,” or “to make known.” Thus, the feast of the Epiphany celebrates the many ways that […]
The Exaltation of the Holy Cross Feast date: Sep 14 The feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross celebrates two historical events: the discovery of the True Cross by Saint Helena, the mother of the Emperor Constantine, in 320 under the temple of Venus in Jerusalem, and the dedication in 335 of the basilica […]
The First Holy Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church Feast date: Jun 30 These “proto-martyrs” of Rome were the first Christians persecuted en masse by the Emperor Nero in the year 64, before the martyrdom of Saints Peter and Paul. Nero was widely believed to have caused the fire that burned down much of Rome […]
The Guardian Angels Feast date: Oct 02 “For he hath given his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.” – Psalm 90:11 The truth that each and every human soul has a Guardian Angel who protects us from both spiritual and physical evil has been shown throughout the Old Testament, and […]
The Holy House of Loreto Feast date: Dec 10 Since its completion in the 16th century and possibly even earlier, the “Holy House” of Loreto has been numbered among the most famous shrines of Italy. Loreto is a small town a few miles south of Ancona and near the sea. Its most conspicuous building is […]
The Immaculate Heart of Mary Feast date: Jun 20 Just as devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is only a form of devotion to the adorable Person of Jesus, so also is devotion to the Holy Heart of Mary, but a special form of devotion to Mary. In order that, properly speaking, there may be devotion […]
The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Feast date: Jun 19 The heart has always been seen as the “center” or essence a person (“the heart of the matter,” “you are my heart,” “take it to heart,” etc.) and the wellspring of our emotional lives and love (“you break my heart,” “my heart sings,” etc.) Devotion […]
The Nativity of St. John the Baptist Feast date: Jun 24 John the Baptist spent his adult life preparing the way for Jesus, and proclaiming that “the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.”. He was born to Zachary and Elizabeth, an elderly married couple. The Angel Gabriel had visited Zachary and told him that […]
The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Feast date: Sep 08 The Catholic Church celebrates today the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary on its traditional fixed date of September 8, nine months after the December 8 celebration of her Immaculate Conception as the child of Saints Joachim and Anne. The circumstances of the Virgin […]
The Nativity of The Lord – Christmas Feast date: Dec 25 The word for Christmas in late Old English is Cristes Maesse, the Mass of Christ, first found in 1038, and Cristes-messe, in 1131; in Latin Dies Natalis. Early Celebration Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the Church. Sts. Irenaeus and Tertullian omit […]
The North American Martyrs Feast date: Oct 19 Also known as Canadian Martyrs; Isaac Jogues and Companions; Jesuit Martyrs of North America; Martyrs of New France.Memorial: 19 October; 26 September (Canada) The eight North American martyrs, also known as the Candian Martyrs, the Jesuit Martyrs of North America or the Martyrs of France, included six […]
The Transfiguration Feast date: Aug 06 Both Roman and Eastern rite Catholics celebrate the Church’s feast of the Transfiguration today, August 6, on its traditional date for both calendars. The feast commemorates one of the pinnacles of Jesus’ earthly life, when he revealed his divinity to three of his closest disciples by means of a […]
Vigil of Christmas Feast date: Dec 24 In the first ages, during the night before every feast, a vigil was kept. In the evening the faithful assembled in the place or church where the feast was to be celebrated and prepared themselves by prayers, readings from Holy Writ (now the Offices of Vespers and Matins), […]