Stewardship Saint for April: Saint Fidelis Sigmaringen
Given the name Mark Rey at his birth in 1577, our stewardship saint for April grew up in Sigmaringen, a town located in present-day Germany. He was the son of the town’s affluent burgomeister (mayor) and studied law and philosophy at the renowned University of Freiburg. As a student, Mark made prayer a priority in …
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Stewardship Saint for January: Saint Ita
Ita of Killeedy, Ireland Ita of Killeedy, Ireland, also known as Ida, is one of the two most famous women saints in Ireland, along with Brigid of Kildare. Born near present-day County Waterford, allegedly of a royal family, she was baptized as Deidre. She is said to have rejected a prestigious marriage for a life …
Stewardship Saint for December: Saint Fabiola
Saint Fabiola is the patron saint of difficult marriages, divorced persons, abused spouses and victims of unfaithful spouses. She was a Christian, born in Rome in the mid-4th century to a powerful and wealthy family. She was married off at a young age to an abusive and adulterous husband. Saint Jerome, the most famous biblical …
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Stewardship Saint for November: Saint Roque Gonzalez de Santa Cruz
Saint Roque Gonzalez de Santa Cruz was born on November 17, 1576 in the city of Asunción, now the capital of Paraguay, South America. The son of wealthy Spanish colonists, he was well-educated and a devout Catholic. He was ordained a priest at age 22. In 1609, attracted to the evangelizing activities of the Jesuits, …
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Stewardship Saint for October: Saint Alphonsus Rodriguez
Alphonsus Rodriguez was a Spanish Jesuit lay brother whose assignment for 45 years was being a doorkeeper at one of its colleges. One observer noted that Alphonsus carried out this simple task with such loving hospitality that the act of opening the college door became a “sacramental gesture.” Born in Segovia, Spain in 1533, …
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St. Katherine Drexel
Every capital campaign requires initial donors, those major gifts in the quiet phase that ensure a strong foundational for the campaign’s future. Large gifts can stretch people’s pocketbooks, but can we imagine entirely emptying them? That’s the story of St. Katherine Drexel. The daughter of a prominent investment banker in Philadelphia in1858, Katherine experienced …
St. Juan Diego
“When [Jesus] looked up he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, ‘I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than the rest” (Luke 21:1-3). Juan Diego was born a member of the native Chichimeca people …
St. Teresa of Kolkata
In this internet age, we have unique insight into the lives of modern day saints. St. Teresa of Kolkata is much beloved for her care for the poorest of the poor in the slums of India. Born in Albania, St. Teresa began her religious life as a member of the Sisters of Loreto. After a …
Stewardship Saint for August: Saint Clare of Assisi
Clare of Assisi was a close friend of Saint Francis of Assisi and the foundress of the Poor Clares. She was born in Assisi in 1194 and at age 18 was so moved by the Lenten sermons of Francis that she renounced all of her possessions and entered a convent, much to the dissatisfaction of …
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