One summer can change everything that follows it. That's what happened to one young French girl in 1424. Sometime during that summer six centuries ago, Joan of Arc heard "voices" for the very first time. The exact date was never recorded. But
Born in Viterbo, Italy, Rose received a vision of the Virgin Mary at a young age. She joined the Third Order of St. Francis and began preaching in the streets. She rallied her Italian neighbors to oppose the emperor, who was at
Born in a small fishing village of Brittany, France, Jeanne grew up under difficult circumstances after her father was lost at sea when she was very young. After working as a kitchen maid and then in a hospital, she began caring for
Augustine was born in Tagaste, in northern Africa, the son of Patricius, a pagan Roman official. His mother, St. Monica, was a Christian, and she raised Augustine in the Faith. He went to Carthage to study law, turning instead to literary interests.
A wife and mother who prayed unceasingly for her family’s conversions, St. Monica is an example for all of us to never give up hope. The mother of St. Augustine, one of the most brilliant writers and philosophers that the Church has
Highly educated in philosophy, law and theology, St. Joseph Calasanz at first considered his father’s advice to marry but decided to become a priest after recovering from an illness which brought him close to death. With the assistance of just three other
Born in 1835 in northern Italy, Giuseppe Sarto was ordained a priest at age 23. After being ordained for the Treviso Diocese, he served in small parishes before being named diocesan chancellor and spiritual director of the seminary. Pope Leo XIII named
Described by Pope St. John Paul II as the “Patron Saint of Our Difficult Age,” St. Maximillian Kolbe is known not only for his death at Auschwitz but also for his use of communications media as a means of Catholic evangelization. A
St. Jane Frances de Chantal was a wife, mother and founder of the Order of the Visitation. Born into a wealthy family in France in 1572, St. Jane is exemplary in how she dealt with family tragedy. By age 28, she had
Clare was born in Assisi, Italy, to a noble family. Impressed by a sermon St. Francis gave during the Lenten season of 1212, Clare received the habit from him on Palm Sunday. She went to live at the Benedictine convent near Bastia.