October is a month to celebrate many of our Saints’ Feast Days. St. Therese of Lisieux, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Faustina, Bl. Carlo Acutis, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. John Paul II, just to name a few. Continue reading to find out more about the lives of these Saints.
St Therese of Lisieux
Born Marie-Francoise-Therese, St. Therese was baptized at only two days old. She was surrounded by God all her life and was born quite frail, not expected to live long. Despite her illness, she grew up to be a self-confident child. At just four years old, her mother, Zelie, died after a twelve-year battle with breast cancer. Her father, Louis, moved Therese and her four older sisters to Lisieux.
Therese had a very different schooling experience, being advanced to classes for students six years older than her. She always attended church, loved catechism, and formed a close bond with her teacher. Therese fell incredibly ill, diagnosed with everything from a breakdown to a kidney infection. After intense suffering, she turned to a statue of Mary near her bed and prayed to be cured. Miraculously, she was cured.
At only nine years old, she wanted to join Lisieux’s Carmelite Convent, where her teacher had gone before Therese fell ill. She was told to return when she was older. She attempted again at 15 and was accepted just after turning 16. Therese spent the last nine years of her life at Lisieux Carmel. Unfortunately, she fell ill again, now with tuberculosis, and it became apparent that she would not overcome it. At the age of 24, Therese passed away, her final words being, “Oh, my God, I love you!” Therese was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope John Paul II in 1997.
St Francis of Assisi
Francis was born into a wealthy family. He was a good student, and at the age of 19, became a soldier. He was captured and taken prisoner but was released a year later when his father paid ransom money for his freedom. After this, Francis had many visions of God that began to change his life.
He gave all his money to the church, left his father’s home, and decided to take a vow of poverty. He preached to many people, and his number of followers grew, allowing him to travel to Rome to receive approval for their religious order, the Franciscan Order. He also helped start the Order of the Poor Ladies and the Third Order of Saint Francis.
Francis was constantly immersed in nature, writing about his love for God’s creation, and set up the first Nativity Scene that incorporated animals.
Francis was the first recorded person to have unexplained wounds appear in the spots that reflected the wounds of Christ’s crucifixion. Only a couple of years later, he died while singing Psalm 141. He was canonized just two years later.
St Faustina
Faustina was born into a poor and religious family. She first felt a call to religious life at the age of 7 when she attended the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. She wanted to join the convent after finishing school, but her parents didn’t allow her.
At the age of 18, she had a vision at a dance of a suffering Jesus, who she believed asked her, “How long shall I put up with you, and how long will you keep putting me off?” Shortly after this, with advice from the Cathedral, she departed to enter a convent.
During her time at one of the convents, she fell ill and was sent to rest for a period. After her recovery and return to the convent, she saw an image of Jesus who appeared to her and told her, “Paint an image according to the pattern you see, with the signature ‘Jesus, I trust in You.’ Jezu, ufam Tobie. I desire that this image be venerated, first in your chapel, and then throughout the world. I promise that the soul that will venerate this image will not perish.” Three years after this appearance, Faustina found someone to create the first artistic rendering of this image, under her direction.
St. Faustina had many visions throughout her life, often documenting them in notebooks. As her health deteriorated, her visions seemed to intensify, before she passed in 1938.
Carlo Acustis
Carlo was born into a wealthy family who were not overly religious. In his early years, Carlo was cared for by a nanny. He had a natural interest in the Catholic faith and received his First Holy Communion at the age of 7, even influencing his parents to turn to the faith. He never missed daily Mass, and from the age of 11, he began visiting Eucharistic Miracles across the world, which he always documented. At the age of only 14, Carlo created a Eucharistic display and website that would tour the world.
Carlo spent much of his time serving others. He helped children, the elderly, and the poor, spoke with migrants, befriended bullied school kids, and defended those who were too afraid.
In 2006, Carlo became sick with what was assumed to be the flu, but it soon deteriorated into something more severe. He was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 15 and given only days to live. He died soon after and has been popularly honoured as the patron saint of youth and computer programmers. Carlo was beatified in 2020, served as a patron saint for World Youth Day 2023, and it has been announced that his date of canonization is approaching.
The website he created to document the Eucharistic Miracles has been kept running and updated in his memory.
St Teresa of Avila
Teresa was born into a wealthy family as her father was one of the wealthiest men in Avila. She grew up as a dedicated Christian. Due to her father’s strictness, Teresa often thought that no matter what she did, it would be wrong, as she was constantly in a battle of “Never lie” and “Don’t tell your father.”
At 7 years old, she and her older brother attempted to run away. They got just outside the city walls before their uncle found them and brought them back home. She lived an ordinary life after this but often caused trouble. At the age of 16, her father sent her to a convent, which she initially hated but began to enjoy as her time there continued. Once she permanently joined the Carmelite Convent, she did her best to learn and practice mental prayer. She struggled throughout her 18 years there, partly due to the steady stream of visitors.
Teresa fell ill with malaria, resulting in a seizure. People assumed she was dead, and when she woke up four days later, she found that a grave had been dug for her. She was later paralyzed for three years and never completely well. She felt unworthy of the favors from God and turned away from prayer. After some time, a priest convinced her to pray once again, but she still found it hard to do so.
Eventually, at the age of 43, she felt the determination to found a convent. This was immensely frowned upon, to the point where the town started legal proceedings against her. Once she was able to start her own convent, she spent a lot of her time writing about her life. During a journey between Burgos and Alba de Tormes, Teresa’s illness defeated her, with her last words reportedly being, “My Lord, it is time to move on. Well then, may your will be done. O my Lord and my Spouse, the hour that I have longed for has come. It is time to meet one another.” She died at the age of 87 and was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1970.
Pope John Paul II
Born Karol Jozef Wojtyla, he had a promising academic career before Nazi troops closed the university during World War II. To avoid being taken during the war, he voluntarily worked in a quarry under harsh conditions. Three years later, his father, his last surviving family member, suffered a heart attack, leaving Karol the sole member of his immediate family at only 20 years old.
This led to his discernment of joining the priesthood. After studying at the seminary, he was ordained a priest on All Saints’ Day in 1946. In 1978, he was elected as Pope—the first non-Italian pope in over 400 years—taking the name John Paul II. In 1981, there was an assassination attempt against JPII while he was in St. Peter’s Square. He was struck in the torso, narrowly missing his vital organs. The bullet can now be found encased in the Precious Crown of Our Lady of Fatima in the Sanctuary of Fatima, Portugal.
Pope John Paul II organized a gathering to celebrate the Youth Jubilee of the Holy Year of Redemption in 1983-1984. This was so successful and highly attended that he repeated it the following year and later announced the institution of World Youth Day, which has continued ever since, most recently in 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal.
JPII died in 2005 from illness and was canonized by Pope Francis in 2014. His final words were, “Let me go to the house of my Father.” He is greatly recognized for his profound impact on the world and, particularly, the Church.
