St. Botulph was born circa 610 in East Anglia (which is a part of present-day England). He became a Benedictine monk in what is present-day France and then established the Benedictine Order in the British Isles in 647. He founded the Ikanhoe monastery in East Anglia. The area around the monastery required the religious men...Read More

Ss. Mark and Marcellian were twin brothers and deacons who lived in the third century. The two men were arrested because they would not make sacrifices to the Roman gods. Although they converted their captors and escaped, the deacons were recaptured soon afterwards. They died for their faith in Rome.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. 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

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