St. John Chrysostom (347-407 A.D.) was born to noble parents in Antioch, an important center of Christianity in his day. After the death of his father, his mother sent him to the best schools for his education. As a result of his philosophical studies he was convinced of the truth of Christianity, entered the Church, and became a renowned scholar and orator. He then adopted a life of extreme...

St. Guy (950–1012), also known as the "Poor Man of Anderlecht," was born to pious parents of humble means in the country village of Anderlecht near Brussels. Having no money for school, from his childhood he served the poor and fostered a great devotion to the Church while praying for the grace to love and accept his poverty. He was regarded as a young saint by those who knew...

Francisco was the only child in a farm family. He married at the age of eighteen, but became a widower just sixteen months later. He then followed a call to religious life as a Franciscan friar at the convent of St. Miquel d’Escornalbou, making his religious profession 14 July 1641, and taking the name of Bonaventura. Over the next seventeen years he served in various Franciscan convents...

Born in 1245 in Sant'Angelo, St. Nicholas of Tolentino took his name from St. Nicholas of Myra, at whose shrine his parents prayed to have a child. Nicholas became a monk at eighteen, and seven years later, he was ordained a priest. He gained a reputation as a preacher and a confessor. Around 1274, he was sent to Tolentino, near his birthplace. The town suffered from civil strife between...

Peter Claver is known as “the Apostle of the Negroes” who gave his life for the conversion of slaves brought to the New World.  Born near Barcelona, Spain, he was the son of a farmer. After studying at the University of Barcelona, he entered the Society of Jesus at Tarragona in 1602. Sent to study at Majorca, he came under the influence of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez, who...