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St. Felix III was born in Rome and became the 48th pope in March of 483. He may be an ancestor of St. Gregory the Great. While he was pope, the church faced many divisions due in part to actions of Emperor Zeno. St. Felix helped make way for the reunion of the church, which happened circa 518 after he had died in 492.

St. Faustinian, the second bishop of Bologna, Italy, lived in the 300s. St. Faustinian helped strengthen the church during the persecution of Emperor Diocletian.

St. Polycarp of Smyrna was converted by St. John the Apostle. He was a bishop and a respected Christian leader in the early second century. Circa the year 155, Romans tried to burn Polycarp alive in an arena, but St. Polycarp was miraculously safe. The mob then stabbed him, and St. Polycarp died a martyr. He is the patron saint against earaches because it is said he once stated he would rather not hear than hear heretical doctrines.

St. Peter Damian was born in Italy in 1007. He left his career as a professor to become a Benedictine monk. St. Peter Damian’s health suffered when he tried to replace sleep with prayer. The Vatican called on him to help make peace among clergymen. In 1828 he was declared a doctor of the church.

St. Leo of Catania lived circa 787. He was the bishop of Catania, Sicily. Known for his holiness and learning, he was called “the wonder-worker.”

St. Alexis Falconieri was born in the 13th century in Italy. Along with six companions, he joined the Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin in Florence in 1225. After a vision of Mary in 1233, they formed a group dedicated to prayer. After a second vision, St. Alexis and his companions founded the Servants of Mary. St. Alexis was canonized in 1888.

St. Onesimus, as mentioned in St. Paul’s Letter to Philemon, was a slave of Philemon in Phrygia circa the year 90. St. Onesimus ran away and was eventually befriended by St. Paul, who converted St. Onesimus. St. Paul sent him back to Philemon with an epistle asking Philemon to free St. Onesimus, who eventually died a martyr.

Ss. Cyril and Methodius, Greek brothers and priests, were born in 827 and 826. The emperor sent them to Russia in 861 to convert the Khazars to Christianity. They began to convert Moravians in 863 using their native language. The brothers developed a Slavonic language that eventually became what is currently known as Cyrillic. They received criticism for using native tongues instead of Greek or Latin in the liturgy, which was banned. However, the brothers’ use of native tongues helped Christianity take hold in Slavic countries. They are patron saints of ecumenism.

St. Apollonia is the patron saint of dentists, tooth disease and toothaches. In Alexandria, Egypt, around the year 249, a group of non-Christians broke her teeth and told her to commit blasphemy or be burned alive. St. Apollonia jumped into the fire.