Jesuit saints & blesseds: October 2009 Archives

Saint Alphonsus Rodriguez

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St Alphonsus Rodriquez.jpgI stand at the door and knock, says the Lord. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and sit down to supper with him, and he with me.


O God, in the faithful service of our brother Alphonsus You have shown us the way to joy and peace. Make us ready and watchful companions of Jesus, who became the servant of all, and now lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.


On the life of Saint Alphonsus Rodriquez is posted here.



In the 1990's while reading the poetry of Gerard Manley Hopkins, a Jesuit, I came across his poem honoring Saint Alphonsus. It reads,








In honour of
St. Alphonsus Rodriquez
laybrother of the Society of Jesus

Honour is flashed off exploit, so we say;
And those strokes once that gashed flesh or galled shield
Should tongue that time now, trumpet now that field,
And, on the fighter, forge his glorious day.
On Christ they do and on  the martyr may;
But be the war within, the brand we wield
Unseen, the heroic breast not outward-steeled,
Earth hears no hurtle then from fiercest fray.
Yet God (that hews mountain and continent, Earth, all, out;
who, with trickling increment,
Veins violets and tall trees makes more and more)
Could crowd career with conquest while there went
Those years and years by of world without event
That in Majorca Alphonso watched the door.
Bl Dominic Collins.jpg
All powerful and ever-living God, You gave us an example of marvelous courage in the blessed martyrs Dominic and his companions. For the joy that was set before them they endured the cross, despising its shame. Grant by their prayers that, faithful to Your commandments, we may bring forth the fruits of unity and peace.


Born in Cork County, Ireland c. 1566 he entered the Society of Jesus in 1598 after working on the continent. His vocation was to be a professed Jesuit brother. Captured by the English who attempted to get Dominic to reject Christ, he was tortured and hanged under the charge of being a traitor. With 16 other Irish martyrs (non-Jesuits) Brother Dominic was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1992. More on Blessed Dominic's life can be read here.

North American Martyrs

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North_American_Martyrs.jpg

In the eyes of the world they suffered pain, but God was testing them and found them worthy.


Father, You consecrated the first beginnings of the faith in North America by the preaching and martyrdom of Saints John and Isaac and their companions. By the help of their prayers may the Christian faith continue to grow throughout the world.


These 8 Jesuits were martyred in North America between 1642 and 1649 after being tortured. Three were tomahawked at Auriesville, NY and five died in Canada. Six were priests and two were donnés. May we be renewed in faith in Christ through His witnesses:

St. John de Brébeuf

St. Isaac Jogues

St. Gabriel Lalemant

St. Anthony Daniel

St. Charles Garnier

St. Noël Chabanel

St. René Goupil

St. John de la Lande

Saint John Ogilvie

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ogilvie2.jpgO God, You revealed the power of the Spirit in Your holy martyr John. Through his example and prayers, strengthen us to serve the Church under the banner of the cross and to carry out in every land the missions entrusted to us by the successor of Peter.


Born in 1579 to a noble Calvinist family in Scotland, he studied on the continent converting to Catholicism at the Scots College in Louvain. He entered the Society of Jesus in 1599 and was ordained priest in Paris in 1610. Returning to Scotland in 1613 his ministry lasted for 13 months before he was betrayed, arrested and imprisoned. On March 10, 1615 he was interrogated, tortured and hanged for the charge of denying the king's supremacy in matters of religion. Pope Paul VI canonized Ogilvie in 1976. He is remembered for his fidelity to the Holy See and to the doctrine of papal primacy in matters spiritual. For more on Saint John Ogilvie, read a short bio here.

About the author

Paul A. Zalonski is from New Haven, CT. He is a member of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation, a Catholic ecclesial movement and an Oblate of Saint Benedict. Contact Paul at paulzalonski[at]yahoo.com.

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This page is a archive of entries in the Jesuit saints & blesseds category from October 2009.

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