Bl. Miriam Teresa Demjanovich
Born March 26, 1901
Bayonne, New Jersey, United States
Residence Convent Station, New Jersey, United States
Died May 8, 1927 (aged 26)
New Jersey, United States
Venerated in Catholic Church
Beatified 4 October 2014, Newark, New Jersey, United States, by Cardinal Angelo Amato[1]
Major shrine Sisters of Charity Motherhouse, Convent Station, New Jersey, United States
Feast 8 May
Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, SC (March 26, 1901 – May 8, 1927) was an American Ruthenian Catholic Sister of Charity who was beatified by the Catholic Church in 2014. The beatification ceremony was the first to take place in the United States, being held in Newark, New Jersey.[2][3]
Early life
She was born Teresa Demjanovich in Bayonne, New Jersey, on March 26, 1901, the youngest of the seven children of Alexander Demjanovich and Johanna Suchy, Ruthenian immigrants to the United States from what is now eastern Slovakia. She received Baptism, Chrismation, and First Holy Communion in the Ruthenian Rite of her parents.[4]
Demjanovich grew up beside the oil refineries that mark the landscape of this portion of New Jersey.[5] She completed her grammar school education by the age of eleven, and received her high school diploma in January 1917, from Bayonne High School (at that time located in the present-day Robinson School).[6] [7]
Career and entering religious life
At this time, she wished to become a Carmelite, but stayed in the family home to care for her sick mother.[8] After her mother died in the influenza epidemic of November 1918, she was encouraged by her family to attend the College of Saint Elizabeth at Convent Station, New Jersey. She began her college career in September 1919, majoring in literature, and graduated with highest honors in June 1923.[9]
It is claimed that Demjanovich desired a religious life, but various circumstances made her uncertain which community she should enter. Meanwhile, she accepted a teaching position at the Academy of Saint Aloysius in Jersey City. [10] During her time at the college, many individuals remarked on her humility and genuine piety. She could be found kneeling in the college chapel at all hours and was very devoted to praying the rosary.[5]
Demjanovich was part of the Saint Vincent de Paul Parish choir, the Sodality of Our Lady, and a parish community associated with the National Catholic Welfare Conference. During the summer and fall of 1924, Teresa prayed to discern the direction of her life. She visited the Discalced Carmelite nuns in The Bronx, New York. Because of several health issues including headaches, the Sisters suggested that Demjanovich wait a few years before applying. After consulting with her family, the Sisters then suggested that Demjanovich use her education to serve God in a teaching order.[5] For the Feast of the Immaculate Conception that year, Demjanovich made a novena and at its conclusion on December 8, decided she was called to enter the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth. Demjanovich planned to enter the convent on 2 February 1925, but her father caught a cold and died on 30 January. Her entrance was delayed until 11 February 1925, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. Her brother, Fr. Charles Demjanovich, and two sisters, accompanied her to the convent. Demjanovich was admitted to the novitiate of the religious congregation and received the religious habit on 17 May 1925.[8] She never received an official transfer of rite, and remained a Byzantine Rite Catholic while serving as a Religious Sister in a Roman Rite congregation.[5]
Religious life and death
As a postulant and novice, Demjanovich taught at the Academy of Saint Elizabeth in Convent Station during 1925–1926. In June 1926, her spiritual director, Father Benedict Bradley, O.S.B., asked her to write the conferences for the novitiate. She wrote 26 conferences which, after her death, were published in a book, Greater Perfection.[8]
In November 1926, after a tonsillectomy, she returned to the convent but could barely walk to her room. After a few days. Demjanovich asked if she could return to the infirmary. Demjanovich's superior, skeptical that someone so young could be so sick, told her, "Pull yourself together." When Bradley saw how sick she was, he notified her brother, who called one of their sisters, a nurse. When Demjanovich's sister arrived at the convent, she took Demjanovich to the hospital, where Demjanovich was diagnosed with "physical and nervous exhaustion, with myocarditis and acute appendicitis." Doctors were concerned that she was not strong enough for an operation, and her condition worsened.[11]
Demjanovich's profession of permanent religious vows was made in periculo mortis (danger of death) on 2 April 1927. She was operated on for appendicitis on 6 May and died on 8 May 1927.[12] Her funeral was held 11 May 1927 at Holy Family Chapel in Convent Station, New Jersey, and she was buried at Holy Family Cemetery on the grounds of her order's motherhouse.
Favors and cures attributed to her intercession are continually being reported.[13]
Cause for canonization
The Sisters of Charity petitioned Rome for permission to open a cause for her beatification because of Demjanovich's saintly life, her striving for perfection in her religious life, spiritual writings, and the favors received by others after her death through her intercession with God.[9]
In the latter part of 1945, a communication was received from the Holy See authorizing Thomas H. McLaughlin, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson, in which the motherhouse of the Sisters of Charity is located, to institute an ordinary informative process concerning Demjanovich's life and virtues.[14] Rev. Stephen W Findlay, O.S.B, of the Delbarton School, near Morristown, New Jersey, was appointed procurator, and the official investigation began early in 1946.[15] The Sister Miriam Teresa League of Prayer was founded in the summer of 1946 to spread the knowledge of her life and mission, and to work for the cause of her beatification. The headquarters for the League is located in the Administration Building of the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth. [16] Silvia Correale is the present Postulator for the Cause of Sister Miriam Teresa in the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.[17]
On Thursday, May 10, 2012, Demjanovich was proclaimed venerable by Pope Benedict XVI.[18] On December 17, 2013, Pope Francis approved the attribution of miraculous healing to the intercession of Demjanovich, opening the way to her beatification. The cause of her beatification involved the restoration of perfect vision to a boy who had gone legally blind because of macular degeneration.[19] Msgr. Giampaolo Rizzotti of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints added that the miracle took place in 1964. Demjanovich was beatified at a ceremony on October 4, 2014, held at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark.[20][21][2] This was the first time a beatification had ever been held in the United States.[2] In 2017, Stanley Rother and Solanus Casey would become the second and third Americans to be beatified in the United States.[3]
The following day, Kurt Burnette, Bishop of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic to which Demjanovich belonged, presided at a Divine Liturgy at the parish of her baptism, Saint John the Baptist Church in Bayonne.[22]
Veneration
According to Sister Marian Jose, S.C., Vice Postulator of the Cause of Sister Miriam Teresa, Demjanovich's “message” is that “everyone is called to holiness.”[14]
Saint Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Dumont, New Jersey has a newly commissioned painting of Sister Miriam Teresa Demjanovich by Juan Pablo Esteban, a seminarian and artist. The portrait will hang in the vestibule area of the church.[23]
On January 1, 2016, the Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich Parish in Bayonne, New Jersey was established after the merger of St. Mary Star of the Sea and St. Andrew the Apostle churches. [24][25]
A first-class relic of Blessed Miriam Teresa is part of the Treasures of the Church Exposition
St. Maria Magdalen of Canossa
Born 1 March 1774
Verona, Republic of Venice
Died 10 April 1835 (aged 61)
Verona, Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia, Austrian Empire
Venerated in Roman Catholic Church
Beatified 7 December 1941, Saint Peter's Basilica by Pope Pius XII
Canonized 2 October 1988, Saint Peter's Square by Pope John Paul II
Feast
10 April
8 May (Canossians & Bergamo)
9 May (Milan)[1]
Patronage Canossian Daughters, Canossian Sons
Foundress of the Daughters of Charity at Verona, Italy. Born in 1774, she was the daughter of the Marquis of Canossa, who died when Maria Magdalen was three. Her mother abandoned the family, and Maria Magdalen managed her father's estate until she was thirty-three, then founding her institute. When she died, her Daughters of Charity were widespread. She was canonized in 1988 by Pope John Paul II
Childhood and obligations
Magdalene of Canossa was born on 1 March 1774 in Verona[4] to the Marquis Ottavio di Canossa (1740 – 1 October 1779) and Teresa Szluha (3 January 1753 – 19 May 1807; a Hungarian countess). An ancestor was the Countess Matilda Canossa who helped facilitate the meeting between Pope Gregory VII and Emperor Henry IV. Her parents married in August 1770 in Odenburg. Their first two children Carlo Vincenzo (1771) died soon after his birth and therefore she was the third-born after Laura Maria (1772; an arrival poorly appreciated). She was baptized on 2 March 1774.
Her mother later gave birth to another son who died right after the birth. But in 1776 the male heir that her parents desired was born – Boniface – and after him two other girls (Rosa in 1777 and Leonora in 1779).[2] In 1779 her father died in an accident while at a villa on vacation in Grezzano. In 1781 her mother left their palace and married the widower Marquis Odoardo Zanetti from Mantua on 25 August with the permission of her father-in-law. The children were placed under the guardianship of their uncle Girolamo.
From 2 May 1791 she spent ten months in a Carmelite convent but discerned that this was not her vocation so returned home and undertook the running of her large estate;[5] her time in the convent caused her to miss her sister's wedding on 3 October 1791.[2] In 1797 Napoleon was a guest at their palace where she received him; he returned as a guest twice more in 1805 and 1807.
Canossa saw her town as one in which the poor suffered and grew worse due to all the social upheavals caused as a result of the invasions of the French forces and the opposing forces of the Austrian Empire which would gain control of Verona. This situation provoked her desire to serve the needs of the unfortunate.[5] Canossa studied under the Carmelites in Trent and then at Conegliano.[4]
Foundation and recognition
Using her inheritance she began charitable work among the poor and sick, in hospitals and in their homes, and also among delinquent and abandoned girls.[6] On 1 April 1808 she was given an abandoned convent where she took in two poor girls from the slum of the San Zeno neighborhood to care for them and to also provide them with an adequate education.[2][3] One month later on 8 May she moved out of her ancestral palace and moved into what is now the Saint Joseph Convent where other women soon joined her and with whom she formed the Canossian Daughters. In May 1810 the Servants of God Father Antonio Angelo and Brother Marco Antonio Cavanis invited her to Venice for collaboration. In the meantime, her uncle Girolamo died in July 1814, entrusting his motherless son Carlino (born c. 1797) to her care.
Canossa wanted the pope to legitimize her work by granting formal recognition to the congregation. She decided to meet with Pope Pius VII in Genoa in 1815 and arrived in Milan on 14 May to learn that the pope had left for Rome. She reached the pope on 23 May at Piacenza where she was received in an audience but she recounted later that she lost her courage before him. The pope noticed and did not wish to prolong the audience further so instructed Canossa to follow the usual protocol and send the Rule and other documents to Roman authorities for assessment. She tried again some hours later and was again brought before Pius VII who gave her the same vague response; this hurt her because she thought the audience was too formal with a lack of concrete results.
The new congregation started to care for poor children and to serve in the hospitals. Once word of their work spread, the congregation was requested to start new communities in other cities of the region. Soon there were convents of the religious established in Venice (1812) and Milan (1816) as well as in Bergamo (1820) and Trent (1824).[5] In 1824 she travelled to Rovato where she briefly collaborated with Annunciata Astoria Cocchetti. Magdalene drew up a Rule for the congregation, and it received pontifical approval from Pope Leo XII on 23 December 1828 in the papal brief "Si Nobis".
Magdalene desired to provide boys with the same care her religious sisters were providing to girls. To this end she invited the priest Francesco Luzzi to open a small chapel adjacent to the sisters' convent of Santa Lucia in Venice. He opened this house on 23 May 1831.[4] In 1833 the priest saw two laymen join him (Giuseppe Carsana and Benedetto Belloni) and who later took over the work of the place when Luzzi left to become a Carmelite friar. The men's congregation were given a religious habit in 1860 from the Patriarch of Venice, Angelo Francesco Ramazzotti, and were given a Rule in 1897 from Domenico Agostini who was a later patriarch.
Canossa maintained a partnership with Leopoldina Naudet though their mutual esteem for each other did not prevent disagreements between their individual methods, which led to the dissolution of their partnership sometime around 1816. Canossa also tried to establish a male congregation alongside Antonio Provolo sometime in the 1820s but was unsuccessful in this venture. It was in February 1820 that she first met Antonio Rosmini and Rosmini's sister Margherita became a close friend of Canossa and joined the congregation on 2 October 1824.[3] The death of Pius VII in 1823 halted work in the recognition of the congregation and she was upset that approval had not been granted since her meeting with the pope less than a decade before. Canossa believed she would have better luck with his successor Pope Leo XII and in September 1828 left to go to Rome to request of him the formal approval needed. She stopped over at Coriano to visit Maria Elisabetta Renzi and stopped at Loreto before reaching Rome in November. In the audience with the pope he asked her to present a shorter version of the Rule so that his approval could come quicker; he also appointed a commission that the Cardinal Carlo Odescalchi led to assess the rule and the request. This led to Leo XII granting approval for the congregation just before Christmas. In 1833 she was profoundly affected by the death of Margherita Rosmini who was a close friend.
Declining health and death
In 1834 she organized the Spiritual Exercises for the congregation in Verona before setting off for Venice before returning to Verona in May. That autumn she went to Bergamo and then to Milan. Canossa died on 10 April 1835 after a period of deteriorating health; she had known in January that her time was coming to an end, and returned to Verona from Milan in March.
St. Dionysius
Feastday: May 8
Death: 193
Bishop of Vienne, in Dauphine, France, successor of St. Justus. He was one of the ten missionaries sent with St. Peregrinus to Gaul, by Pope St. Sixtus I.
St. Abran
Feastday: May 8
Death: 515
Hermit also called Gibrian. From Ireland, Abran, the eldest of five brothers and three sisters, sailed to Brittany with his siblings. There all of them continued their hermitages and greatly influenced the people of the area. Abran and his brothers and sisters were all declared saints.
Saint Abran (Breton for 'Abraham'), was a 6th-century Irish hermit in Brittany.
Life
Abran was born in Ireland and was a brother of Gibrian.[1] Abran and Gibrain traveled to Brittany with their siblings. The five brothers and three sisters chose a life of devotion to God in consecrated religious life. Abran lived in a hermitage on the Marne River, which had been given to him by Saint Remigius.
Abran and his siblings are all considered saints for their positive Christian influence upon the Breton people.
Saint Abran's feast day is 8 May on the Western Rite Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church calendars.
St. Peter of Tarantaise
டரென்டைஸ் நகர் புனிதர் பீட்டர்
டரென்டைஸ் பேராயர்:
பிறப்பு: கி.பி. 1102
புனித மௌரிஸ்-இ'எக்ஸில், ஃபிரான்ஸ்
இறப்பு: செப்டம்பர் 14, 1174 (வயது 72)
பெல்லேவாக்ஸ் துறவுமடம், ஃபிரான்ஸ்
ஏற்கும் சமயம்:
ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை
புனிதர் பட்டம்: மே 10, 1191
திருத்தந்தை மூன்றாம் செலேஸ்டின்
நினைவுத் திருநாள்: மே 8
பாதுகாவல்:
டரென்டைஸ் (Tarentaise)
புனிதர் பீட்டர் (Saint Peter of Tarentaise) ஒரு ஃபிரெஞ்ச் ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க துறவு மடாதிபதியும் (French Roman Catholic abbot), கி.பி. 1141ம் ஆண்டு முதல், தமது மரணம் வரை “டரென்டைஸ்” (Tarentaise) உயர்மறைமாவட்ட பேராயராக பணியாற்றியவருமாவார்.
அவரது குழந்தை பருவத்திலும், இளமை பருவத்திலும் அவர் பிறருக்கு முன்மாதிரியாக வாழ்ந்தார். அவரது பெற்றோர் மற்றும் உடன்பிறந்தவர்கள் அனைவருமே மத வாழ்க்கையில் அவரைப் பின்பற்றினர். அவர் ஒரு புதிய துறவு மடத்தின் மடாதிபதியாக பணியாற்றினார். புனிதர் பெர்னார்ட் (Saint Bernard of Clairvaux) உள்ளிட்ட உயர் பொருப்பிலிருந்தவர்கள் இவரை உயர் பதவிகளை ஏற்குமாறு வற்புறுத்தினர். ஆனால் இவர் அவற்றையெல்லாம் மறுத்தார். ஆனால் அவரது இதயம், அவரது எளிய மற்றும் பக்தியான வாழ்க்கைக்காக, ஒரு துறவி என்ற இழப்புக்காக துபுற்றது. அவர் ஒருமுறை கான்வென்ட் வரை ஓடி வந்து, மறைந்து வாழ முயற்சித்தார். அவர் ஊழல் மற்றும் ஒழுக்கங்கெட்ட குருக்கள் அனைவரையும் அகற்றினார். ஏழைகளுக்கும், வீடற்றவர்களுக்கும் உதவும் நல்லெண்ணத்தில், அவர் கடுமையான வானிலைகளின்போது, தனது சொந்த வாழ்க்கையை ஆபத்திற்குள்ளாக்கி இருந்துள்ளார்.
பியர்ரே (Pierre) எனும் இயற்பெயர் கொண்ட பீட்டர், கி.பி. 1102ம் ஆண்டு, ஃபிரான்ஸ் நாட்டின் "ரோன்-ஆல்ப்ஸ்" மலைகளின் (Rhône-Alpes mountains) நகர்ப் பகுதியொன்றில் பிறந்தார். "சிஸ்டர்சியன் துறவியர் சபையில்" (Cistercian monastic order) இணைந்த இவர், கி.பி. 1132ம் ஆண்டு, "டமீ" (Tamié) என்னுமிடத்திலுள்ள துறவு மடத்தின் மடாதிபதியானார்.
1142ம் ஆண்டு, "டரென்டைஸ்" உயர் மறை மாவட்டத்தின் (Archbishop of Tarentaise) பேராயர் பதவியை தயக்கத்துடன் ஏற்றுக்கொண்டார். ஒரு துறவு மடாதிபதியாக தாம் கற்றுக்கொண்ட "சிஸ்டர்சியன் கொள்கைகளை" (Cistercian principles) சிதைந்து கொண்டிருந்த தமது மறை மாவட்டத்தில் நடைமுறைப்படுத்தினார். அதில் வெற்றியும் கண்டார்.
இவர் ஸ்விட்சர்லாந்து (Switzerland) மற்றும் இத்தாலி (Italy) நாடுகளினிடையே பயணம் செய்பவர்களின் நலன்களிலும் அக்கறை காட்டினார். பொதுவாகவே, பீட்டர் தமது ஆயர் பதவியினால் மகிழ்ச்சியுடன் காணப்படவில்லை. அவர் அடிக்கடி காணாமலும் போனார். இடையில் ஒரு வருடம் (1155) அவர் காணாமல் போய் ஸ்விட்சர்லாந்தின் ஒரு தொலைதூர துறவியர் மடத்தில் காணப்பட்டார் என்பர்.
ஃபிரான்ஸ் நாட்டின் அரசன் ஏழாம் லூயிஸ் (King Louis VII of France) மற்றும் இங்கிலாந்தின் அரசன் இரண்டாம் ஹென்றி (King Henry II of England) ஆகியோரிடையே நடந்த பேச்சுவார்த்தைகளில் திருத்தந்தை மூன்றாம் அலெக்சாண்டரின் (Pope Alexander III) சார்பில் பீட்டர் கலந்துகொண்டார். ஒருமுறை அதேபோன்றதொரு பேச்சுவார்த்தையில் கலந்துகொண்டு திரும்புகையில், ஃபிரான்ஸின் "பெல்லேவாக்ஸ்" (Monastery at Bellevaux) துறவு மடத்தில் மரித்தார்.
Church Roman Catholic Church
Archdiocese Tarentaise
See Tarentaise
Appointed September 1141
Term ended 14 September 1174
Predecessor Bozon
Successor Isdrael
Orders
Consecration 1141
Rank Archbishop
Personal details
Born Pierre
1102
Saint-Maurice-l'Exil, Kingdom of France
Died 14 September 1174 (aged 72)
Bellevaux Abbey, Cirey, Franche-Comté, Kingdom of France
Sainthood
Feast day
14 September
8 May (Tarentaise)
Venerated in Roman Catholic Church
Canonized 10 May 1191
Old Saint Peter's Basilica, Rome, Papal States
by Pope Celestine III
Attributes
Episcopal attire
Cistercian habit
Patronage Tarentaise
Cistercian archbishop. Peter was born near Vienne, in Dauphine, France, and joined the Cistercian Order at Bonneveaux at the age of twenty with his two brothers and father. Known for his piety, at age thirty he was sent to serve as the first abbot of Tamie, in the Tarantaise Mountains, between Geneva and Savoy. There he built a hospice for travelers. In 1142, he was named the archbishop of Tarantaise against his wishes, and he devoted much energy to reforming the diocese, purging the clergy of corrupt and immoral members, aiding the poor, and promoting education. He is also credited with starting the custom of distributing bread and soup the so called May Bread just before the harvest, a custom which endured throughout France until the French Revolution. After thirteen years as bishop, Peter suddenly disappeared. Eventually he was discovered serving as a lay brother in a Cistercian abbey in Switzerland and was convinced to return to Tarantaise and resume his episcopal duties. Trusted as an advisor by popes and kings, he defended papal rights in France and was called upon to assist in bringing about a reconciliation between King Louis VII of France and then Prince Henry II of England. Peter was canonized in 1191. He should not be confused with Peter of Tarantaise, who became Pope Innocent V.
Apparition of Saint Michael the Archangel
It is recorded that Saint Michael, in a vision, admonished the bishop of Siponto to build a church in his honour on Mount Gargano, now called Monte-de-Sant-Angelo, in the Capitanate, near Manfredonia, in the kingdom of Naples. This history is confirmed by Sigebert in his chronicle, and by the ancient tradition of the churches of that country, and is approved authentic by the judicious critic Mabillon, who visited those places, and examined the records and monuments. This church was erected in the fifth century, and is a place of great devotion.
When the Emperor Otho III had, contrary to his word, put to death, for rebellion, Crescentius, a Roman senator; being touched with remorse, he cast himself at the feet of Saint Romuald, who, in satisfaction for his crime, enjoined him to walk barefoot, on a penitential pilgrimage, to Saint Michael's on Mount Gargano: which penance he performed in 1002, as Saint Peter Damian relates. In France, Aubert, bishop of Avranches, moved, it is said, by certain visions, built, in 708, a church in honour of Saint Michael, on a barren rock which hangs over the sea, between Normandy and Brittany. In the tenth age, this collegiate church was changed into a great Benedictin abbey. In imitation of this was the famous church of Saint Michael refounded in Cornwall, in the reign of William the Conqueror, by William earl of Moreton, on a mountain which the tide encompasses. It is said by Borlace, the learned and accurate antiquarian of Cornwall, that this church of Saint Michael was first built in the fifth century.
The Greeks mention, in their Menaea, a famous apparition of Saint Michael at Chone, the ancient Colossae in Phrygia. Many apparitions of good angels in favour of men are recorded, both in the Old and New Testament. It is mentioned in particular of this special guardian and protector of the church, that, in the persecution of Antichrist, he will powerfully stand up in her defence: At that time shall Michael rise up, the great prince, who standeth for the children of thy people. He is not only the protector of the church, but of every faithful soul. He defeated the devil by humility; we are enlisted in the same warfare. His arms were humility and ardent love of God; the same must be our weapons. We ought to regard this archangel as our leader under God: and, courageously resisting the devil in all his assaults, to cry out: Who can be compared to God?
Blessed Ulrika Fransiska Nisch
Also known as
Fransiska Dettenrieder
Profile
Oldest of eleven children born to Ulrich Nisch, who cleaned stables, and Klothilde Dettenrieder, a servant in a village inn. The couple was so poor that their families and the local authorities refused to allow their marriage; they forced the issue with the birth of Fransiska. The baby was baptized at the age of one day. Only four Fransiska's siblings reached adulthood.
Fransiska spent her early childhood in Oberdorf, Germany, raised by her grandmother and maternal aunt, Gertrud Dettenrieder. When she was returned to her parents at age seven, she had so much trouble fitting in that she eventually returned to Oberdorf to live with her aunt and finish school. Known as a pious child, Fransiska early felt a call to religious life, but beginning in 1894 she worked as a maid in serveral homes to support her family. She made her First Communion on 21 April 1895, and was confirmed later that year. In 1898 she worked at a general store and cheese factory in Sauggart, Germany. Worked at a combination bakery, brewer and tavern in Biberach, Germany in 1899. Servant in the house of a teacher in Rorschach, Switzerland in 1901.
In 1903 she began suffering from a severe form of erysipelas in 1903; in hospital she was treated by the Sisters of Charity of Holy Cross, and was so impressed by them that she followed her call to religious vocation by joining the Sisters on 17 October 1904 at the Hegne monastery in Konstanz, Germany, taking the name Ulrika in honour of her father. She spent her few remaining years working in the kitchens of several houses in her Order amd dealing with a series of deep mystical experiences.
Born
18 September 1882 in Oberdorg-Mittelbiberach, Germany as Fransiska Dettenrieder, named for a great-grandmother
Died
8 May 1913 at the Saint Elizabeth hospital in the House of Hegne, Baden-Baden, Germany of tuberculosis
Beatified
• 1 November 1987 by Pope John Paul II
• beatification celebrated at Saint Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy by Pope John Paul II
• the beatification miracle involved the healing of incurable liver disease of Hildis Burchard Gerhards in Cologne, Germany by the intercession of Blessed Ulrika
Blessed Clara Fey
புனித.கிளாரா ஃபாய் (St.Klara Foy)
துறவி, சபை நிறுவுனர்
பிறப்பு 11 ஏப்ரல் 1815 ஆஹன்(Aachen), ஜெர்மனி
இறப்பு 8 மே 1848 சிம்பல்பெல்டு(Simpelfeld), ஹாலந்து
இவர் தனது கல்வியை முடித்தபின் துறவற சபைகளை பற்றி தெரிந்து கொள்ள பல புத்தகங்களை படித்தார். ஆஹனில் பிற ந்த இவர், தனது பங்குதந்தை பவுல் உதவியுடன், பல சமூக பணி களில் தன்னை ஈடுபடுத்தினார். சிறப்பாக இளைஞர்களிடத்தில் அதிக அன்பு காட்டினார். 1837 ஆம் ஆண்டு தனது 22 ஆம் வயதில் ஆஹனில் இளைஞர்களுக்கென்று ஓர் பள்ளியை நிறுவினார். இப்பள்ளிக்கு தேவையான உதவிகளை செய்வதற்கு, இவரின் சமூக சேவை பணிக்குழுவில் இருந்தவர்கள் முன் வந்தனர். இவ ர்கள் அனைவரும் ஒன்றாக சேர்ந்து சமூக சேவையோடு, 1844 ஆம் ஆண்டு இறைவனின் பணிகளிலும் தங்களை ஈடுபடுத்திகொ ண்டனர். இதன் விளைவாக 1848 ஆம் ஆண்டு கிளாரா ஃபாய் அவ ர்கள் "குழந்தை இயேசுவின் ஏழைகள்" என்ற சபையை நிறுவி னார். ஏராளமான ஏழை குழந்தைகளை ஒன்று சேர்த்து அவர் களை பராமரித்தார்கள் இச்சபை கன்னியர்கள். அதோடு கல்வி கற்றுக் கொடுத்து, வாழ்விற்கு வழிகாட்டி, தாய்க்குத் தாயாக இருந்து பராமரித்தார்கள். நாளடைவில் குழந்தைகளின் எண் ணிக்கை பெருகவே மீண்டும் ஓர் துறவற இல்லத்தை நிறுவி னார். இதில் பல கைவிடப்பட்ட பெண்களும், விதவைகளும் வந்து சேர்ந்தனர். கிளாரா இச்சபையை தொடங்கிய 15 ஆம் ஆண்டுகளில் ஜெர்மனி முழுவதும் 19 துறவற மடங்களை துவ ங்கினார். சில கலாச்சார வேறுபாடுகளின் அடிப்படையில் இவ ரது சபை ஹாலந்து நாட்டிலும் தொடங்கப்படவேண்டியதாக இருந்தது. இதனால் ஹாலந்து நாட்டில் ஓர் துறவற மடம் தொடங் கப்பட்டு, அந்த மடமே பிற்காலத்தில் இச்சபையின் தலைமை இல்லமாகவும் அமைந்தது. இச்சபையின் முதல் சபைத்தலைவி யாக கிளாரா ஃபாய் அவர்களே பொறுப்பேற்றார். பல ஏழை குழ ந்தைகளுக்கும், கைவிடப்பட்ட பெண்களுக்கும், விதவைகளுக் கும் தாயான இவர் இறந்தபிறகு ஹாலந்து நாட்டிலுள்ள சிம்பல் பெல்டு என்ற ஊரில் அடக்கம் செய்யப்பட்டு, இவரை முன் மாதி ரியாக கொண்டு இன்றுவரை இச்சபைத்துறவிகள் பணியா ற்றிவருகிறார்கள்
Also known as
Klara
Profile
Fourth of five children born to Louis and Katherine Fey; her father was a wealthy textile industrialist who died of a stroke in 1820 when Clara was five years old. The girl grew up well off, but became acutely concerned about the plight of the poor in her city. Her family was active in the Church; Clara's brother became a priest, and she was acquainted with Blessed Pauline von Mallinckrodt and Blessed Franziska Schervier. In 1835 she began reading the work of Saint Teresa of Ávila, and was drawn to Carmelite spirituality. In 1837 she and some like-minded friends she set up a school for poor children in Aachen, Germany. In 1841, following the recommendation of her spiritual director, she began studying the work of Saint Francis de Sales. Founded the Sisters of the Poor Child Jesus on 2 February 1844 in Aachen with a Rule based on the teaching of Saint Augustine, and with a mission to educate children in religion and in secular matters in a religious environment; Mother Clara served the rest of her life as their first superior. She received diocesan approval on 28 January 1848 and made her profession in 1850. The Sisters received a papal decree of praise on 11 July 1862 from Pope Pius IX; in 1875, during the anti–Catholic German Kulturkampf, the Sisters moved to Simpelveld, Netherlands, though there are plans to move back to Aachen in the near future; they received full papal approval from Pope Leo XIII on 15 June 1888, and continue their good work today with over 500 sisters in 12 nations of Europe, South America, and Asia.
Born
11 April 1815 in Aachen, North Rhein-Westphalia, Germany
Died
8 May 1894 in Simpelveld, Limburg, Netherlands of natural causes
Beatified
• 5 May 2018 by Pope Francis
• beatification recognition celebrated at the cathedral of Aachen, North Rhein-Westphalia, Germany
Patronage
Sisters of the Poor Child Jesus
Blessed Marie-Catherine de Saint-Augustin
Also known as
• Catherine Symon of Longprey
• Marie-Catherine Simon de Longpré
• Marie-Catherine Symon de Longprey
• Mary Catherine of Saint Augustine
Profile
Raised primarily by her grandparents, Marie-Catherine was a pious girl noted for her concern for the poor and sick. She became a Augustinian canoness regular sister in the Hospitaller Sisters of the Mercy on 24 October 1644, taking the name Marie-Catherine de Saint-Augustin and serving in the Hôtel-Dieu, the hospital that the Order operated in Bayeux, France.
In 1648 she volunteered to help establish the hospital, Hôtel-Dieu de Québec, to provide medical services to the region around Quebec in New France. While travelling, Sister Marie-Catherine became severely ill; she attributed her cure to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. At the new hospital, while serving as the organization’s treasurer, she was known for caring for the physical and spiritual well-being of her patients. She learned the languages of the area First Peoples in order to better care for them. Novice mistress to the new Augustinians brought to the order by the work of the sisters. She spent her spare time in prayer and penance in support of the hospital mission. For her endless work and devotion, Mother Catherine is honoured as one of the six founders of the Catholic Church in Canada.
Born
3 May 1632 in Saint-Sauveur-le-Vicomte, Normandy, France
Died
• 8 May 1668 in the Hôtel-Dieu de Québec, Québec City, New France (modern Canada) of natural causes
• relics enshrined at the Centre Catherine-de-Saint-Augustin next to the Hôtel-Dieu de Québec
Beatified
23 April 1989 by Pope John Paul II
Blessed Henri Vergès
Also known as
Enric Vergés
Profile
Educated from age 12 by the Marist Brothers of the Schools, he studied in Espirá de l'Aglí and Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux in France. Enric joined the Marists himself in 1945, and made his perpetual vows on 26 August 1952. Elementary school teacher in Nimes, France in 1947. The combination of work, study and Marist frugality led to health problems, and in 1950 Henri had to spend time in hospital in Osséja, France. Teacher in Le Cheylard, France in 1952. Novice instructor in Aubenas and Bordeaux in France. Sub-master of the novices at Notre-Dame de Lacabane, Corrèze, France from 1958 to 1966. Marist superior in Bourg-de-Péage and Ganges in France. Delegate to the Marist general chapter in 1967. Received a degree in philosophy in Montpellier, France in 1968. After studying Arabic, he was appointed director of the Saint-Bonaventure school in Algiers from 1969 till 1976 when the school was nationalized by the Algerian government. Professor of mathematics at the school of Sour-El-Ghozlane from 1976 to 1988. Director of the library of the Archdiocese of Algiers on Ben Cheneb Street in the casbah from 1988 until his death. Murdered by Muslim fundamentalists. Martyr.
Born
15 July 1930 in Matemale, Pyrénées-Orientales, France
Died
• shot twice in the head on 8 May 1994 in the Archdiocese library in Algiers, Algeria
• buried in Algiers on 12 May 1994
Beatified
8 December 2018 by Pope Francis
Pope Saint Boniface IV
Profile
Son of a physician named John. Student under Saint Gregory the Great. Benedictine monk at the Saint Sebastian Abbey in Rome, Italy. Served as deacon under Saint Gregory the Great; dispenser of alms and patrimonies. Chosen 67th Pope in 608.
Converted the Roman temple of the old gods, the Pantheon, to a Christian church dedicated to Our Lady and all the Martyrs in 609, the first such conversion of a temple from pagan to Christian use in Rome. Supported the expansion of the faith into England, and met with the first bishop of London. Encouraged reforms among the clergy, and balanced it with improvements in their living and working conditions. Corresponded with Saint Columba. Worked to alleviate the sufferings in Rome due to famine and the disease that follows it. Late in life he converted his own house into a monastery and lived there, dividing his time between his papal work and life as a prayerful monk.
Born
c.550 at Valeria, Abruzzi, Italy
Papal Ascension
25 August 608
Died
• 615 at Rome, Italy of natural causes
• relics moved c.1100
• relics moved in the late 13th century by order of Pope Boniface VIII
• relics re-interred in Saint Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy on 21 October 1603
Blessed Paul-Hélène Saint Raymond
Also known as
Madame Encyclopédie
Profile
Eighth of ten children born into a pious family. Paul-Hélène studied engineering at the Sorbonne in Paris, France, but felt a call to religious life, and joined the Little Sisters of the Assumption in 1952, making her final vows in 1960. Family social worker in Creil, France from 1954 until 1957 when she began studying to be a nurse. She worked as a nurse in poor, working class neigbbourhoods in Rouen, France. Assigned to work as a nurse and social worker in Algeria in 1964 where she served for 30 years. She is remembered as intelligent, educated, helpful, generous, prayerful, and honest to the point of sometimes being blunt and tactless. Retiring from medical and social work, she assisted Blessed Henri Vergès at the archdiocese library where she was known for welcoming children and teenagers. Murdered by Muslim fundamentalists who entered the library disguised as police officers. Martyr.
Born
24 January 1927 in Paris, France
Died
• shot in the neck on 8 May 1994 in the Archdiocese library on Ben Cheneb Street in the Kasbah in Algiers, Algeria
• funeral Mass celebrated at the Basilica of Our Lady of Africa
Beatified
8 December 2018 by Pope Francis
Our Lady of Luján
Profile
The Virgin is a two feet tall terracotta statue of Our Lady. It was made in Brazil and sent to Argentina in May 1630. Its original appearance seemed inspired by Murillo's Immaculates. In 1887, to preserve and protect it, the image was given a solid silver covering. It is usually clothed with a white robe and sky blue cloak, the colors of the Argentinian flag. Only the dark oval face with big blue eyes and the hands folded in prayer are now visible.
Tradition says that an ox-drawn wagon was taking the statue from Buenos Aires to Santiago del Estero. The animals stopped at the Luján River and refused to cross. Through trial and error the teamsters discovered that it the box with the Virgin was in the wagon, the oxen would not move; if it was removed, then away they went. After testing this several times, the people realized that Our Lady wanted to stay in Luján, and so she is there today.
The image was first taken to the nearby home of Don Rosendo. He built a primitive chapel for it which lasted 40 years. A bigger shrine was completed in 1685. A new sanctuary was built in the 19th century. The image was crowned canonically in 1887. In 1930 Pope Pius XII gave the sanctuary the title of Basilica.
Patronage
• Agentina (proclaimed on 8 September 1930 Pope Pius XI)
• Argentinian military chaplains
• Paraguay
• Uruguay
Saint Acacius of Byzantium
Also known as
• Acacius of Constantinople
• Acato of Avila
• Acathius
• Achatius of Byzantium
• Agathius of Byzantium
• Agathus of Byzantium
• Agazio (in Calabria)
• Cuenca (in Spain)
Additional Memorial
• 16 January (translation of relics)
• 17 April (Orthodox calendar)
Profile
Christian centurian in the imperial Roman army stationed in Thrace. Tortured and executed in the persecutions of Diocletian. Several churches in Constantinople dedicated to him, including one dedicated by Constantine the Great. One of the Fourteen Holy Helpers.
Born
Cappadocian
Died
tortured, scourged, and beheaded c.303 in Constantinople
Patronage
• against headaches
• soldiers
Saint Victor Maurus
Also known as
• Victor the Moor
• Viktor; Vittore; Vittorio
Profile
Soldier in the Roman Praetorian Guard. A Christian from his youth, Victor lived in quiet praise of God. Around 303, the elderly Victor was arrested in Milan, Italy in the persecutions of Maximian. He was tortured for his faith, basted in molten lead, and killed. Martyr. Saint Gregory of Tours wrote of miracles that occurred at Victor's grave.
Born
3rd century in Mauretania, Africa
Died
• beheaded c.303
• buried outside Milan, Italy
• a church was later erected over the grave
• relics translated in 1576 to an Olivetan church dedicated to him in Milan
Patronage
• Asigliano, Italy
• Balangero, Italy
• Borghetto, Italy
• Canale, Italy
• Caselle Torinese, Italy
• Feletto, Italy
• Odolengo, Italy
• Quagliuzzo, Italy
• Rho, Italy
• San Vittore Olona, Italy
• Varese, Italy
• Verbania, Italy
Representation
• man being thrown into a furnace
• man roasted in a bronze bull
• man roasted in an oven
• Moorish soldier trampling on a broken pagan altar
• bull
• fire
Saint Amatus Ronconi
Also known as
Amato
Profile
Born to a wealthy family, Amatus was orphaned when very young and grew up in the home of his older brother Giacomo. Feeling a call to live according to the gospel, he devoted himself to caring for the poor and helping pilgrims. Franciscan tertiary. Constructed combination chapel and shelters for pilgrims including the Beato Amato Ronconi Nursing Home which still exists. Made four pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Benedictine lay brother.
Born
c.1225 in Saludécio, Rimini, Italy
Died
• 8 May 1292 in Saludécio, Rimini, Italy of natural causes
• interred in the chapel shelters he had built
• relics transferred to the Pieve di San Biagio in May 1330 after the chapel shelters were destroyed by fire
Beatified
• 17 April 1776 by Pope Pius VI (cultus confirmation)
• 9 October 2013 by Pope Francis (decree of heroic virtues)
Canonized
23 November 2014 by Pope Francis
Patronage
Saludécio, Italy
Blessed Aloysius Luis Rabata
Profile
Carmelite priest. Prior of the reformed convent in Randazzo, Italy.
Born
c.1430 at Erice, Sicily
Died
• murdered in 1490 in Trapani, Italy by a head wound
• before he died he forgave his attacker, and refused to say who it was for fear the person would be punished
• buried under the main altar at the church at the Carmelite convent in Trapani
• some relics transferred to Sicily in 1617
• relics transferred to an urn under the altar of the Assumption in the basilica of Santa Maria on 13 August 1913
Beatified
10 December 1841 by Pope Gregory XVI (cultus confirmed)
Blessed Angelo of Massaccio
Also known as
• Angelo of Cupramontana
• Angel...
Profile
Camaldolese monk at the Santa Maria della Serra monastery near Cupramontana, Italy. Prior of his house. Priest. Martyr by Berlotani heretic wood cutters when he chastised them for ignoring the Sabbath.
Born
late 14 century in Massaccio (modern Cupramontana), Italy
Died
• hit with an axe c.1458 near the monastery of Santa Maria della Serra near Cupramontana, Italy
• by 1492 he was interred under the altar in the church at Santa Maria della Serra, now known as the church of Sant Angelo
Beatified
27 September 1842 by Pope Gregory XVI (cultus confirmation)
Patronage
Cupramontana, Italy
Saint Ida of Nivelles
Also known as
• Ida of Metz
• Iduberga; Ita; Itta; Itte
Profile
Daughter of Bishop Arnoald of Metz. Sister of Saint Modoald of Trier and Saint Severa. Married to Saint Pepin of Landen. Mother of Saint Gertrude of Nivelles, Saint Begga of Ardenne, and Grimoald, mayor of the palace. Grandmother of Pepin of Herstal. Friend of Saint Amand of Maastricht. Widowed, she built a Benedictine double monastery at Nivelles, Belgium under the leadership of her daughter, Saint Gertrude; Ida spent the rest of her life there as a nun.
Born
592
Died
8 May 652 in Nivelles, Belgium of natural causes
Patronage
• against erysipelas; erysipelas patients
• against toothache; toothache sufferers
Pope Saint Benedict II
Profile
Son of John. Studied at the schola cantorum, and was early known as a Bible scholar; noted singer, too. Priest, known for his care for the poor. Pope; the delay in his ascension was caused by waiting for imperial confirmation.
Obtained the decree that abolished imperial confirmation of popes. Adopted Constantine's two sons. Fought Monothelitism, and worked with Spanish bishops to restore orthodoxy in their dioceses. Restored many churches in Rome, and endowed deaconries to care for the poor.
Born
at Rome, Italy
Papal Ascension
• elected in 683
• ascended on 26 June 684
Died
• 8 May 685
• buried at Saint Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy
Saint Desideratus of Bourges
Also known as
Desire, Dezydery, Desiderato
Profile
His was a pious family; his parents turned their home into a hospital, and his brothers, Deodato and Didier, died as a martyrs. Desideratus was a courtier and advisor to king Clotaire. Fought simony and heresy. He wished to retire to life as a monk, but was chosen to serve as bishop of Bourges, France in 541. Attended the 5th Council of Orleans in 549, and the 2nd Council of Auvergne. Fought against Nestorianism.
Born
Soissons, France
Died
• 8 May 550 of natural causes
• buried in the basilica of Sant'Ursino, Bourges, France, the building of which he began
Saint Metrone of Verona
Also known as
Metro, Metron, Metronius
Profile
8th-century penitent who chained himself to a stone in front of the cathedral of Verona, Italy, threw the key into Adige River, and lived there on the street for seven years in penance. The key to his chains was found in the belly of a fish by two fishermen who took the key to the local bishop. The bishop took the return to the key as a sign, freed Metrone from his chains, and welcomed him to active Communion in the Church.
Died
• miracles reported at his grave
• relics enshrined in Verona, Italy
Saint Otger of Utrecht
Also known as
Odger; Odgero; Oteger
Profile
Worked with Saint Wiro of Utrecht to found a monastery at Odilienburg, Netherlands.
Born
England
Died
• c.746 of natural causes
• relics in Odilienberg, France
• relics taken to Roermond, Netherlands in 1361
• relics disappeared during the time of the Protestant Reformation
• relics re-discovered in 1594
• relics re-enshrined in 1881
Saint Wiro of Utrecht
Also known as
Wirone
Profile
Bishop of Utrecht, Netherlands. One of the Apostles of Frisia. He and his two companions founded a monastery at Odiliënberg, Netherlands.
Born
British Isles (location varies from source to source)
Died
• c.753 of natural causes
• buried in Roermond, Netherlands
• tomb re-discovered in August 1881
Blessed Raymond of Toulouse
Profile
Son of the Count de Montfort. Cousin of Blessed George of Lauria. While on pilgrimage to the Marian shrine of Montserrat, Raymond decided to join the Mercedarians, and took the habit at the convent of Santa Eulalia in Barcelona, Spain. Zealous preacher. Created cardinal-priest in 1335 by Pope Benedict XII.
Saint Gibrian
Also known as
Abran, Gybrian, Gobrian, Gibriano
Profile
Brother of Saint Tressan, Saint Helan, Saint Germanus, Saint Abran, Saint Petran, Saint Franca, Saint Promptia, and Saint Possenna. Hermit in Brittany in northern France. Priest. Worked with Saint Remigius.
Born
Ireland
Died
c.515
Blessed Domenico di San Pietro
Profile
Mercedarian. Helped ransom 187 Christians held in slavery by North African Moors.
Blessed Pietro de Alos
Profile
Mercedarian. Helped ransom 187 Christians held in slavery by North African Moors.
Saint Helladius of Auxerre
Profile
Bishop of Auxerre, France for 30 years. Converted Saint Amator, his successor as bishop, to the faith.
Died
387 of natural causes
Saint Arsenio of Scetis
Profile
Deacon. Hermit at Mount Scetis, Egypt.
Born
4th century
Died
5th century
Saint Martin of Saujon
Profile
Sixth century priest, monk and abbot in Saujon, Saintes, France.
Saint Peter of Besançon
Profile
Bishop of Besançon, France.
Also celebrated but no entry yet
• Our Lady of Divine Providence
• Our Lady of Grace
• Our Lady of Sterpeto
• Bernardino of Bustis
• Giovanni Vici of Stroncone
• Peter Petroni
