Saint Benjamin
The saint celebrated today bears the name of the youngest of Jacob's sons. Saint Benjamin, deacon and martyr, lived between the fourth and fifth centuries AD. His martyrdom took place during the persecutions in Persia
Saint Leonard Murialdo
“Do not make religion either solely supernatural or solely human, but supernatural and human. To virtue add goodness, kindness, the spirit of friendship, spontaneity, confidence, cheerfulness ...”. These words of Saint Leonard Murialdo (26 October 1828 - 30 March 1900) describe the whole life of this great priest from Turin, a life of trusting abandonment to Providence and tireless charity towards orphans, young people and labourers.
Saint Mark of Arethusa
This saint was bishop of Arethusa, today's Ar Rastan, in Syria. He exercised his episcopal ministry in the fieriest phase of the Arian controversy and for some time was suspected of holding ambiguous positions, perhaps due to his weakness of character.
Saint Stephen Harding
A painting that synthesises how the Cistercian Order was born depicts Saint Stephen Harding (c. 1060-1134) in the company of Saint Robert of Molesme and Saint Alberic of Citeaux, with the Madonna and Child in the centre.
Saint Rupert of Salzburg
Patron and initiator of the renaissance of Salzburg, founder of churches and monasteries, Saint Rupert (c. 660-718) carried out an important part of his apostolate in the lands inhabited by the ancestors of Austrians and Bavarians.
Saint Ludger
Saint Ludger (c. 742-809) was still a child when, in 753, he encountered the great evangelizer of Germany, St. Boniface, who was martyred on 5 June of the following year in Dokkum, Friesland, together with 52 companions.
Annunciation of the Lord
“Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.” The Archangel Gabriel's greeting to Mary uniquely sums up the mystery of the Annunciation, the central event in human history that reveals all of God's love for His creature, called to cooperate in His plan of salvation.
Saint Catherine of Sweden
Fourth of the eight children of Saint Bridget, the great Swedish mystic and co-patroness of Europe, Saint Catherine of Sweden (c. 1331-1381) shared the same attraction to the Christian virtues that inspired the whole of her mother’s life and, like her, she received heavenly revelations.
Saint Turibius of Mogrovejo
Twenty-five years of episcopal ministry in the New World, and thousands of kilometres travelled almost always on foot to proclaim Christ to the indigenous people of Peru (and beyond), where the fruits of his boundless charity are still reaped. Saint Turibius of Mogrovejo (1538-1606) was born into a noble family in Mayorga, in northern Spain.
Saint Lea of Rome
St Jerome's Letter XXIII offers us a splendid portrait of St Lea (†384), a Roman widow who left her wealth to follow the way of Christ becoming worthy of Paradise through prayer, penance and spiritual motherhood towards various virgins.
Saint Nicholas of Flüe
Farmer, soldier, hermit, mystic, saviour and patron of Switzerland. The Swiss call him Bruder Klaus, “Brother Nicholas”, and no one in the world knows better than they how much this saint has influenced the history of Switzerland.
Saint John Nepomucene
When crossing a bridge or walking along a riverbank in certain European countries, it is not uncommon to come across a statue of Saint John Nepomucene, martyr for the freedom of the Church and patron saint of confessors, a “grand figure” who “has examples and gifts for everyone”.
