Taken from http://www.SAINTS.SQPN.com
Fourth child of the Anglo-Scottish nobleman William Stewart Ferrer and his Spanish wife, Constantia Miguel; his father is reported to have had a dream in which he was told that Vincent would be a world famous Dominican friar. The boy joined the Dominicans in 1367. Received his doctorate of theology from the University of Lleida. Priest. Missionary. Taught theology. Adviser to the King of Aragon. During a severe fever in 1398, Vincent had a vision of Christ, Saint Dominic de Guzman and Saint Francis of Assisi. It was a life changing experience – Vincent received supernatural gifts and believed that he was a messenger of penance, an “angel of the apocalypse” sent to prepare humankind for the Judgement of Christ. Great preacher who converted thousands in Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, England, Scotland, and Ireland. Invited to preach in Muslim Granada. Counselor to Pope Benedict XIII. Travelled through Spain, France, Switzerland, and Italy, working to end the Western Schism. Slept on the floor, had the gift of tongues (he spoke only Spanish, but all listeners understood him), lived in an endless fast, celebrated Mass daily, and known as a miracle worker; reported to have brought a murdered man back to life to prove the power of Christianity to the onlookers, and he would heal people thoughout a hospital just by praying in front of it. He worked so hard to build up the Church that he became the patron of people in building trades. Taken from http://www.SAINTS.SQPN.com
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_Joined the Franciscans at Voghera, Italy as a young man, but developed severe health problems and returned to his family. Studied under Saint John Bosco at Turin, Italy, was present at Saint John‘s death, and was cured of his illness during Saint John‘s funeral.Studied at the seminary in Tortona, Italy. While still a layman and student, he opened San Luigi House at San Bernardino in 1893, a home for the poor, homeless and abandoned. Ordained on 13 April 1895. _Founded the Hermits of Divine Providence congregation, the Ladies of Divine Providence, and an orphanage in Rome, Italy in 1899. Under the patronage of Pope Saint Pius X, he founded the Little Missionaries of Charity. Constructed the Marian shrine at Tortona, a site that became a rallying point for people during times of political unrest. To administer the houses of his congregations, Luigi travelled the world, visiting houses in Wales, Brazil, the United States, and throughout Italy.
Taken from http://SAINTS.SQPN.COM _Daughter of the extremely wealthy railroad entrepreneurs and philanthropists Francis Anthony and Emma (Bouvier) Drexel. She was taught from an early age to use her wealth for the benefit of others; her parents even opened their home to the poor several days each week. Katharine’s older sister Elizabeth founded a Pennsylvania trade school for orphans; her younger sister founded a liberal arts and vocational school for poor blacks in Virginia. Katharine nursed her mother through a fatal three-year illness before setting out on her own; Emma died in 1883. _Saint Angela Merici was born at Desenzano del Garda, a small town on the southwestern shore of Lake Garda in Lombardy. She and her older sister, who she dearly loved, Giana Maria , were left orphans when she was about ten years old. Together they came to live with their uncle in the town of Salo. Young Angela was very distressed when her sister suddenly died without receiving the last sacraments. She joined the Third Order of St Francis, and increased her prayers to God so her sister’s soul could rest in peace. Legend says that she was satisfied by a vision of her sister in the company of the saints in Heaven. People admired Saint Angela because of her hair, she promised herself to God and did not want to be admired so she dyed her hair in soot and water. GELTRUDE COMENSOLI was born in Bienno in Val Camonica, Brescia, on January 18, 1847, the fifth of ten children. On the same day of her birth, her parents, Carlo and Anna Maria Milesi, took her to the parish Church to be baptized and she was given the name of Caterina. During her childhood, Caterina experienced the joys of innocence and light-heartedness typical of that age. However, the Lord instilled within her the necessity of being intimately united to Him: she was often drawn by a strong desire to pray and meditate deeply. To those who asked her what she was doing she would answer: “I am thinking”.At the age of seven, unable to resist any longer the pressing invitation of Jesus, one day, in the very early morning, she wrapped herself in her mother’s black shawl and went to the nearby Saint Mary’s Church. Standing at the balustrade, she secretely made her First Communion. Caterina experienced a “heavenly” feeling and swore eternal love to Jesus. The child became more serious, meditative and more absorbed in the thought of Jesus present in the Eucharist who, she realized, was often left alone for many days. While still young, she became an Apostle of the Eucharist: she would have liked to take Jesus present in the Holy Sacrament onto the top of a high mountain so that everyone could see and adore Him. October 22, 2011. (Romereports.com) Guido Maria Conforti wanted to be a missionary but at first, this wasn't possible because he suffered from sleepwalking and epilepsy. However, he would not give up and in 1895 he founded the congregation Xaverian missionaries, dedicated to preparing missionaries. Gerardo Caglione Xaverian missionaries "His thought was this: I can not go on missions, but I can prepare and send others to proclaim the Gospel.” At that time, the pope assigned the congregation the task of evangelizing in China, the country Saint Francis Xavier dreamed of reaching. Today, the community of Xaverian Missionaries is made up of about 800 people with locations in 20 countries. October 21, 2011. (Romereports.com) The Spanish nun Bonifacia Rodriguez will be remembered for her fight to help poor women to learn a trade. Before becoming a nun, she was actually a rope maker. She went on to found her own religious order known as the Servants of St. Joseph, right in the local shop where she worked. It was in 1874, in the midst of the industrial revolution. From that moment, she and the Jesuit Francisco Butinyà devoted themselves to helping poor women to make a decent living and discover their faith in everyday life. The new order allowed the nuns to dress like the artisans of the country. There was no dowry asked of them to enter the convent, where they would work side by side with lay people. It was a project that did not please everyone. St. Luigi Guanella October 21, 2011. (Romereports.com) Italian Luigi Guanella was a champion for the defense of life. Born in 1842, he founded two congregations dedicated to serving those who were disabled and abandoned by their families. Behind every person he would see a gift from God, which he said, has value in itself. He defended the dignity of the elderly, sick, and the mentally and physically disabled, who were abandoned or badly treated by their families. Pino Beneditos San Giuseppe Rehabilitation Center (Italy) “One day, the bishop of Como showed up because he had to speak with him about their activities, their charitable projects, and Don Guanella was with the mentally disabled, with his 'good kids'. He was playing cards with them and to make them happy he finished the game, but had to leave the bishop in the waiting room.” |
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