Who is Your Patron Saint?
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 41 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
Thomas a’ Becket is my birthday saint. In my younger days another WAVE and I caught a hop to England. We arrived at Canterbury Cathedral at the start of Vespers. The service was beautiful. Afterwards we were able to see the steps where Becket was murdered and visit his tomb.
Becket and Sir Thomas More two of England’s great martyrs for our Catholic Faith.
I look on St. Thomas as my ‘Name’ saint, and whether or not true, I claim him as a possible ancestor. St. Thomas was born in London. My Beckett ancestors come from London – the family owned a brick works on the Thames until recent times, and had lived in London certainly in the 16th. century. Mt birthday saint is St. Philip Neri, & I have great devotion to St. Alphonsus de Ligouri. St. Peter Chanel is a patron saint of New Zealand, and our diocese.
St. Philip the Deacon.
After my confirmation I did not tap into the life of the Spirit. Not until I started a relationship with St. Maximilian Kolbe. That heavenly helper assisted me in opening up the valve that I had abandoned so many years before. Once I did there was no turning back.
Now, unashamedly, I can walk with St. Philip and bring the Good News into the hearts of the brokenhearted. All for God’s glory.
Thanks be to God.
St. Thomas More (by trade), although St. Peter is my confirmation saint. St. Thomas More because he shows how to be above the world and focus solely on the world to come while living in it. St. Peter because I take solace in the fact that our Lord will forgive us and welcome us back even though we turn away from him through our sins, something he struggled with throughout his life, not just at the crucifixion. Quo vadis?
Aquinas here. As a lawyer I was certainly attracted to St. Thomas More, but chose Aquinas because I wanted to become a lay catechist. Also had Augustine in the mix due to my late conversion, at age 50.
Every Saint is amazing. Picking one is a difficult exercise.
St. Dismas … A great saint to help us endure our hardships. 🙂
St. Philip Neri as spiritual director, St. Catherine of Siena as inspiration and theologian.
I was suffering from depression and also in need of a spiritual director when I happened to be reading a biography of St. Philip Neri. He had a follower, Baronius, who was prone to the kind of moods that I’d fallen into. Philip assigned him to study Church history rather than the severity-of-sin stuff he was inclined to. I took that on as my advice, have been reading Church history ever since (I mean, I had been reading a life of Neri at the time, so it didn’t seem like an unreasonable stretch), and I just trust in him in lieu of a spiritual director which can be so hard to find these days.
St. Catherine, no need to explain that one.
St. Joseph. I am a retired Catholic school teacher who spent 24 yrs at a girls’ high school (and survived), so I’ve always identified with his role as protector and guide of the young. Lord knows, kids their Josephs today.
I chose St Thomas the Apostle for Confirmation back in middle school. He became more fitting as I went into engineering and now teaching engineering.
Student: What if we just write “I made the part?”
Me: My confirmation saint is Thomas the Apostle, how do you think that will go?
Franciscan students understood what that meant 🙂
I haven’t picked one, but if I do, it’ll be Augustine. I don’t remember what confirmation name I chose…Augustine was a mind and soul for all ages.
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St Stephen, the first martyr. I’ve always had a special love for St Francis of Assisi though, ever since I read a Marvel comic about him as a child. The church was giving them away for free, and I’m pretty sure I read and reread over a dozen copies. I found some eBay a couple of years back, and reread them again! Cheesy, considering the era of the early ‘80’s, but I can definitely see why I fell in love with him.
I have always loved St Charbel Maklouf- a Maronite Saint. He was a hermit and an introvert. I relate. I love him because he is an example of how someone so unassuming can be so Holy, and the volume of reported miracles associated with his intercession around the world is remarkable.
There are many others who my children have name connections to (first or middle) and others who I call on for protection and guidance because they have touched me in some way in my Faith throughout my life:
St Joseph
St George
St Michael
St Monica
St Josemaria Escriva