Saints

Archbishop and martyr. Oscar Arnulfo Romero was born into a family of ten on 15 August in Ciudad Barrios, El Salvador. His father was in charge of the local telegraph office. When he was 14 years old, Oscar went to study at junior seminary. When his mother was ill and needed money for medicine, Oscar left the seminary for three months and worked in the gold mine in Potosí, earning about 4p a day.... Read More

Reforming bishop. A patron of missionaries and South America. Toribio Alfonso de Mogrobejo was born in Mayorga, in Spain, in 1538. A law professor at the University of Salamanca, he was appointed chief judge of the Inquisition at Granada by King Philip II. He was still a layman, when in 1580, he was made a bishop and sent to work in Lima, Peru. He arrived in the following year to find the huge... Read More

In both the East and West, Mary is the most important of saints - although little is known of her life. St Matthew describes how, when the angel Gabriel came to her and said: "Hail favoured one, the Lord is with you" - she replied simply: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be be done unto me according to your word." When Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist, El... Read More