The pious son of a Scottish king, Wendelin made a pilgrimage to Rome, where he was advised to follow his heart. He toured religious sites in Europe and settled in Germany, where he tended sheep, which enabled him to pray most of the day. Eventually he founded a community of religious hermits that became the Benedictine Abbey of Thole.
Other patronages: farmers, shepherds
A simple-minded lay brother, Gerard was known for working wonders. Once, after he had been visiting friends, their daughter tried to return a handkerchief he had left behind. He refused it, telling her it might be useful to her one day. Years later, she had it brought to her when she was dying in childbirth. She lived to deliver a healthy baby, and the handkerchief is still a popular relic for expectant mothers.
Other patronages: lay brothers, mothers
Invoked: against infertility
An intellectual and a reformer, Teresa was one of the most popular religious figures of her time and is still widely read today. Because her searing mystical visions would leave her in intense mental anguish, she is invoked against headaches.
Other patronages: Spain; lace makers
Invoked: against fires of purgatory, heart ailments
Called “the Confessor” because he was a witness to his faith, Edward came out of exile to become the last Anglo-Saxon king of England. During his reign, his country enjoyed twenty years of peace. Edward and his wife, Edith, had no children since they were said to be celibate. Edward was generous to the poor, distributing rings as gifts. He had the power to heal, and he built Westminster Abbey in lieu of going on a much-desired pilgrimage to Rome.
Other patronages: England; kings; difficult marriages
A monk from the British Isles, Colman was making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land when he was stopped in Austria under suspicion of spying for their enemy, Moravia. Unable to speak German, he could not defend himself and was tortured and hanged. His body was left to dangle as a warning, and for eighteen months, it did not decompose and no animal touched it. The Austrians recognized this as a sign of his sanctity and made him their patron.
Other patronages: horned cattle, horses; hanged men
Invoked: against hanging, plague
Though he was only in Central America for six years, Louis Bertran baptized tens of thousands of people. A Spanish speaker, he had the gift of tongues, which helped the native population understand him. A warrior tribe made a failed attempt to poison him. On his return to Spain, he trained other preachers and campaigned against the cruelty of the Spanish soldiers in the New World.
Other patronages: Panama
An early missionary, Denis was the first bishop of Paris. The Roman governor had him and two companions tortured by flogging and roasting. When Denis would not die, they chopped off his head on what is now called Montmartre (“Hill of Martyrs”). When he picked up his own head and carried it six miles to his present burial place, many were converted.
Other patronages: headaches, rabies; France, Paris; Royal House of France; possessed people
Invoked: against frenzy, syphilis
A glamorous and popular actress and dancer in Antioch, Pelagia was known for her pearl jewelry and had the nickname “Margaret,” which means “pearl.” When she overheard the bishop of Edessa cite her as a lesson because “she takes more trouble over her beauty and dancing than we do about our souls and flocks,” she converted. She moved to Jerusalem, disguised as a male monk, and lived for the rest of her life as a hermit in a cave on the Mount of Olives.
Perhaps the best-loved saint in the world, Francis was a frivolous, wealthy young man who went off to war and was taken prisoner. On his return to his family, he had a complete change of heart, renouncing the material world in favor of nature and simplicity. He founded the Franciscan religious order devoted to love of God and all his creatures. A mystic, he could communicate with animals and was the first saint to receive the stigmata.
Other patronages: Italy, Assisi, San Francisco, Santa Fe; animals; animal welfare societies, zoos; lace workers, merchants, needle workers, tapestry workers
Invoked: against dying alone, fire
A French Carmelite nun who desperately wanted to be a missionary to the Far East, Thérèse was stricken with tuberculosis and never left her convent for the remainder of her short life. Her autobiography, A Story of a Soul, in which she details her lapse from and return to grace by utilizing “the little way,” became a sensational bestseller in France and the rest of the world. She vowed to dedicate herself to love, and today she is one of the most popular saints, especially among the young.
Other patronages: AIDS patients, tuberculosis patients; Russia, Vietnam; foreign missions; florists, pilots
Invoked: for a loving atmosphere
All of the above patron saints are excerpted from the book: “Patron Saints: A Feast of Holy Cards” by Barbara Calamari and Sandra DiPasqua. All images are from the collection of Father Eugene Carrella.
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