St. Romuald was born to a noble family in Ravenna, Italy, circa 951. After seeing his father kill a man in a duel, he became a Benedictine monk in Classe, Italy. From 996 to 999 he served as abbot. St. Romuald traveled and started monasteries throughout Italy. He also founded the Camaldolese Benedictines and was...Read More
St. Silverio was born in what is now Italy in 480. His father, Pope Hormisdas, only entered the religious life after having a family. St. Silverio became pope on June 8, 536. However, he was caught in the middle of political troubles and was kidnapped, falsely convicted of treason and then exiled to Ponza, Italy....Read More
St. Thomas More was born in London in 1478. A lawyer, he eventually became the Lord Chancellor of England, which was the most powerful position in England after the king. In addition to working with King Henry VIII, he was also friends with the king. However, the friendship ended when the king demanded a divorce....Read More
St. John the Baptist’s birth was announced by a heavenly messenger. The Angel Gabriel told St. John the Baptist’s father that his wife, Elizabeth the relative of the Virgin Mary, would have a child despite her old age. St. John the Baptist lived as a hermit until around the year 27. He began to preach...Read More
St. William of Vercelli was born to a noble family in 1085 in Vercelli, Italy. After making a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, when he was 14, he decided to devote his life to God. He attracted many followers while living as a hermit in Monte Vergine. He formed the Hermits of Monte Vergine...Read More
St. Cyril was born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 376. This monk and priest became bishop of Alexandria in 412 and later became patriarch of the city. He worked at the Council of Ephesus to fight the heretic Nestorius who said that within Christ there were two persons. St. Cyril also wrote a book against Julian...Read More
St. Irenaeus of Lyons was born circa 130 in Asia Minor. This disciple of St. Polycarp of Smyrna became a priest in 177 and later became bishop of Lyons. He wrote against Gnosticism and was a great Western ecclesiastical writer. A father of the church, he emphasized the fact that Christ had a divine and...Read More
Ss. Peter and Paul are early leaders of the church. St. Peter, born with the name Simon, was a fisherman and an Apostle of Christ. Jesus named him Peter, which means rock, because Peter would be the foundation or “rock” of the church. St. Peter was a miracle worker who became the first pope. He...Read More
Blessed Junipero Serra was born in 1713 in Spanish Majorca. He joined the Franciscans when he was 17 and was ordained in 1737. He became a missionary in western North America in 1749. He took over missions in Mexican provinces in 1768. Blessed Junipero Serra is credited with spreading the faith on the West Coast...Read More
Ss. Processus and Martinian worked as guards at a prison in Rome. They guarded Ss. Peter and Paul, Apostles, while they were in prison in Rome. Ss. Peter and Paul converted and baptized Ss. Processus and Martinian. The newly converted Christians were martyred in Rome. Ss. Processus and Martinian are mentioned in the Martyrologium Hieronymianum,...Read More
St. Thomas, also known as Doubting Thomas, was an Apostle. He doubted that Christ was truly resurrected until he was able to touch Christ’s wounds. The saint preached in Persia and India. He helped start the church in various places by forming many parishes and building churches as he traveled. He was killed in India...Read More
St. Elizabeth of Portugal, a princess, was born in 1271 in Aragon, Spain. She was the daughter of King Pedro III of Aragon and the great-niece of St. Elizabeth of Hungary. She received excellent religious instruction as a child and married the king of Portugal when she was 12. In 1323 her husband and her...Read More