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1. S.D.C. SOCIETAS DOCTRINÆ CHRISTIANÆ † The word of God was made flesh w w w . s d c . m e . u k

2. SAINTS for You and Me

3. SAINTS WHO ARE THE SAINTS? Human beings like us who followed Jesus and lived according to the Gospel values You too are called to be a saint…..

4. SAINTS HOW MANY ARE THERE? The CHURCH has declared hundreds of saints along the centuries There are all sorts of saints • Male and female • Young and old • Many different Nationalities So many other saints have never been acknowledged: All Saints(Feast: 1st Nov) You too are called to be a saint…..

5. ST ELIZABETH ANN SETON 1774 - 1821 • Born in America –Episcopalian family • Married a businessman and had 4 children but soon became a widow • Became a Catholic in 1805 • Started a religious community for women in America Feast day: 4th January

6. ST JOHN BOSCO 1815 - 1888 • Born in northern Italy to a Catholic family • Became a priest • Opened a house for street children in Turin • Later started a new Order for Priests – the Salesians Feast day: 31st January

7. ST JOSEPHINE BAKHITA 1869 - 1947 • Born in Sudan • For 8 years sold as a slave in markets • Moved to Italy and became a babysitter. • Became Roman Catholic and later a nun. • Served for 45 years doing so many different jobs. Feast day: 8th February

8. ST THERESA DE LOS ANDES 1900 - 1920 • Chile’s first saint. • Born to poor parents but had a vibrant and lively life. • At a young age she felt she was called by God to be ‘His’. • Became a Carmelite nun, but died shortly afterwards at age 20. Feast day: 12th February

9. ST CATHERINE DREXEL 1858 - 1955 • Invited by Pope Leo XIII to become a missioner to the Indians in the US. • Started a congregation and worked for the ‘Indians’ for many years. • Daughter of a banker and a very charitable mother. • Received very good education and travelled widely. Feast day: 3rd March

10. ST PATRICK c. 389 - 461 • Born in Scotland but moved to Ireland when sold as a slave. • Escaped to France, then England where he became a priest. • Was appointed a bishop and went to pagan Ireland to preach the Gospel. Feast day: 17th March

11. BLESSED PIERINA MOROSINI 1932 - 1957 • A young Italian woman from a poor background. • Led a simple and humble life helping her mother raise her younger siblings. • Helped in many ways in the parish. • Attacked by a rapist. Stabbed for not giving in and died within two days. Feast day: 6th April

12. ST BERNADETTE SOUBIROUS 1844 - 1879 • A simple girl from Lourdes in the south of France. • At age 14 she had a series of apparitions of Our Lady – the Immaculate Conception • Joined the Sisters of Charity and died at age 35. Feast day: 16th April

13. ST DOMINIC SAVIO 1842 - 1857 • A lively young boy from Turin, Italy. • Joined Don Bosco’s oratory and wanted to become a priest. • Poor health led him to premature death at the young age of 15. Feast day: 6th May

14. ST DAMIEN OF MOLOKAI 1840 - 1889 • Born in Belgium – Joseph de Veuster. • Joined a congregation of priests and took the name Damien. • Went to Hawaii as a missioner for 8 years; then to Molokai where he worked with lepers. • Contracted leprosy and died at age 49. Feast day: 10th May

15. ST CHARLES LWANGA 1865 - 1886 • Young man from Uganda. • Worked in the King’s palace and excelled in sports. • Baptised at 20 and became an active Christian, against the King’s wishes. • A Martyr - burned to death on the king’s order at age 21. Feast day: 3rd June

16. ST JOHN THE BAPTIST c. 0 - 30 • Son of Zechariah and Elizabeth. Jesus’ cousin. • Spent time in the desert preaching conversion and baptizing people in the river. • Warned King Herod many times about his public adultery. • Later imprisoned and executed following a promise Herod made at a birthday feast. Feast day: 24th June

17. ST ELIZABETH OF PORTUGAL 1271 - 1336 • Given in marriage to King Denis of Portugal at a young age. • Suffered a lot due to infidelity of her husband and serious arguments among her children. • Helped the poor and needy in many ways. • Joined a Franciscan monastery for the last years of her life. Feast day: 4th July

18. ST AUGUSTINE ZHAO RONG 1746 - 1815 • A soldier from China at a time when Christians were not allowed to worship. • Impressed by a Bishop while escorting him to martyrdom. • Became a Catholic and later a priest. • Later arrested and tortured. Died in prison. Feast day: 9th July

19. ST KATERI TEKWITHA 1656 - 1680 • Born to a clan family in New York – lost parents at 4. Adopted by uncle. • Converted to Catholicism at 19 but shunned by family and treated as a slave. • Escaped to a Christian village - spending a long time in prayer, charity work and penance. Feast day: 14th July

20. ST MAXIMILIAN KOLBE 1894 - 1941 • Born to Catholic parents in Poland. • Excelled in his studies and became a Franciscan Friar. • Worked hard to spread devotion to Mary. • Arrested by the Nazi and sent to Auschwitz. • Executed when offered to take the place of a fellow prisoner. Feast day: 14th August

21. ST PIO OF PIETRALCINA 1887 - 1968 • A Capuchin friar of humble origins from southern Italy. • Went through a lot of suffering – including that from the stigmata/wounds for many years. • Sought by many people for prayers and healing. Feast day: 23rd September

22. ST LAWRENZ RUIZ 1600 - 1637 • A married man with three children from Manila, Philippines. • Falsely accused of a murder - escaped to Japan. • Subjected to torture by Japanese authorities. • Martyred together with 5 others by being hanged upside down. Feast day: 28th September

23. ST THERESE OF LISIEUX 1873 - 1897 • Born in France. Lost her mother at age 4. • Joined the Carmelite nuns at a very young age. • Did lowly simple jobs at the convent but suffered due to illness too. • Wrote her own autobiography - ‘The Story of a Soul’. • Died at 24. Feast day: 1st October

24. ST DANIEL COMBONI 1831 - 1881 • An Italian priest who became known for his missionary work in Africa. • A writer, scientist and linguist. • Set up a Society for missionary priests. • Became bishop of a large area around Sudan. Feast day: 10th October

25. ST MARGARET OF SCOTLAND c. 1050 - 1093 • English princess who married a Scottish king. • Worked hard to help the poor and also to improve things in the Church. • Although queen, she found time for prayer, penance, teaching her six children and helping beggars and all those in need. Feast day: 16th November

26. ST COLUMBAN c. 543 - 615 • Born in Ireland. Became a monastic hermit for 30 years. • Went to France to help the Church there with another 12 missionaries. • Deported back to Ireland. Later went to work in Italy. • Set up many monasteries in different countries. Feast day: 23rd November

27. ST LUCY c. 283 - 303 • A young woman born in Sicily of rich and noble parents. • Convinced her mother to give a lot of her riches to the poor. • Suffered persecution and was martyred during the reign of the cruel Roman emperor Diocletian. Feast day: 13th December

28. ST JOHN OF THE CROSS 1542 - 1591 • A Spanish saint from a poor background. • Joined the Carmelite order. Helped St Theresa of Avila setting up her monasteries. • Was imprisoned for over 9 months but managed to escape. • Became a famous writer in spirituality. Feast day: 14th December

29. S.D.C. SOCIETAS DOCTRINÆ CHRISTIANÆ † The word of God was made flesh w w w . s d c . m e . u k