Gwinear was the son of the pagan King Clito of Ireland. When Saint Patrick arrived at Clito's court, the king was hostile; Gwinear recognized Patrick‘s sincerity and piety, treated him well, and meditated on his message. Then he became a convert to Christianity and a hermit. Upon his father‘s death, he returned home, gathered 770 other converts, and worked to spread the faith...
Saint Benvenutus Scotivoli (died 22 March 1282) was an Italian Roman Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Osimo from 1264 until his death. Pope Martin IV canonized him as a saint in 1284. Benvenutus Scotivoli was born sometime in the 1200’s in Ancona. Scotivoli studied at the Bologna College and studied jurisprudence with Saint Silvestro Gozzolini at which point he was ordained...
Daughter of Giuseppe and Francesca Cambiagio, she grew up in Pavia, Italy. At the age of 20 she had a profound mystical experience that left her devoted to prayer and desiring a religious life. However, to go along with her family’s wishes, she married Giovanni Battista Frassinella on 7 February 1816. The couple had a normal married life for two years, but Giovanni, impressed with...
St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne (634-687 A.D.) was born in present day Scotland to a lowly family, and worked as a shepherd near the Melrose Abbey monastery. A child playmate prophesied that he would one day become a bishop. One day, while tending to his sheep, St. Cuthbert saw in a vision the soul of St. Aidan, the Bishop of Lindisfarne, carried to heaven by angels. This mystical experience...
St. Joseph (1st c.) was a descendant of Israel's King David and a carpenter by trade. Scripture tells us that he was a just and virtuous man who was betrothed to wed the young Blessed Virgin Mary. Upon finding her pregnant with the Son of God, Joseph, after a time of uncertainty, was encouraged by an angel to continue with the marriage plans. Because of his complete faithfulness and...