SAINT AGNES

Died either at the middle or toward the end of the third century, was only twelve years old when she chose death rather than renounce her virginity and her Christian faith. Her name is mentioned daily in the canon of the Mass.

SAINT ALOYSIUS

Saint Aloysius (1568-1591), a boy of noble birth, preserved his chastity amid the courtly life he was force to live. At eighteen he was a Jesuit novice; he died at the age of twenty-three. Aloysius is the special protector of young students, the patron of Catholic youth, and a model of innocence, piety, and penance.

SAINT ALPHONSUS

Saint Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787), founder of the Redemptorists, produced many fine ascetical, theological, and historical works during his priestly and episcopal life. He is a model for those who are attempting to make good use of their time.

SAINT ANNE

According to the tradition, was one of the parents of the Blessed Virgin. She is believed to have given our Lady to the service of the Temple at the age of three.

SAINT ANTHONY OF PADUA

(1195-1231) Portuguese by birth, journeyed to Italy while still a young priest to join the recently founded Franciscans. His eloquence in preaching against error and wickedness led to his being called "the hammer of the heretics." He is the patron of the poor and is invoked for the recovery of lost articles.

SAINT AUGUSTINE

(354-430) Was born in Tagaste in northern Africa. A brilliant but dissolute youth, he was converted through the perseverance in prayer of his mother, Saint Monica, and became one of the most glorious champions of orthodoxy in an age of theological turmoil. He spent his last thirty-five years as bishop of the African see of Hippo.

SAINT BENEDICT

(c. 480-543) A man able to read consciences, prophesy the future, and to forestall the attacks of the devil, was born at Nursia in Sabina, Italy. Settlling finally on Monte Cassino, he and his followers erected the monastery he was to make famous. There he wrote his Rule, which became the norm for all Western monks.

SAINT BLAISE (BLASE)

Bishop of Sebaste in Armenia, was martyred about the year 316. Among his many miracles was the cure of a child who was choking tho death on a fish bone. He is therefor invoked against all throat ailments, and on his feast (Feb, 3) the Church blesses the throats of the faithful and asks his intercession.

SAINT CATHERINE OF ALEXANDRIA

Saint Catherine of Alexandria (died about 310 A.D.), of noble birth and outstanding for learning and eloquence, used her talents to win many to the faith. No greater use of one's talents could be found. We turn with confidence to this patroness of science, students, and teachers for the grace to use our talents for God.

SAINT CATHERINE OF SIENA

(1347-1380) The primary patron of Italy, was favored with many visions, among them a mystic marriage in which the Infant Christ presented her with a wedding ring. She was also a fugure in the public life of her time, guiding and counseling Popes Gregory XI and Urban VI.

SAINT CHARLES BORROMEO

Saint Charles Borromeo (1538-1584) was made a cardinal at the age of twenty-two and Archbishop of Milan two years later. In Milan he was a model bishop, spending his life and fortune for his people and his diocese. ( The Father of the Clergy).

SAINT DOMINIC

(1170-1221) Preached against the Albigensians, a sect of puritan fanatics in southern France, and founded the Order of Preachers. At a low point in the struggle with heresy, the Blessed Virgin appeared to him and told him to preach her rosary.

SAINT ELIZABETH

(1207-1231) Was married at fourteen to Ludwing IV, ruler of Thuringia (in Germany). Their marriage was in every sense a happy and model one. Until his death, just before the birth of their third child. Ludwig seconded and aided Elizabeth in her works of charity and penance. After his death she became a Franciscan tertiary, devoting herself entirely to the sick and poor until her own death at the age of twenty-four.

SAINT EPHREM

Saint Ephrem, fourth century writer of the Syriac Church, produced such immense theological and poetic works that he was called "the lyre of the Holy Spirit."

SAINT FRANCES XAVIER CABRINI

Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917), foundress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, brought her Sisters to America from Italy. By the time of her death in Chicago (as an American citizen) there were seventy houses in her Institute. She was canonized in 1946.

SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI

(1181-1226) The "poor little man" of Assisi, is one of the best known and loved of the saints of God. He is an example of joyous, loving worship of God, as well as of Christian poverty.

SAINT FRANCIS de SALES

Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622), the son of noble parents, was born near Annecy in Savoy. His life is characterized by unflagging zeal and constant gentleness. In 1602 he was appointed Bishop of Geneva. Together with Saint Jane Frances de Chantal he founded the Order of the Visitation. "It appears that Francis of Sales was given to the Church by God for a very special mission. His task was to give the lie to a prejudice which in his lifetime was deeply rooted and has not been destroyed even today, that the ideal of genuine sanctity held up for our imitation by the Church is impossible of attainment or, at best, is so difficult that it surpasses the capabilities of the great majority of the faithful and is, therefore, to be thought of as the exclusive possession of a few great souls. Saint Francis likewise disproved the false idea that holiness was so hedged around by annoyances and hardship that it is unadaptable to a life outside the cloister walls." (Pope Pius XI) Preacher, reformer, author, and later bishop of Geneva, had a childlike devotion to the Blessed Virgin.

© 1997 - The Catholic Prayer League