St. Simon Stock (1165-1265) was born in Kent, England. He was strongly drawn to God as a child, and at the age of twelve he began to live as a hermit in the hollow of an oak tree. After two decades of this solitary and penitential life, he entered the world again to study theology and become a priest. His studies complete, he then returned to his hermitage. At this time the Blessed Virgin Mary...

St. Dymphna (7th c.) was the daughter of a pagan Irish chieftain and his Christian wife. Dymphna's father loved his wife deeply; when she died, he was so overcome with grief that he became afflicted with a mental illness. Unable to find a suitable woman to remarry, he attempted to marry his own beautiful daughter because of the close resemblance Dymphna had to her mother. Dymphna, upon...

Saints Victor and Corona (also known as Saints Victor and Stephanie) are two Christian martyrs. Victor was a Roman soldier who was tortured and killed; Corona was killed for comforting him. Corona is invoked as a patron of causes involving money; she was not historically associated with pandemics or disease, but has been invoked against the coronavirus pandemic. Their legend states that...

Saint John the Silent (January 8, 454 – May 13, 558), also known as St John the Hesychast (Greek: Ἅγιος Ἰωάννης ὁ Ἡσυχαστής), was a Christian saint known for living alone for seventy-six years. He was given the surname because he loved recollection and silence. St. John's feast day is May 13 in the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, and December 3 in the Eastern Orthodox and...

Western Christians who are working for greater dialogue with Orthodox Christians may be reaping the fruits of Father Leopold’s prayers. A native of Croatia, Leopold joined the Capuchin Franciscans and was ordained several years later in spite of several health problems. He could not speak loudly enough to preach publicly. For many years he also suffered from severe arthritis, poor...