We read about the saints or perhaps learn distantly of their heroic virtue, often noting our own lack of sanctity and the seeming impossibility of our own sainthood.  What’s beautiful about the communion of saints, however, is that they lived on earth in a fleshly body, just as we do, and throughout the ages, have suffered from various ailments, psychological or emotional torment, temptation, and have learned to overcome their own particular vices, bad habits, and weaknesses.

We are all saints in the making.  Now that we are celebrating Eastertide, April is a perfect time for us to take a peek at the lives of the saints we honor throughout the month.  As diverse as they were in life, so are their legacies, but each contributed a timeless gift that serves to inspire us all.  Every April saint you will read about exhibited incredible charity, some to the point of martyrdom, but all to their dying breaths.  While some saints devoted their lives to serving the poor, others established schools, orphanages, or hospitals.

Some saints came from nobility, others from poverty.  St. John Baptist de LaSalle was born in a wealthy family and used his intellectual gifts for the purpose of educating children and adults, both academically and catechetically.  St. Bernadette Soubirous, however, was born in extreme poverty and considered herself to be simple in intellect.  Her gift was her heart, a trusting heart that loved God so much that He granted her apparitions from His mother.  All of the saints remind us of whom we strive to become.  Let us invoke their intercession and imitate their lives.

St. Theodora

Little is known about St. Theodora’s life, except that she was St. Hermes’ sister and was martyred in Rome as a virgin.  While St. Hermes was imprisoned, Theodora cared for him vigilantly—and it is said that this gave him the spiritual and emotional strength he needed to endure his difficult time there.  Hermes was martyred shortly before Theodora, and both are listed in the Roman Martyrology.  Interestingly, both Hermes and Theodora are venerated by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches.  Her feast day is April 1.

St. Benedict the Moor

Benedict was born in Italy and lived as a slave until he was freed by his master.  Drawn to the ascetic life, Benedict initially became a recluse until he joined other hermits in a monastery, where he was named superior.  Shortly thereafter, Pope Pius IV disbanded the community, so Benedict became a lay Franciscan brother and offered his life as a humble cook for the convent near Palermo.  Benedict was known most for his humility, his gift as a confessor, and the miracles based on his intercession.  “The Moor” is a nickname he earned, but it is misleading, as it is loosely derived from the Italian “il moro,” which means “the black.”  Hence, this is why St. Benedict the Moor is the patron saint of Blacks in the United States.  His feast day is April 4.

St. Albert of Montecorvino

An exceptionally holy man, Albert was well known before his death because of his sublime visions, extraordinary miracles, and his overall sanctity.  Many people were attracted to his spiritual gifts even when he was a young boy.  Though born in Normandy, his family settled in Montecorvino, Italy, where he eventually became Bishop.  Interestingly, Albert was blinded, likely from disease, yet still was selected to serve as a bishop.  Despite this perceived disability, he was able to fulfill his bishopric well and continued to perform miracles.  His feast day is April 5.

St. John Baptist de la Salle

Labeled Patron of teachers by Pope Pius XII in 1950, John centered his life around education, both academic and catechetical.  He was born in France during the late seventeenth century to a wealthy family, but he was drawn to evangelical poverty.  His deep love for the poor led to an establishment of the Institute of the Brothers of Christian Schools, educational institutions for teachers, and a reform school for boys.  Somewhat avant-garde for his time, John pioneered the concept of classroom over individual teaching and catechetical instruction in the vernacular versus Latin.  His feast day is April 7.

St. Gemma Galgani

A classic highly sensitive person, Gemma was reserved, quiet, and introspective from a young age.  She also suffered from frequent and chronic illnesses, which often debilitated her to the point of being incapable of completing her academic studies.  Well-known as an Italian mystic and stigmatist, Gemma received incredible graces of spiritual ecstasies, raptures, and frequent visions of her guardian angel.  She likely possessed the charism of prophecy, as well, because she predicted the establishment of a Passionist monastery at Lucca, Italy, which indeed occurred only two years after her death.  Gemma suffered interiorly from temptations she received from the devil and the ridicule and skepticism with which her spiritual experiences were often met.  Therefore, she led a very hidden life of suffering, which was only known after she died.  Her feast day is April 11.

St. Marguerite d'Youville

A widow and Quebec native, Marguerite worked to support herself and her three children while developing a devotion to the Confraternity of the Holy Family through her charitable volunteer work.  Eventually, she, along with three companions, founded the Grey Nuns, or Sisters of Charity.  She became Mother Superior after acquiring the General Hospital in Montreal for the Grey Nuns’ apostolate.  Today, the Grey Nuns have established schools, orphanages, and hospitals worldwide, with a special focus on the Eskimo population.  St. Marguerite was canonized in 1990 by St. John Paul II, and we celebrate her feast day on April 11.

St. Bernadette

Beloved by many for nearly two centuries, Bernadette was born to a simple and poor family as the eldest of nine children.  She struggled with illness, especially respiratory infections and asthma, as a young girl, which greatly impeded her academic and catechetical instruction.  As she was gathering firewood with her younger sister on February 11, 1858, she saw an apparition of a beautiful lady who presented herself as “The Immaculate Conception” during one of her several visits to Bernadette in a rose bush near what is now known as the Lourdes Grotto.  Tens of thousands of people flock to Lourdes in search for spiritual and physical healings each year, and many are granted miracles on behalf of the beautiful lady in blue and St. Bernadette’s magnanimous intercession.  Bernadette was canonized in 1933 by Pope Pius XI and is considered the patroness of shepherdesses, anyone struggling with illness, and those who are ridiculed for their holiness or piety.  Her feast day is April 16.                                                   

St. George

Born in Greece to Christian parents, George quickly earned military acclaim in Diocletian’s army, serving as Tribunus and imperial guard.  Once Diocletian boldly announced that every Christian would be forced to serve the Roman gods, George was eager to express his dissent.  Diocletian initially kept this information secret, because he respected George’s father as a personal confidante.  Eventually, George declared his Christian beliefs to his peers, at which point Diocletian felt he had no choice but to go public with the information.  After a lengthy and painful journey to martyrdom, George – who remained faithful to his death – was decapitated on April 23, 303 A.D.  St. George is often depicted slaying a dragon, which represents all enemies of Christ.  Interestingly, he is revered by both Christians and Muslims.  He is the Patron of England.

St. Mark

Patron of notaries, St. Mark is best known as the evangelist who wrote one of the three synoptic Gospels.  He wrote his gospel sometime during the year 60 A.D. for the purpose of appealing to Gentiles for conversion to Christianity.  This is why he wrote it in Greek.  He is also credited with founding the Church in Alexandria.  St. Mark was close to St. Paul and Barnabas (Mark’s cousin) and accompanied them to Cyprus, and he also served the Church in Rome with both St. Peter and St. Paul.  His feast day is April 25.

St. Catherine of Siena

A Third Order Dominican mystic and stigmatist, Catherine resisted marriage to her brother-in-law once her sister, Bonaventura, died.  Her parents acquiesced to Catherine’s gentle persistence and permitted her to live a solitary life of prayer, fasting, and service to the poor.  Catherine’s mystical experience of receiving a wedding ring from Jesus was known only to her, as was her gift of the stigmata.  Her physical health suffered, mainly because she exercised extreme fasting, so she suffered a stroke at the young age of 33, dying on April 29, 1380.  After her canonization, St. Catherine was declared a Doctor of the Church because of her extensive written work, Dialogue.  She is well loved throughout the world and is the patroness against fire, illness, the United States, Italy, miscarriages, people ridiculed for their faith, sexual temptation, and nurses.  Her feast day is April 29.

Though it’s unlikely we will ever experience spiritual visions, mystical revelations, or the stigmata, as St. Catherine of Siena and St. Gemma Galgani did, we can adopt their mystical spirituality.  The depth of this spirituality leads to exceptional union with God and entices the young and old, educated and uneducated—because the saints, in all of their mystical experiences, spoke a language of love, a language of the heart.  We, too, can adopt this way of living and loving—both God and our neighbors.  As we draw nearer to Him, let us thank the saints for their holy examples and continual intercession for our eventual union with them in Heaven.

Who is your favorite April Saint?