Christian Today

St. Joseph Marchand, Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr of Vietnam. He was arrested in Saigon and condemned by authorities; he was martyred with red-hot tongs. Nov. 30

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 30 St. Tudwal, 564 A.D. Welsh monk and bishop, called Pabu (Father) among the Bretons and sometimes listed as Tugdual. Originally a monk in Wales, he journeyed to Brittany, France, with his mother, sisters, and other relatives. The Celtic language of Brittany was easily understood by Welsh speakers. Tudwal’s cousin, Deroc, was a king of Dumnonia and he worked to promote the faith in his cousin’s domain, founding Lan Paku at Leon, Spain. He eventually became bishop of Treher (Treguier) with King Childebert I (r. 511 -558) as his patron. He is remembered in Wales in several sites in the Leyn Peninsula.

The first one to be called by Jesus “We have found the Messiah”, expresses the great joy of the apostle Andrew. Those are the words we find in John’s Gospel when Andrew rushes to meet his brother Simon Peter to tell him what he has discovered and to share his joy at being the first one called by Jesus. A fisherman from Bethsaida of Galilee and a disciple of John the Baptist, Andrew recognizes the “Lamb of God” in the son of Joseph the carpenter. The disciple recalled the time of this encounter at the Jordan river that would mark his life forever, “it was about four in the afternoon”. He immediately left his nets and followed Him “Rabbi, where are you staying?” Jesus responded immediately to this question of Andrew and the other disciple, saying, “Come, and you will see”. That clear invitation foreshadowed the following, more explicit call Jesus made on the shore of the Sea of Galilee to Simon, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men”. The two disciples were still taken a...

St. Paramon and Companions, Three hundred and seventy five Roman Catholic Martyrs, who are reported to have been put to death on the same day during the persecutions of the Church under Emperor Trajanus Decius. Feastday Nov 29 St. Francis Fasani, Roman Catholic Franciscan Friar. he was known for prayer and for supernatural gifts. Feastday nov 29

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 29 St. Cuthbert Mayne, 1577 A.D. An English martyr, born near Barnstable, in Devonshire, as a Protestant. He converted to Catholicism at St. John’s, Oxford. Cuthbert was ordained at Douai, France, and sent home to England about 1575. Working in Cornwall, he was captured after a year. Condemned for celebrating a Mass, he was hanged, drawn, and quartered on November 25. Cuthbert was a friend of Edmund Campion, and he was aided by Francis Tregian in Cornwall. He was the first Englishman trained for the priesthood at Douai and was the Protomartyr of English seminaries. Cuthbert was canonized by Pope Paul VI as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. St. Brendan of Birr, 573 A.D. Friend of St. Brendan the Voyager. Brendan was a monk at Clonard, Ireland. He became the abbot of Birr, near Offaly, and he also advised St. Columba. Columba had a vision of Brendan of Birr's soul being carried heavenward by angels. St. Sadwen, 6th century. Confess...

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 29 ST. SATURNIN, MARTYR ON THE VIA SALARIA NUOVA One of countless martyrs during the early centuries of Christianity, St Saturninus was originally from Carthage. An inscription by Pope St Damasus records that, on account of his faith, he was exiled to Rome under the Emperor Decius. He was martyred in 304 by order of the Emperor Maximian

St. Catherine Laboure, Roman Catholic Virgin Nun. Three times in 1830 the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Catherine Laboure, who then was a twenty-four year old novice. Feastday: November 28 St. Andrew Trong, Roman Catholic and Martyr of Vietnam. He was arrested in 1834 and in the presence of his mother he was beheaded. She knelt beside him at the execution site in Hué, receiving his head on her lap. Nov. 28

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 28 St. Fionnchu, 6th century. Abbot of Bangor Abbey, in Ireland, the successor of St. Comgall. St. James Thompson, Blessed, 1582 A.D. English martyr. A native of York, he studied for the priesthood at Reims and was ordained there in 1581. Arrested soon after his return to England, he was hanged at York. He used the name Hudson in his mission work. James was beatified in 1895.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 28 ST. JAMES OF THE MARCHES, FRANCISCAN St James, known from his birthplace as “of the Marches” became a Franciscan in 1415. Much of his career was spent as a papal envoy in eastern Europe. He was a noted preacher, fiery, but with a severity tempered by mercy. To fight against usury, he established lending houses to assist the poor.

Bl. Thomas Kotenda and Companions, Roman Catholics and Martyrs of Japan. He lived at Nagasaki until his condemnation and beheading, He was martyred along with ten companions. Feastday Nov27 St. James Intercisus, Roman Catholic Martyr of Persia. He declared himself to be a Christian to the new king, Bahram. When James refused to apostasize, he was executed by having his body cut apart piece by piece, beginning with his fingers (hence his surname Intercisus - cut to pieces), and then beheaded. Feastday Nov 27

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 27 St. Secundinus. Secundinus is also known as Sechnall and Seachnall. He was sent from Gaul in 439 to assist St. Patrick in Ireland together with Auxilius and Iserninus. He became the first bishop of Dunslaughlin in Meath, and then auxiliary bishop of Armagh. He wrote several hymns, notably Audites, omnes amantes Deum in honor of St. Patrick and the earliest Latin hymn written in Ireland, and, Sancti, venite, Christi corpus sumite. St. Fergus, 721 A.D. An Irish bishop called "the Pict." He evangelized Scotland, where he was called Fergustian or Fergus of Scotland. He preached in Perthshire, Caithness, Buchan, and Forfarshire. Fergus was part of the Roman Council in 721. St. Gallgo, 6th century. Welsh abbot, the founder of Llanalgo Abbey in Anglesey, Wales.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 27 ST. VERGILIUS, BISHOP OF SALZBURG

Saint John Berchmans (Dutch: Jan Berchmans) (13 March 1599 – 13 August 1621) was a Jesuit scholastic and is a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. He is the patron saint of altar servers. Feastday: November 26 Bl. Gaetana Sterni, Roman Catholic Nun and foundress of "Daughters of the Divine Will" St. Dominic Doan Xuyen, Roman Catholic Martyr of Vietnam, beheaded with St. Thomas Du. He was a Vietnamese Dominican. Feastday Nov.26 St. Leonard of Port Maurice, Roman Catholic Franciscan Monk. Proponent of the Blessed Sacrament, the devotion of the Sacred Heart, and the Stations of the Cross, as well as the Immaculate Conception. Nov 26

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 26 ST. SIRICIUS, POPE When Siricius became Pope in 384, he immediately established a good relationship with St Ambrose of Milan. He was moderate and balanced in his administration of the Church; and historically is one of the first Popes we see exercising the papal primacy. ST. LEONARD OF PORTO MAURIZIO, FRANCISCAN ST. SYLVESTER, ABBOTT, FOUNDER OF SILVESTRINE-BENDECTINE

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 25 St. Alnoth, 700 A.D. Herder and hermit, mentioned in the life of St. Werburga. Alnoth tended cows on the lands of St. Werburga's monastery at Weedon, in Northhampton, England. He was badly used by a local official, earning a reputation for holiness and patience. Alnoth retired from active life and became a hermit. Two robbers accosted him in his hermitage, slaying him. He is honored locally as a martyr, and his tomb at Stowe, near Bubrook in Northhampton, became a popular shrine for pilgrims.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 25 ST. CATHERINE OF ALEXANDRIA Fifty pagan philosophers are said to have debated with St Catherine, hoping to convince her to abjure her faith. Instead, Catherine converted them to Christianity. Furious, the Emperor ordered her to be put to death on a spiked wheel; but the wheel broke. Eventually, she was martyred by beheading. ST. MOSES, MARTYR IN ROME ST PETER OF ALEXANDRIA, BISHOP AND MARTYR B. LUIGI AND MARIA BELTRAME QUATTROCCHI, SPOUSES

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 24 St. Colman of Cloyne. He was born in Munster, Ireland, son of Lenin. He became a poet and later, royal bard at Cashel. He was baptized by St. Brendan when he was fifty years old with the name Colman. He was ordained, and was reputed to be St. Columba's teacher. He became the first bishop of Cloyne, of which he is patron, in eastern Cork. St. Eanfleda, 700 A.D. Daughter of King St. Edwin and St. Ethelberga of Kent. St. Paulinus baptized her as an infant. A supporter of St. Wilfrid, Eanfleda became a Benedictine nun at Whitby as a widow. Her daughter, St. Elfieda, was abbess there. St. Kenan, 500 A.D. Irish bishop, a disciple of St. Martin of Tours, France. He built the first stone cathedral at Danberg, or Duleek, in Meath, Ireland.

Saints Nov. 24 Martyrs of Vietnam, Several Roman Catholic groups of martyrs also called the Martyrs of Annam who were slain for the faith in Vietnam from 1798 until 1861.NOV. 24 St. Flora & Mary, Roman Catholic women and Martyrs at Cordoba, Spain. They surrendered to Muslim authorities and were placed in a brothel. Still clinging to the faith, Flora and Mary were beheaded. Nov. 24 Bl. Maria Anna Sala, Roman Catholic Nun. For decades she taught at the Marcellina schools within Italy. Nov. 24

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 24 ST. CHRYSOGONUS, MARTYR OF AQUILEIA STS. ANDREW DŨNG LẠC, AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 23, ST. COLUMBAN, ABBOT St Columbanus is one of the most famous Irishmen in history. As a young man, he was a rigorous and ascetic monk. At age 50, he became a missionary, and with twelve companions spread the Gospel through much of western Europe. His monastic Rule became a model for future generations. ST. CLEMENT I, POPE AND MARTYR: HER RELIQUIES ARE VENERATED IN THE CHURCH ENTITLED TO HIM ST. FELICITAS, MARTYR ON THE VIA SALARIA NUOVA

Pope St. Clement I, Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr. As Clement succeeded in converting many pagans, he was sent to Aufidianus, the prefect, who ordered him to be drowned in the sea with an old anchor attached to his neck. His body was recovered by his disciple Phoebus. The relics of S. Clement were deposited in the church of San Clemente, where they are still reverently preserved. Feastday: November 23 ST. FELICITAS, MARTYR ON THE VIA SALARIA NUOVA Nov 23- Felicitas, a noble Roman lady. According to these Acts Felicitas and her seven sons were imprisoned because of their Christian Faith, at the instigation of pagan priests, during the reign of Emperor Antoninus. Before the prefect Publius they adhered firmly to their religion, and were delivered over to four judges, who condemned them to various modes of death. The division of the martyrs among four judges corresponds to the four places of their burial. St. Felicitas herself was buried in the catacomb of Maximus on the Via Salaria, ...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 23 St. Columban, 615 A.D. Columban was a native of Leinster, and seems to have been of a respectable family. Of the precise date of his birth we are not informed. According to some accounts it was about 559 A.D., but according to others it was several years earlier. He received a good classical education, and resolved early to embrace an ascetic life. But the good looks and winning ways of the Irish girls was a snare to him. He tried to forget their bright eyes by toiling (desudavit) at grammar, rhetoric, and geometry, but found that at least syntax and the problems of Euclid were a less attractive study than pretty faces, and that the dry rules of rhetoric failed altogether before the winsome prattle of light- hearted maidens. He consulted an old woman who lived as a recluse. She warned him that if he wished to maintain his purpose of self-conquest he must fly to a region where girls are less beautiful and seductive than Ireland. "Save thyself, y...

Bl. Baldji Oghlou Ohannes, Roman Catholic Monk and Martyr. A group of eight Franciscan martyred in the region of Mujuk-Dersi, Armenia by invading Islamic Turks who tortured them, demanded they convert to Islam, and murdered them when they did not convert. Feastday Nov 22

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 22 St. Devniolin, 621 A.D. Abbot, also called Deiniol or Daniel the Younger. He ruled Bangor Monastery in Wales, when King Aethelfrith of Northumbria slaughtered the two thousand monk residents.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 22, ST. CECILIA, VIRGIN AND MARTYR IN THE CEMITERY OF CALLISTUS History and legend intertwine around the figure of Saint Cecilia, virgin and martyr, who lived in Rome between the 2nd and 3rd centuries. She is celebrated around the world as a patron of music, musicians and singers. The Church remembers her on November 22. The power of love The tale of her martyrdom is contained in the Passio Sanctae Caeciliae, a more literary than historical text, characterized by a strong tendency toward the legendary. According to the Passio, Cecilia was betrothed to the patrician, Valerian. On their wedding day, she revealed that she had converted to Christianity and vowed perpetual virginity. Valerian then agreed to be catechized and baptized secretly by Pope Urban I. Shortly afterwards, Valerian’s brother Tiburtius embraced the Christian faith. The two brothers were soon arrested by order of the Prefect, Turcius Almachius. After being tortured, they were decapitated...

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 21, B. MARY OF JESUS GOOD SHEPERD, FOUNDRESS OF THE SISTERS OF THE HOLY FAMILY OF NAZARETH, Born into the Polish nobility in the late 19th century, Franciszka Siedliska overcame poor health and her father’s plans for her to marry, in order to become a nun. In religion, she took the name Maria of Jesus of the Good Shepherd. In 1873 she founded the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth.

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 21 St. Digain, 5th century. Prince of Cornwall, England, and confessor. He was the son of Constantine, chieftain of Cornwall. Llangerew, in Clwyd, Wales, honors Digain.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 20 ST. GELASIUS I, POPE St Gelasius became Pope in 496, and during his four-year reign fought against paganism and heresy, writing treatises against Manicheanism, Monophysitism, and Pelagianism, among others. Some of his principles in ecclesiastical matters were taken up by the Second Vatican Council.

Saints Nov. 20 Bl. Josaphata Michaelina Hordashevska, Roman Catholic Ukrainian Nun. First member of the Sisters Servants of Mary Immaculate, She died of bone cancer St. Francis Xavier Can, Roman Catholic and Vietnamese Martyr. A native, born in Sou-Ming, he worked as a catechist with the priests of the Foreign Missions of Paris. Arrested and refusing to deny the faith, Francis Xavier was strangled in prison. Nov 20 St. Felix of Valois, Hermit and co-founder of the Trinitarians with St. John of Matha. He lived as a recluse at Cerfroid, France, and in 1198 received approval from the Holy See for the Order of the Most Holy Trinity to ransoms captives from the Moors. Felix founded St. Mathburn Convent in Paris while in his seventies. He died in Cerfroid on November 4.Feastday: Nov. 20 St Gelasius I became Pope in 496, and during his four-year reign fought against paganism and heresy, writing treatises against Manicheanism, Monophysitism, and Pelagianism, among others. Some of his prin...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 20 St. Autbodus, 690 A.D. Irish missionary and hermit. Autbodus preached in Hainault, Belgium, and Artois and Picardy, France. He retired to a hermitage near Laon where he died. St. Edmund Rich, 1242 A.D. Archbishop of Canterbury England, who baffled for discipline and justice, also called Edmund of Abingdon. Born in Abingdon, on November 30, 1180. he studied at Oxford, England, and in Paris, France. He taught art and mathematics at Oxford and was ordained. lie spent eight years teaching theology and became Canon and treasurer of Salisbury Cathedral. An eloquent speaker, Edmund preached a crusade for Pope Gregory IX and was named archbishop of Canterbury. He became an advisor to King Henry Ill and presided in 1237 at Henry’s ratification of the Great Charter. When Cardinal Olt became a papal legate with the patronage of King Henry, Edmund protested. A long-lasting feud between Edmund, the king, and his legate led him to resigning his see in 1240. H...

France Declares War on the Mass (Again) - Crisis Magazine : Thousands turned out for pro-Mass rallies in front of churches in nearly forty cities across France last Sunday, November 15. France is currently enduring another round of lockdowns in which public Masses have once again been declared illegal. Schools are open, supermarkets are open, public transit is available, and you can even go into a …

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 19, ST. MATILDA (MECHTILDE), VIRGIN,ST. ABDIA, PROPHET ST. MATILDA (MECHTILDE), VIRGIN A Saxon by birth, Mechtilde became a nun at the Benedictine Monastery of Rodersdorf. She later moved to the monastery at Helfta, where she was known for her humility and kindness. In addition to directing the choir, Mechtilde had frequent visions, which were collected in the Book of Special Graces. ST. ABDIA, PROPHET

Saints Nov. 19 Bl. Raphael Kalinowski, Roman Catholic Discalced Carmelite Friar. He was a teacher, engineer, prisoner of war, royal tutor, and priest, who founded many monasteries around Poland after the suppression by the Russians. Feastday Nov 19 St. Nerses the Great,Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr. Bishop and martyred by the Armenian ruler, Pap, whose dissolute lifestyle caused Nerses to refuse him admission into church. Nerses was invited to a royal banquet at Khakh, on the Euphrates River, and was assassinated by poison. Feastday Nov 19 ST. ABDIA, PROPHET The Holy Prophet Obadiah [or Abdia] is the fourth of the Twelve Minor Prophets, and he lived during the ninth century B.C. He was from the village of Betharam, near Sichem, and he served as steward of the impious Israelite King Ahab. Bl. Salvatore Lilli, Roman Catholic Fransican Monk and Martyr. Missionary to Mujuk-Deresa, Armenia in 1894. In 1895 the area was occupied by Islamic Turks who captured Salvatore and fellow Franc...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 19 St. Ermenberga, 700 A.D. Wife of Merewald, a king of Mercia, England, and the mother of Sts. Mildred, Milburga, Ermengytha, and Mildgytha. She is also known as Domna Ebba or Domneva. Ermenberga founded the convent of Minster, on Thanet Isle, on land donated by her uncle King Egbert of Kent. Egbert had murdered Ermenberga’s two brothers and provided the land as atonement for his crimes. St. Medana, 8th century. Irish virgin who went to live in Galloway, Scotland. She may be the same as St. Midnat.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 18, ST. ODO ABBOT OF CLUNY, ST. ROSE-PHILIPPINE DUCHESNE, ST. ROMAN OF ANTIOCH

Bl. John Shoun, Roman Catholic Martyr of Japan. Died: 1619. He was a Japanese from Meako and was baptized at Nagasaki. Seized for being a Christian, he was burned alive at Nagasaki and was beatified in 1867. Feastday Nov 18 St. Leonard Kimura, Roman Catholic Martyr of Japan. A temporal coadjutor of the Jesuits. He was arrested for his faith and association with the Jesuits, he was burned alive at Nagasaki and was beatified in 1867. Feastday Nov. 18 Dedication of the basilicas of Saints Peter and Paul, Nov 18

Bl. Salomea of Poland, Roman Catholic Nun and Poor Clare abbess. The daughter of a Polish prince, she was betrothed at the age of three to Prince Coloman of Hungary, son of King Andrew II. She became a widow in 1241 when Coloman was killed in battle. She then entered the Poor Clares, founding a convent at Zawichost (later moved to Skala). She later became the abbess of the convent and died there Feastday: Nov. 17 Martyrs of Paraguay, Roman Catholic Jesuit Priests and Martyrs. Three Spanish Jesuits - Roch Gonzalez, Aiphonsus Rodriguez, Juan de Castilo - who were slain in missions called “reductions,” including the main site on the Jiuhi River in Paraguay. They were at All Saints Mission there when they were murdered Feastday: November 17 Bl. Josaphat Kocylovskyj, Roman Catholic Priest and Martyr. He was sent to the Capaivca labor camps (Kiev region), where he underwent continuous pressure to move to the Russian Orthodox Church. He died in the same camp as a result of cerebral hemorrha...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 17 St. Hugh of Lincoln. Hugh of Lincoln was the son of William, Lord of Avalon. He was born at Avalon Castle in Burgundy and was raised and educated at a convent at Villard-Benoit after his mother died when he was eight. He was professed at fifteen, ordained a deacon at nineteen, and was made prior of a monastery at Saint-Maxim. While visiting the Grande Chartreuse with his prior in 1160 A, D, It was then he decided to become a Carthusian there and was ordained. After ten years, he was named procurator and in 1175 A.D. became Abbot of the first Carthusian monastery in England. This had been built by King Henry II as part of his penance for the murder of Thomas Becket. His reputation for holiness and sanctity spread all over England and attracted many to the monastery. He admonished Henry for keeping Sees vacant to enrich the royal coffers. Income from the vacant Sees went to the royal treasury. He was then named bishop of the eighteen year old vacant...

English Historical Fiction Authors: Masters of Stone: the Medieval Stonemasons :  By E.M. Powell In our twenty-first century urbanised world, buildings of enormous height and size are all around us and are so familiar a s...

St. Joseph Moscati, Moscati remained true to his Roman Catholic faith his entire life, taking a vow of chastity and practicing charity in his daily work. He viewed his practice of medical science as a way of alleviating suffering, not as a way of making profits, and would retire regularly for prayer. He also attended Mass daily. Nov 16

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 16 ST. MARGARET OF SCOTLAND ST. GERTRUDE, VIRGIN, BENEDICTINE ST. AGNES OF ASSISI, ST. CLARE' S SISTER, VIRGIN

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER16 St. Margaret of Scotland, 1093 A.D. Margaret was an English princess. She and her mother sailed to Scotland to escape from the king who had conquered their land. King Malcolm of Scotland welcomed them and fell in love with the beautiful princess. Margaret and Malcolm were married before too long. As Queen, Margaret changed her husband and the country for the better. Malcolm was good, but he and his court were very rough. When he saw how wise his beloved wife was, he listened to her good advice. She softened his temper and led him to practice great virtue. She made the court beautiful and civilized. Soon all the princes had better manners, and the ladies copied her purity and devotion. The king and queen gave wonderful example to everyone by the way they prayed together and fed crowds of poor people with their own hands. They seemed to have only one desire: to make everyone happy and good. Margaret was a blessing for all the people of Scotland. B...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 15 St. Findan, 879 A.D. Benedictine hermit, also called Fintan. He was born in Leinster, Ireland, and was made a slave by Norse raiders in the Orkney Islands. Escaping to Scotland, he went on a pilgrimage to Rome and became Benedictine in Sabina. Findan was a hermit at the Rheinan Abbey in Switzerland for more than twenty years. Bl. Hugh Faringdon, 1539 A.D. Benedictine abbot of Reading, once a friend of King Henry VIII. When he refused to allow the king to dissolve Reading Abbey, he was martyred with two companions. St. Hugh Green, Blessed, 1642 A.D. Martyr of England. He was educated at Cambridge, converted to Catholicism, and went to Douai, France. There he was ordained in 1612. Returning to England, Hugh labored in Dorset until his arrest. He was hanged at Dorchester. Bl. John Eynon, 1539 A.D. Martyred Benedictine of St. Giles, Reading. John served as the pastor of the local parish in St. Giles. He refused to surrender the parish to the au...

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 15 SAINT MALO Bishop in Brittany He was a bishop, but he did not hold office: some disputes led him to abandon his flock and resign his bishopric. He went to Aquitaine and at Saintonge he completed his earthly pilgrimage. Malo had studied in Wales in the monastic school of Llancarfan, which had been founded by Saint Cadoc, and remained there as a monk. According to tradition, once he became bishop Malo left Glamorgan together with some of his companions, took to the sea, and made a way stop on the island of the hermit, Aaron. On the advice of the hermit, the Welsh monks went to Aleth, a city of the ancient lands of the Coriosolites. Fleeing Persecution As persecution fell upon the inhabitants of Aleth, Malo went on his way to find shelter in Saintonge. He returned from exile at the request of the inhabitants of Aleth, who were devastated by plague and famine. After the plague passed, Malo returned to Saintonge, where he died on November 16, 649. THe Christ...

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 14 ST. SERAPION OF ALGIERS Born in London in 1179, Serapion is said to have taken part in the third Crusade, under the leadership of Richard the Lion-hearted. He eventually joined the Mercedarian order, and dedicated himself to the redemption and conversion of slaves, whom he freed by the hundreds. He was martyred in 1240.

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 14 St. Dubricus, 545 A.D. One of the founders of monastic life in Wales also called Dubric, Dyfrig, or Devereux. He was born in Madley, Wales, and he founded monasteries at Henllan and Moccas. These served as motherhouses for other abbeys in Herefordshire, Gwent, and the Wye Valley. Dubricus also ruled Caldrey Island. He appointed St. Samson abbot and ordained him as a bishop. Dubricus spent the last years of his life at Ynys Enlli. He is believed to have been the arch-bishop of Caerleon. He died and was buried on the island of Bardsey. St. Lawrence O'Toole, 1180 A.D. Augustinian archbishop of Dublin, Ireland. He was born at Leinster, the Son of Murtagh, chief of the Murrays, in Castledermot, Kildare. Taken hostage by King Dermot McMurrogh of Leinster in a raid, Lawrence was surrendered to the bishop of Glendalough. Lawrence became a monk, and in 1161 was named archbishop of Dublin. He was involved in negotiating with the English following their...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 13 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, 1917 A.D. Patron of immigrants. St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, Virgin. Frances was born in Lombardi, Italy in 1850, one of thirteen children. At eighteen, she desired to become a Nun, but poor health stood in her way. She helped her parents until their death, and then worked on a farm with her brothers and sisters. One day a priest asked her to teach in a girls' school and she stayed for six years. At the request of her Bishop, she founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart to care for poor children in schools and hospitals. Then at the urging of Pope Leo XIII she came to the United States with six nuns in 1889 to work among the Italian immigrants. Filled with a deep trust in God and endowed with a wonderful administrative ability, this remarkable woman soon founded schools, hospitals, and orphanages in this strange land and saw them flourish in the aid of Italian immigrants and children. At the time of her d...

Bl. Vincent Bossilkov, Roman Catholic Passionist Priest, bishop of Nicopolis and martyr in the Communist campaign in Bulgaria against religion. Feastday: November 13 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, Virgin Roman Catholic Nun, In 1946, she became the first American citizen to be canonized (Feast day November 13)

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 13 ST. NICHOLAS I, POPE Nicholas was a Roman, born around the year 800. In 858 he was elected to the Papacy, and crowned in the presence of the emperor. He affirmed the authority of the Successor of Peter in an era when many local churches were in danger of falling away. Nicholas died in 867, and was buried in St Peter’s. ST. AGOSTINA PIETRANTONI, VIRGIN

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 12 ST. DIEGO, LAY FRANCISCAN Born in Alcalà del Puerto, in Spain, around the year 1400. Didacus became a Franciscan lay brother. Although not a priest, he was sent to establish the Faith in the Canary Islands. During a plague in Rome in 1450, Didacus remained to assist the sick, even after the Curia had fled. ST. JOSAPHAT KUNCEWICZ, BISHOP AND MARTYR

St. Josaphat of Polotsk, Eastern Rite bishop, is held up as a martyr to church unity because he died trying to bring part of the Orthodox Church into union with Rome. Feastday: November 12 ST. DIEGO, LAY FRANCISCAN, Born in Alcalà del Puerto, in Spain, around the year 1400. Didacus became a Franciscan lay brother. Although not a priest, he was sent to establish the Faith in the Canary Islands. During a plague in Rome in 1450, Didacus remained to assist the sick, even after the Curia had fled. Nov 12 St. Nilus the Elder Feastday: November 12 Bishop and friend of St. John Chrysostom. He was reputedly a member of the imperial court at Constantinople, modern Istanbul, who gave up his family and, with his son, Theodulus, took up the life of a monk on Mount Sinai. Theodulus was kidnapped by Arab raiders, and Nilus set out to find him. They were reunited, and both were ordained by a bishop at Eleusa. They then returned to Sinai. Nilus also became the bishop of Ancyra and was the repu...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 12 St. Ymar, 830 A.D. Benedictine martyr of England. A monk in Reculver Abbey, Kent, England, he was put to death by marauding Danes. Feast day: November 12. St. Cadwallader, 689 A.D. A king of the Saxon peoples. He is also called Cadwalla and Ceadwalla. Born circa 659, Cadwallader became king of the West Saxons in 685 or 686. He expanded his kingdom to Sussex, Surrey, as well as Kent, In 668, he resigned and went to Rome, where he was baptized on Easter eve, by Pope Sergius I. He died a few days later and was entombed in St. Peter's. St. Cummian Fada, 662 A.D. Irish monastic founder and defender of Roman liturgical customs. The son of the king of West Munster, Ireland, he entered Clonfert Monastery and headed the school there. He later became abbot of Kilcummin Monastery, which he founded. Cummian was a stout defender of the Roman liturgy against the Celtic school. His Paschal Epistle is still extant. Called “Fada,” Cummian received the nam...

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 11 ST. MARTIN, BISHOP OF TOURS Known as the “Apostle of Gaul,” Saint Martin of Tours began life as a soldier, and went on to become a Bishop. He is known especially for his devotion to the poor, as seen in an incident from his early life, when Saint Martin cut his cloak in half and gave part to a poor man suffering from the cold. There are few people whose life story can be summed up in a single indelible act. Saint Martin belongs in this special category. The story of Martin giving up half of his cloak is emblematic of his life. Martin was born around the year 316, in Pannonia, now Hungary, on the peripheries of the late Roman Empire. The son of a military tribune, he grew up in Pavia, Italy, after his father was given land in that city. Although his parents were pagan, Martin was interested in Christianity, and already at age twelve showed an interest in becoming an ascetic and retiring to the desert. But an imperial edict arrived, commanding him to t...

St. Martin of Tours, was Roman Catholic Bishop of Tours, whose shrine in France became a famous stopping-point for pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Feastday: November 11 Bl. Kamen Vitchev, Byzantine-Slavonic Rite Roman Catholic priest. Arrested by the Communists, falsely charged with heading a “Catholic conspiracy” against the government. On November 11, 1952, he was executed by gunfire. Feastday: November 11 ST. BARTHOLOMEW, ABBOT OF GROTTAFERRATA was an Italo-Greek abbot at the monastery at Grottaferrata. Nov 11

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 11 St. Cynfran, 5th century. A Welsh saint, founder, and confessor. He was the son of a local Welsh king. Cynfran founded a church in Gwynedd, and a local well was named for him. St. Rhediw. Welsh saint. He is known principally because of the church dedicated to him in Gwynedd, Wales.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 10 ST. LEO THE GREAT, POPE AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH Benedict XVI has called Pope St Leo the Great “one of the greatest Popes who have honoured the Roman See. Leo lived in the fifth century, and is known to history for his role in calling the Council of Chalcedon, and for having forestalled Attila the Hun’s invasion of Italy. The pontificate of Pope Leo I spanned the middle of the fifth century (440-461). It was an era marked by great disturbances, in the world and in the Church. One of the most famous events in his papacy occurred in the year 452, when the whole of the Italian peninsula was trembling in the face of invasion by Attila the Hun. Already, large parts of northern Italy had fallen before the invader; the cities of Aquileia, Padua, and Milan were conquered, sacked, and razed to the ground. Attila, threatening the interior of Italy, camped near Mantua, on the Mincio River; and it is here that he met Leo, the Bishop of Rome. Leo had come as the ...

Saints November 10 St. Leo the Great, Pope Leo I (c. 400 – 10 November 461), also known as Saint Leo the Great, was the head of the Catholic Church from 29 September 440 to his death in 461. Feastday: November 10 St. Theoctiste of Lesbos, Roman Catholic Nun and hermitess. According to tradition, she lived on the island of Lesbos in the Aegean Sea before being kidnapped by Arab raiders. They took her to the island of Paros where she escaped and lived thereafter for thirty years as a herrmitess. Discovered one day by a hunter named Simon, she begged him to return when he could with Holy Communion, a plea he fulfilled a year later after which she soon died. Nov 10

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 10 St. Aedh MacBricc, 589 A.D. Miracle worker and founder who reputedly cured St. Brigid of a headache. Aedh was the son of Bricc, or Breece, of the Hy Neill. He was robbed of his inheritance by his brother and came under the influence of bishop Illathan of Rathlihen, Offay. Admitted into the monastic life, Aedh founded a religious community in Westmeath. He is listed in some records as a bishop. St. Elaeth, 1084 A.D. British king driven by locals into Wales. He became a monk there under St. Seiriol. Elaeth’s poems have survived. St. John of Ratzeburg, 1066 A.D. Martyred Scottish bishop. Born in Scotland, John became a missionary in Germany. Named the bishop of Ratzeburg, he labored on the coast of the Baltic Sea where he was martyred for the faith by local pagans. St. Justus of Canterbury, 627 A.D. Benedictine archbishop of Canterbury. Justus was a Roman sent by Pope St. Gregory I the Great in 601 to England, to evangelize the Anglo-Saxons. Just...

November 9 is the Feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John on the Lateran Hill. Why is a feast for a church in Rome so important? Because, as the cathedral church of the Diocese of Rome, it is, therefore the cathedral church of the Pope, the Bishop of Rome. It is the first of the four “patriarchal basilicas” in Rome (the others being St. Paul’s Outside- the-Walls, St. Peter’s at the Vatican and St. Mary Major). Its official title is quite long: Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior and Saints John the Baptist and the Evangelist at the Lateran.

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 9 St. Benignus, 466 A.D. Bishop of Ireland, the son of Sechnaa, the psalm singer of St, Patrick. Sechnan was a chief in Meath, Ireland, converted by St. Patrick. Benignus became a disciple of St. Patrick and succeeded him as the chief bishop of Ireland. He converted the Irish in Clare, Kerry, and Connaught. Benignus served as the superior of an abbey at Drumlease, erected by St. Patrick. St. Pabo, 510 A.D. Early Scottish founder of a monastery on the island of Anglesey. He was originally a warrior and perhaps the son of a Scottish or Pictish chieftain who gave up his life of combat and embarked on a spiritual life.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 09 STS. MARY AND NEONE, MARTYRS IN THE CEMETERY OF CALLISTUS ON THE VIA APPIA Together with their parents, Adria and Pauline; an uncle, Hippolytus; and several others; Martia (or Martana) and Neon were martyred in the persecution launched by Valerian in the year 257. In the 8th century, their relics were translated to the Roman church of Sant’Agata dei Goti. ST.THEODORE, SOLDIER, MARTYR

Saints Nov. 08 Four Crowned Roman Catholic Martyrs, Castorius, Claudius, Nicostratus, and Symphorian were tortured and slain in Pannonia, having been carvers from Sirmium. They refused to carve a pagan statue and were martyred by retired co-Emperor Diocletian. A martyr named Simplicius died with them. The second group of Four Holy Crowned Ones died at Albano, Italy. They were Carpophorus, Secundius, Severian, and Victorinus. Feastday Nov 8 St. Pope Deusdedit, Pope from 615-618, also called Adeodatus I. He was the son of a subdeacon, Stephen, born in Rome. Consecrated pope on October 19,615, he became known for his care of the poor. An earthquake hit Rome in August 618, and he worked tirelessly during the disaster. He was the first pope to use bullae on documents. It is possible that he was originally a Benedictine. Feastday nov.8

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 8 St. Tysilio, mid 7th century. Welsh abbot. The son of a Welsh prince, Brochwel Ysgythrog, he left home at a young age to become a monk at Meifod in Powys, Wales, later serving as abbot. He departed Wales for Brittany, France, about 617, supposedly in an effort to escape the relentless attentions of the widow of his deceased brother and his father’s demands that he return home. In Brittany he settled on the site that became known as St. Suliac (his name in the region), although it is possible that the name may refer to some other person. St. Cybi, 6th century. Welsh abbot, one of the most venerated saints in Anglesey, also called Cuby and Kabius. Born in Cornwall, England, and a cousin of St. David of Wales, he refused the throne of his area. Cybi went to Monmouthshire and then to Avanmore, in Ireland, to study under St. Anda. On Anglesey, an island near Holyhead, Wales, Cybi founded a monastery called Caer Cybi. He is the patron of Llangebby and L...

St. Achillas, Bishop and theologian, He ordained Arius, who was to begin the influential heresy of Arianism. When Achillas recognized the untruths in Arius' preaching, he took steps to defend the faith and was attacked by Arius and another heretical group called the Meletians. Achillas remained firm in the faith. A council held in Alexandria condemned Arius and forced him to flee to Palestine Feastday: November 7 Bl. Peter Ou, Roman Catholic Chinese Martyr. A Chinese native, Peter was originally an innkeeper who was converted to the Catholic faith and became a catechist. He is credited with giving Christian instruction to more than six hundred converts before he was strangled by enemies of the Church. Feastday: November 7 St. Hyacinth Castaneda, Roman Catholic Priest and Vietnamese Martyr. Martyr of Vietnam and a Dominican. Born in Setavo, Spain, he was sent to China and then Vietnam. Hyacinth was beheaded in Vietnam. Nov 7 Mary, Mother and Mediatrix of Grace

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 7 St. Cumgar, 6th or 8th century. Monastic founder possibly identified with St. Docuinus. A native of Devon, he founded monasteries at Budgworth, Somerset, England, and at West Glamorgan, Wales. He was buried at Somerset. St. Florentius of Strasbourg, 693 A.D. Irish bishop of Strasbourg, France. He went to Alsace and there he became a hermit on Mount Ringelberg. After curing the blind and deaf daughter of St. King Dagobert II, he had the king’s patronage in founding a monastery. He was appointed the bishop of Strasbourg and founded St. Thomas Monastery, mostly staffed by Irish.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 07 ST. PROSDOCIMUS, FIRST BISHOP OF PADUA ST. WILLIBRORD, BISHOP OF NORTHERN EUROPE

Roman Catholic Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War, the people who were killed by Republicans during the war because of their faith. As of July 2008, almost one thousand Spanish martyrs have been beatified or canonized. For some two thousand additional martyrs, the beatification process is underway.Nov. 6 Bl. Anthony Baldinucci, Roman Catholic Jesuit Priest and Missionary. He would always walk barefoot as a penance with the intent “that God may be moved by my sufferings to touch the hearts of my hearers,” as he once explained. He highly revered an image of the Blessed Virgin with the title, “Refuge of Sinners,” attributing numerous conversions and miraculous cures to its veneration. Feastday: November 6

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 6 St. Edwen, 7th century. Patroness of Llanedwen, Anglesey, Wales. She is reported to have been the daughter of King Edwin of Northumbria, the first Christian ruler there. St. Leonard of Reresby, 13th century. Crusader prisoner of the Saracens set free in a miraculous fashion. He was a native of Yorkshire, England. St. Pinnock. Welsh saint, honored by a church in Cornwall, England. As there is no historical evidence for St. Pinnock’s existence, it is assumed by some scholars that Pinnock is a derivation of St. Winnow.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 6 ST. LEONARD, HERMIT Leonard was born in Limoges, France, at the beginning of the 6th century. He joined with the Archbishop of Rheims in order to free captives taken prisoner in wars. He lived as a hermit, and built a monastery which is still a stop on the Cammino of Santiago.

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 5 St. Kea, 6th century. British saint honored in Devon, France, as St. Quary. He is sometimes listed as Kay or Kenan. Kea was a bishop.

SAINT OF THE DAY NOVEMBER 5 STS. DOMNINUS, TEOTHIMUS AND COMPANIONS, MARTYRS Originally from Cesaria, these saints sacrificed their lives for their faith. Domninus was a young doctor who died at the stake during the persecution of Diocletian. Theotimus and his companions were martyred in the circus when they were fed to wild beasts.

ST. CHARLES BORROMEO, ARCHBISHOP OF MILAN AND CARDINAL Looking out over the shores of Lago Maggiore, one sees it immediately: the statue of St Charles Borromeo, which dominates the shoreline of Arona. The 35-meter-tall statue, cast in bronze and iron in the 17th century, portrays the Archbishop of Milan in the act of blessing. But beyond that, there is a particularity about the monument: one can go inside it, climbing the staircase to the top of the statue. From that vantage point, one can look through the eyes of St Charles. The ability to see the world through his eyes, through the eyes of charity and humility is part of the lasting spiritual legacy of St Charles Borromeo. From “boy bishop” to “giant of sanctity” The life of St Charles Borromeo can be seen to run between the two poles of “boy bishop” and “giant of sanctity,” in a period of time that corresponded to his pastoral action. The young Charles progressed quickly, even as a child. He was born in Arona in 1538, the second...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 4 St. Clarus. A priest, probably born at Rochester, England, Clarus went to Normandy, became a Benedictine monk, lived as a hermit, and settled at Naqueville, near Rouen. When he repulsed the advances of a noblewoman, she had him killed and beheaded near Saint-Calir-sur-Eph. St. Birrstan, 934 A.D. Benedictine bishop, also called Birnstan and Brynstan. He was a disciple of St. Grimbold and the successor of St. Frithestan in Winchester, England.

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 3 St. Winifred. According to legend, she was the daughter of a wealthy resident of Tegeingl, Flintshire, Wales, and the sister of St. Beuno. She was most impressed by Beuno, was supposedly beheaded on June 22 by one Caradog when she refused to submit to him, had her head restored by Beuno, and sometime later, became a nun of the convent of a double monastery at Gwytherin in Denbigshire. She succeeded an Abbess Tenoy, as Abbess and died there fifteen years after her miraculous restoration to life. A spring supposedly springing up where Winifred's head fell is called Holy Well or St. Winifred's Well and became a great pilgrimage center where many cures have been reported over the centuries. She is also known as Gwenfrewi. St. Vulganius, 704 A.D. Irish or Welsh missionary and hermit. After working to evangelize the tribes of the Atrebati in France, he became a hermit at Arras. St. Cristiolus, 7th century. Welsh confessor, the brother of St. S...

St. Peter Francis Neron, Roman Catholic Priest and Vietnamese Martyr. He served as the director of the main seminary until he was arrested and beheaded by authorities. November 3

SAINT OF THE DAY NOV. 3 ST. MARTIN DE PORRES, DOMINICAN Growing up in poverty In 1579, Martín de Porres Velésquez was born in Lima, Peru into the kind of poverty familiar to many of the world’s children. He was the illegitimate son of a Spanish nobleman and a black and possibly indigenous freed slave, Ana Velásquez. The nobleman abandoned them – he acknowledged the dark-skinned boy as his son only eight years later – leaving Ana to scrape by a living for herself and her two children alone. At 12, Martín was apprenticed to a barber-surgeon. The boy learned to cut hair and tend the sick. And increasingly, he prayed, until he was spending hours each night in conversation with God. The Lord was stirring his heart, calling him in love, but Martín was a poor, black boy with no father, in a country where the law prohibited descendants of the African slaves from becoming professed members of religious orders. A mulatto Dominican Love was stronger than societal custom, however. It made Mar...

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 2 St. Maura. Maura, the Irish sister of St. Brigid. There legend is that they were Scottish princesses who were murdered by pagan outlaws while on a pilgrimage to Rome. Their bodies are enshrined there. They are believed to be the same St. Maura and St. Britt who were 5th century soldiers per St. Euphronius and St. Martin of Tours. Also there is another legend of them by St. Baya. Bl. John Bodey, 1583 A.D. English martyr and schoolmaster. He was born at Wells, Somerset, and educated at Oxford. Converting to the faith, John studied law at Douai in 1557 and returned to England to become a schoolmaster and to marry. When he repudiated King Henry VIII’s claim of supremacy in spiritual matters, he was arrested in 1550. John was imprisoned at Winchester until 1583, when he was taken on November 2 to Andover where he was hanged. He was beatified in 1929.

St. Valentine Berrio-Ochoa, Bishop and martyr of Vietnam. He was martyred by beheading with St. Jerome Hermosilla and Blessed Peter Amato, by enemies of the Church. St Mary the Slave, Roman Catholic Martyr and slave of a Roman patrician named Tertullus. Delivered to the local prefect on charges of being a Christian, despite Tertullus' effort to save her, Mary suffered unspeakable tortures. Spectators demanded her release, and the prefect turned her over to the custody of a soldier. He aided her escape. She died a natural death but is venerated as a martyr because of the intensity of her sufferings. Feastday Nov 1 Bl. Teodor Romza, Roman Catholic priest and bishop, he was tireless in his defence of the rights of the Catholic Church there. On 27 October 1947, the Soviets attempted to kill Bishop Romzha. Heavily wounded, he was taken to the hospital in Mukachiv, where he was subsequently poisoned and died on 1 November 1947. Feastday: November 1

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS NOVEMBER 1 St. Cadfan, 6th century. Missionary to Wales venerated in Owynedd and Bardsey Island as a companion of Towyn. He was a native of Brittany, France, and founded monasteries in Wales. St. Ceitho, 6th century. Welsh saint, one of five brothers of Cunedda. A church at Pumpsant was dedicated to the brothers. Ceitho founded a church in Liangeith, in Dyfed. St. Dingad, 5th century. Reportedly the hermit son of Chieftain Brychan of Brecknock. He lived in Llangingad, Llangovery, in Dyfed, Wales. St. Pabiali, 5th and 6th century. Welsh patron saint. He is believed to have been one of the saintly descendant of a local Welsh king. A chapel in Wales is dedicated in his honor.