Saints

Martyr. Patron of Europe. Edith Stein, born in 1891 in Breslau, (now Wroclaw) in Poland, was the youngest child of a large Jewish family. She was an outstanding student, well versed in philosophy with a particular interest in phenomenology. While Stein had earlier contacts with Roman Catholicism, it was her reading of the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Ávila during summer holidays in Bad Bergz... Read More

Saint Dominic Founder of the Dominicans. Saint Dominic was born at Calaruega in Castile in 1170, the youngest son of the town warden. His uncle educated him and he became an Austin Canon at Osma cathedral. In 1201, he was made sub-prior. Three years later, on his way to Denmark he met the Cathars for the first time. These were a popular sect that lived communally and had a number of extreme beli... Read More

Laurence was a deacon who worked closely with Pope Sixtus II. He is thought to have been born in Spain, at Huesca, a town in the Aragon region. According to legend he brought the Holy Grail - the chalice which Jesus used at the last supper, to Spain. Today the Holy Grail is venerated in a special chapel in Valencia Cathedral, Spain. Laurence was martyred a few days after Pope Sixtus during the p... Read More