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Home , Fourteen Holy Helpers

Help Us Name our Spiritual Baby Namesakes, if our baby is a boy! (see other side for our girl namesakes)

St. Gerard Majella Feast Day: October 16 Miracles were reported and attributed to Gerard throughout his life, including restora- tion of a boy's life after he fell from a high cliff. His last recorded miracle is one that many credit toward his becoming the patron of expectant mothers. Shortly before his death, Majella encountered a young girl. He had dropped his handkerchief and she set out to return it, only to be told to keep it. Gerard told her she "may need it someday." Years after Gerard's passing, the young girl became married and with child. She unex- pectedly went into labor and was on the verge of losing her baby. She called for Majel- la's handkerchief to be applied to her. Almost immediately, her pain abated and she proceeded to give birth to a healthy child, something very rare during that time. St. Gerard Majella is patron of expectant mothers. St. Solemnity: March 19 Joseph was a carpenter, a working man. He wasn't rich for when he took Jesus to the Temple to be circumcised and Mary to be purified he offered the sacrifice of two turtledoves or a pair of pigeons, allowed only for those who could not afford a lamb. Despite his humble work and means, Joseph came from a royal lineage. St. Joseph whose was chosen by God our Father to be the foster father of His Son and the most chaste spouse of His Holy Mother Mary and so dutifully and virtuously fulfilled his role in serving God. We know Joseph was a compassionate, caring man. We know Jo- seph loved Jesus. His one concern was for the safety of this child entrusted to him. We know Joseph respected God. Joseph is also patron of the Universal Church, families, fathers, expectant mothers (pregnant women), among others. St. Juan Diego Feast Day: December 9 Juan was born in Mexico and lived a simple life. He attended daily Mass and walked 15 miles to get there! On December 9, 1531, he saw an apparition of Our La- dy. She wanted the bishop to build a church on Tepeyac Hill so that she could of- fer her grace to those who visited, and she asked Juan Diego to carry her message to him. Juan Diego went to the bishop and told him about the apparition, but the bishop was not convinced. When Juan Diego told Our Lady, she sent him with a sign for the bishop—roses blooming in December—which he carried in his tilma. When Juan Diego let the roses fall out of his tilma at the feet of the bishop, every- one saw the beautiful image of that was left miraculously imprinted on it. In this image, Our Lady of Guadalupe is seen as pregnant—a sign that she encouraged all of us to see the tiniest human beings as a blessing. St. Juan Diego is patron of indigenous peoples. St. Raymond Nonnatus Feast Day: August 31 Raymond became a priest due to his quiet persistence in prayer and study. He was born to a noble Spanish family in 1204. His mother died during child birth and his father had high expectations for Raymond to serve in the country’s Royal Court. However, the young Raymond felt drawn to religious life. In an attempt to dissuade him, his father or- dered him to manage one of the family farms. However, Raymond spent his time with the workers, studying, and praying. His father finally gave up and allowed Ray- mond to enter the Mercederians. Fr. Raymond spent his entire estate ransoming slaves. He even offered himself as a hostage to free another. During his imprison- ment, he succeeded at converting some of his guards. St. Raymond is the patron of pregnant women, childbirth, and newborn infants. Help Us Name our Spiritual Baby Namesakes, if our baby is a girl! (see other side for our boy namesakes)

St. Brigid of Ireland (St. ) Feast Day: February 1 There is debate over her birthparents, but it is widely believed her mother was Brocca, a Christian baptized by , and her father was Dubthach, a Leinster chieftain. Brocca was a slave, therefore Brigid was born into slavery. When the chieftain's wife discovered Brocca was pregnant, she was sold to a Druid landowner. Brigid's purity followed her childhood; many stories emerged. She consistently sought to feed the poor and heal them. At the time that Brigid was about ten-years-old, she was returned to her father's home, her legal slave owner. But, her charity did not end, which, through a series of events, led to Brigid being freed, and later her mother. She entered the Church and founded a in Kildare. She and seven friends organized com- munal consecrated religious life for women in Ireland and she founded two monastic institutions, one for men and one for women. She later founded a school of art. There is evidence that Brigid was a good friend of Saint Patrick's and it was claimed, "Between St. Patrick and Brigid, the pillars of the Irish people, there was so great a friendship of charity that they had but one heart and one mind. Through him and through her Christ performed many great works." St. Feast Day: April 28 Gianna born in October 1922, in Italy, to a large, devout Catholic family. She became a doctor and specialized in treating children and mothers because she felt especially close to them. In 1955, Gianna married Pietro Molla and the couple had three children. When she was pregnant with her fourth child, doctors discovered that Gianna had a tumor. Her doctor recommended abortion, but Gianna refused, valuing the life of her child above her own. Being a doctor herself, Gianna fully understood the risks she was taking in her deci- sion. Before the operation, she told her husband that if they had to choose which life to save, to choose that of her child. Saint Gianna made a heroic sacrifice for life out of love so that her baby would be saved.

St. Margaret of Antioch Feast Day: July 20 Margaret is also known as ‘the Teenager Who Destroys Dragons’. She was a daugh- ter of a pagan and, when she converted to Christianity, was driven from her home by her father. Later, upon refusing advances of a pagan man, she was charged with be- ing a Christian and imprisoned, where legends say the devil, in the form of a dragon, swallowed her and spit her out due to the cross she held. The following day she sur- vived several execution attempts which ultimately led to her beheading. And so she was martyred. These events converted thousands of then soon-to-be martyred on- lookers. She is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and hers was one of the voices heard by . She is the patroness of pregnant women and childbirth. St. Feast Day: August 11 All that is known about Philomena's life comes from a nun's vision. Sr. Maria Luisa di Gesu claims St. Philomena came to her and told her she was the daughter of a Greek king who converted to Christianity. When Philomena was 13-years-old, she took a vow of consecrated virginity. After her father took his family to Rome to make peace, Emperor Diocletian fell in love with Philomena. When she refused to marry him, she was subjected to torture: she was scourged, drowned with an anchor attached to her, and shot with arrows. Each time she was attacked angels took to her side and healed her through prayer. Finally, the Emperor had Philomena decapitated. Accord- ing to the story, her death came on a Friday at three in the afternoon, the same as Jesus. Devotion for Philomena began to spread once her bones were exhumed and miracles began to occur. St. Philomena is the patron of infants, babies, and youth.

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