Today the Church celebrates two of the judges from the Book of Judges in the Hebrew Scriptures or Old Testament, Abdon and Izban. Ibzan appears in the Hebrew Bible as the tenth of the Judges of Israel. Very little is said about him, except the following: “And after him [i.e. Jephthah], Ibzan of Bethlehem judged Israel. And he had thirty sons, whom he sent abroad, and took in thirty...

St. Raymond Nonnatus (1200-1240) was born in Catalonia, Spain, to a noble family. His life was saved by caesarean section after his mother died in childbirth, earning him the name 'Nonnatus' meaning 'one not born'. Raymond was a pious child drawn to the religious life, but his father had plans for him to serve in the royal court of the King of Aragon. To distract Raymond from...

Felix and Adauctus (d. 303) were legendary Christian martyrs who were said to have suffered during the Great Persecution during the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian. The Acts, first published in Ado's Martyrology, relate as follows: Felix, a Roman priest, and brother of another priest, also named Felix, being ordered to offer sacrifice to the gods, was brought by the prefect Dracus to...

St. Augustine of Hippo (354–430 A.D.) was born in North Africa to a pagan father and a Christian mother, St. Monica. His mother did her best to raise him in the Christian faith, but Augustine, a brilliant and promising young student, was carried away into the attractions of the world, lust for women, and pagan philosophies. This put his faith and morals into a state of crisis for many...