St. Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419) was born in Valentia, Spain, the son of a knight. From his parents he learned virtue and generosity to the poor. As a child he fasted every Wednesday and Friday and was tenderly devoted to the Passion of Christ and the Blessed Mother. He excelled in his studies and joined the Dominican Order with the support of his parents. He flourished in both austerity and...
St. Isidore of Seville (560 - 636 A.D.) was born in Carthagena, Spain, to noble and pious parents. After the example of their parents, he, as well as his two brothers and sister, all became saints. Isidore received his early education at the cathedral school in Seville where a group of learned men taught classical education, among them was his brother Leander, the Archbishop of Seville. The...
Pope Sixtus I (42 – 125), of Greek descent, was the Bishop of Rome from c. 115 to his death c. 125. He succeeded Pope Alexander I and was in turn succeeded by Pope Telesphorus. In the oldest documents, Xystus (from the Greek word for "polished") is the spelling used for the first three popes of that name. Pope Sixtus I is also the sixth Pope after Peter, leading to questions...
Saint Appian of Caesarea, born into a wealthy and prominent non-Christian family in Caesarea, was the brother of Saint Aedesius of Alexandria. Well-educated in rhetoric, philosophy, and civil law at Beirut, Lebanon, he embraced Christianity and became a devoted disciple. He formed a close friendship with the renowned theologian Eusebius of Caesarea, with whom he undertook a pilgrimage to the...
Saint Tewdrig Ap Teithfallt, also known by various other names such as Tewdrig ap Llywarch, Tewdrig of Tintern, Tewdrig of Glamorgan, Theodoricus, Theodoric, Theoderick, Teudrig, Tewdric, and Tudric, was born a prince, the son of King Ceithfalt of Morganwg, in the 5th to 6th century. Following his father's death, Tewdrig succeeded him and became the king of Morganwg. However, his reign was...