Saints

Peter Chanel was born in 1804 near Cras in France. His parents were peasants. His parish priest, the Abbe Trompier, took him on as a pupil because he was so bright and very devout. Peter went to the local seminary, was ordained, and rebuilt the very run-down parish of Croizet in three years. He then joined the Marist missionaries which had been recently founded by Jean Colin at Lyon. He dreamt of ... Read More

Domestic servant. Patron of maidservants. Born at Monsagrati, in 1218, Zita worked for the Farinelli household all her life, from the age of 12. She was very conscientious, which initially did not make her popular with the other staff. She was also very generous with food for the poor, which annoyed her employers. However she eventually won everyone over by her patience and good nature and became... Read More

Mystic. Dominican tertiary. Catherine was born in 1347, the youngest of about 20 children of a Sienese dyer, Giacomo Benincasa. From a very early age she was very prayerful and refused to consider marriage. In around 1367 she joined the Dominicans, still living at home and spending much of her time in prayer. She underwent many religious experiences, frequently experiencing visions of Jesus. G... Read More