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St. John Baptist de la Salle was born in 1651 in Rheims, France. The first child in a noble family of 10 children, he studied in Paris and was ordained in 1678. He founded the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (Christian Brothers) in 1681 to establish academic education for boys. St. John Baptist de la Salle also established teacher colleges and started high school sand trade schools. He was one of the first to emphasize classroom teaching. St. John Baptist de la Salle is patron saint of educators.

St. Waltrude was the daughter of St. Bertille and the sister of St. Aldegondes. She married a lord in the king’s court and had four children. She convinced her husband, St. Vincent of Siognies, to become a monk. St. Waltrude founded a religious community, but she was member and not a leader of the community. She died April 9, 686. She is patron saint of Hainault and Mons in Belgium.

St. Benedict Joseph Labre was born in March 1748 in France. He tried to join the Trappists, Carthusians and Cistercians, but he was rejected by all three orders. For years, the impoverished saint wandered around Europe, spending his time in adoration in cathedrals. St. Benedict Joseph Labre begged and would give anything extra to others who were less fortunate. He is said to have cured others who were homeless. In Rome, he counseled people in all paths of life. He died in April 1783. St. Benedict Joseph Labre is patron saint of homeless people and people rejected by religious orders.

St. Leo IX was born in June 1002 in Egisheim, Alsace. He was a deacon, and he was a soldier and officer in the imperial army. He became a bishop in France in 1021 and then became the 151st pope in February of 1049. He fought simony, which is the selling or purchase of spiritual goods. St. Leo IX enforced clerical celibacy, reformed parishes and encouraged the use of chant. Nicknamed the Pilgrim Pope, he traveled throughout Europe to enforce his reforms. St. Leo IX held a number of synods, and he proposed that only cardinals elect the pope. He died April 19, 1054.

St. Agnes of Montepulciano was born to a wealthy family in Italy in 1268. She was a pious child and knew she wanted to join a convent by age 6. She entered the convent in Montepulciano when she was 9 years old. She later went to Procena when her spiritual director was appointed abbess there. When St. Agnes was 15 years old, she received special permission from Pope Nicholas IV to become an abbess. She later returned to Montepulciano to work in a new Dominican convent, and she was the prioress there for the last 17 years of her life. St. Agnes died April 20, 1317. People reported miracles at her tomb, and her body was found incorrupt.

St. Epipodius was born in Lyons, France, in the second century. He devoted his time to working for God as a confirmed celibate bachelor, although he never joined an order. One of his servants betrayed him to the authorities, and he was beheaded because of his faith in 178. Miracles were reported at his tomb. St. Epipodius is patron saint of bachelors and victims of betrayal.

St. Mark the Evangelist was a disciple of St. Peter. Sometime before the year 60 he wrote the second Gospel, which he wrote in Greek for the converts to Christianity. He traveled with St. Barnabas and St. Paul on a missionary trip through Cyprus. St. Mark also evangelized in Alexandria, Egypt, where he established the church and began a Christian school. He was martyred in the same city on April 25, 68. Often represented in art as a lion, St. Mark is patron saint of lions, notaries and Egypt.

St. Pius V was born in Lombardy, Italy, in January 1504. He joined the Dominican order in 1518 and became a teacher of philosophy and then theology. He began his involvement in the Inquisition in 1551, and he became a cardinal in 1557. He became the 225th pope in January 1566 and accomplished many things. He enforced reforms from the Council of Trent, opened seminaries, built hospitals and established foundations to spread the Catholic faith. He published a Roman Missal, the Roman Catechism and the revised Roman Breviary. St. Pius V also cared for the poor using the papal treasury. He died in 1572 in Rome, and he was canonized in 1712 by Pope Clement XI.

St. Joseph the Worker was the earthly husband to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster father of Jesus. He was visited by angels and always did what God asked of him immediately. Although he was of royal lineage, he was a carpenter of humble means. When he went to the Temple to have Jesus circumcised and Mary purified, he offered two turtledoves – an offering allowed only for people who couldn’t afford a lamb. It is believed that he died before the Passion as he did not appear in Jesus’ public life. St. Joseph is patron saint of workers, the universal church, fathers and social justice.

Today is the feast of Ss. Philip and James the Apostles. St. Philip, who was born in Palestine, was an Apostle and a confidant of Jesus. He brought St. Nathaniel to Jesus and preached in Asia Minor and Greece. St. Philip was martyred around the year 80 in Phrygia. St. Philip is patron saint of hatters and pastry chefs. St. James was an Apostle and the first bishop of Jerusalem. He was also one of the first to see the risen Christ. St. James died for his faith around the year 62 when he was beaten with clubs while he prayed for his attackers. Due to this association with clubs, St. James is patron saint of fullers and pharmacists.

St. Domitian of Huy, born in the sixth century, was a priest and bishop of Tongres. A steadfast opponent of heretics, he spoke out against them at the Synod of Orleans in 549 and encouraged sermons against heresy. In addition to working to convert those who did not believe, he built churches and hospices. His talent for fundraising helped ease a famine. St. Domitian died in Huy, Belgium, around the year 560 and is patron saint of that city.

St. Victor the Moor was born in the third century in Mauretania, Africa. Born a Christian, he became a soldier in the Roman Praetorian Guard. During Maximian’s persecution of Christians, St. Victor was arrested in Milan. He was tortured and killed for his faith around the year 303. St. Victor the Moor is patron saint of Varese, Italy.