Day

January 19, 2012

St. Irenaeus of Lyons

St. Irenaeus of Lyons was born circa 130 in Asia Minor. This disciple of St. Polycarp of Smyrna became a priest in 177 and later became bishop of Lyons. He wrote against Gnosticism and was a great Western ecclesiastical writer. A father of the church, he emphasized the fact that Christ had a divine and...
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Ss. Peter and Paul

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...
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Blessed Junipero Serra

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...
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Ss. Processus and Martinian

Ss. Processus and Martinian worked as guards at a prison in Rome. They guarded Ss. Peter and Paul, Apostles, while they were in prison in Rome. Ss. Peter and Paul converted and baptized Ss. Processus and Martinian. The newly converted Christians were martyred in Rome. Ss. Processus and Martinian are mentioned in the Martyrologium Hieronymianum,...
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St. Thomas the Apostle

St. Thomas, also known as Doubting Thomas, was an Apostle. He doubted that Christ was truly resurrected until he was able to touch Christ’s wounds. The saint preached in Persia and India. He helped start the church in various places by forming many parishes and building churches as he traveled. He was killed in India...
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St. Elizabeth of Portugal

St. Elizabeth of Portugal, a princess, was born in 1271 in Aragon, Spain. She was the daughter of King Pedro III of Aragon and the great-niece of St. Elizabeth of Hungary. She received excellent religious instruction as a child and married the king of Portugal when she was 12. In 1323 her husband and her...
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St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria

St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria was born in Italy in 1502. After working with the poor, he felt he had a calling to a religious life. He gave his mother his inheritance and was ordained when he was 26. He established two congregations while in Milan: the Society of Clerics of St. Paul (the Barnabites) for...
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Blessed Benedict XI

Blessed Pope Benedict XI was born in Italy in 1240. He joined the Dominicans and became the ninth master-general of the order in 1296. He defended Pope Boniface VIII against William of Nogaret, who worked for King Philip IV of France. He became the 194th pope on Oct. 22, 1303. He wrote sermons on the...
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St. Henry II

St. Henry II was born in Bavaria in 972. He became duke of Bavaria in 995 and king of Pavia in 1004. He married St. Cunegunda but never had children. Pope Benedict VII crowned St. Henry as Holy Roman Emperor in 1014. He helped start missions and began construction of a cathedral in Basel, Switzerland....
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St. Camillus of Lellis

St. Camillus of Lellis was born in Italy in 1550. After an idle youth, he was converted by the Capuchins while doing construction work for them. He tried to enter the order, but a leg injury stopped him each time. St. Camillus later became an administrator of a hospital and a priest. The saint founded...
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St. Bonaventure

St. Bonaventure was born in Tuscany in 1221. He joined the Franciscans when he was 22 years old. After taking his vows, he studied in Paris where he befriended St. Thomas Aquinas. When he was 35 he became the general of his order. He helped restore peace in his order and also composed “The Life...
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St. Marcellina

St. Marcellina was born in Gaul (what would now be Germany) circa 330. She is the sister of St. Ambrose of Milan and St. Satyrus. She moved to Rome as a young child and was raised by her older brothers. St. Marcellina became a consecrated virgin, and Pope Liberius gave her the veil on Christmas...
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