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Saint of the Day | By Name | By Date | Patron Saints | FAQ

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The Church has venerated Catholic saints since the beginning. Who are the saints? Who decides who is and is not a saint? How many are there? Do saints hear our prayers? Find the answers to these questions and articles on saints. Click here to receive Saint of the Day in your email.

Questions and Answers on Catholic Saints
from St. Anthony Messenger

Why isn't there a saint for every day
Why so few lay saints?
What is the process for canonizing someone
How many saints are there?
Do saints hear our prayers?
Are saints' names required for Baptism?
Are statues idols?
What's a Seraphic saint?

Real Women, Real Saints
The saints are our spiritual guides, our companions on life's journey. Their experiences show us the path we are to take in our own lives. In Real Women, Real Saints: Friends for Your Spiritual Journey, Gina Loehr profiles a hundred women—saints, the blessed, servants of God—we can use as models of holiness. See a sample chapter and then purchase the book, Real Women, Real Saints, from our catalog.

Saints in the News
The Catholic Church's veneration of saints dates back to the beginnings of Christianity. Yet Catholic saints are not just figures from ancient history, but have lived during our lifetimes and their example and the process toward beatification continue to make news today.

Lourdes 150th anniversary
This year marks the 150th anniversary of Mary's appearance to St. Bernadette Soubirous near Lourdes, France. See our special Lourdes 150th anniversary area for the latest on the observance.

Year of St. Paul
The Catholic Church celebrates a special jubilee year dedicated to St. Paul through June 29, 2009, to mark the approximately 2,000th anniversary of the saint’s birth. Our "Year of St. Paul" feature offers coverage of the Pauline year and focuses on the apostle’s courageous missionary efforts and inspiration to Catholics today.

Introducing St. Paul the Apostle: His Life and Mission
Catholic Update explores his call and mission, his work as an evangelizer, his teaching through letter writing, his conversion, his Roman citizenship and his role in shaping our Catholic culture.

A Visit to Padre Pio's Tomb
This month marks the 40th anniversary of the death of St. Padre Pio. St. Anthony Messenger magazine senior editor, Father Jack Wintz, O.F.M., reflects on his recent pilgrimage to and guides readers through the saint’s shrine in Italy.

St. Joan of Arc's Message for Today
This 19-year-old peasant from 15th-century France has much to teach us about listening to our hearts, trusting in God and confounding the odds, according to St. Anthony Messenger magazine managing editor, Barbara Beckwith.

Saint of the Day
Read about the life of today's Catholic saint and browse a list of patron saints as well as a calendar of feast days. Learn about the Feast of All Saints and the Feast of All Souls.

Franciscan Radio
Listen to or download program #08-44 of American Catholic Radio. Topics include the communion of saints, a portrait of St. Paul and an interview with the author of Saints at the Dinner Table.

Prayer Requests
Post an online prayer request. All prayer requests are displayed at StAnthony.org and on a large, scrolling screen next to St. Anthony's relic at the National Shrine of St. Anthony of Padua in Cincinnati, Ohio. View current prayers.

Saint Features
Explore the lives of St. Anthony, St. Francis, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Padre Pio, St. Patrick and Mother Teresa.

More About All Saints and All Souls

Did Saints Fall From Favor After Vatican II?
from Friar Jack's E-spirations

I'd Like to Say: We're All Called to Be Saints
from St. Anthony Messenger

The Where, Who and How of Heaven
from Friar Jack's E-spirations

Patron Saints for Modern Challenges
from St. Anthony Messenger

What Makes a Saint?
from St. Anthony Messenger

Celebrating the Feasts of All Saints and All Souls
from Friar Jack's E-spirations

The Communion of Saints
from Scripture From Scratch

Faith-Filled Family: Halloween and Its Christian Roots
from St. Anthony Messenger

All Saints
from Friar Jack's E-spirations

Ten Great Catholics of the Second Millennium
from St. Anthony Messenger

How Halloween Can Be Redeemed
from Catholic Update

Saints: Holy and Human
from Catholic Update

Six Saints for the New Millennium
from Catholic Update

Send a Saint e-Greeting

Celebrate All Saints Day and All Souls Day with a Catholic e-card. Also, choose from our selection of e-greetings depicting Catholic saints.

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Mary Magdalene de' Pazzi: Mystical ecstasy is the elevation of the spirit to God in such a way that the person is aware of this union with God while both internal and external senses are detached from the sensible world. Mary Magdalene de' Pazzi was so generously given this special gift of God that she is called the "ecstatic saint."
<p>She was born into a noble family in Florence in 1566. The normal course would have been for Catherine de' Pazzi to have married wealth and enjoyed comfort, but she chose to follow her own path. At nine she learned to meditate from the family confessor. She made her first Communion at the then-early age of 10 and made a vow of virginity one month later. When 16, she entered the Carmelite convent in Florence because she could receive Communion daily there. </p><p>Catherine had taken the name Mary Magdalene and had been a novice for a year when she became critically ill. Death seemed near so her superiors let her make her profession of vows from a cot in the chapel in a private ceremony. Immediately after, she fell into an ecstasy that lasted about two hours. This was repeated after Communion on the following 40 mornings. These ecstasies were rich experiences of union with God and contained marvelous insights into divine truths. </p><p>As a safeguard against deception and to preserve the revelations, her confessor asked Mary Magdalene to dictate her experiences to sister secretaries. Over the next six years, five large volumes were filled. The first three books record ecstasies from May of 1584 through Pentecost week the following year. This week was a preparation for a severe five-year trial. The fourth book records that trial and the fifth is a collection of letters concerning reform and renewal. Another book, <i>Admonitions</i>, is a collection of her sayings arising from her experiences in the formation of women religious. </p><p>The extraordinary was ordinary for this saint. She read the thoughts of others and predicted future events. During her lifetime, she appeared to several persons in distant places and cured a number of sick people. </p><p>It would be easy to dwell on the ecstasies and pretend that Mary Magdalene only had spiritual highs. This is far from true. It seems that God permitted her this special closeness to prepare her for the five years of desolation that followed when she experienced spiritual dryness. She was plunged into a state of darkness in which she saw nothing but what was horrible in herself and all around her. She had violent temptations and endured great physical suffering. She died in 1607 at 41, and was canonized in 1669.</p>

Sisters pray a lot. They work at working together. They try their hardest to live simply – sometimes without much choice, due to real poverty. All of them embrace simplicity as a radical commitment to Gospel values, and offer that faithful witness to the rest of us.

PICKS OF THE WEEK

	The Month of Mary
	Discover daily insight into truths about the Mother of God.

	Sober Intoxication of the Spirit
	Learn about how the first Pentecost affected Jesus's followers.

	When the Spirit Comes in Power
	Catholic evangelist Peter Herbeck describes the work of the Holy Spirit in the personal lives of Christians.

	In the Footprints of Francis and the Sultan
	In 1219 during the Fifth Crusade, Francis took it upon himself to cross battle lines and reach out to Muslims.

	For Mothers (and Fathers!)
	Author Curtis shares personal stories and advice for helping your children find God's voice amid the messages that target them.

CATHOLIC GREETINGS

	Friendship
	Catholic Greetings e-cards help you connect with long-distance friends.

	Sympathy
	Our faith reminds us that those who believe in the Lord will never die.

	Graduation
	If you’re not able to attend the graduation in person, send an e-card expressing your affection and pride.

	Ordination Anniversary
	Use Catholic Greetings to acknowledge your pastor’s ordination or pastoral anniversary.

	Happy Birthday
	Make the most of God’s graces and blessings throughout the coming year.

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