Saints & Feast Days

Image: St. Titus Brandsma | Wikipedia Commons Saint of the Day for July 27 (February 23, 1881-July 26, 1942) Saint Titus Brandsma’s Story Given the birth name Anno, Brandsma and his siblings grew up on their parents’ dairy farm in rural Frisia. As devout Catholics, the family was in the minority amo...

Image: Blessed Stanley Rother | CNS photo/Charlene Scott Saint of the Day for July 28 (March 27, 1935 – July 28, 1981) Blessed Stanley Rother’s Story On May 25, 1963, Stanley Francis Rother, a farmer’s son from Okarche, Oklahoma, was ordained for his home diocese of Oklahoma City-Tulsa. Having flunk...

Image: Detail | Santiago apóstol con donante | Jaime Baço Saint of the Day for July 25 (d. c. 44) Saint James’ Story This James is the brother of John the Evangelist. The two were called by Jesus as they worked with their father in a fishing boat on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus had already called anoth...

Image: Saint Sharbel Makhlouf | unknown Saint of the Day for July 24 (May 8, 1828 – December 24, 1898) Saint Sharbel Makhlouf’s Story Although this saint never traveled far from the Lebanese village of Beka-Kafra where he was born, his influence has spread widely. Joseph Zaroun Maklouf was raised by...

Image: Detail | Abrazo de San Joachim and Santa Anne ante la Puerta Dorada | Ambrosius Benson Saints of the Day for July 26 (c. 1st century) Saints Joachim and Anne’s Story In the Scriptures, Matthew and Luke furnish a legal family history of Jesus, tracing ancestry to show that Jesus is the culmina...

Image: Saint Mary Magdalene, Head hands and feet | photo by Simon Webster | flicker Saint of the Day for July 22 (d. c. 63) Saint Mary Magdalene’s Story Except for the mother of Jesus, few women are more honored in the Bible than Mary Magdalene. Yet she could well be the patron of the slandered, sin...

Image: Saint Bridget of Sweden | Line engraving | Wellcome Images Saint of the Day for July 23 (c. 1303 – July 23, 1373) Saint Bridget of Sweden’s Story From age 7 on, Bridget had visions of Christ crucified. Her visions formed the basis for her activity—always with the emphasis on charity rather th...

Image: Statue of Saint Lawrence of Brindisi on the church at the Capuchin Friary and Seminary | photo by threecharlie Saint of the Day for July 21 (July 22, 1559 – July 22, 1619) Saint Lawrence of Brindisi’s Story At first glance, perhaps the most remarkable quality of Lawrence of Brindisi is his ou...

Image: Saint Camillus de Lellis in facade of church Santa Maria Maddalena | photo by Livioandronico2013 Saint of the Day for July 18 (1550 – July 14, 1614) Saint Camillus de Lellis’ Story Humanly speaking, Camillus was not a likely candidate for sainthood. His mother died when he was a child, his fa...

Image: Stained glass window at Saint Mary MacKillop shrine, Penola South Australia | photo by Pru.mitchell Saint of the Day for July 19 (January 15, 1842 – August 8, 1909) Saint Mary MacKillop’s Story If Saint Mary MacKillop were alive today, she would be a household name. It’s not that she sought t...

Image: Statue of Saint Apollinaris in Santa Maria del Suffragio, Ravenna | José Luiz Bernardes Ribeiro Saint of the Day for July 20 (d. c. 79) Saint Apollinaris’ Story According to tradition, Saint Peter sent Saint Apollinaris to Ravenna, Italy, as its first bishop. His preaching of the Good News wa...

Image: Saint Francis Solanus statue at Howard University School of Divinity | photo by Jim McIntosh Saint of the Day for July 17 (March 10, 1549 – July 14, 1610) Saint Francis Solano’s Story Francis came from a leading family in Andalusia, Spain. Perhaps it was his popularity as a student that enabl...