Day

January 19, 2012

St. Bertilla

St. Bertilla Boscardin was born on Oct. 6, 1888, in Brendola, Italy. After working as a house servant when she was a young girl, she joined the Sisters of St. Dorothy, Daughters of the Sacred Heart in 1904. She began training as a nurse in 1907 and was later assigned to the hospital in Treviso....
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St. Wendelin

St. Wendelin was born in Scotland in 554. Although he was born a prince, he gave up his royal life in order to devote his life to God. The saint traveled to Rome in 574 and had an audience with Pope Benedict I. The pontiff advised Wendelin to follow his wish to live a life...
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St. Germanus

St. Germanus, a friend of St. Benedict, was the bishop of Capua. As the papal legate to Constantinople, he worked to heal the Acacian schism. However, the schismatics did not treat him well and no progress was made. St. Germanus died circa 545 of natural causes.
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St. Martin de Porres

St. Martin de Porres was born Dec. 9, 1579, in Lima, Peru. He became a servant in a Dominican priory in Lima when he was just 11. When he served as the almoner (one who distributes alms), he begged from the rich to help the ill and poor in the city. He also cared for...
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St. Charles Borromeo

St. Charles Borromeo was born to a noble family Oct. 2, 1538, in Italy. He joined the religious life Oct. 13, 1547. He became a civil and canon lawyer when he was 21 years old. At age 22, he was made a cardinal in 1560. He served the church in a number of ways, including...
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St. Domninus

St. Domninus (a doctor) was martyred along with Philotheus, Sylvanus (a Syrian bishop), and Theotimus. The condemned men were forced to work in mines before they were executed.
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St. Josaphat

St. Josaphat was born in 1580 at Volodymyr, Lithuania. A merchant’s apprentice, he was offered partnership in the business and a chance to marry the partner’s daughter. However, Josaphat declined both offers because he was called to religious life. He joined the Ukrainian Order of St. Basil (Basilians) in 1604, at which time he took...
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St. Margaret of Scotland

St. Margaret of Scotland was born in Hungary circa 1045.The granddaughter of an English king, Margaret, along with her family, was exiled during an invasion of England. Her family ended up in Scotland when their ship crashed there. Scotland’s King Malcolm III helped the family. Margaret married the Scottish king in 1070 and had eight...
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St. Rose Philippine Duchesne

St. Rose Philippine Duchesne was born Aug. 29, 1769, in Grenoble, France. As young as age 8, she knew she wanted to evangelize in America because she’d heard a Jesuit discuss his missionary work there. In 1788, she joined the Visitation nuns in Grenoble without her family’s knowledge. Her convent was closed in 1792 during...
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St. Barlaam

St. Barlaam was born in Antioch sometime after 200. During the persecutions under Diocletian, this Christian peasant was jailed for his faith. At his trial in 304, he was tortured but refused to deny his faith. Barlaam lost his hand in fire when the judge tried to make it look like he was making a...
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Presentation of the Virgin Mary

Today is the feast of the presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which honors her presentation in the temple when she was just a child. The feast began circa the seventh century; however, it was brought to the Western church in the 14th century. Pope Pius V eliminated the feast, but Pope Sixtus V brought...
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St. Clement I

St. Clement I, who was born in Rome, became the fourth pope circa 88. He wrote “Epistle to the Corinthians,” and his name is in the canon of the Mass. He worked with St. Paul the Apostle, according to St. Jerome and Origen. The pope was martyred under Trajan’s persecutions in 101. St. Clement I...
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