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St. Damasus I was born circa 306 in Rome. A priest, he was elected the 37th pope in 366. This election also saw the rise of anti-pope Ursinus. The pope was opposed to Arianism and Apollinarianism. He commissioned St. Jerome to do a translation of Scripture, which is now called the Vulgate. Damsus restored shrines, martyrs’ tombs and catacombs. He died Dec. 11, 384, in Rome. St. Damasus is patron saint of archeologists.

St. Juan Diego was born in Cuauhtitlan (in modern-day Mexico) in 1474. This poor farm worker converted to Christianity when he was about 50 years old. The Virgin Mary appeared to him at Guadalupe in December 1531. This image of her became known as Our Lady of Guadalupe. He died in 1548. Juan Diego was canonized in 2002 by Pope John Paul II.

Today is the feast of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast honors the Virgin Mary, who was conceived without original sin. Pope Pius IX declared the Immaculate Conception to be an official dogma of the Catholic Church in 1854. It is a holy day of obligation.

St. Ambrose of Milan was born in Gaul (modern-day Germany) circa 340. He tried to mediate a dispute over the replacement for the bishop of Milan after the bishop died. Both sides were so impressed with Ambrose that he was chosen to become bishop. Ambrose was baptized, ordained a priest and made a bishop Dec. 7, 374. He gave his money to the church and the poor. He aided in the conversion of St. Augustine of Hippo. Ambrose is known as the “honey tongued doctor” due to his great preaching skills. He died in 397. He is patron saint of beekeepers.

St. Bibiana was a virgin and martyr. Although there is very little information about her, one account says she lived during the time Julian the Apostate. Julian persecuted Christians, including Bibiana and her family. Her parents and her sister were persecuted and died. Bibiana was tortured to death. St. Bibiana is patron saint of torture victims.

St. Andrew the Apostle, a fisherman, followed St. John the Baptist until St. John pointed to Jesus and called him the Lamb of God. After that, Andrew followed Jesus and knew he was the Messiah. Andrew brought his brother Simon (who became St. Peter) to Jesus. Jesus told them they would be fishers of men. After Jesus’ resurrection, Andrew preached in Greece. He was martyred. St. Andrew is patron saint of Russia and Scotland.

St. Saturninus lived in the third century. The pope sent him to Gaul around 245 so that he could preach. Saturninus became bishop of Toulouse, where he converted many through his preaching. He was martyred circa 257.

St. James of the Marches, who was born in Ancona, became a Franciscan in 1416. Ordained at age 29, he served as a missionary in Italy, Germany, Bohemia, Poland and Hungary. Along with St. John Capistran, he was named inquisitor against the Fraticelli by Pope Martin V. He went to Austria and Hungary to fight the Hussites in 1456, and later became involved in the inquisition. He died in Naples and was canonized in 1726.

St. Virgil was born in Ireland in the eighth century. The Benedictine monk made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 743, but he stopped in Bavaria on his way home and never left. He became abbot of St. Peter’s monastery in Salzburg, Austria, and later became bishop of the same city in 765. St. Virgil rebuilt the cathedral in Salzburg and sent priests to Carinthia to serve as missionaries. He died in Salzburg in 784. St. Virgil is patron saint of Salzburg.

St. Mercurius was a military hero following a battle with the barbarians. It is said that during the First Crusade, he helped St. Demetrius and St. George. For this reason he is seen as a warrior saint. St. Mercurius was martyred when he refused to sacrifice to pagan gods. He died circa 250 in what is now Turkey.