இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் மே 10

 St. Peter Van

Feastday: May 10

Death: 1857

Vietnamese martyr. A native catechist, he was arrested by authorities and beheaded. Pope John Paul II canonized him in 1988. 

The Vietnamese Martyrs (Vietnamese: Các Thánh Tử đạo Việt Nam; French: Martyrs du Viêt Nam), also known as the Martyrs of Annam, Martyrs of Tonkin and Cochinchina, Martyrs of Indochina, or Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions (Anrê Dũng-Lạc và các bạn tử đạo), are saints on the General Roman Calendar who were canonized by Pope John Paul II. On June 19, 1988, thousands of overseas Vietnamese worldwide gathered at the Vatican for the Celebration of the Canonization of 117 Vietnamese Martyrs, an event chaired by Monsignor Tran Van Hoai. Their memorial is on November 24 (although several of these saints have another memorial, having been beatified and on the calendar prior to the canonization of the group).

St. Damien of Molokai

 புனிதர் தமியான் 

மதகுரு, மதபோதகர்:

(Religious Priest and Missionary)

பிறப்பு: ஜனவரி 3, 1840

ட்ரெமெலோ, ப்ரபன்ட், பெல்ஜியம்

(Tremelo, Brabant, Belgium)

இறப்பு: ஏப்ரல் 15, 1889 (வயது 49)

கலாவுபப்பா, மொலகாய், ஹவாயி

(Kalaupapa, Molokaʻi, Hawaiʻi)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:  

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

கீழைக் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபைகள்

(Eastern Catholic Churches)

அமெரிக்க எப்பிஸ்கோப்பல் திருச்சபை

(Episcopal Church)

ஆங்கிலிக்கத்தின் சில பிரிவுகள்

(Some Churches of Anglican Communion)

லூதரன் தனிச்சபைகள் சில

(Individual Lutheran Churches)

அருளாளர் பட்டம்: ஜூன் 4, 1995

திருத்தந்தை இரண்டாம் ஜான் பவுல் 

(Pope John Paul II)

புனிதர் பட்டம்: அக்டோபர் 11, 2009

திருத்தந்தை பதினாறாம் பெனடிக்ட்

(Pope Benedict XVI)

முக்கிய திருத்தலங்கள்:

லுவென், பெல்ஜியம் (உடலின் மிச்சங்கள்)

(Leuven, Belgium (bodily relics)

மோலக்காய், ஹவாய் (அவரது கையின் மிச்சங்கள்)

(Molokaʻi, Hawaii (relics of his hand)

நினைவுத் திருவிழா: மே 10

பாதுகாவல்: தொழுநோயால் பாதிக்கப்பட்டோர்.

ஹவாயி இராச்சியத்தின் மோலக்காய் தீவில் தொழுநோயாளருக்குப் பணிபுரிந்து, தாமும் தொழுநோயால் பாதிக்கப்பட்ட புனிதர் தமியான், "இயேசு மற்றும் மரியாளின் திருஇருதய சபை" (Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary) என்னும் கத்தோலிக்க துறவற சபையினைச் சார்ந்த துறவியும், குருவும் ஆவார்.

பிறப்பும் துறவறமும்:

தந்தை தமியான், கி.பி 1840ம் ஆண்டு, ஜனவரி மாதம், 3ம் நாளன்று பிறந்தார். அவர் பிறந்த இடம் பெல்ஜியம் நாட்டில் உள்ள “ட்ரெமெலோ” (Tremelo) என்னும் ஊர் ஆகும். அவருடைய இயற்பெயர் "ஜோசெஃப் டி வெய்ஸ்ட்டெர்' (Jozef De Veuster) ஆகும். அவர் "இயேசு மற்றும் மரியாள் ஆகியோரின் திரு இருதயங்களின் சபை" என்னும் துறவற சபையின் உறுப்பினராக இருந்தார். கிறிஸ்தவ சமயத்தைப் பரப்புவதில் ஈடுபட்டிருந்தார்.

புனிதர் தமியான், "தொழுநோயாளரின் திருத்தூதர்" (The Apostle of the Lepers) என்னும் பெயராலும் அறியப்படுகிறார். மேலும் அவருக்கு, "தொழுநோய்த் துறவி" (Leper Priest) என்னும் பெயரும் உண்டு.

தமியானின் இளமைப் பருவம்:

"ஜோசெஃப் டி வேய்ஸ்ட்டர்" (Jozef De Veuster) எனும் இயற்பெயர் கொண்ட தந்தை தமியான், பெல்ஜியம் நாட்டில் 'ஃப்ளேமிஷ்' (Flemish) மொழி பேசும் மக்கள் குழுவைச் சார்ந்த "ஜோவான்னெஸ் ஃப்ரான்சிஸ்கஸ் டி வெய்ஸ்ட்டர்" (Joannes Franciscus De Veuster) என்பவருக்கும் அவரது மனைவி "ஆனி-காதரின் வூட்டெர்ஸ்" (Anne-Catherine Wouters) என்பவருக்கும் ஏழாவது குழந்தையாகப் பிறந்தவர். அவரது தந்தை சோளம் வியாபாரியாக இருந்தார். அவர் "ப்ரேய்ன்-லெ-கோம்த்" (Braine-le-Comte) என்னும் இடத்தில் உள்ள கல்லூரியில் கல்வி பயின்றார்.

துறவு வாழ்க்கையைத் தழுவுதல்:

இயேசுவை நெருக்கமாகப் பின்செல்ல விரும்பி, துறவற வாழ்க்கையைத் தழுவ எண்ணிய தமியான், "இயேசு மற்றும் மரியா ஆகியோரின் திரு இருதயங்களின் சபை" என்னும் துறவறக் குழுவில் உறுப்பினராகச் சேர முன்வந்து, அச்சபைக்கான புகுமுகப் (Novitiate) பயிற்சி பெற்றார். அப்போது அவர் தேர்ந்துகொண்ட துறவறப் பெயர் "தமியானஸ்"ஆகும்.

அவருடைய குருத்துவப் படிப்புக் காலத்தின் போது அவர் ஒவ்வொரு நாளும் மறைபரப்பாளர்களின் பாதுகாவலராகிய புனித ஃபிரான்சிஸ் சவேரியாரின் படத்தின் முன் அமர்ந்து, தாமும் ஒருநாள் நாடுகடந்து சென்று கிறிஸ்தவ மறைப்பணி புரிய இறைவன் அருளவேண்டும் என்று வேண்டுதல் செய்வது வழக்கம். மூன்று ஆண்டுகளுக்குப் பின் அவருடைய வேண்டுதல் கேட்கப்பட்டது. தமியானின் சகோதரர் "அருட்தந்தை பாம்ப்பில்" (Father Pamphile) அவர்கள் நோய்வாய்ப்பட்டதால் ஹவாயி இராச்சியத்துக்கு மறைப்பணியாளராகச் செல்ல இயலாமல் போயிற்று. அவருக்குப் பதிலாக, அவருடைய தம்பி தமியானை ஹவாயிக்கு மறைப்பணியாளராக அனுப்புவது என்று சபை முடிவுசெய்தது. அண்ணனுக்குக் கிடைக்காத பேறு தம்பிக்குக் கிடைத்தது.

ஹவாயிக்கு மறைப்பணியாற்றச் செல்லுதல்:

கி.பி 1864ம் ஆண்டு, மார்ச் மாதம், 19ம் நாள், தமியான் மறைப்பணியாளராக ஹவாயி நாட்டின் "ஹொனலூலு" (Honolulu Harbor) துறைமுகம் வந்திறங்கினார். அங்கு, இவர் நிறுவிய சபையினர் கட்டியிருந்த "அமைதியின் அன்னை பேராலயத்தில்" (Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace), கி.பி 1864ம் ஆண்டு, மே மாதம், 21ம் நாளன்று, தமியான் குருத்துவ அருட்பொழிவு செய்யப்பட்டார்.

கி.பி 1865ம் ஆண்டு, தமியானுக்கு ஹவாயியின் "வட கோஹலா" (Catholic Mission in North Kohala) பகுதியில் அமைந்திருந்த இயேசுவின் திரு இருதய ஆலய பொறுப்பு ஒப்படைக்கப்பட்டது.

ஹவாயியில் மருத்துவ நெருக்கடி:

ஹவாயி இராச்சியத்தின் 'ஓவாஹூ' (Oahu) பகுதியில் பல பங்குகளில் மறைப்பணி செய்தார் தந்தை தமியான். அவ்வாறு அவர் பணியாற்றிக் கொண்டிருக்கையில் ஹவாயியின் மருத்துவ சேவை ஒரு பெரிய நெருக்கடியைச் சந்திக்கலாயிற்று. வெளிநாடுகளிலிருந்து வந்த வணிகர்களும் கடற்பயணிகளும் சுமந்துவந்த சில நோய்கள் அவர்கள் ஹவாயியின் ஆதி குடிமக்களோடு கொண்ட தொடர்பின் பயனாக அம்மக்கள் சிலரிடையே பரவின.

இதனால் ஆயிரக்கணக்கான ஹவாயி மக்கள் ஃபுளூ சளிக்காய்ச்சல், பால்வினை நோயாகிய மேகப்புண் (smallpox, cholera, influenza, syphilis, and whooping cough) போன்ற நோய்களுக்கு ஆளாகி இறந்தனர். இந்த நோய்கள் அப்பகுதிகளில் முன்னால் கண்டதில்லை. இவ்வாறு வந்து பரவிய நோய்களுள் ஒன்று "ஹான்சன் நோய்" (Hansen's disease) என்று அழைக்கப்படுகின்ற தொழுநோய்.

அச்சமயத்தில் தொழுநோய் மிகவும் பயங்கரமான தொற்றுநோயாகக் கருதப்பட்டது. ஆனால் 95% மனிதர்கள் அந்நோய்க் கிருமியைத் தடுக்கும் எதிர்ப்புச் சக்தி கொண்டுள்ளனர் என்று அறியப்பட்டது. தொழுநோய் என்பது குணப்படுத்த முடியாத நோய் என்றும் அக்காலத்தில் கருதப்பட்டது.

ஒதுக்கப்பட்டு வாழ்ந்த தொழுநோயாளருக்கு மக்கள் நல வாரியம் உணவும் பிற பொருள்களும் கொடுத்தது. ஆனால் நாள்கள் போகப்போக அம்மக்களின் நலனைக் கவனிக்க போதுமான ஆள்களோ பொருள்களோ அனுப்பப்படவில்லை.

தந்தை தமியான் தொழுநோயாளர் நடுவே பணி செய்ய முதல் ஆளாகப் போய்ச் சேர்ந்தார். ஒதுக்கப்பட்ட இடமாகிய கலாவுபப்பா தொழுநோயாளர் குடியிருப்பில் தமியான், கி.பி 1873ம் ஆண்டு, மே மாதம், 10ம் நாள், சென்றடைந்தார். அங்கு வாழ்ந்த 816 தொழுநோயாளர் முன்னிலையில் 'ஆயர் மேக்ரே', தந்தை தமியானை அறிமுகம் செய்தார்.

தொழுநோயாளர் குடியிருப்பில் போய்ச் சேர்ந்த உடனேயே அங்கு வாழ்ந்த மக்களின் வாழ்க்கையை எப்படி முன்னேற்றுவது என்பது குறித்து தமியான் சிந்திக்கலானார். முதல் வேலையாக ஒரு கோவில் கட்டுவது என்று முடிவுசெய்து, கோவிலைக் கட்டி அதைப் புனித ஃபிலோமினாவுக்கு அர்ப்பணித்தார். ஆனால் அவரது பணி மறைசார்ந்த ஒன்றாக மட்டுமே இருக்கவில்லை.

தொழுநோயாளரின் புண்களைக் கட்டுவது, அவர்கள் வசதியாகத் தங்கியிருக்க வீடுகள் கட்டுவது, அவர்களுக்குத் தேவையான மரச்சாமான்களைச் செய்துகொடுப்பது, இறந்தோரை அடக்கம் செய்ய அடக்கப்பெட்டிகள் செய்வது, கல்லறைக் குழிகள் தோண்டுவது என்று பல பணிகளையும் தமியான் செய்யலானார்.

தந்தை தமியானுக்கும் தொழுநோய் தொற்றிவிட்டது. தமக்கும் தொழுநோய் வந்துவிட்டது என்று தெரிந்த பிறகு, தமியான் முன்னைப் போலவே ஊக்கத்தோடு தம் பணிகளில் ஈடுபட்டார்.

கி.பி 1889ம் ஆண்டு, ஏப்ரல் மாதம், 15ம் தேதியன்று காலை 8 மணிக்குத் தந்தை தமியான் தொழுநோயால் இறந்தார். அப்போது அவருக்கு வயது 49.

Feastday: May 10

Patron: of people with leprosy

Birth: 1840

Death: 1889

Beatified: June 4th, 1995, Basilica of the Sacred Heart (Koekelberg), Brussels, by Pope John Paul II

Canonized: October 11th, 2009, Vatican City, by Pope Benedict XVI

The man who would become St. Damien of Molokai, was born in rural Belgium, on January 3, 1840. His name was Jozef De Veuster, and he was the youngest of seven children. Growing up on the farm, Jozef was prepared to take over for his family, but he did not want the responsibility. Instead, he wanted to follow his older brother and two sisters who took religious vows.

Jozef attended school until the age of 13 when his help was needed on the family farm full-time. He aided his family until he was old enough to enter the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. He took the name Damien, after a sixth century martyr.

In 1864, Damien's brother who was also in the same order of religious, was ordered to Hawaii. But his brother became ill, so Br. Damien offered to go in his place.

The brothers worried that Br. Damien was too uneducated to become a priest, although he was not considered unintelligent. Br. Damien demonstrated his ability by quickly learning Latin from his brother. He was also devoted in prayer, Br. Damien prayed each day before an icon of Saint Francis Xavier to be sent on a mission.

Br. Damien arrived in Hawaii in March 1864, and was ordained as a priest on the island of Hawaii two months later. For nine years, he worked on the island as a priest, leading an important, yet undistinguished life.

In 1866, Hawaii established a leper colony on the Kalaupapa Peninsula. It was still mistakenly believed that leprosy was highly contagious. This belief resulted in the forced quarantine of leprosy patients.

These people still needed spiritual and medical care, so to Fr. Damien discerned his call to serve them. In 1873, Fr. Damien made the trip to be with these people in their colony.

Upon arrival, he found the colony was poorly maintained. Anarchy reigned among the people living there. Many patients required treatment but had nobody to care for them. Other patients took to drinking and became severe alcoholics. Every kind of immorality and misbehavior was on display in the lawless colony. There was no law or order.

Fr. Damien realized the people needed leadership, so he provided it. He asked people to come together to build houses and schools and eventually the parish church, St. Philomena. The church still stands today.

The sick were cared for and the dead buried. Order and routine made the colony livable. Fr. Damien personally provided much of the care the people needed.

He was supposed to only work in the colony for a time then he would be replaced by one of three other volunteers for the work. But the leper colony was to become his permanent home. After working with the people for a time Fr. Damien grew attached to the people and his work. He asked permission to stay at the colony to serve. His request was granted.

Leprosy is not as contagious as most people of the period assumed, however five percent of the human population is susceptible. The disease can also take several years to show symptoms.

Fr. Daminen became one of those people. He contracted leprosy in 1885, after several years of work. He realized he had the disease when he placed his foot into scalding water by accident, but felt no pain. This was a common way by which people discovered they were infected. Leprosy attacks nerve endings and a victim may hurt themselves but not feel any pain.

Fr. Damien continued his work, despite his illness, which slowly took over his body. He derived strength from prayer and devotion. He often went to the cemetery to pray the Rosary or spent time in the presence of the Eucharist. "It is at the foot of the altar that we find the strength we need in our isolation," he wrote.

By all accounts, Fr. Daminen was courageous, headstrong and resilient. His personal toughness served to inspire others. He was also reportedly very happy, a common phenomenon for those who pray and work hard to serve others and the Lord.

After sixteen years in the colony, Fr. Damien succumbed to leprosy on April 15, 1889. He was first buried nearby, then his remains were transferred to Belgium in 1936. His right hand was returned to Hawaii in 1995 to be reburied in his original grave at Molokai.

He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in Brussels, Belgium on June 4, 1995. His sainthood was confirmed on October 11, 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI. His feast day is May 10.

The day of his passing, April 15, is a minor statewide holiday in Hawaii.

Saint Damien is the patron saint of people suffering from leprosy.

For other people with similar names, see Father Damien (disambiguation), Saint Damien (disambiguation), and Peter Damian.

Father Damien or Saint Damien of Molokai, SS.CC. or Saint Damien De Veuster (Dutch: Pater Damiaan or Heilige Damiaan van Molokai; 3 January 1840 – 15 April 1889),[2] born Jozef De Veuster, was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium and member of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary,[3] a missionary religious institute. He was recognized for his ministry, which he led from 1873 until his death in 1889, in the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi for people with leprosy (Hansen's disease), who lived in government-mandated medical quarantine in a settlement on the Kalaupapa Peninsula of Molokaʻi.[4]

During this time, he taught the Catholic faith to the people of Hawaii. Father Damien also cared for the patients and established leaders within the community to build houses, schools, roads, hospitals, and churches. He dressed residents' ulcers, built a reservoir, made coffins, dug graves, shared pipes, and ate poi with them, providing both medical and emotional support.

After eleven years caring for the physical, spiritual, and emotional needs of those in the leper colony, Father Damien contracted leprosy. He continued with his work despite the infection but finally succumbed to the disease on 15 April 1889. Father Damien also had tuberculosis which worsened his condition, but people think that the reason he volunteered in the first place was due to his illness of tuberculosis.[citation needed]

Father Damien has been described as a "martyr of charity".[5] Damien De Veuster is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church. In the Anglican Communion and other Christian denominations, Damien is considered the spiritual patron for leprosy and outcasts. Father Damien Day, 15 April, the day of his death, is also a minor statewide holiday in Hawaii. Father Damien is the patron saint of the Diocese of Honolulu and of Hawaii.

Father Damien was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on 11 October 2009.[6][7] Libert H. Boeynaems, writing in the Catholic Encyclopedia, calls him "the Apostle of the Lepers."[8] Damien De Veuster's feast day is 10 May.

Saint John of Avila

Also known as

• Apostle of Andalusia

• Juan de Ávila Jijón

Profile

Born to a wealthy Castilian family with Jewish ancestry. Studied law at the University of Salamanca from age 14, and felt a call to religious life. Studied theology and philosophy at Alcala, Spain at age 17. Lawyer. Following the death of his parents, he liquidated most of his large fortune, and gave it to the poor. Ordained in 1525. He wanted to be a missionary in the West Indies and Mexico, but became a travelling preacher in Andalusia for 40 years, re-evangelizing a region previously ruled by the Moors. He spoke boldly against the sins of the ruling classes, made powerful enemies, and at one point was imprisoned in Seville, Spain by the Inquisition, accused of false teachings; the charges were dismissed, John was released, and his preaching became more popular than ever. Spiritual director of Saint Teresa of Avila, Saint Francis Borgia, Saint John of God, Saint John of the Cross, Saint Peter of Alcántara, and Saint Louis of Granada. Writer whose works continue their influence today. Declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XVI on 7 October 2012.

Born

6 January 1499 at Almodovar del Campo (Ciudad Real), Toledo, New Castile, Spain

Died

• 10 May 1569 at Montilla, Provincia de Córdoba, Andalucia, Spain of natural causes

interred in the Basílica de San Juan de Ávila in Montilla

Canonized

31 May 1970 by Pope Paul VI

Patronage

• Andalusia, Spain

• Spain

• Spanish secular clergy

• World Youth Day 2011

Saint Joseph de Veuster

Also known as

• Apostle to the Lepers

• Damian de Veuster

• Father Damien

Additional Memorial

15 April (Father Damien Day in Hawaii)

Profile

Son of a small farmer. Studied at the college at Braine-le-Comte, Belgium. Joined the Picpus Fathers on 7 October 1860, taking the name Damien. Seminarian in Paris, France. Volunteered for missionary work while still in seminary, and was sent to Hawaii. Ordained in Honolulu on 24 May 1864. Missionary on islands where his single parish was the size of all of his native Belgium. Resident priest in the leper colony on Molokai where for years he worked alone to minister to the patients' spiritual and medical needs. His work turned a wretched dump for the unwanted into a real community with the best treatment of the day, and patients who lived strong spiritual lives. He contracted leprosy in 1885, and though severely crippled by the disease, Father Damien worked until the end.

Born

3 January 1840 on the family farm at Tremeloo, Belgium as Joseph de Veuster

Died

• 15 April 1889 at Molokai, Hawaii from leprosy

• buried next to Saint Philomena Church, Molokai, Hawaii

• interred in a basement chapel in the church of Saint Antonius, Leuven, Belgium in 1936

Canonized

11 October 2009 by Pope Benedict XVI

Patronage

• against leprosy

• lepers

Blessed Vasile Aftenie

Additional Memorial

2 June

Profile

Drafted into the army in 1917, Vasile fought in the front in Galacia and Italy in World War I. In 1918 he began studying law in Bucharest, Romania, but in 1919 gave into a call to the priesthood and began studying theology at the Pontifical Greek College of Saint Athanasius. Ordained a priest in the Romanian Greek-Catholic rite in Fagaras si Alba Iulia, Romania on 1 January 1926. Taught at the Theological Academy in Blaj, Romania from 1926 to 1934. Dean of the seminary in Bucharest in 1934. Cathedral canon in Blaj in 1937. Rector of the Theological Academy in 1939. Chosen auxiliary bishop of Fagaras si Alba Iulia, Romania and Titular Bishop of Ulpiana by Pope Pius XII on 12 April 1940. Apostolic administrator of Fagaras si Alba Iulia on 15 June 1941. Arrested on 28 October 1948 in the Communist persecutions, he was imprisoned first in the Dragoslavele work camp, and then in February 1949 placed in solitary confinement in the Caldarusani monastery outside Bucharest. Beginning on 10 May 1949, he was subjected to a year of repeated torture which left him mutilated and crippled, broken in his physical and mental health; his faith never flagged. Martyr.

Born

14 June 1899 in Lodroman, Valea Lungã, Alba, Romania

Died

• 10 May 1950 in the prison hospital in Vacaresti, Bucharest, Romania from the abuse from repeated torture sessions, possibly after being shot

• body burned by order of the Communist authorities, and the remains were buried in the Bellu Cemetery in Bucharest

• a white marble grave stone was erected on his grave in 1990; it has become the site of pilgrimage

Beatified

2 June 2019 by Pope Francis

Blessed Ivan Merz

Also known as

John Merz

Profile

Educated in Banja Luka, briefly in a military academy, and in Vienna, Austria. Fought on the Italian front of World War I. After the war he studied again in Vienna, in Paris, France, and then taught French language and literature at the University of Zagreb, from which he received his Ph.D. in philosophy.

Though he decided to remain a layman in the world, Ivan took a vow of celibacy, and devoted his free time to the Church. He taught young Croatians, and spoke and wrote to evangelize all Croats. He worked for liturgical revival, and helped institute Catholic Action in Croatia.

Born

16 December 1896 in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Died

• 10 May 1928 in Zagreb, Croatia of natural causes

• relics transferred to the Shrine of the Holy Heart in Zagreb on 16 December 1977

Beatified

22 June 2003 by Pope John Paul II in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Blessed Enrico Rebuschini

Profile

Second of five children born to an upper class family in the Lombard region of modern Italy. A pious young man and good student, he had a mystical outlook on things, and was subject to bouts of depression. At age 18 Enrico felt a call to the priesthood, but his family, especially his father strongly objected. However, they finally relented, and at 24 Enrico began his studies at the seminary in Como, Italy. He studied at the Lombard College and Gregorian University in Rome, Italy, and proved an able student, but a crushing bout of depression sent him back to his family home and finally to a nursing home for recovery.

When he was back on his feet and ready to return to his studies, Enrico re-examined his call to religious life, and, with the help of his confessor, decided to work with the Camillians, a congregation dedicated to the sick; he began his novitiate at age 27. With special dispensation from his bishop, the future Pope Saint Pius X, he was ordained a priest on 14 April 1889. He ministered to the sick in Verona, Italy from 1889 to 1899, making his solemn Camillian vows in 1891, and then served at the San Camillo di Cremona nursing home the rest of his life – almost 40 years. He served as treasurer of his community for 34 years, and superior for 11. Father Enrico’s life was one of prayer and service in the day to day needs of other people.

Born

28 April 1860 at Gravedona, Como, Italy

Died

10 May 1938 in Cremona, Italy of pneumonia

Beatified

4 May 1997 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Comgall of Bangor

Additional Memorial

6 January as one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland

Profile

Son of Sedna. Soldier. Spiritual student of Saint Fintan of Clonenagh and Saint Kieran at Clonmacnoise. Friend of Saint Brendan, Saint Cormac, Saint Kevin of Glendalough and Finbarr of Moville. Ordained by Saint Lughaedh of Conmacnoise. Spiritual teacher of Saint Cronan Mochua. He and a few brother monks lived a very strict and austere life on an island on Lough Erne. Among other houses, he founded the monastery at Bangor, County Down, Ireland in 552 and served as its first abbot; at one point it housed 8,000 monks. Life there was harsh and adherence to the Rule strict, but the brothers were very close, and were encouraged to help and support each other. Spiritual teacher of Saint Blane, Saint Cainnech, Saint Columbanus, Saint Deicola, Saint Fintan of Doon, Saint Gall, Saint Lactali, Saint Lua of Limerick and Saint Mochoemoc. Missionary to Scotland and the Picts. A reported miracle worker, Comgall is said to have blinded a band of thieves as they approached the monastery, but restored eye sight to a penitent man. Received Holy Communion on his death bed from Saint Fiacra.

Born

c.510 Dalaradia, near Magheramorne, County Antrim, Ireland

Died

601 at Bangor Abbey, Ireland of natural causes

Canonized

1903 (cultus confirmed)

Saint Solange of Bourges

Also known as

• Solange of Berry

• Solange of Bourges of Genevieve du Berry

• Solangia...

Profile

Born to a family of poor vine dressers. Young virgin shepherdess who took a personal vow of chastity, devoting herself to God alone. When she said her prayers in the field, a star shone over her head. Reported to have the gift of healing, especially of animals. She was murdered by her landlord, Bernard, son of the Count of Poitiers, for resisting his sexual advances. Considered a martyr as she died insisting on her fidelity to Christ. Some of the early versions of her story include her carrying her severed head into a nearby village, and the head preaching to the people.

Born

863 at Villemont near Bourges, France

Died

stabbed with a hunting knife c.880 at Champ de Sainte Solange

Patronage

• Berry, France

• Bourges, France

• children

• drought relief

• for rain

• rape victims

• shepherdesses

• shepherds

Saint Catald of Taranto

Also known as

• Catald of Tarentum

• Catald of Rachau

• Cataldus, Cathal, Cattaldo, Cathaluds, Cathaldus, Cataldo

Profile

Student at the monastic school of Lismore, Waterford under Saint Carthage. Later a teacher there, and then headmaster. Pilgrim to the Holy Land. On his way home a storm shipwrecked him in Taranto, Italy. As he recovered, his holiness was such that he was chosen by the people to be their bishop. He lived the rest of his life in the region, teaching and caring for his parishioners. There are towns in Sicily and southern Italy named for him.

Born

7th century Munster, Ireland

Died

• c.685 in Taranto, Italy of natural causes

• relics discovered centuries after his death during a renovation of the cathedral following its damage by Saracens in 927

• relics translated on 10 May 1017

• remarkable cures reported almost immediately at his new tomb

Patronage

• against blindness

• against drought

• against epilepsy

• against hernias

• against paralysis

• against plague

• against storms

• blind people

• drought relief

• epileptics

• paralyzed people

• Massa Lubrense, Italy

• Taranto, Italy

Blessed Nicholas Albergati

Profile

Studied law. Carthusian monk in 1394. Prior of several Carthusian houses. Ordained in June 1404. Chosen as reluctant bishop of Bologna, Italy on 5 January 1417. Papal diplomat with missions to France and Lombardy, Italy. Archbishop of Bologna in 1418 against his will. Elevated to cardinal-priest of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme on 24 May 1426. Known as a peacemaker. Mediated between the emperor and Pope Martin V, and the French king and Pope Eugene IV. Prominent in the Council of Basel and Council of Ferrara-Florence. Active in the negotiations that brought reunion of the Greek Church with Rome at Ferrara-Florence. Generous patron of learned men. Wrote several theological treatises, and encouraged academics. Chief penitentiary to Pope Eugene IV. Archpriest of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in 1440.

Born

1373 at Bologna, Italy

Died

• 9 May 1443 at Siena, Italy of natural causes

• buried at the Carthusian monastery in Florence, Italy

Beatified

25 September 1744 by Pope Benedict XIV (cultus confirmed)

Patronage

learning

Blessed Amalarius of Metz

Also known as

• Amalarius of Trier

• Fortunatus, Symphosius

Additional Memorials

• 29 April (Martyrologium Hieronymianum)

• 10 June (Trier, Germany)

Profile

Ninth-century liturgical writer. A pupil of Alcuin at Aix-la-Chapelle, Germany, he was bishop of Trier, Germany from 811 to 813, and later ambassador to Constantinople. He lived at a time when the liturgy was changing, when fusion of the Roman and Gallican uses was taking place, and he exercised a remarkable influence in introducing the present composite liturgy which has supplanted the ancient Roman Rite. The chief merit of his works is that they have preserved much accurate and valuable information on the state of the liturgy at the beginning of the ninth century and are therefore useful sources for the history of Latin rites.

Born

775 in Metz, Kingdom of the Franks (in modern France)

Died

c.853

Blessed Beatrix of Este the Elder

Profile

Born to the dynastic house of Este. Aunt of Blessed Beatrix of Este the Younger. Nun in the convent of Santa Margherita at Solarolo, Italy. Feeling a need for more seclusion, she took over a deserted monastery at Gemmola, Italy, and founded a new convent where she apparently spent the rest of her life.

Born

between 1200 and 1206 in the castle of d'Este, Italy

Died

• 10 May 1226 of natural causes at Gemmola, Italy

• interred in the church of Saint John the Baptist

• relics translated to the church of Saint Sophia in Padua, Italy in 1578

• tradition says that when anything important was about to befall the family of Este, Beatrix would turn in her grave, and the noise could be heard throughout the church

Beatified

19 November 1763 by Pope Clement XIII

Saint Aurelian of Limoges

Also known as

Aurélien Cotta

Profile

Spiritual student of Saint Martial of Limoges. Priest. Second bishop of Limoges, France, succeeding Martial.

One legend says that Aurelian was a pagan priest who opposed the Christian evangelism of Saint Martial. Struck by lightning for his opposition, Aurelian died, but was brought back to life by the prayers of Saint Martial. Aurelian saw the error of his way, and converted to Christianity.

Died

• relics re-discovered in the Saint-Cessateur parish church outside the walls of Limoges, France

• relics re-enshrined at the Chapelle Saint-Aurelian, inside the city walls of Limoges in the late 15th century

• this was an area with many working butchers who chose Aurlian as their patron; the brotherhood still exists and still maintains the chapel that houses the relics

Patronage

butchers of Limoges, France

Blessed Miro of Canzo

Additional Memorials

• 2nd Friday in May

• 21 May on some calendars, possibly based on the first enshrinement of his relics

Profile

As a young man, Miro gave all that he owned to the poor and retired to live as a hermit around Lake Como, first near Canzo, then near Sorigo. He may have joined the Franciscan tertiaries, but records are scant and vary. For generations the people around the lake knew him for his piety and wisdom.

Born

c.1306 in Canzo, Lake Como, Italy

Died

• 1381 in Sorigo, Lake Como, Italy of natural causes

• buried in the church of San Michele in Sorigo; it was later renamed San Miro

• relics enshrined on 10 September 1452

• relics re-enshrined in 1837

• relics re-enshrined in 1932

Saint Frodoino of Novalesa

Profile

Born to the Frankish nobility, the son of Magafredo, Frodoino became an oblate, then a monk, and then on 10 February 773 he was chosen abbot at the monastery of Saints Peter and Andrew in Novalesa, Italy; he served as abbot for 43 years. Friend of Blessed Charlemagne who became a supporter of the abbey. Under Frodoino’s leadership, the house expanded and became a center of learning, known for its Scripture copyists and collection of holy relics, and he was personally known for his dignity and piety.

Born

latter 8th century

Died

816 of natural causes

Saint Calepodius of Rome

Also known as

Calepodio

Profile

Priest. Martyred in the persecutions of Emperor Alexander Severus. One of the Roman catacombs is named for him.

Died

• stabbed with a sword c.232 in Rome, Italy

• his body was dragged through the streets of Rome and then thrown into the River Tiber

• body later recovered and given proper burial by Pope Callistus I

• relics enshrined in the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Rome in the 10th century

• some relics enshrined in the church of Notre-Dame de Reims, Rheims, France

Saint Gordian the Judge

Also known as

• Gordian of Rome

• Gordianus...

Profile

Roman judge. Adult convert to Christianity. Tortured and martyred by order of the Roman prefect Apronianus during the persecutions of Julian the Apostate.

Died

• beheaded in 362 on the Latin Road outside Rome, Italy

• buried with Saint Epimachus in a crypt near Rome

• relics at the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, Rome, Italy, and at Kempten Abbey,Bavaria, Germany

Saint Alphius of Lentini

Also known as

Alfio

Profile

Brother of Saint Cyrinus and Saint Philadelphus. Martyred in the persecutions of Decius.

Born

Sicily, Italy

Died

251 in Lentini, Sicily, Italy

Patronage

• Lentini, Sicily, Italy

• Trecastagni, Sicily, Italy

Saint Cyrinus of Lentini

Also known as

Cirino

Profile

Brother of Saint Alphius and Saint Philadelphus. Martyred in the persecutions of Decius.

Born

Sicily

Died

251 in Lentini, Sicily, Italy

Patronage

• Lentini, Sicily, Italy

• Trecastagni, Sicily, Italy

Saint Philadelphus of Lentini

Profile

Brother of Saint Alphius and Saint Cyrinus. Martyred in the persecutions of Decius.

Born

Sicily, Italy

Died

251 in Lentini, Sicily, Italy

Patronage

• Lentini, Sicily, Italy

• Trecastagni, Sicily, Italy

Blessed Giusto Santgelp

Profile

Born to the nobility. Secular Mercedarian knight. Ransomed 200 Christian slaves from the Saracens in Muslim occupied Granada, Spain in 1284.

Born

France

Died

Mercedarian convent of Saint Anthony the Abbot, Tarragona, Spain

Saint Palmatius of Rome

Profile

Roman imperial consul. Martyred with his wife, children and 42 members of his household, whose names have not come down to us, in the persecutions of Emperor Alexander Severus.

Died

• beheaded c.232 in Rome, Italy

• heads of all the martyrs were placed over the gates of Rome as a warning to other Christians

Saint Simplicius of Rome

Profile

Roman imperial senator. Martyred with 68 members of his household, whose names have not come down to us, in the persecutions of Emperor Alexander Severus.

Died

• beheaded c.232 in Rome, Italy

• heads of all the martyrs were placed over the gates of Rome as a warning to other Christians

Job

Profile

Old Testament Patriarch. The man "simple and upright and fearing God and avoiding evil" who figures in the canonical Old Testament Book of Job.

Patronage

• against abscesses

• against depression

• against ulcers

• ulcer sufferers

Saint Epimachus of Rome

Profile

Martyred in the persecutions of Decius.

Died

• burned at the stake c.250 in Alexandria, Egypt

• relics transferred to a crypt near Rome, Italy

Saint Quartus of Capua

Profile

Martyr.

Born

Capua, Italy

Died

• martyred at Rome, Italy, date unknown

• relics enshrined at Capua, Italy

Saint Quintus of Capua

Profile

Martyr.

Born

Capua, Italy

Died

• martyred at Rome, Italy, date unknown

• relics enshrined at Capua, Italy

Saint Felix of Rome

Profile

Married to Saint Blanda of Rome. Martyred in the persecutions of Emperor Alexander Severus.

Died

• beheaded c.232 in Rome, Italy

• head placed over a gate into Rome as a warning to other Christians

Saint Blanda of Rome

Profile

Married to Saint Felix of Rome. Martyred in the persecutions of Emperor Alexander Severus.

Died

• beheaded c.232 in Rome, Italy

• head placed over a gate into Rome as a warning to other Christians

Blessed William of Pontoise

Profile

May have been a Benedictine monk. Priest. Hermit at Pontoise, France.

Born

England

Died

c.1195 of natural causes

Blessed Antonio of Norcia

Profile

Lay Franciscan.

Died

c.1310 in Norcia, Italy of natural causes

Saint Dioscorides of Smyrna

Profile

Martyr.

Died

at Smyrna, Asia Minor

Saint Thecla

Profile

Martyr.

இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் மே 09

 Blessed Maria del Carmen Rendiles Martinez

Also known as

• Carmen Elena Rendiles Martínez

• María Carmen

Profile

Third of eight children born to a wealthy and respected family, the daughter of Ramiro Antonio Rendiles and Ana Antonia Martínez; she was born without a left arm and lived with prosthetic. She was baptized on 24 September 1903, confirmed on 28 October 1905, and made her first Communion on 11 March 1911. At age 15 she began serving as a catechist in her parish, and would travel to other towns to teach at parish missions. Feeling a call to the religious life, she joined the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament on 25 February 1927. After studying in Toulouse, France, she received her habit on 8 September 1927, her first vows on 8 September 1929, and her solemn profession on 8 September 1932. She then returned to Caracas, Venezuela where she worked for the next ten years, serving in a variety of positions. Chosen Provincial Superior of the Order in 1951, she started convents and schools in Venezuela and Columbia including a school for poor children in her family home when she inherited it. For practical reasons, including the distance from the motherhouse in France to the sisters in South America, the congregation split on 25 March 1965, and Blessed Carmen is considered the founder of the Servants of Jesus of Caracas (Servant Congregation of Jesus of Venezuela); she served the rest of her life as its superior. By 2015 there were 94 religious in 19 communities.

Born

11 August 1903 in Caracas, Venezuela

Died

9 May 1977 in Caracas, Venezuela of influenza

Beatified

• 16 June 2018 by Pope Francis

• the beatification miracle involved the healing of Trinette Durán de Branger on 18 July 2003

• beatification recognition celebrated in Caracas, Venezuela, Cardinal Angelo Amato chief celebrant

Patronage

Servants of Jesus of Caracas

Blessed Karolina Gerhardinger

அருளாளர் கரோலின் கெரார்டிங்கர் 

(Blessed Karoline Gerhardinger)

மறை பணியாளர்:

(Religious)

பிறப்பு: ஜூன் 20, 1797

ஸ்டட்டமோஃப், பவரியா, தூய ரோம பேரரசு

(Stadtamhof, Bavaria, Holy Roman Empire)

இறப்பு: மே 9, 1879 (வயது 81)

மூன்சேன், பவரியா, ஜெர்மன் பேரரசு

(München, Bavaria, German Empire)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்:

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

முக்திபேறு பட்டம்: நவம்பர் 17, 1985

திருத்தந்தை இரண்டாம் ஜான் பவுல்

(Pope John Paul II)

நினைவுத் திருநாள்: மே 9

பாதுகாவல்:

நோட்ரேடாம் பள்ளி சகோதரியர், கல்வியாளர்கள்

(School Sisters of Notre Dame, Educators)

அருளாளர் கரோலின் கெரார்டிங்கர் ஒரு ஜெர்மன் ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க மறைபணியாளரும், "இயேசுவின் மரிய தேரேசியா" (Maria Theresia of Jesus) என அழைக்கப்பட்ட " நோட்ரேடாம் பள்ளி சகோதரியர்" (School Sisters of Notre Dame) அமைப்பின் நிறுவனரும் ஆவார். சிறந்த கல்வியாளராகிய இவர், தாம் நிறுவிய சபை ஐரோப்பா முழுதும் பரவ ஆரம்பிக்கும்வரை "பவரியாவில்" பணியாற்றினார்.

கி.பி 1797ம் ஆண்டு, ஜூன் மாதம், இருபதாம் நாளன்று, பவரியாவில் பிறந்த இவரது தந்தையார் "வில்லிபார்ட்" (Willibard) ஆவார். தாயாரின் பெயர் "ஃபிரான்சிஸ்கா கெரார்டிங்கர்" (Franziska Gerhardinger) ஆகும். இவர் தமது பெற்றோரின் ஒரே குழந்தை ஆவார்.

கெரார்டிங்கரின் பங்குத்தந்தை இவரை ஒரு ஆசிரியையாக ஊக்குவித்தார். கி.பி 1809ம் ஆண்டு, தமது ஆசிரிய பயிற்சியை தொடங்கிய இவர், கி.பி 1812ம் ஆண்டுமுதல் "ரேகன்ஸ்பர்க்" (Regensburg) நகரில் ஒரு பெண்கள் பள்ளியில் ஆசிரியை பணியாற்ற தொடங்கினார்.

அவர் "ரேகன்ஸ்பர்க்" ஆயரான (Bishop of Regensburg) "ஜார்ஜ் மைக்கேல் விட்மன்" (Georg Michael Wittmann) அவர்களிடம் தாம் துறவு வாழ்வில் நுழைய வழிகாட்டுமாறு வேண்டினார். கி.பி 1816ம் ஆண்டு முதல் 1833ம் ஆண்டு வரை அவர் அதற்காக கற்றார்.

கி.பி 1833ம் ஆண்டு, அக்டோபர் மாதம், 24ம் தேதி முதல் தமது இரு சக அருட்சகோதரியருடன் இணைந்து துறவு வாழ்வினை தொடங்கினார். அதுவே " நோட்ரேடாம் பள்ளி சகோதரியர்" (School Sisters of Notre Dame) அமைப்பு நிறுவப்பட்டதன் முறையான நடைமுறையாக இருந்தது. அதிகாரப்பூர்வ அங்கீகாரத்துக்கான ஆரம்ப சிக்கல்கள் இருந்தாலும், பவரியா அரசனான "முதலாம் லுட்விக்" (Ludwig I), கி.பி 1834ம் ஆண்டு, மார்ச் மாதம், அவரது கன்னியர் மடத்திற்கு அங்கீகாரம் அளித்தார். ரேகன்ஸ்பர்கிலுள்ள "புனித கல்லஸ்" (Saint Gallus chapel in Regensburg) தேவாலயத்தில் தமது ஆன்மீக உறுதிப்பாடுகளை ஏற்றுக்கொண்டார். அத்துடன், "இயேசுவின் மரிய தேரேசியா" (Maria Theresia of Jesus) என்ற பெயரை தமது ஆன்மீக பெயராக ஏற்றுக்கொண்டார்.

கி.பி 1847ம் ஆண்டு, தமது இணை அருட்சகோதரியருடன் இணைந்து, தமது சபையினை விரிவாக்கம் செய்வதற்காகவும், ஜெர்மனிலிருந்து புலம்பெயர்ந்து வரும் மக்களின் நலன்களுக்காகவும் 'ஐக்கிய அமெரிக்க நாடுகள்' (United States of America) சென்றார். கி.பி 1850ம் ஆண்டு முதல், இவரது சபை இங்கிலாந்து (England) மற்றும் பிற ஐரோப்பிய நாடுகளிலும் பரவ தொடங்கியது. கி.பி 1865ம் ஆண்டு, இவரது சபைக்கு திருத்தந்தை ஒன்பதாம் பயஸ் (Pope Pius IX) அங்கீகாரமளித்தார்.

கி.பி 1877ம் ஆண்டு, நோயில் வீழ்ந்த கரோலின் கெரார்டிங்கர் 1879ம் ஆண்டு, தமது 81 வயதில் மரித்தார்.

Also known as

• Caroline Gerhardinger

• Maria Teresa Gerhardinger

• Maria Theresia of Jesus

• Theresa of Jesus Gerhardinger

Profile

Born to a working class family. Educated by the Augustinian canonesses until 1809 when religious orders were closed by decree of the Bavarian government in Germany. Caroline decided to start a new religious order devoted to God and Christian education. In 1828 the Vatican got concessions from the Bavarian government, and many religious communities re-opened. Caroline and other sisters moved into a refurbished convent, and started the order that was to become the School Sisters of Notre Dame. Caroline took the name Theresa in religious life but was soon called Theresa of Jesus because of her devotion to the True Presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. The sister's Rule and Constitutions were approved by the Vatican on 23 January 1854 and the Order began to quickly spread. Teresa spent the rest of her life devoted to the work.

Born

20 June 1797 at Stadtamhof, Bavaria, Germany as Caroline Gerhardinger

Died

9 May 1879 in München, Bavaria, Germany of natural causes

Beatified

17 November 1985 by Pope John Paul II

Blessed Stefan Grelewski

Also known as

• prisoner 10444 (Auschwitz)

• prisoner 25581 (Dachau)

Profile

Older brother of Blessed Kazimierz Grelewski. Studied at the Progimnazjum in Sandomierz and Lubartów in Poland. Ordained in October 1921 as a priest in the archdiocese of Radom, Poland. Graduated with a doctorate in canon law in Strasbourg, France in 1924. General secretary of the Christian Workers Union in Radom in 1925. Writer, journalist, and translated works from French and German to Polish. Founded the magazine Catholic Truth in 1930. Worked with the people of Catholic Action and the Association of Polish Intelligence. Helped organize the first diocesan Eucharistic Congress in Radom in 1933. Prefect of a boy‘s elementary school from 1928 through 1931; prefect of the Jan Kochanowski state boy‘s grammar school from 1932 until the outbreak of World War II in 1939. During the Nazi occupation of Poland, he covertly continued teaching religion. Arrested with his brother on 24 January 1941 as part of the Nazi persecutions, he was deported, imprisoned and tortured in the concentration camps of Auschwitz and then Dachau. Martyr.

Born

3 July 1899 in Dwikozy, Swietokrzyskie, Poland

Died

starved to death on 9 May 1941 in the camp hospital of Dachau, Oberbayern, Germany

Beatified

13 June 1999 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Pachomius of Tabenna

Also known as

• Pachomius the Elder

• Pachomius the Great

• Pachome, Pakhomius

Profile

Soldier in the imperial Roman army. Convert in 313. He left the army in 314 and became a spiritual student of Saint Palaemon. Lived as a hermit from 316. During a retreat into the deep desert, he received a vision telling him to build a monastery on the spot and leave the life of a hermit for that of a monk in community. He did in 320, and devised a Rule that let fellow hermits ease from solitary to communal living; legend says that the Rule was dictated to him by an angel. Abbot. His first house expanded to eleven monasteries and convents with over 7,000 monks and nuns in religous life by the time of Pachomius's death. Spiritual teacher of Saint Abraham the Poor and Saint Theodore of Tabennísi. Considered the founder of Christian cenobitic (communal) monasticism, whose rule for monks is the earliest extant.

Born

c.290 at Upper Thebaid, Egypt

Died

• c.346 of natural causes

• buried in an unknown location by Saint Theodore of Tabennísi

Blessed Alexandru Rusu

Profile

One of twelve children of a priest in the Saulia Commune, Mures, Romania. Ordained a priest in the Romanian Greek-Catholic Rite on 20 July 1910. Chosen the first bishop of Maramures, Romania on 17 October 1930. Chosen the archbishop of Fagaras and Alba Iulia, Romania in 1946, a move opposed by the Communist government. For defying the anti–Christian authorities, Bishop Alexandru was arrested in October 1948. Confined first in monasteries, he was eventually sent to Sighet prison. He was finally “tried” by a military tribunal in 1957 who found him guilty of treason for remaining faithful to the Catholic church, sentenced him to 25 years, and sent him to Gherla prison where he died. Martyr.

Born

22 November 1884 in Saulia de Câmpie, Mures, Romania

Died

9 May 1963 in Gherla, Cluj, Romania

Beatified

2 June 2019 by Pope Francis

Saint Beatus of Lungern

Also known as

• Apostle of Switzerland

• Beatus of Beatenberg

• Beatus of Thun

Profile

Convert, baptized in England by Saint Barnabas the Apostle. Priest, ordained in Rome, Italy by Saint Peter the Apostle. Missionary to Switzerland. Lived in a cave above the Lake of Thun, which tradition says is where he fought a dragon (often used as a metaphor for chasing the devil out of a region by bringing in Christianty); it became known as Mount Beatenburg in his honor, and became a place of pilgrimage in later years. Confessor of the faith.

Died

c.112 on Mount Beatenburg, Lake of Thun, Switzerland of natural causes

Patronage

Beatenberg, Switzerland

Blessed Thomas Pickering

Profile

Benedictine lay brother at the Saint Gregory Monastery in Douai, France in 1660. Sent to London, England in 1665 to serve as steward to the Benedictines in the queen's royal chapel. He came to know Queen Catherine of Braganza and King Charles II, and in 1675 when the all other Benedictines were exiled from England, Thomas was allowed to stay. Falsely accused in 1678 of being part of the Titus Oates Plot to murder the king, he was found guilty and executed. Martyr.

Born

c.1621 in Westmorland, England

Died

• hanged, drawn and quartered On 9 May 1679 in Tyburn, London, England

• some relics persevered at Downside Abbey

Beatified

15 December 1929 by Pope Pius XI

Blessed Benincasa of Montepulciano

Also known as

• Benincasa of Montepulciano

• Benincosa of...

• John Benincasa

• Giovanni Benincasa

Profile

Joined the Servites as a teenager. At age 25 he became a prayerful hermit in a cell on Monte Amiata near Siena, Italy. Around age 50 he was ordered by the Servites to move to their community at Monticchiello, Italy where he lived his final months.

Born

1375 at Montepulciano, Siena, Italy

Died

9 May 1426 at Monticchiello, Italy of natural causes

Beatified

23 December 1829 by Pope Pius VIII (cultus confirmation)

Saint Gregory of Ostia

Also known as

• Gregorius IV

• Gregorio Ostiense

• Gregorio di Ostia

• Gregorio de la Berrueza

Profile

Benedictine monk. Priest. Abbot of the monastery of Saints Cosma e Damiano ad Micam auream, Rome, Italy. Chosen Cardinal–Bishop of Ostia, Italy and Vatican librarian c.1034 by Pope Benedict IX. Papal legate to the kingdoms of Spanish Navarre and Old Castile. Reported miracle worker, especially concerned with saving crops from pests, he is venerated throughout Navarre and Rioja.

Died

9 May 1048 at Logroño, Spain of natural causes

Patronage

protection of crops

Isaiah the Prophet

Profile

Eighth century BC Old Testament prophet. Killed at the order of King Manasses of Juda.

Died

• sawn in two

• buried under an oak tree

Representation

• elderly man holding a scroll that reads "Ecce Virgo Concipiet"

• old man being sawn in two

• robed figure holding a saw

Saint Giuse Hiên

Also known as

• Giuseppe Dô Quang Hiên

• Joseph Hiên

• José Dô Quang Hiên

Profile

Dominican priest. Martyred in the persecutions of Emperor Thieu Tri.

Born

c.1769 in Quân Anh Ha, Nam Ðinh, Vietnam

Died

beheaded on 9 May 1840 at Nam Ðinh, Vietnam

Canonized

19 June 1988 by Pope John Paul II

Saint Banban the Wise

Also known as

• Banban Sapiens

• Mabran Barbarus

• Mauranum cognomento Barbanum

• Banbanum, Banbanus, Banbhanus, Banuanus, Barbanum, Mauran, Methbrain, Methbruin, Nia Brain, Niabrain, Nie Brain, Niethbrain, Seannan

Profile

5th century priest who worked with Saint Patrick who installed him as pastor of the Domnach Mór church at Magh Slécht, Templeport, County Cavan, Ireland.

Born

Ireland

Blessed Pedro of Alcobaça

Profile

Cistercian monk in the monastery of Alcobaça, Portugal. His piety and his connection to this monastery, which was founded in 1153 by King Afonso Henriques, let to many outlandish tales about him, his royal connections, etc. But all we really know was that he was a pious Cistercian.

Died

• c.1160

• relics translated in 1293

• relics translated in 1351

Blessed Fortis Gabrielli

Profile

Hermit in the mountains near Scheggia, Italy. Spiritual student of Blessed Ludolph. Benedictine monk–hermit at the monastery of Fontavellana.

Born

Gubbio, Umbria, Italy

Died

9 May 1040 of natural causes

Beatified

17 March 1756 by Pope Benedict XIV (cultus confirmed)

Saint Tudwg

Also known as

Tudinus

Profile

A church was dedicated to him in Llandudwg (modern Tythegston, Glamorganshire, Wales). Some records say he was the son of Saint Tydodwg, and a monk at the monastery of Saint Cenydd on the Gower peninsula of Wales, but nothing certain is recorded about him.

Born

Wales

Saint Gerontius of Cervia

Also known as

Geronzio

Profile

Bishop of Cervia, Italy. Martyr.

Died

c.501 on the Flaminian Way at Cagli, Italy

Patronage

Cagli, Italy

Saint Beatus of Laon

Also known as

Beatus of Vendome

Profile

Third-century cave-living hermit and missionary in the area of Laon, France.

Born

Italy

Saint Sanctan of Kill-da-Les

Also known as

Sanctain

Profile

Son of King Sawyl Penuchel. Sixth-century bishop of Kill-da-Les (Kill-na-Sanctan) in Ireland.

Born

northern Britain

Saint Brynoth of Scara

Profile

Bishop of Scara West Gothland, Sweden for 38 years.

Born

Sweden

Died

6 February 1317 of natural causes

Canonized

1498

Saint John of Châlon

Profile

Bishop of Châlon-sur-Saône, France consecrated by Saint Patiens of Lyons.

Died

c.475 of natural causes

Saint Vincent of Montes

Profile

Monk. Spiritual student of Saint Gennadius. Abbot of San Pedro de Montes Abbey in Spain.

Died

c.950

Saint Gorfor of Llanover

Profile

No information has survived.

Born

Welsh

Patronage

Llanover, Gwent, Wales

Saint Hermas of Rome

Profile

First century Roman mentioned in Saint Paul's Epistle to the Romans. Bishop of Philippi. Martyr.

Saint Dionysius of Vienne

Also known as

Denis

Profile

Bishop of Vienne, France.

Died

c.193

Martyrs of Persia

Profile

310 Christians murdered together for their faith in Persia. No details about them have survived.

20 Mercedarian Martyrs of Riscala

Profile

20 Mercedarian friars who were murdered by Huguenot heretics for refusing to denounce their faith.

Died

16th century at the Santa Maria convent at Riscala, France

இன்றைய புனிதர்கள் மே 08

 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

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 Teresa Demjanovich

Also known as

Sister Miriam Teresa

Profile

One of five children born to Alexander and Johanna Demjanovich, emmigrants to the United States from an area of the Austro-Hungarian empire that is in modern Slovakia. Raised in the Byzantine-Ruthenian rite. Valedictorian of her high school class. Teacher at the Saint Aloysius Academy in Jersey City, New Jersey, and then in the city's public high school. Entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth in 1925 and died there two years later. In 1928, Sister Miriam's spiritual conferences, Greater Perfection and paved the way for her Cause as they showed the pilgrimage to God of a woman living in modern America.

Born

26 March 1901 in Bayonne, New Jersey

Died

8 May 1927 in Convent Station, New Jersey of complications follwing appendicitis

Beatified

• 4 October 2014 by Pope Francis

• beatification celebrated at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Newark, New Jersey, presided by Cardinal Angelo Amato

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

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.

St. Victor the Moor

Feastday: May 8

Patron: of Varese, Italy

Death: 303

Martyr executed at Nicomedia, with a group, including Zoticus,Antoninus, Theonas, Chrysophorus, Severian, Acyndius, Zeno, and Caesareus. They were mentioned in the apocryphal Acts of St. George.

Victor the Moor (in Latin: Victor Maurus) (born 3rd century in Mauretania; died ca. 303 in Milan) was a native of Mauretania and a Christian martyr, according to tradition, and is venerated as a saint. Victor, born into a Christian family, was a soldier in the Roman Praetorian Guard. After he had destroyed some pagan altars, he was arrested, tortured, and killed around 303.

Veneration

Statue of St Victor in Museo del Duomo, Milan. Unknown Milanese sculptor, last decade of 15th century

Gregory of Tours claimed miracles occurred above his grave; a church was built above the supposed site. His cause was promoted by Saint Ambrose, fourth-century bishop of Milan and numerous churches have been dedicated to him in the city itself and throughout the Diocese of Milan and its neighbours.

His memorial day is May 8 in the Roman Catholic Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

St. Odrian

Feastday: May 8

Death: 5th century

One of the first bishops of Waterford, Ireland. Waterford was part of an ancient deanery system at the time, ruled by abbot bishops. Odrian was a prelate.

Bl. Miriam Teresa Demjanovich

Feastday: May 8

Patron:

Birth: 1901

Death: 1927

Beatified: Pope Francis on October 4, 2014, in Newark, New Jersey

Miriam Teresa Demjanovich was born March 26, 1901 in Bayonne, New Jersey. She was the youngest of seven children and received her baptism, confirmation and her first Holy Communion in the Byzantine Ruthenian rite of her immigrant parents.

By the time she graduated from Bayonne High School in January 1917, she felt a calling to become a Carmelite, but remained home to care for her ailing mother.

When her mother died the following November, her family encouraged Miriam to attend the College of Saint Elizabeth at Convent Station, New Jersey. She decided to attend and graduated with the highest honors in 1923 with a literature degree.

Miriam continued to long for a religious life, but was unsure of which community to enter. While she decided, she accepting a teaching position at the Academy of Saint Aloysius in Jersey City. Several noted her humility and genuine piety, as she was often discovered kneeling in the college chapel. Her devotion to praying the rosary was also observed by many.

In her first year teaching, Miriam joined the Saint Vincent de Paul Parish choir, the Blessed Virgin Sodality, and was a member of a parish community associated with the National Catholic Welfare Conference.

All summer and fall of 1924, Miriam prayed for discernment and asked God for direction. She attempted to join the Discalced Carmelite nuns in the Bronx, New York, but was told to wait a few years due to various health issues she suffered.

During that year's Feast of the Immaculate Conception, she made a novena. On December 8, she believed she was being called to enter the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth and planned to enter the convent February 2, 1925.

Unfortunately, Miriam's father passed away after catching a cold. Even if he had been well, Miriam's entrance was delayed nearly two weeks - February 11, 1925, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

When Miriam was ready to enter the convent, her brother, Charles Demjanovich, who was a priest, and two of her sisters accompanied her.

She was admitted to the novitiate of the religious congregation and received the religious habit on May 17, 1925.

As she never received an official transfer of rite, she remained a Byzantine Rite Catholic during her time as a Religious Sister in a Roman Rite congregation.

The following year, her spiritual leader, Father Benedict Bradley, asked her to write the conferences for the novitiate. She wrote twenty-six conferences, which were published following her death in a collection called Greater Perfection.

In 1926, Miriam became very ill and was forced to undergo a tonsillectomy. She was severely weak and required help to return to the convent. A few days later, she volunteered to help in the infirmary, but was told to "pull [herself] together."

Father Bradley worried over her health and called her brother, who then called his sister who was a nurse.

Miriam's sister took one look at Miriam and took her straight to a hospital, where she was diagnosed with "physical and nervous exhaustion, with myocarditis and acute appendicitis."

Miriam was quite weak and the doctors feared she would not survive an operation so they waited.

Unfortunately, her condition worsened.

It was not until May 6, 1927 than Miriam had an operation for the appendicitis. Unfortunately, she passed away two days later on May 8.

Miriam's funeral was held May 11, 1927 at Holy Family Chapel in Convent Station, New Jersey and she was buried at Holy Family Cemetery on the motherhouse of the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth grounds.

Years later, Miriam was beatified by Pope Francis on October 4, 2014. Her beatification was celebrated at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Newark, New Jersey and was presided by Cardinal Angelo Amato.

Miracles attributed to Miriam include the healing of a blind boy's eyes in 1963. The Vatican approved of his restored sight as a miracle accomplished through the intercession of Miriam in 2013.

Miriam Teresa Demjanovich (March 26, 1901 – May 8, 1927) was an American Ruthenian Catholic Sister of Charity who has been beatified by the Catholic Church. The beatification ceremony was the first to take place in the United States.

St. Maria Magdalen of Canossa

Feastday: May 8

Birth: 1774

Death: 1835

Canonized: Pope John Paul II

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.

St. Indract

Feastday: May 8

Death: 710

Irish chieftain and martyr, also called Indractus. He was possibly murdered with his sister, St. Dominica, while returning home from a pilgrimage from Rome. Another tradition states that they were slain by Saxons near Glastonbury where their relics were thereafter preserved.

Indract or Indracht was an Irish saint who, along with his companions, was venerated at Glastonbury Abbey, a monastery in the county of Somerset in south-western England. In the High Middle Ages Glastonbury tradition held that he had been an Irish pilgrim — a king's son – on his way back from Rome who was molested and killed by a local thegn after he had stopped off to visit the shrine of St Patrick. This tradition synchronised his life with that of King Ine (688–726), though historian Michael Lapidge has argued that he is most likely to represent a 9th-century abbot of Iona named Indrechtach ua Fínnachta.

The cult seems to date from the late 10th or early 11th century, though this is uncertain. There is one main extant account, the anonymous 12th century Passio sancti Indracti. An earlier text written in Old English is said to have existed and been used by the writer of the Passio. There is also evidence that the 12th-century historian William of Malmesbury wrote his own saint's life, and although now lost it may also have used the Old English text. In the 14th century a St Alban's monk added significant new material of probable Cornish origin, mentioning a sister named Dominica and some miracles.

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'), also known as Gibrian, was a 6th-century Irish hermit in Brittany.

He was born in Ireland and with eight of his siblings travelled to Brittany. St. Abran and his siblings chose a life of devotion to the God in the consecrated religious life. He 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.

 டரென்டைஸ் நகர் புனிதர் பீட்டர் 

(St. Peter of Tarentaise)

டரென்டைஸ் பேராயர்:

(Archbishop of Tarentaise) 

பிறப்பு: கி.பி. 1102

புனித மௌரிஸ்-இ'எக்ஸில், ஃபிரான்ஸ்

(Saint-Maurice-l'Exil, France)

இறப்பு: செப்டம்பர் 14, 1174 (வயது 72)

பெல்லேவாக்ஸ் துறவுமடம், ஃபிரான்ஸ்

(Bellevaux Abbey, France)

ஏற்கும் சமயம்: 

ரோமன் கத்தோலிக்க திருச்சபை

(Roman Catholic Church)

புனிதர் பட்டம்: மே 10, 1191

திருத்தந்தை மூன்றாம் செலேஸ்டின்

(Pope Celestine III)

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.

Archbishop of Tarentaise: 

Born: 1102 AD

Saint-Maurice-l 'Exil, Kingdom of France 

Died: September 14, 1174 (Aged 72)

Bellevaux Abbey, Cirey, Franche-Comté, Kingdom of France 

Venerated in: Roman Catholic Church 

Canonized: May 10, 1191

Pope Celestine III 

Feast Day: May 08 

Patronage: Tarentaise 

Saint Pierre de Tarentaise was a French Roman Catholic Cistercian who served as the Archbishop of Tarentaise from 1141 until his death. 

St. Peter of Tarentaise was born in 1102 near Vienne, France. When he was 20, he entered the Cistercian Order, convincing his family to join him. Two brothers and his father entered the religious community of Bonnevaux with him, and his sister became religious. 

Ten years after his entry, Peter was sent to found a new house in Switzerland, in the Tarentaise mountains. He also opened a hospital, which served as a guest house for travellers through the mountains. 

In 1442, Peter was appointed as Archbishop of Tarentaise. Although he was the happiest living the simple life of a monk, he accepted at the urging of St. Bernard and other monks in his order. As bishop, Peter reformed the diocese and began programs to provide education and food to the poor. His tradition of donating food, called “My Bread,” lasted until the French Revolution in 1789. 

Peter performed many miraculous healings as a bishop, but after 13 years, he fled his diocese disguised as a lay brother and went to a Cistercian abbey in Switzerland. He hid there for about a year until he was discovered and his superiors forced him to return to Tarentaise. 

When the anti-pope Victor and the true Pope Alexander III were at strife, Peter was one of the only major Church voices to support Alexander’s claim, even going against the emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Pope Alexander III recognized Peter’s loyalty and holiness and sent him to reconcile King Louis VII of France and Henry II of England. Shortly after an unsuccessful reconciliation attempt, St. Peter died of an illness in 1175. He was canonized in 1191. 

St. Peter of Tarentaise, you tried to run away from your duties as a bishop, but became known as a man of great peace—pray for us!