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NOVEMBER SAINTS 3 St. Martin de Porres was the illegitimate son to a Spanish gentlemen and a freed slave from Panama, of African or possibly Native American descent. Martin experienced a great deal of ridicule for being of mixed-race. After spending just two years in primary school, Martin was placed with a barber/surgeon where he would learn to cut hair and the medical arts. In Peru, by law, all descendants of African or Indians were not allowed to become full members of religious orders. Martin, who spent long hours in prayer, found his only way into the community he longed for was to ask the Dominicans of Holy Rosary Priory in Lima to accept him as a volunteer who performed the most menial tasks in the monastery. In return, he would be allowed to wear the habit and live within the religious community. Martin took on his old trades of barbering and healing. He also worked in the kitchen, did laundry and cleaned. After eight more years with the Holy Rosary, Martin was granted the privilege to take his vows as a member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic by the prior Juan de Lorenzana who decided to disregard the law restricting Martin based on race. He has become the patron saint of people of mixed race, innkeepers, barbers, and public health workers. 4 St. Charles Borromeo's father was the Count of Arona and his mother a member of the House of Medici. The young count suffered from a speech impediment that made him appear slow to those who did not know him. Despite this chal- lenge, he performed well and impressed his teachers. When his father passed away the responsibility for his household fell to Charles, but even then he continued in his studies and earned a doctorate in canon and civil law. When his uncle, Cardinal Gio- vanni Angelo Medici became Pope Pius IV, Charles was appointed a cardinal-deacon. With the rank came the job of assisting and advising his uncle full-time. A month later, Pope Pius IV made his nephew a cardinal. The young Borromeo used his leader- ship role in the Vatican to promote learning and he established a literary academy. Eventually Borromeo was ordained to the priesthood and then ordained as the Archbishop of Milan. 10 St. Pope Saint Leo I was pope from 440 to his death in 461.He was an Italian aristocrat, and was the first pope to have been called "the Great". He is perhaps best known for having met Attila the Hun in 452 and persuading him to turn back from his invasion of Italy. He is also a Doctor of the Church. Leo contributed to the development of the doctrine on papal prima- cy, based on his personal devotion to St Peter. Leo called himself the (unworthy) heir and deputy (vicarius) of Peter, having received his apostolic authority and being obliged to follow his example. 11 St. Martin of Tours Born in a Roman province that includes modern Hungary. Martin came into a world in tran- sition. Christians were no longer persecuted by the Roman Empire, but Christianity was still not accepted by all. It was Martin's own spiritual yearning and hunger that led him to secretly knock on the door of the local Christian church and beg to be made a catechumen -- when he was ten years old. In contemplative prayer, he found the time to be alone with God that he ached for. He was still an unbaptized catechumen when he was forced to join the army at 15. Even in the military Martin attempted to live the life of a monk. Though he was entitled to a servant because he was an officer, he insisted on switching roles with his servant, cleaning the servant's boots instead of the other way around! 12 St. Josaphat of Polotsk, an Eastern Rite bishop, is held up as a martyr to church unity because he died trying to bring part of the Orthodox Church into union with Rome. 15 St. Albert the Great was one of the Church's greatest intellects. He was among the first and greatest of the nat- ural scientists, gaining a reputation for expertise in biology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, geography, metaphysics, and mathematics. He was also very learned in biblical studies and theology. Many have referred to him as the greatest German phi- losopher and theologian of the Middle Ages. The Catholic Church distinguishes him as one of the 36 Doctors of the Church. 16 St. Margaret of Scotland was a truly liberated woman in the sense that she was free to be herself. For her, that meant freedom to love God and serve others. Not Scottish by birth, Margaret was the daughter of Princess Agatha of Hungary and the Anglo-Saxon Prince Edward Atheling. Her family fled from William the Conqueror and was shipwrecked off the coast of Scotland. King Malcolm befriended them and was captivated by the beautiful, gracious Margaret. They were married at the cas- tle of Dunfermline in 1070. Because of Malcolm’s love for Margaret, she was able to soften his temper, polish his manners, and help him become a virtuous king. He left all domestic affairs to her, and often consulted her in state matters. Margaret tried to improve her adopted country by promoting the arts and education. Although she was very much caught up in the affairs of the household and country, she remained detached from the world. Her private life was austere. She had certain times for prayer and reading Scripture. She ate sparingly and slept little in order to have time for devotions. It is recorded that she never sat down to eat without first feeding nine orphans and 24 adults. 16 St. Gertrude the Great is invoked for souls in purgatory and for living sinners. Gertrude was never formally canonized, but a liturgical office of prayer, readings, and hymns in her honor was approved by Rome in 1606. Pope Benedict XIV gave her the title "the Great" to recognize the depth of her spiritual and theological insight . 17 St. Elizabeth of Hungary was the daughter of Alexander II, King of Hungary but she lead an austerely sim- ple life, practiced penance, and devoted herself to works of charity. After her husband's death, Elizabeth left the court, made arrangements for the care of her children, and became a tertiary of St. Francis. She devoted herself to the care of the sick until her death at the age of 24. St. Elizabeth is the patron saint of bakers, the homeless, nursing services, tertiaries, widows, and young brides. 18 St. Rose Philippine Duchesne joined the Society of the Sacred Heart. Rose was sent to the United States where she founded a boarding school for daughters of pioneers near St. Louis and opened the first free school west of the Missouri. At the age of seventy-one, she began a school for Indians, who called her "the woman who is always praying". Her biographers have also stressed her courage in frontier conditions, her single mindedness in pursuing her dream of serving Native Americans, and her self-acceptance. 22 St. Cecelia is regarded as the patroness of music, because she heard heavenly music in her heart when she was married, and is represented in art with an organ or organ-pipes in her hand. Officials exhumed her body in 1599 and found her to be incorrupt, the first of all incorrupt saints. She was draped in a silk veil and wore a gold embroidered dress. Officials only looked through the veil in an act of holy reverence and made no further examinations. They also reported a "mysterious and delightful flower-like odor which proceeded from the coffin." 23 St. Clement was a disciple of St. Peter, and perhaps of St. Paul. According to Tertullian, Clement succeeded St. Peter immediately in the episcopal government of the Church at Rome. But in the list of bishops given us by Irenaeus and Eusebius, he occupies the third place after Linus and Cletus. It is, however, probable that the Church at Rome had at first two successions, one Petrine, the other Pauline, which accounts for the confusion in the lists of the first bishops of Rome. The legend of the martyrdom of St. Clement relates that he was condemned to work in the marble quarries. He found many Christians among his fellow-convicts, and comforted and encouraged them. The only spring of drinking water was six miles off, and it was a great hardship to the convicts to have to fetch it all from such a distance. One day Clement saw a lamb scraping at the soil with one of its forefeet. He took it as a sign that water was there; dug, and found a spring. Clement was ordered to be drowned in the sea with an old anchor attached to his neck. In art, St. Clement of Rome is represented as a Pope with an an- chor at his side. 23 St. Columban taught a Celtic monastic rule and Celtic penitential practices for those repenting of sins, which emphasised private confession to a priest, followed by penances levied by the priest in reparation for the sins. 24 St. Andrew Dung-Lac & Companions. Through the missionary efforts of various religious families be- ginning in the sixteenth century and continuing until 1866, the Vietnamese people heard the message of the gospel, and many accepted it despite persecution and even death. On June 19, 1988, Pope John Paul II canonized 117 persons martyred in the eighteenth century. Among these were ninety-six Vietnamese, eleven missionaries born in Spain and ten French missionar- ies. These martyrs gave their lives not only for the Church but for their country as well. They showed that they wanted the gos- pel of Christ to take root in their people and contribute to the good of their homeland. 25 St. Catherine of Alexandria is believed to have been born in Alexandria of a noble family. Converted to Christianity through a vision, she refused the Roman emperor Maxentius' offer of a royal marriage if she would deny the Faith. Her refusal landed her in prison. While in prison, and while Maxentius was away, Catherine converted Maxentius' wife and two hundred of his soldiers. He had them all put to death.Catherine is venerated as the patroness of philosophers and preachers. 30 St. Andrew Like his brother Simon Peter, Andrew was a fisherman. He became a disciple of the great St. John the Baptist, but when John pointed to Jesus and said, "Behold the Lamb of God!" Andrew understood that Jesus was greater. At once he left John to follow the Divine Master. From then on, he chose to follow Jesus. Andrew was thus the first disciple of Christ. It is believed that St. Andrew went to Greece to preach the gospel. He is said to have been put to death on a cross, to which he was tied, not nailed. He lived two days in that state of suffering, still preaching to the people who gathered around their beloved Apostle. Two countries have chosen St. Andrew as their patron - Russia and Scotland.
