Gregory (c. 540-604) was born into a prominent family. He studied law and by age 30 was mayor of Rome. He entered the Benedictine monastery, hoping to live a simple life and distributing his wealth to the poor and to monasteries.
On August 26, 1910, Mother Teresa was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu in Skopje, Macedonia. As a young girl she was very involved in parish activities, and her mother told her many stories of missionaries, who inspired her greatly. In 1928, at age 18, Agnes joined the missionary order of the Sisters of Loreto in Dublin, Ireland. There she was given the name Sister Mary Teresa.
Peter Claver walked to the dock. He saw the ship that came from Africa. Peter saw guards outside the ship. He had to get on that boat. The guards tried to stop him, but Peter went inside anyway.
Robert was a brilliant student who put his gifts at the service of the Church. He was born in Italy in 1542, one of 10 children. His uncle was Pope Marcellus II, and Robert decided to become a Jesuit priest at a very young age.
Hildegard of Bingen is believed to have been born in 1098 in Germany. At a young age Hildegard had a very holy teacher named Jutta. From her teacher, she learned to love God and to pray. In those days, it was very natural for Hildegard to join with her teacher, Jutta, and other holy women and become a nun when she was 15 years old. Together these women prayed and worked together in their Benedictine monastery.
Matthew, the Evangelist who wrote the Gospel that appears first in the New Testament, was different from the other Apostles. He was not a popular man. Many people felt that he was unworthy to be a chosen as a follower of Jesus. Matthew worked for the Romans as a tax collector. The Romans ruled Palestine and the Jewish people in the time of Jesus. They forced the Jewish people to pay taxes to them. Many of the tax collectors cheated the people by charging more taxes than required and keeping the extra money for themselves. The Jews considered tax collectors to be traitors.
Francesco Forgione was born in Pietrelcina, Italy, in 1887. His family and the people of his town were very religious. They celebrated festivals to honor the saints. The church bells called people to prayer many times during the day. His family attended Mass every day and prayed the Rosary each night. When a Capuchin friar visited his town to ask for donations for the friars’ ministry, Francesco knew that he wanted to become a Capuchin.
Born in 1581 in France, Vincent de Paul became a priest at the early age of 19. He became famous for his kindness and generosity.
Angels are messengers from God. Three of the special messengers mentioned in the Bible are the archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. The names of each of these archangels tell us about the work God gave them to do. Michael’s name means “who is like God.” God gave Michael the responsibility of protecting us as God protects us.
Jerome was born in the country we now call Croatia sometime between 340 and 347. He was tutored at home and developed a love for education. When he was about 12, his parents sent him to Rome to study both Greek and Latin.