Who are some Catholic saints you haven’t heard of?

You’d be hard-pressed to find Catholics who haven’t heard of St. Therese of Lisieux or St. Catherine of Siena or St. Francis of Assisi or some of the other ever-popular saints.

How many saints are there in the Catholic Church?

Whether or not you attended Sunday school, keeping track of all the Christian saints is an almost superhuman undertaking: Religion and culture writer Peter Stanford estimates that there are 10,000 recognized in Catholicism alone.

Who suffer the most for their faith?

In Christianity, the people who suffered the most for their faith are now celebrated as saints. Here is a list of some of the saints who were tortured and executed in the most terrible ways.

Why do we need saints?

Saints have holy wells and work miracles as they become — to the untrained eye — demi-deities in their own right. It was the saints, angels and holy artifacts that helped draw pagans to Christianity. Saints can be sad, mad, glad, tragic, magic, self-seeking, self-effacing, holier-than-thou, popish and resplendent or hermits that beggar description.

St. Casimir of Poland

St. Casimir was the third of thirteen children born to King Casimir IV and Elizabeth of Austria. From a young age he knew he wanted to devote his life to God and displayed great holiness. His father once ordered him to lead an army against Hungary and, though he opposed it, out of obedience, he went.

St. Alexis of Rome

St. Alexis was the son of a rich Roman senator and his wife who were very charitable Christians and taught Alexis to take care of the poor. From an early age, Alexis wished to renounce all of his wealth but his parents had chosen a wife for him; out of obedience, he obliged them.

St. Rose Philippine Duchesne

Though St. Rose was born in France and joined the Society of the Sacred Heart, at age 49, she was sent to the United States. Once there, she founded a school for the daughters of pioneers near St. Louis and also opened the first free school west of the Missouri.

St. Nonna

St. Nonna was raised as a Christian but ended up marrying Gregory, who was part of a Jewish-pagan sect.

St. Margaret of Antioch

According to legend, while imprisoned for being a Christian, St. Margaret was visited by the devil in the guise of a dragon.

St. Brice of Tours

St. Brice was an orphan who was raised by St. Martin of Tours. Although Brice was vain, overly ambitious, and rather volatile, St. Martin was patient with him. Eventually, Brice repented of his ways and succeeded Martin as bishop of Tours. However, once he was bishop, Brice returned to his old ways and became very worldly again.

St. Zoe of Rome

St. Zoe was married to Nicostratus, who was a high-ranking Roman court official. For six years, she had been unable to speak until St. Sebastian made the sign of the cross over her and then she immediately began speaking and praising the Lord. It was then that both Zoe and Nicostratus asked for baptism.

What did Brigit say to his wife?

There came to her one time a man making his complaint that his wife would not sleep with him but was leaving him, and he came asking a spell from Brigit that would bring back her love. And Brigit blessed water for him, and it is what she said: "Bring that water into your house, and put it in the food and in the drink and on the bed." And after he had done that, his wife gave him great love, so that she could not be as far on the other side of the house from him, but was always at his hand.

What is the name of the saint who was a saint in Ireland?

Brigit (or Brigid) of Kildare has been a venerated Catholic figure since not long after her death circa 525 CE, according to Jestice, and is one of Ireland’s three patron saints. During her life of chastity and Christian service, she reportedly performed or received many miracles—ranging from the healing of ailing beggars to hanging her cold, wet clothes on a sunbeam—and once assisted a man whose wife had lost her spark for the marriage, according to Lady Gregory Augusta’s 1908 collection of folk knowledge and lore regarding saints:

What was the monk’s whip used for?

Bartholomew for use on demons. However, he also made use of his own belt (or “girdle”) when necessary; the item was “good against headache,” William George Black points out, and even allowed St. Guthlac to free a man from demonic clutches, according to The Anglo-Saxon Version of the Life of St. Guthlac, Hermit of Crowland :

How many saints are there in Catholicism?

Whether or not you attended Sunday school, keeping track of all the Christian saints is an almost superhuman undertaking: Religion and culture writer Peter Stanford estimates that there are 10,000 recognized in Catholicism alone. And while stories about the deeds of some holy healers and leaders remain popular decades or centuries after they were first told, many of the most surprising miracles have been forgotten. Here are just eight you might not know about.

What was Don Bosco’s dog called?

St. John Bosco, the 19th-century Italian priest was at times accompanied by a large dog that would mostly appear in times of need, and whose dark gray coat earned him the nickname Il Grigio. In her 1885 re-telling of d’Espiney’s narrative of the saint, Elizabeth Raymond-Barker explains that the huge dog’s initial appearance one dark night was as sudden and mysterious as many of its subsequent ones, but that it quickly became the priest’s trusted companion:

Who was the Scottish bishop who lit fires?

Believed to have been active in the 6th century, the Scottish bishop St. Blaan is credited with several miracles, including lighting fires on at least one occasion using only his hands. James King Hewison’s 1893 text describes the initial legendary incident:

Did Il Grigio save Don Bosco?

The pup reportedly saved the saint’s life from would-be assassins in an escalating series of attacks, too, but Don Bosco’s ability to communicate with and call off Il Grigio ensured that his attackers never ended up as mincemeat themselves.

How did Saint Andrew Bobola get tortured?

But this wasn’t all; one of the torturers cut out a piece of his skin in the shape of a chasuble vest (a vest worn by priests) and then peeled it from his body. They continued by sticking needles beneath his fingernails. According to the story, while his torturers tormented him, Saint Andrew Bobola didn’t stop praying for their souls. Tired of his constant prayers, they cut out his tongue and then executed him by crushing his skull.

What was the place where the bodies of the children were thrown?

The place where the bodies of the children were thrown was later called “Ad septem Biothanatos.” Biothanatos was a term that pagans used for Christian martyrs and people who committed suicide.

How old was Saint Eulalia when she was captured?

Saint Eulalia, whose martyrdom is often mixed up with that of Saint Eulalia of Mérida (sometimes considered to be the same person), was a 13-year-old girl from Barcelona who lived during the reign of Diocletian. She was captured during the prosecution of Christians ordered by the Emperor. After Eulalia had refused to deny her faith, she was given an unimaginably terrible punishment – to be tortured in thirteen different ways, one for every year of her life.

How did Saint Phocas survive?

Miraculously, Phocas survived the searing heat. His executioners then threw him into boiling water where he succumbed and died. In Christianity, Saint Phocas is celebrated as the defender against fires and as the helper of people that are drowning.

What did Bartholomew do after Christ was resurrected?

After Christ had been resurrected, Bartholomew went to preach in India and Armenia. According to the legend, Bartholomew managed to convert Polymius, the king of Armenia, to Christianity. As a punishment for this, Astyages, Polymius’ brother, ordered Bartholomew’s execution.

What information did Emperor Valerian have?

As an archivist, he was in possession of some valuable information such as the names of church members and the locations of the hidden treasures that the church owned. The legend says that Emperor Valerian captured him and gave him only two days to reveal all the treasures owned by the church.

How were the children executed?

Each child was executed in a different way: Crescens was pierced through the throat, Julian through the breast, Nemesius through the heart, Primitivus was wounded at the navel, Justinus was pierced through the back, Stracteus was pierced through the side, and Eugenius was split in two from top to bottom.

Why are saints good?

Why saints? A very good reason. It’s hard to identify with an awe-inspiring Mono God. Humans have always wanted spiritual assistance nearer to their heart. Something or someone to identify with and approach. As God’s go-betweens, the saints are reassuringly human, full of flaws and foibles.

What helped draw pagans to Christianity?

It was the saints, angels and holy artifacts that helped draw pagans to Christianity. Saints can be sad, mad, glad, tragic, magic, self-seeking, self-effacing, holier-than-thou, popish and resplendent or hermits that beggar description.

Do you have to have a patron saint?

There is a saint for every location and occasion. You can have your own patron saint. Saints have holy wells and work miracles as they become — to the untrained eye — demi-deities in their own right. It was the saints, angels and holy artifacts that helped draw pagans to Christianity.

What is the name of the god of the pagan religion?

Pagan Gods and Goddesses Worshipped as Christian Saints. Saint Brigid was named after one of the most powerful goddesses of the Pagan religion. "Probably the clearest example of the survival of an early goddess into Christian times is Brigid, the great triple goddess of the Celtic Irish.

Is Brigid a Celtic god?

Some scholars believe that Brigid is the Celtic equivalent of the Roman goddess Minerva, and it is possible that the worship of the two became amalgamated in Roman Britain. Brigid was eventually Christianised and adapted into the cult of St Brigit, who founded a religious community at Kildare in Ireland.

When did magic become a common belief?

Charms, amulets, and spells became a common belief in the 3rd and 4th centuries. The prevailing cults and pagan philosophies had in all of them their theory of magic. As a matter of course, Christianity absorbed this tendency.

Who wrote the Decay of Pagan Thought?

– E. Belfort Bax The Decay of Pagan Thought (January 1890)

Who is the Pontifex Maximus?

The modern Pontifex Maximus (also known as the great bridge builder between mankind and the gods) i.e. [the Pope of Rome]…preserved the name, the attributes, the pageantry, the pride, and even the garb of that high PAGAN priest….".

Who is the Greek triple goddess?

Into the 18th Century, her sacred flame was tended, at first, by priestesses, and later by nuns, when the shrine became a convent, at Kildare, Ireland."-. Brigit, the Goddess Who Would Not Die by Joan Lansberry.

Was Padre Pio a saint or fraud?

Padre Pio became a saint in 2002, almost 100 years after stigmata first appeared on his hands. He was born in Campania in 1887, and as a novice monk, he began experiencing some weird things. Some called them illnesses, while others, says The Irish Times, looked at it more as religious ecstasy. After being ordained, he returned to Italy.

How old was Lidwina when she fell?

Lidwina was born in the Netherlands in 1380, and she was just 15 years old when she fell while ice skating. She broke a rib that wouldn’t heal, and when gangrene set in, she was confined to her bed for what would be the rest of her life. And don’t worry, it gets worse.

What did Colmcille ask his kinsmen to do?

So Colmcille turned to his kinsmen and asked them to see justice done. They fought as Colmcille prayed, and at the end of the day, they’d lost one man and the high king’s army was entirely and completely dead. Colmcille was overcome with guilt, and he headed into exile in Scotland, where he kept his promise to win souls for Christ.

What does "Monk" mean in the book of Psalms?

He’d copied the Book of Psalms, and St. Finnian claimed both the original and Colmcille’s copy. "Monk" doesn’t mean "pushover," and Colmcille appealed to the high king.

Why was Thomas Howard beheaded?

Just two years later, Thomas Howard, the fourth duke of Norfolk, was beheaded for his role in a plot to put Mary, Queen of Scots on the English throne. Norfolk’s execution came 25 years after his father was also executed for treason, and before that? Thomas Howard, third duke of Norfolk, only escaped execution because Henry VIII died before he signed the paperwork.

Why is Charles Dickens considered a saint?

Charles Dickens couldn’t even bring himself to look at the work by Nicolo Circignani, it was so bad. Because Christianity isn’t without a (dark) sense of humor, he’s the patron saint of butchers, tanners, and leather workers.

What was Serra known for?

Serra — and other missionaries like him — were known for spreading disease throughout native populations, conscripting them into forced labor, and once the natives entered the missions, they weren’t allowed to leave.