Today’s Saint

Catholic Apostolate Center – Patron Saint of Ireland – St. Patrick was a 5th century missionary to the people of Ireland. According to his autobiography, St. Patrick was captured and sold as a slave in Ireland when he was 16. There, he was forced to work as a shepherd for 6 years until he escaped and returned to his family. Later in his life, he became a priest and heard the Lord’s call to return to Ireland and spread the Gospel. There are many stories about St. Patrick’s life, and while their historicity is uncertain, they all show St. Patrick as a fervent missionary for the Irish people.

By The Dynamic Catholic Institute – There are lots of ways to measure friendship, but one is particularly insightful. It surrounds how people respond when good things happen for you… A true friend is happy for you when you are successful, a true friend is happy for you when you fall in love, a true friend is happy for you when you get a promotion, win a car, go on a fabulous vacation, and all the other good things that will happen in your life.

By The Dynamic Catholic Institute – We all need to be accountable to someone. It brings out the best in us. People do not do well in situations where they are not accountable to anyone or anything. In fact, the absence of accountability inevitably leads to our spinning out of control… As the Church expanded and entire nations in Europe became Catholic, there was a major need for accountability. …

The Dynamic Catholic Institute – Saint Euphrasia was born into the loud world of royalty and politics in Constantinople, but learned to live and love the quiet life no matter what her outer circumstances were. Her father died when she was young, and when she was seven years old, her mother arranged to marry her to a young nobleman. Euphrasia serenely said no, and expressed her desire to devote her life to God. Euphrasia’s calm demeanor was so convincing that her mother agreed, and brought her to a convent in Egypt.

By Catholic Apostolate Center – St. Agatha was a Christian virgin and martyr. Along with our Blessed Mother, St. Agatha is one of seven women commemorated by name in the Roman Canon of the Mass. Agatha dedicated her life to God at an early age, but was sought out by many men. One of these men became angry with Agatha. He imprisoned Agatha in a brothel. During her time in the brothel, Agatha was assaulted, which led to many injuries. In time, she was miraculously healed by God from all of her injuries. The man who imprisoned Agatha ignored her miraculous healing and had Agatha rolled over hot coals. She survived this torture and returned to prison. Agatha died in the year 251. She is a patron saint of breast cancer patients.

Source: Catholic Apostolate Center – St. Blaise, Patron Saint of Throat Illnesses – St. Blaise was Bishop of Sebaste, modern day Turkey, in the beginning of the 4th century before his martyrdom in 316. He was a physician who was known for his miraculous healings, particularly healings involving the throat. This lead to the tradition of blessing throats on his feast day. He is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, being invoked against throat illnesses. “Through the intercession of St. Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other illness, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

The Catholic Apostolate Center – The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord takes place forty days after Jesus’ birth, when Mary and Joseph take their newborn son to the Temple. There, they encounter Simeon and Anna. Simeon prophesied the redemptive mission of Jesus when he says, “For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight for all your people.” Luke 2:30-31. …

Catholic Apostolate Center – Throughout his life, St. John Bosco was dedicated to vocational education and publishing. Today, his intercession is sought as the patron of young apprentices and Catholic publishers. Inspired by Saint Francis de Sales, he and his followers informally banded together, and founded the Salesian religious order, which is among the largest and most influential communities in the Catholic Church. John Bosco and the Salesians developed a theory of education based on love and support, rather than punishment. “Young people should not only be loved but that they themselves should know that they are loved.” -St. John Bosco

Franciscan Media, January 30 – Today we honor a woman who submitted to God’s will throughout her life—a life filled with pain and suffering… Born in 1825 in central Poland and baptized Sophia, Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska contracted tuberculosis as a young girl. The forced period of convalescence gave her ample time for reflection. Sophia felt called to serve God by working with the poor, including street children and the elderly homeless in Warsaw’s slums. In time, her cousin joined her in the work.

By Franciscan Media – By Franciscan Media – Though Saint Adrian turned down a papal request to become Archbishop of Canterbury, England, Pope Saint Vitalian accepted the rejection on the condition that Adrian serve as the Holy Father’s assistant and adviser. Adrian accepted, but ended up spending most of his life and doing most of his work in Canterbury.

Franciscan Media – Some saints show marks of holiness very early. Not Angela! Born of a leading family in Foligno, Italy, she became immersed in the quest for wealth and social position. As a wife and mother, she continued this life of distraction.

Franciscan Media – Since Raymond lived into his hundredth year, he had a chance to do many things. As a member of the Spanish nobility, he had the resources and the education to get a good start in life… By the time he was 20, he was teaching philosophy. In his early 30s he earned a doctorate in both canon and civil law. At 41 he became a Dominican…

By Franciscan Media – Brother André expressed a saint’s faith by a lifelong devotion to Saint Joseph… Sickness and weakness dogged André from birth. He was the eighth of 12 children born to a French Canadian couple near Montreal. Adopted at 12, when both parents had died, he became a farmhand. Various trades followed: shoemaker, baker, blacksmith—all failures. He was a factory worker in the United States during the boom times of the Civil War.

By Franciscan Media, January 5 – Perhaps because the United States got a later start in the history of the world, it has relatively few canonized saints, but their number is increasing… Saint John Neumann was born in what is now the Czech Republic. After studying in Prague, he came to New York at 25 and was ordained a priest. He did missionary work in New York until he was 29, when he joined the Redemptorists and became its first member to profess vows in the United States. …