St. Bruno, Priest

St. Bruno was born in Cologne in about 1030. His early studies were in his native city, and later he attended the cathedral school in Reims. Subsequently, he became a cathedral canon there and then the schoolmaster (1056). He was appointed chancellor of the Reims Diocese in 1075. When Bishop Manassès was deposed—his election was simoniacal—by Pope Gregory VII (see May 25) in 1080, the Reims see was offered to Bruno, but he declined because he was then thinking of retiring from the world. He did so about 1082 and lived a life of prayer and penance. He and two companions had a hermitage near Molesmes, where they placed themselves under the spiritual direction of St. Robert, founder of the Cistercians. Seeking still greater solitude, he and six companions went in 1084 to Grenoble in southern France, where Bruno’s former pupil Hugh was bishop, and there in the valley of La Chartreuse he laid the foundation of what eventually became the Carthusian Order. In 1090, Pope Urban II, who had also been one of Bruno’s students at Reims, called him to Rome to be his adviser. When the papal court moved to southern Italy, brought on by the activity of the partisans of Antipope Clement III (1080–1100), Bruno went along and later (about 1092), with the pope’s permission, he retired into the wilderness of Calabria and there established another monastery. He died at his monastery in La Torre, near Catanzaro, Calabria, on October 6, 1101. In 1514, Pope Leo X granted permission to the Carthusians to celebrate a feast in honor of their founder, and in 1623 his feast was extended to the universal Church. The prayer of the Mass for today recalls the fact that St. Bruno chose to serve God in solitude.

St. Francis Borgia, Priest

St. Francis Borgia, the oldest son of the third Duke of Gandía, was born in the family’s palace in Gandía, Spain, on October 28, 1510. His great grandfather on his father’s side was Pope Alexander VI (1492–1503), and his great grandfather on his mother’s side was King Ferdinand the Catholic (reigned 1469–1516). Francis was educated as befitted a Spanish nobleman. While at the royal court of his cousin, Emperor Charles V (reigned 1519–58), he married (1529) Leonor de Castro of Portugal, and then in 1530 the emperor made him Marquis of Llombai and placed him in charge of the imperial household. When Empress Isabella unexpectedly died on May 1, 1539, Francis escorted the body to Granada, but when the coffin was opened for official recognition before burial, Francis no longer saw the face of a youthful queen but of one beyond recognition. He is said to have exclaimed: “Never again will I serve a master who can die on me,” and from that day onward he lived an austere life.

When Francis’s father died (January 8, 1543), Francis succeeded him as the fourth Duke of Gandía, and when his wife died in 1546, he decided to become a Jesuit. He was accepted into the Society of Jesus by St. Ignatius of Loyola (see July 31), but the fact was kept secret until he settled his temporal affairs and arranged marriages for his eight children. He resigned his title in favor of his eldest son, was ordained (1551) a priest, and worked as a Jesuit in Spain and in Portugal. In 1565, he was elected the third superior general of the Society of Jesus, and seven years later died in Rome on September 30, 1572. He was canonized by Pope Clement X in 1671. The opening prayer of today’s Mass gives a brief summary of St. Francis Borgia’s life, when it asks: Grant through his prayers that all who have died to sin and renounced the world may live for you alone.

St. Peter Claver, Priest and Religious

St. Peter Claver, the future saint of the slave trade, was born at Verdú, Catalonia, Spain, probably on June 25, 1580, and he entered the Society of Jesus in 1602. After studies in Barcelona, he went (1605) to the College of Montesión in Palma de Mallorca to study philosophy, and there he met the aged brother, Alphonsus Rodríguez (see October 31), who encouraged him to be a missionary in the New World. In 1610, Peter sailed for the missions in South America and was ordained (1616) in Cartagena, Colombia—the first Jesuit to be ordained in that city. Cartagena was a prosperous city teeming with merchants; it was also a port of entry for slaves from Western Africa. It is estimated that during Fr. Claver’s years there, about 10,000 slaves passed through the port annually. The journey sometimes lasted months, and the slaves spent their days and nights chained to one another. Peter waited for the slave ships to arrive with their human cargo, and when they did, he and his interpreters, all carrying baskets of fruits, biscuits, and sweets, went aboard to greet the slaves. After comforting those on deck, Peter went down into the stench-filled holds to minister to the sick and dying. When the slaves were brought ashore, he visited them daily and gave them religious instruction, until they were sold and taken to other parts of South America. During his years working among the slaves, Peter said that he must have baptized 300,000 of them. After a lingering illness, he died in Cartagena on September 8, 1654. Pope Leo XIII canonized him in 1888, and in 1896 the same pontiff declared him special patron of missions to the black nations. In today’s prayer we ask, in imitation of St. Peter Claver, for the strength to overcome all racial hatred and to love one another as brothers and sisters.

SS. Stephen Pongrácz and Melchior Grodziecki, Priests and Martyrs, and St. Mark Križevčanin, Canon of Estergom, Martyr

SS. Stephen Pongrácz, Melchior Grodziecki, and Mark Križevčanin met their martyrdom at the hands of Hungarian Calvinists in Košice (in today’s Slovakia). Stephen was born about 1582 in the family’s Alvincz Castle in Transylvania (now in Romania), and he entered (1602) the Society of Jesus in Moravia (part of today’s Czech Republic). After ordination (1615), he taught for a while at Humenné, Slovakia, and in 1619 was sent to Košice to minister to the Catholics there and in the outlying areas, who had not seen a priest for many a year.

Melchior was born in the family castle of Grodiec in Silesia, Poland, about 1584, and also entered (1603) the Society in Moravia, where Stephen was already a novice. After ordination (1616), he taught for a while in Prague, and then in 1619 he was likewise assigned to Košice. At this time, the city was a Calvinist stronghold. The two Jesuits set about their work within and outside the city. Fr. Pongrácz ministered to the Hungarians, while Fr. Grodziecki saw to the needs of those who spoke Polish and German. When the Calvinists saw that the priests’ work prospered and the number of Catholics increased, so did their hatred of them.

When news arrived that the army of the Calvinist prince of Transylvania was approaching Košice (this was the time of the Thirty Years’ War), both Frs. Pongrácz and Grodziecki returned to the city to be with the Catholics living there. At the same time, Fr. Mark Križevčanin (b. 1589) left Estergom to be with the Jesuits. The army easily gained control of the city on September 5, 1519, and when the military general learned that three Catholic priests were in the city, he had them placed (September 6) under house arrest. Anticipating what was before them, the priests spent the night in prayer. On the morning of September 7, the soldiers—unable to get the priests to apostatize—beat them mercilessly. Fr. Križevčanin was their first victim—they stabbed him numerous times, then rubbed flaming torches over his body and finally beheaded him. They next tortured Fr. Pongrácz in similar fashion, then suspended him from a beam and proceeded to carve his body. Fr. Grodziecki suffered the same torment as Fr. Križevčanin, and he too was beheaded. Although two of the priests died on September 7, Fr. Pongrácz was only released from his sufferings on September 8. These martyrs of Košice were canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1995.

St. Joseph Calasanz, Priest

St. Joseph Calasanz, one of the foremost figures in Catholic education, was born at Petralta de la Sal, Aragon, Spain, on September 11, 1556. He studied at the universities of Lérida and Valencia and then was ordained in 1583. Shortly thereafter, he was appointed vicar general of the Trempe Diocese. He subsequently resigned this post, and in 1592 he went to Rome, where he was tutor to the Colonna family and engaged in charitable works (helping in hospitals and teaching catechism). Being aware that the poor, under present circumstances, had no chance of ever becoming educated, he decided to do something for them. Thus, in November 1597, together with three other priests, he opened the first free school in Rome for poor children. Here the children would learn secular subjects as well as their catechism. There was no problem finding students for such a school, and the schools multiplied in number, not only in Rome but also in other Italian cities. In 1617, his community of teachers received recognition as a religious congregation; they called themselves Clerks Regular of the Pious Schools (more commonly known as Piarists). Too rapid a growth of the congregation created problems for the founder, and the congregation soon suffered from internal friction. A favorable solution was eventually had, but only after the founder’s death. St. Joseph Calasanz died in Rome on August 25, 1648, and was canonized by Pope Clement XIII in 1767. In 1948, Pope Pius XII declared him the patron of all Christian schools. St. Joseph Calasanz’s special vocation to be a teacher finds mention in the opening prayer of today’s Mass.

Bl. Albert Hurtado Cruchaga, Priest

Bl. Albert Hurtado Cruchaga is esteemed throughout his native Chile as the founder of El Hogar de Cristo, shelters that offer, in the name of Christ, assistance to the homeless and the poor. Albert was born in Viña del Mar on January 22, 1901, and he knew poverty from his youth. It was only because of a scholarship that he was able to attend the Jesuit High School in Santiago. During those early years of study, he regularly spent his Sunday afternoons in the city’s slum district, helping the poor in any way he could. Upon graduation, he thought of becoming a Jesuit, but his mother and brother needed his assistance, so he found afternoon and evening employment while reserving the mornings to study law at Santiago’s Catholic University. Busy as he was, he still spent his Sunday afternoons with the poor. This he would not give up. Then, in 1923, with his law degree in hand, he entered the Jesuit novitiate. In 1927, he was sent to Spain for his philosophical studies, and he completed his theological course at Louvain, where he was ordained (1933).

He returned to Chile in 1936. While teaching pedagogy at the Catholic University, he involved his sodality students in various apostolic endeavors; for example, working with the poor, visiting the sick, and teaching catechism to children. The poor were continually on Fr. Hurtado’s mind, especially the homeless. With help from benefactors, he opened his first shelter, which he named El Hogar de Cristo, where he welcomed them as into Christ’s home. In time, there were shelters for men, boys, and then for women and girls. While offering assistance, Fr. Hurtado rehabilitated the adults, trained the young in various skills, and instilled Christian values in all. Similar residences were opened in other Chilean cities, and from there they passed to other South American countries. Ever eager to teach and explain the Church’s social teaching to the working laity, Fr. Hurtado wrote several books and started the periodical Mensaje (Message). In 1951, his health began to fail, and he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He died in Santiago on August 18, 1952, and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1994.

St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe, Priest and Martyr

St. Maximilian Mary Kolbe was born at Zdunska-Wola, Poland, on January 8, 1894. His baptismal name was Raymond; Maximilian was the name he received when he entered (1910) the Conventual Franciscan Friars. He did his studies for the priesthood (1912–19) in Rome, where he organized (1917) the Militia of Mary Immaculate, an association dedicated to promoting devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. After earning doctorates in theology and philosophy, he returned to Poland in 1919 to teach Church history at the seminary, and there in 1922 he started Knights of the Immaculata, a periodical for militia members. Years later, in 1927, he founded the City of the Immaculate (Niepokalanów) on the outskirts of Warsaw. Upon being sent (1930) to Japan, he founded a similar community in Nagasaki, and he planned on establishing others throughout the world. In 1936, he returned to Poland and became superior of Niepokalanów. With the German invasion of Poland in early September 1939, World War II began. Fr. Kolbe was first arrested on September 19 of that year and was transferred to three different concentration camps. After several months, he was unexpectedly released and, thus, he returned to Niepokalanów, where he continued, as best he could, his former apostolate. His second arrest came on February 17, 1941, and having been given No. 16670, he was sent on May 28, without trial or sentencing, to the concentration camp at Oswiecim (more commonly known by its German name, Auschwitz). When he arrived, there were already tens of thousands of prisoners there, and though forbidden, he managed clandestinely to minister to Catholics and at times spent the entire night hearing confessions. Then, one day toward the end of July, because a prisoner had escaped from Fr. Kolbe’s block, ten individuals were chosen at random to die in the starvation bunker. Fr. Kolbe was not among the ten. However, when one of the chosen ten sighed: “My poor wife, my poor children!” Fr. Kolbe offered to take his place. The offer was accepted. Two weeks later, when the Germans needed the cell for more victims, the officer in charge opened (August 14, 1941) the bunker and found four victims still alive. Fr. Kolbe was the only one still conscious. The officer then ordered an injection to be given to Fr. Kolbe and the other men, thus hastening their death. On the following day, Fr. Kolbe’s body was burned. He was canonized as a martyr of charity by Pope John Paul II in 1982. Today’s Mass prayer mentions St. Maximilian’s love for Mary Immaculate and his heroic love of neighbor, a love that inspired him to give his life for another.

SS. Pontian, Pope and Martyr, and Hippolytus, Priest and Martyr

St. Pontian was a pope and St. Hippolytus an antipope; they became reconciled when both were sent into exile. Hippolytus was born about 170, and his mother tongue was most probably Greek. He came to Rome, and there he was ordained during the days of Pope Victor I (189–198). Hippolytus was a man of great learning and was recognized as the leading intellectual among the Roman clergy. The election of Pope Callistus (see October 14) in 217 did not meet with Hippolytus’s approval. He always looked with disdain on this former slave and cemetery-keeper, and now that Callistus was pope, Hippolytus openly disagreed with his penitential discipline. He thought the pope was much too easy with regard to forgiving sinners; hence, Hippolytus had his followers elect (217) him antipope—the first antipope in the history of the Church. Hippolytus remained antipope during the following pontificate of Pope Urban I (223–30) and into that of Pope Pontian. In 235, Maximinus Thrax (emperor 235–38) initiated his persecution by striking against the Church’s leaders, and thus he exiled both Pontian and Hippolytus to the salt mines of Sardinia. Hippolytus was one of the more prolific writers of the early Church, and of all his works the Apostolic Tradition is perhaps the most famous, because in it he has left us a description of the liturgical practices in use in the early third century.

Pontian was Roman-born and was elected to the papacy on July 21, 230, to succeed Urban I. The early years of his pontificate were years of peace, until Maximinus Thrax was acclaimed emperor in March 235. The Christian religion was no longer tolerated, and its leaders were singled out for attack. Thus Pontian and Hippolytus became the emperor’s first victims. Both were arrested and sent to Sardinia. Knowing that his deportation was for life, Pontian, on September 28, 235, abdicated the papacy (the first pope to do so) so that another could succeed him. Either on their way to Sardinia or shortly after arriving there, Pontian and Hippolytus became reconciled. Pontian died in Sardinia in October 235, not long after his arrival, as a result of the harsh treatment to which he had been subjected. Hippolytus died shortly afterward of the same cause. The Christians in Rome immediately revered both as martyrs, and Pope Fabian (236–50) (see January 20) had their bodies brought to Rome. Pontian was the first martyred pope to be solemnly buried (August 13, 236 or 237) in the crypt of the popes in the cemetery of Callistus, and Hippolytus was buried in the cemetery on the Via Tiburtina. Their memorial is celebrated on the anniversary of their burial in Rome.

St. Dominic, Priest

St. Dominic Guzmán was born in Caleruega, Old Castile, Spain, sometime after 1170. On completing his studies in theology at Palencia, he was appointed (about 1196) a canon of the cathedral chapter at Osma, and in 1201 he was chosen prior of that cathedral community. He accompanied Osma’s bishop, Diego de Azevedo, on two royal embassies to northern Europe, and during that time he became acquainted with the needs of the Church, especially in the Languedoc region of France, where the Church was severely threatened by the Albigensian heresy. To assist the Church in her present grave need, Dominic and several other priests were commissioned by Pope Innocent III (1198–1216) as itinerant preachers to save the French faithful from the heretics. Dominic preached throughout southern France for a period of about eleven years (1206–17). In 1214, he conceived the idea of forming a religious community to continue this important work of preaching, so he and his companions went to Toulouse in 1215, and there they formed what eventually came to be known as the Order of Friars Preachers, more commonly called Dominicans. Dominic only had six more years to live, but during that time he saw his order expand into France and Spain, Italy, Germany, and Poland. The cities of Paris and Bologna, both university centers, became the principal bases for the order’s growth. In 1221, after participating in the order’s second general chapter in Bologna, Dominic became ill and died there on August 6, 1221. He was canonized by Pope Gregory IX in 1234. Today’s prayer recalls that during a period of crisis St. Dominic came to the aid of the Church, that is, by his preaching against the heretics and by founding the Order of Friars Preachers.

St. Cajetan, Priest

St. Cajetan, son of Count Gaspare da Theine, was born in Vicenza, northern Italy, in October 1480. He pursued law studies at the University of Padua, and after graduation went (1506) to Rome, where Pope Julius II had given him an appointment as prothonotary apostolic in the Roman Curia. In Rome he joined the Oratory of Divine Love, a group devoted to piety and charity, and helped at the San Giacomo hospital for incurables. He was ordained in 1516 and was back in Vicenza in 1518, engaged in charitable works. In 1520 he went to Venice and there founded (1522) a hospital for incurables. He returned (1523) to Rome and in 1524 he and three companions formed the Congregation of Clerks Regular, priests dedicated to work for the reform of society according to Christian principles. Their congregation is more commonly known today as the Theatines, a name derived from Theate, the Latin name for Chieti, the episcopal see of their first superior, Gianpietro Caraffa (later Pope Paul IV). They were active in Rome until the sack of the city in 1527, when they moved their headquarters to Venice. Later, in 1533, Cajetan became superior of a new foundation in Naples; he labored there until his death, except for the period (1540–43) when he was superior in Venice. While in Naples, he preached against the teachings of Juan de Valdés (c. 1490–1541) and Bernardino Ochino (1487–1564), both of whom had Protestant leanings and were then active in the city. Cajetan died in Naples on August 7, 1547, and he was canonized by Pope Clement X in 1671. When today’s prayer affirms that St. Cajetan imitated the apostolic way of life, this is in reference to his founding of a religious congregation intent on seeking the salvation of the neighbor.

St. John Mary Vianney, Priest

St. John Mary Vianney is better known as the Curé of Ars. He was born at Dardilly, near Lyon, on May 8, 1786. Because the years of his growing up coincided with those of the French Revolution and its aftermath, he only had a few months of formal schooling. When he was eighteen years of age, despite the disturbed times, he began private studies for the priesthood, but such studies were difficult for one without a proper educational foundation. In 1809, he was called to military service, but due to illness he was unable to join his unit before it departed, and later when it was time to join a subsequent unit, he missed it because he visited a church on the way. While trying to catch up with this second unit, he found another young man in a similar situation and went along with him; but the young man, rather than looking for the unit, sought asylum in a small village, and there they remained until an amnesty was granted in March 1810. John then attended the minor seminary; in 1813 he went to Lyon for theology, but he had to leave the following year (1814) because of his inability to cope with the Latin language. After being tutored privately, he was finally ordained on August 12, 1815. In 1818, he was assigned to Ars, a small parish of 230 individuals, all of whom had become slovenly in the practice of their religion. He cleaned and restored the church, visited the families in the parish, and began catechism classes. Within eight years, what had been a dying parish was now vibrant with life. Fr. Vianney was known for his ability to read hearts and, thus, he became a renowned confessor, with penitents coming to him from all parts of France. He spent an average of twelve to thirteen hours a day in the confessional! He died at Ars on August 4, 1859; he had been there forty-one years. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1925, and in 1929 the same pope made him patron of parish priests.

Bl. Peter Faber, Priest

Bl. Peter Faber was St. Ignatius of Loyola’s first recruit. He was born on April 13, 1506, in Villaret, Savoy, and went (1525) to study at the University of Paris, where his roommate was St. Francis Xavier (see December 3), and later St. Ignatius (see July 31). Under the latter’s direction, Peter decided to become a priest. On August 15, 1534, he and six companions vowed poverty, chastity, and to go to the Holy Land to convert the Turks. When they arrived in Venice and learned that it was impossible to advance further because of imminent war with the Turks, Peter and his friends went to Rome and offered (November 1538) their services to Pope Paul III. The pope then appointed Peter to teach Scripture at Rome’s Sapienza College, and in 1540 the pope sent him to Worms and Regensburg (Germany) to attend the Catholic—Protestant dialogue. From there, he went (1541) to Spain where, by his sermons and missions, he made the young Society of Jesus known. Responding to a new papal order, he again went to Germany, this time as assistant to the papal nuncio. Then, at the request of King John III of Portugal, he visited that country and prepared the way for the Jesuits to work there. Because Pope Paul III had named Peter one of the papal theologians to assist at the Council of Trent, Peter traveled to Rome to see Ignatius before making his way to the council. While in Rome, he became ill, and he died on August 1, 1546. Pope Pius IX, acknowledging the cult that had been shown to Peter Faber in his native Savoy, declared, on September 5, 1872, that he was among the blessed in heaven.

St. Peter Julian Eymard, Priest

St. Peter Julian Eymard was born at La Mure d’Isère, a small town nestled in the French Alps in the Diocese of Grenoble, on February 4, 1811. From his earliest years, he thought of becoming a priest, but because his father did not enjoy the same vision as he, Peter Julian found it necessary to study Latin secretly. After his father’s death in 1831, Peter Julian entered the major seminary in Grenoble and was ordained to the diocesan priesthood in 1834. His first assignments were in two small parishes, but because he felt called to the religious life he received his bishop’s approval and entered (1839) the newly founded Society of Mary (Marist Fathers). For the next seventeen years, he held positions of authority in that congregation; he was spiritual director at the junior seminary at Belley (1840–44), then provincial superior of the congregation (1844–51) in Lyon, and finally rector (1851–56) of the College of La Seine-sur-Mer. During a visit to the shrine of Our Lady of Fourvière in February 1851, he was deeply inspired to found a religious society devoted principally to promoting devotion to and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Aware that no such religious congregation existed in the Church, he felt it his duty to found one. Because he was unable to organize such a group within the Marists—this did not fall within the scope of their apostolate—he approached, with his superior’s permission, the Bishop of Paris, and in 1856 founded the Priests of the Most Blessed Sacrament (known as the Blessed Sacrament Fathers), of which he was superior general until his death. In 1857, he founded the Pious Union of Priest Adorers and then in 1858 the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, a community of cloistered contemplative nuns devoted exclusively to perpetual adoration. He guided these communities until his death in his native town on August 1, 1868. He was canonized by Pope John XXIII on December 9, 1962, and he is acknowledged as the “Priest of the Blessed Sacrament.”

St. Ignatius of Loyola, Priest and Founder of the Society of Jesus

St. Ignatius of Loyola was born in his family’s castle, near Azpeitia, in Spain’s Basque country, sometime before October 23, 1491. As a youth, he served (1506?–17) as a page to Juan Velázquez de Cuéllar, King Ferdinand V’s chief treasurer, and there he learned his courtly manners. In 1517, he entered the service of the Duke of Nájera. Viceroy of Navarre, and while defending the fortress at Pamplona was wounded (May 20, 1521) by a cannon shot. He convalesced at Loyola Castle, and by reading a life of Christ as well as those of the saints, he experienced a conversion and resolved to visit the Holy Land and serve the Lord.

On his way to the Holy Land, he stopped at the Benedictine monastery at Montserrat, and there he made a night’s vigil (March 24–25, 1522) before the Black Madonna. He then went to nearby Manresa and spent about eleven months in prayer and penance. After a brief visit to Rome to request papal approval for his pilgrimage, he left Venice and arrived in Jerusalem on September 4, 1523. Less than a month later, he left to return to Venice. He then made his way to Barcelona to begin his studies “in order to help souls.” After studies in Barcelona (1524–26), Alcalá (1526–27), and Salamanca (1527), Ignatius went to the University of Paris (1528–35), and there he gathered a group of six like-minded men. On August 15, 1534, in a Montmartre chapel, the small band of seven took a vow to go to Jerusalem within a year after their studies, if this were possible, and work for the conversion of the Turks. After their arrival in Venice (1537), they learned that they could not sail for the Holy Land because of imminent war; hence, they went (November 1537) to Rome and offered (November 18–23, 1538) their services to Pope Paul III.

After Ignatius and his first companions decided to form a new religious congregation, their plan received Paul III’s approval (September 27, 1540), and thus the Society of Jesus was born. Ignatius was then elected general and accepted the office on April 19, 1541; on April 22, in a ceremony at St. Paul Outside-the-Walls, the six pronounced their vows as Jesuits. As general of the new order, Ignatius remained in Rome, wrote its Constitutions, and supervised the Society’s growth, not only in Italy, but in the other countries of Europe as well. He likewise sent missionaries to India. Because of the excessive acts of penance he had practiced while at Manresa, his health had been severely impaired. St. Ignatius died in Rome on July 31, 1556, and was canonized by Pope Gregory XV on March 12, 1622. His Spiritual Exercises had been first approved by Pope Paul III on July 31, 1548, and on July 25, 1922, Pope Pius XI named him heavenly patron of all Spiritual Exercises.

St. Sharbel Makhluf, Priest

St. Sharbel Makhluf is the first Maronite saint to be included in the Latin Church’s calendar. He was born, the youngest of five children, in the tiny mountain village of Bika’Kafra, Lebanon, on May 8, 1828. At his baptism, he was given the name Youssef (Joseph). His family was of peasant stock and were members of the Maronite Church. Young Youssef was brought up in a religiously devout family; his paternal uncle was a deacon in the parish church, and two of his maternal uncles were monks of the Lebanese Maronite Order. Youssef learned to read and write by attending classes held in the town square beneath the large church oak. When not in class, he helped in the fields or watched over the family’s small flock. As he grew older, he joined the church choir in singing the office and the liturgy. He made frequent visits to his uncles at the Monastery of St. Anthony at Qozhaya, and there he joined in singing the monastic office. In time, he too thought of becoming a monk, but his mother was of a different opinion. He was needed in the fields, and she did not want to lose her youngest child. But Youssef had a mind of his own and knew what he wanted in life, and thus he awaited his hour.

One Sunday morning in 1851—he was now twenty-three years of age—without revealing his plans to anyone, he rose early, and taking nothing with him quietly left home and walked all day to the Monastery of Our Lady of Mayfuq. No one greeted him on his arrival; he had not notified them of his coming. When he did meet a monk, he merely informed him: “I would like to become a monk.” After a short interview, the superior accepted him as a postulant. Eight days later, he received the habit and changed his name to Sharbel, after an early martyr of Antioch. For his second year of noviceship, he was sent to the Monastery of St. Maron at Annaya, a four-hour walk away. There he pronounced his vows in 1853, and subsequently he was sent to study theology, in preparation for the priesthood, at the Monastery of St. Cyprian of Kfifan. There he spent six years and was fortunate in having Fr. Nehmetallah Kassab El Hardini (1808–58) as his spiritual director. Fr. El Hardini was not only an excellent spiritual guide but was also known for his holiness. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1998.

Sharbel was ordained on July 23, 1859, and shortly thereafter returned to the monastery at Annaya. He spent the next sixteen years there. When he was not working, he was praying; he kept prolonged fasts, ate but one meal a day, and preferred silence. He had two favorite books, the Bible and Thomas à Kempis’s Imitation of Christ. A desire gradually grew within him to give himself more completely to God, and thus he requested to live as a hermit. Permission was granted in 1875, and he moved into the Annaya hermitage, where he spent his remaining twenty-three years. He became a man of ceaseless prayer. He celebrated his last Mass on December 16, 1898, during which he felt a pain in his chest. When he completed the consecration, he suffered a stroke. He died on December 24. During his life, the local people looked upon him as a saint and in this they were not in error, for miracles soon began occurring at his tomb. His fame spread not only among Maronites, but throughout the entire Catholic Church. Pope Paul VI canonized him in 1977.

St. Lawrence of Brindisi, Priest and Doctor of the Church

St. Lawrence’s true name was Julius Caesar Russo. He was born in Brindisi, southern Italy, on July 22, 1559. After his parents’ death, he went to Venice and later entered (1575) the Capuchin Order, in which he received the name Lawrence. He studied at Padua and Venice, and during those years his remarkable ability for languages became evident. He was able to speak and preach in at least a half dozen languages. After ordination (1582), he was assigned to preaching, his most characteristic apostolate, and he traveled throughout northern Italy and beyond the Alps evangelizing the people. He likewise spent time (1599–1602, 1606–13) in Bohemia, Germany, Austria, and Hungary working to win back those who had gone over to the Reformation. Within the Capuchin Order, he held many positions of authority, and in 1602 he was chosen superior general. He also engaged in diplomacy; he served as special papal emissary and effected (1614) a peace between Spain and Savoy. Late in his life, the city of Naples, suffering under the oppressive measures of its viceroy, asked him to represent its case before King Philip III of Spain. He met the king in Lisbon and won not only a hearing but also a favorable reply. While in Lisbon, Lawrence fell ill, and he died there on July 22, 1619. He was canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1881, and Pope John XXIII named him a doctor of the Church in 1959. When today’s prayer says that God gave St. Lawrence courage and right judgment, the courage refers to his fearlessness during many years of preaching in non-Catholic lands, and the judgment to his years as a religious superior and his diplomatic missions.

St. Camillus de Lellis, Priest

St. Camillus de Lellis was born at Bucchianico, Italy, on May 25, 1550. As a young man, he thought of enrolling in the military, but an ulcer on his right foot kept him from fulfilling that desire. He went (1571) to Rome’s Hospital of San Giacomo for treatment, and after the wound healed, he found employment at the hospital as a servant. His service, however, did not last long because he was dismissed for gambling. He then served in the Venetian army for four years (1571–74), and when he gambled away all that he owned he got a job as a laborer at a Capuchin monastery in Manfredonia. Repenting his past life and undergoing a conversion, he joined (1575) the Capuchins as a coadjutor brother. Because the wound on his foot again became ulcerated, he left the Capuchins and returned to the hospital in Rome. Once healed, he remained at the hospital for almost three years working with the sick. He then reentered (1579) the Capuchins, but again his wound opened and he was forced to leave.

Camillus now decided to dedicate his life to the sick. He returned to San Giacomo, and there they asked him to serve as the hospital’s superintendent. Coming under the influence of St. Philip Neri (see May 26), Camillus began studies for the priesthood and was ordained in 1584. He gathered others about him who also wanted to share his work; they called themselves Servants of the Sick. They daily visited Rome’s Santo Spirito Hospital, and there they nursed the sick, offering them both physical and spiritual assistance, especially in cases near death. Camillus, who was renowned for his charity, died in Rome on July 14, 1614, and was canonized by Pope Benedict XIV in 1746. The congregation he founded is called the Order of the Servants of the Sick, but its members are more commonly known as Camillians. In 1886, Pope Leo XIII named St. Camillus de Lellis and St. John of God (see March 8) patrons of the sick and of hospitals; and in 1930, Pope Pius XI named St. Camillus patron of nurses. Today’s Mass prayer also mentions St. Camillus’s special love for the sick.