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Community Founders
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St Alphonsus Ligouri - August 1st
Founder: Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists)
Born: September 27, 1696 at Naples, Italy
Died: August 1, 1787 at Naples, Italy
Canonized: May 26, 1839
Bio: Prodigious author of moral theology, letters, homilies, etc.; Ostensibly a lawyer, left the profession behind after disillusionment and hearing the words of Our Lord, "Leave the world, and give yourself to Me"
Patron: Confessors, arthritis sufferers, lawyers, moralists, vocations
Quotes from St. Alphonsus Liguori
"He who trusts himself is lost. He who trusts in God can do all things."
"The past is no longer yours; the future is not yet in your power. You have only the present wherein to do good."
"Your God is ever beside you - indeed, He is even within you."
"There is nothing more pleasing to God, than to see a soul who patiently and serenely bears whatever crosses it is sent."
St Angela Merici - January 27th
Founder: Ursulines
Born: March 21, 1474 at Brescia, Italy
Died: January 27, 1540 at Brescia, Italy
Canonized: May 24, 1807
Reason: Founded the Company of St. Ursula, dedicated to the education of girls, which led to the foundation of the Ursuline Order
Patron: Sickness, the handicapped, loss of parents, courage, strength, and determination
St Anthony the Great - January 17th
Founder: Monastics
Born: January 12, AD 251 at Herakleopolis, Egypt
Died: January 17, AD 356 at Mt. Colzim, Egypt
Canonized: October 17, 2010
Title: "The Father of Monasticism"
Bio: Biography was written by St. Athanasius, spreading the vocation throughout the West; the first ascetic to reside in the desert; Attacked regularly by the Devil with temptations overcome by prayer; organized community
Patron: Animals, skin diseases, farmers, butchers, gravediggers
Quotes from St Anthony the Great"A time is coming when men will go mad, and when they see someone who is not mad, they will attack him, saying, 'You are mad; you are not like us.'"
"To say that God turns away from the sinful is like saying that the sun hides from the blind."
"I saw the snares that the enemy spreads out over the world and I groaned, 'What can get through from such snares?' Then I heard a voice saying to me, 'Humility.'"
St Anthony Mary Claret - October 24th
Founder: Claretians
Born: December 23, 1807 at Barcelona, Spain
Died: October 24, 1870 at Fontfroide, France
Canonized: May 7, 1950
Bio: Confessor of Queen Isabella II of Spain; An exceptional preacher; Taught the poor the necessitiy of saving money; Wrote 144 books
Patron: Textile merchants, weavers, Catholic press
St Benedict - July 11th
Founder: Benedictines
Born: March 2, 480 at Norcia, Italy
Died: March 27, 547 at Monte Cassino, Italy
Canonized: c. 1220
Title: "Protector of Europe"
Bio: Founder of the Benedictine Order, exorcist, published "The Rule of Benedict" for monastic living, mystic; Twin of Saint Scholastica.
Patron: Farmers, kidney disease, contra witchcraft, contra poison, contra temptations
Quotes from Saint Benedict
"The first step of humility is unhesitating obedience which comes naturally to those who cherish Christ above all."
"Idleness is the enemy of the soul.""Prayer ought to be short and pure, unless it be prolonged by the inspiration of Divine grace."
St Bruno of Cologne - October 6th
Founder: Carthusians
Born: c. 1030 at Cologne, Germany
Died: October 6, 1101 at Serra San Bruno, Italy
Canonized: February 17, 1623
Bio: Personally founded the first two communities of the Carthusian Order; A highly esteemed educator, he remained a close advisor to Pope Urban II, a former student of his; Refused appointment to the office of bishop and instead withdrew to the monastic life; Because Carthusians embrace a strict charism of humility, St Bruno wasn't formally
canonized, but was unilaterally entered into the
Roman Calendar by Pope Gregory XV.
Patron: Germany, Calabria, possessed people
Blessed Columba Marmion - October 3rd
Founder: Congregation of the Annunciation
Born: April 1, 1858 at Dublin, Ireland
Died: January 30, 1923 at Maredsous Abbey, Belgium
Beatified: September 3, 2000
Bio: Influential Catholic author; tremendous gift of teaching.
Quote: "He bequeathed to us an authentic treasury of spiritual teaching for the Church of our time. In his writings he teaches a way of holiness, simple and yet demanding, for all the faithful, whom God, through love, has destined to be his adopted children in Christ Jesus." - Pope John Paul II at the occasion of his beatification.
St Camillus de Lellis - July 14th
Founder: Ministers of the Infirm (Camillians)
Born: May 25, 1550 at Naples, Italy
Died: July 14, 1614 at Rome, Italy
Canonized: 1746
Bio: The Camillian religious order is dedicated to the sick. In the past they focused on victims of the Bubonic Plague
Quote: "Why are you afraid? Do you not realize that this is not your work but mine?" - Our Lord to St. Camillus
Patron: The sick, hospitals, nurses, physicians;
help of gambling addicts.
St Dominic - August 8th
Founder: Dominicans
Born: August 8, 1170 at Caleruega, Spain
Died: August 6, 1221 at Bologna, Italy
Canonized: July 13, 1234
Title: "Dog of the Lord" (Latin: Domini (Lord), canis (dog) = "Dominicanis")
Bio: Spread devotion of the Rosary at the behest of the Blessed Mother to help combating heresy (Albigensianism); founded the Dominican Order.
Patron: Astronomers, Dominican Republic
St Elizabeth Ann Seton - January 4th
Founder: Sisters of Charity
Born: August 28, 1774 at New York City
Died: January 4, 1821 at Emmitsburg, Maryland
Canonized: September 14, 1975
Title: "Mother Seton"
Bio: Converted to Catholicism after death of husband; founded first free Catholic School -- St. Joseph's Academy (girls) -- the beginining of the parochial school system; founded Sisters of Charity to care for poor children and educate them
Patron: Catholic schools, seafareres, widows
St Francis of Assisi - October 4th
Founder: Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans)
Born: c. 1181 at Assisi, Italy
Died: October 3, 1226 at Assisi, Italy
Canonized: July 16, 1228
Bio: Mystic; First stigmatist since St. Paul; Devoted to the Eucharist; Founded the Order of Friars; Invented the "Nativity Scene"; Attempted diplomacy with Sultan of Egypt to end Crusades; Traditionally linked with humane care for animals;
Patron: Animals, merchants, ecology
Quotes by St. Francis of Assisi
Many words of wisdom have been attributed to St. Francis, but unfortunately, many of them never came from his lips, or the quill in his hand. This includes all variations of "... if necessary, use words," and "make me an instrument of your peace." These sayings reflect his spirituality, but they are not things he actually said. The following are authentic quotes from his writings and letters:
"Where there is charity and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance."
"For we ought not to have more use and esteem of money and coin than of stones. And the devil seeks to blind those who desire or value it more than stones. Let us therefore take care lest after having left all things we lose the kingdom of heaven for such a trifle."
"All those men and women … who in their body serve the world through the desires of the flesh, the concerns of the world and the cares of this life: They are held captive by the devil, whose children they are, and whose works they do."
"We must not be wise and prudent according to the flesh, but, instead, we must be simple, humble and pure."
St Francis Xavier - December 3rd
Co-Founder: Society of Jesus (Jesuits), with St. Peter Faber and St. Ignatius of Loyola
Born: April 7, 1506 at Javier, Spain
Died: December 3, 1552 at Jiangmen, China
Canonized: March 12, 1622
Title: "Apostle of Japan"
Bio: First Christian missionary in Japan; one of the greatest missionaries since St. Paul; Pope Pius XI named him and the Little Flower co-patrons of all foreign missions.
Patron: Diocese of Joliet, parish missions, plague epidemics
St Ignatius of Loyola - July 31st
Co-Founder: Society of Jesus (Jesuits), with St. Peter Faber and St. Francis Xavier
Born: October 23, 1491 at Loyola, Castille (Spain)
Died: July 31, 1556 at Rome, Italy
Canonized: March 12, 1622
Bio: Mystic; Legendary spiritual director whose method of discovering God's will (The Spiritual Exercises) is used around the world today; Ostensibly a soldier, he was a "servant of the court" to the Duke of Najèra; Experienced while laid up recovering from surgery to his leg, shattered in war.
Quotes from St. Ignatius of Loyola
"Pray as if God will take care of all; act as if all is up to you."
"For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who disbelieve, no amount of proof is sufficient."
"He who carries God in his heart bears Heaven with him wherever he goes."
"He who goes about to reform the world must begin with himself, or he loses his labor."
St Jerome (Gerolamo) Emiliani - February 8th
Founder: Somascan (Somaschi) Fathers
Born: 1486 at Venice, Italy
Died: February 8, 1537 at Somasca, Italy
Canonized: 1767
Bio: Humanitarian; Cared for orphans during plague and famine of 1528; Cared for the sick and fed them at his own expense; Built orphanages in Brescia, Bergamo, and Milan; Founded the Congregation of Regular Clerics (Somascan Fathers) at Somasca; Contacted and died of the Plague while tending the sick in 1537.
Patron: Orphans, abandoned children
St John Bosco - January 31st
Founder: Society of Francis de Sales (Salesians)
Born: August 16, 1815 at Piedmont, Italy
Died: January 31, 1888 at Turin, Italy
Canonized: April 1, 1934
Title: "Father and Teacher of Youth"
Bio: Dedicated life to education of street children & juvenile delinquents; prodigious author; prophetic vision of "The Two Columns" (see below)
Patron: Schoolchildren, magicians, juvenile delinquents, editors, publishers
St. John Bosco's Vision of the Two Columns (abridged)
"This stately vessel is shielded by a flotilla escort. Winds and waves are with the enemy. In this midst of this endless sea, two solid columns, a short distance apart, soar high into the sky: one is surmounted by a statue of the Immaculate Virgin at whose feet a large inscription reads: Help of Christians; the other, far loftier and sturdier, supports a [Communion] Host of proportionate size and bears beneath it the inscription Salvation of believers.
"The flagship commander - the Roman Pontiff [the Pope]- seeing the enemy's fury and his auxiliary ships very grave predicament, summons his captains to a conference. However, as they discuss their strategy, a furious storm breaks out and they must return to their ships. When the storm abates, the Pope again summons his captains as the flagship keeps on its course. But the storm rages again. Standing at the helm, the Pope strains every muscle to steer his ship between the two columns from whose summits hang many anchors and strong hooks linked to chains.
Suddenly the Pope falls, seriously wounded. He is instantly helped up but, struck down a second time, dies. A shout of victory rises from the enemy and wild rejoicing sweeps their ships. But no sooner is the Pope dead than another takes his place. The captains of the auxiliary ships elected him so quickly that the news of the Pope's death coincides with that of his successor's election. The enemy's self-assurance wanes.
"Breaking through all resistance, the new Pope steers his ship safely between the two columns and moors it to the two columns; first to the one surmounted by the Host, and then to the other, topped by the statue of the Virgin. At this point something unexpected happens. The enemy ships panic and disperse, colliding with and scuttling each other.
"Very grave trials await the Church. What we have suffered so far is almost nothing compared to what is going to happen. The enemies of the Church are symbolized by the ships which strive their utmost to sink the flagship. Only two things can save us in such a grave hour: devotion to Mary and frequent Communion. Let us do our very best to use these two means and have others use them everywhere."
St John of God - March 8th
Founder: Hospitallers
Born: March 8, 1495 at Evora, Portugal
Died: March 8, 1550 at Granada, Spain
Canonized: October 16, 1690
Bio: Another soldier-turned-saint; Became involved in health care, and developed a following who eventually formed the Brothers Hospitallers of St. John of God, specializing in care of the mentally ill and the poor.
Patron: Booksellers, Nurses, the Mentally Ill
St John of Matha - December 17th
Founder: Trinitarians
Born: June 23, 1160 at Faucon-de-Barcelonnette, France
Died: December 17, 1213 at Rome, Italy
Canonized: October 21, 1666
Bio: Founded the Trinitarians to go to the slave markets, buy the Christian slaves and set them free in the name of the Holy Trinity. Their fund-raising efforts were entrusted to the Blessed Mother. In thanksgiving, St. John honored Mary with the title of "Our Lady of Good Remedy."
St John Eudes - August 19th
Founder: Congregation of Jesus and Mary (Eudists)
Born: November 14, 1601 at Normandy, France
Died: August 19, 1680 at Normandy, France
Canonized: May 31, 1925
Bio: Early proponent of the Sacred Heart; Conducted months-long missions across France, earning much popular acclaim for his evangelization; Founded Eudists with support of Cardinal Richelieu; Supporters continue to lobby for Saint John to be named a Doctor of the Church.
Patron: Missionaries
St Josemaría Escrivá - June 26th
Founder: Opus Dei
Born: January 9, 1902 at Aragon, Spain
Died: June 26 1975 at Rome, Italy
Canonized: October 6, 2002
Bio: Founded organization of laypeople and priests dedicated to the teaching that everyone is called to holiness by God and that ordinary life can result in sanctity; referred to at canonization by Pope St. John Paul II as "counted among the great witnesses of Christianity."
Quotes from St. Josemaría Escrivá
"Understand this well: there is something holy, something divine hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each one of you to discover it."
"To begin is for everyone. To persevere is for saints."
"You need a heart which is in love, not an easy life, to achieve happiness."
" Compromise is a word found only in the vocabulary of those who have no will to fight."
St Katharine Drexel - March 3rd
Founder: Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament
Born: November 26, 1858 at Philadephia, PA
Died: March 3, 1955 at Bensalem, PA
Canonized: October 1, 2000
Bio: Heiress to Drexel investment fortune, gave up $7 million to become a nun; helped found Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament; a voice for social inequality for minorities; founded 50 schools for Black Americans, 12 for Native Americans;
Patron: Philanthropy, racial justice
"If we wish to serve God and love our neighbor well, we must manifest our joy in the service we render to Him and them. Let us open wide our hearts. It is joy which invites us. Press forward and fear nothing."
"Christ wishes the Christian Community to be a body that is perfect because we work together towards a single end... Now the end in question is supremely exalted: the continuous sanctification of the Body for the glory of God and the Lamb that was slain [Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament]."
St Madeleine Sophie Barat - May 25th
Founder: Society of the Sacred Heart
Born: December 12, 1779 at Champagne, France
Died: May 25, 1865 in Paris, France
Canonized: May 24, 1925
Bio: Opened numeorus schools throughout France, growing to over 3,500 female educators in Europe, North Africa, and the Americas
Quote: "Let us leave acts, not words; no one will have time to read us."
Patron: School girls.
St Martin of Tours - November 11th
Founder: Canons Regular of the Lateran
Born: AD 316 at Savaria, Hungary
Died: November 8, AD 397 at Candes, France
Canonized: Pre-Congregation
Bio: Disciple of St. Hilary of Poitiers; Formed community at Legugés; Former soldier; Made bishop of Tours in AD 371; Famous account of using his military sword to divide his cloak, and giving half to a beggar clad only in rags in freezing cold.
Patron: Poverty, alcoholism, beggars, equestrians
The Cloak and the Origin of Christian Lexicon
St. Martin's cloak was a venerated relic in the Middle Ages. Kings took it with them into battle. The word for a "small cloak" is capella in Latin. The capella of St. Martin was kept in a reliquary monitored by a priest called a cappelanu. The cappelanu, translated to French, became chapelains, in English, "chaplains". The relic, when it traveled, was housed in small, temporary churches called by the word for the cloak - capellas. In English, we call them "chapels".
St Mary of the Cross MacKillop - August 8th
Founder: Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart
Born: January 15, 1842 at Fitzroy, Australia
Died: August 8, 1909 at North Sydney, Australia
Canonized: October 17, 2010
Title: "Patron of Australia"
Bio: Wrongly excommunicated in the midst of Archdiocesan politicking; restored by her bishop on his deathbed; Heroic obedience and humility
Patron: Australia, Knights of the Southern Cross
Blessed Michael McGivney - August 13th
Founder: Knights of Columbus
Born: August 12, 1852 at Waterbury, CT
Died: August 14, 1890 at Thomaston, CT
Beatified: October 31, 2020
Bio: Founded the Knights of Columbus, the world's largest fraternal organization, at a local parish in New Haven, Connecticut; Ostensibly, the KofC served immigrant families and offered mutual aid and burial insurance to them; Father Michael died of pneumonia at age 38, but the KofC has grown to over 2 million members as of 2020.
St Paul of the Cross - October 19th
Founder: Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ (Passionists)
Born: January 3 1694 at Piedmont, Italy
Died: October 18, 1775 at Rome, Italy
Canonized: June 29, 1867
Bio: Ostesibly a soldier, left military after joining crusade against Turks threatening Venice; Founded Passionists after several prayer experiences in which he discerned he was to form a community who would live an evangelical life and promote the love of God revealed in the Passion of Jesus.
St Peter Julian Eymard - August 2nd
Founder: Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament (Eymardists)
Born: February 4, 1811 at Grenoble, France
Died: August 1, 1868 at Grenoble, France
Canonized: December 9, 1962
Title: "Apostle of the Eucharist"
Bio: Spent much of his priesthood spreading devotion to Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament outside of Mass throughout France; Tireless promoter of frequent Holy Communion; Suffered from weak lungs, and frequently from migraines;
Quote: "You take Communion to become holy, not because you already are."
St Peter Nolasco - May 6th
Founder: Mercedarians
Born: AD 1189 at Languedoc, France
Died: May 6, 1256 at Valencia, Spain
Canonized: AD 1628
Bio: Founded order to help relieve the plight of Christians captured from Spain during Moorish raid; Began ransoming Christians in 1203; Working with St. Raymond of Penyafort, he became the first "Ransomer" of the new Mercedarian Order. Peter Nolasco never became a priest.
Did Y0u Know?: The word "mercenary" is derivative of "Mercedarians".
St Philip Neri - May 26th
Founder: Congregation of the Oratory
Born: July 22, 1515 at Florence, Italy
Died: May 26, 1595 at Rome, Italy
Title: "The Second Apostle of Rome"
Bio: Initiated devotion of Forty Hours of Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament; famously humorous, he valued the importance of a cheerful heart in the spiritual life.
Quotes: "Let me get through today, and I shall not fear tomorrow."
Patron: U.S. Special Forces, humor, joy
St Robert of Molesme - January 26th
Founder: Cistercians
Born: AD 1028 at Champagne, France
Died: April 17, 1111 at Molesme, France
Canonized: A.D. 1222
Bio: Began new order at city of Citeaux, France, following disillusionment with Benedictine order which largely abandoned the Rule of Benedict; Was helped greatly by St. Alberic and St. Stephen Harding, in founding the Cistercian Order
St Scholastica - February 10th
Founder: Benedictine Nuns
Born: AD 480 at Nursia, Italy
Died: Febraury 10, 543 at Monte Cassino, Italy
Canonized: Pre-Congregation
Bio: Dedicated to God at an early age; Established first convent of Benedictine nuns at a location near Monte Cassino, Italy; What we know of her came from the Dialogues of Pope St. Gregory the Great
Patron: Benedictine nuns, education, convulsive children, reading; Invoked against storms and rain.
St Teresa of Calcutta - September 5th
Founder: Missionaries of Charity
Born: August 26, 1910 at Skopje, North Macedonia
Died: September 5, 1997 at Calcutta, India
Claim to Fame: Heroic virtue; Began Sisters of Charity; Became the face of serving Christ in the poorest of the poor; Defended dignity of unborn before world leaders.
Controversy: Accused of promoting poverty by opposing abortion and contraception.
Path: Canonized on June 16, 2002
Patron: World Youth Day
Quote: “God doesn’t require us to succeed, he only requires that you try. ”
St. Teresa on Abortion
" But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even His life to love us. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts."
St Vincent DePaul - September 27th
Founder: Vincentian Order of Priests
Born: April 24, 1581 at Gascony, France
Died: September 23, 1660 at Paris, France
Canonized: June 16, 1737
Claim to Fame: Dedicated to serving poor; made retreats a mainstay of Catholic clerical formation;
Did You Know? His eponymous charity was founded as the "Conference of Charity" at Collège de Lyon in France in 1833 by Blessed Antoine-Frédérick Ozanam, and later renamed "The Society of St. Vincent DePaul."
Patron: Politicians, Economists, Social Workers
The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP or SVdP or SSVP) is an international voluntary organization in the Catholic Church, founded in 1844 for the sanctification of its members by personal service of the poor.
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