Blessed Mary Catherine of Cairo (1813-1887)
Constanza Troiani was born in Italy in 1813. At the age of six, following her mother's death, she was entrusted to the Franciscan Sisters of Ferentino. At sixteen, in the convent in which she was raised, she was accepted as a novice, taking the name Sr. Mary Catherine...
Blessed Luchesio and Buonadonna (1260)
This married couple lived in the Italian town of Poggibonsi, where Luchesio worked as a merchant and moneylender. His life was marked by no special motive beyond making money. Sometime in his thirties, however, a change came over him, prompted perhaps by the death of...
Saint Zita (1218-1278)
St. Zita is the patron of servants and domestic workers. Such was her own station for forty-seven years of service from the age of twelve until her death - to a wealthy family in Lucca, Italy. Early on, Zita, a member of the Third Order of St. Francis, was recognized...
Saint Pedro De San Jose Betancur (1619-1667)
St. Pedro de San Hose Betancur is sometimes called the "Saint Francis of the Americas." Born in the Canary Islands, he spent his youth as a shepherd. At thirty-one, he travelled to Guatemala but arrived so impoverished that he relied on a Franciscan breadline for...
Saint Fidelis of Sigmaringen (1577-1622)
For years, Mark Roy sought success as a lawyer, before disillusionment over the dishonesty rampant in his profession inspired him to pursue religious life. Upon entering the Capuchin Franciscans of Freiburg, he received the name "Fidelis" - faithful. Following his...
Blessed Giles of Assisi (1190-1262)
St. Francis liked to refer to Brother Giles, one of his original followers, as "the Knight of Our Round Table." He especially commanded Giles for his simplicity and his spirit of poverty. For some years Giles accompanied Francis on his preaching tours. When the saint...
Saint Benedict Joseph Labre (1748-1783)
Benedict Joseph Labre was born to a large family in a village in northern France. When he was twelve, his family sent him to live with an uncle, a parish priest. There he received some rudimentary education. When his uncle died, Benedict decided to devote his life to...
Mother Lurana White (1870-1935)
Lurana White was raised in New York in a wealthy family of high church Episcopalians. While attending a boarding school run by an order of Episcopal sisters, she felt a strong attraction to religious life. With her family's permission, she entered the order as a...
Blessed Maria Assunta Pallotta (1878-1905)
Maria Assunta Pallotta was born to a working-class family in Italy. By the time she was eleven, she was helping to support her siblings. But all the while, she dreamed of a religious vocation. When she was in her late teens, with support from her parish priest, she...
Saint Mary Crescentia (1682-1744)
Anna Hoss, the daughter of poor weavers, was born in a small town of Bavaria. While praying in the chapel of a local convent of Third Order Franciscans, she seemed to hear a voice from the crucifix saying. “This shall be your home. Unfortunately, the convent refused...