St. Teresa Eustochio

Ø  Foundress of the Institute of the Heart of Daughters of the Sacred Jesus
Born	31st July 1801 in Bergamo,Italy
Died	3rd March 1852 in  Brescia
Beatified	In 1946 by Pope Pius XII
Canonized	10th June  2001 by Pope John Paul II
Feast	3rd March

Italian virgin and founder of the Institute of the Heart of Daughters of the Sacred Jesus. Member of a noble family of Bergamo, in Lombardy, she was formed in the religious life in the Benedictine community of her native city. Teresa’s mother, Countess Elena Pedrocca-Grumelli, had felt drawn to the religious life, but her aunt, a Poor Clare nun, prophesied that Elena would be the mother of holy children. Teresa was the oldest of the seven children; her brother became bishop of Brescia, Italy. Ingazia was educated at home, and the canon Giuseppe Benaglio, Vicar General of the diocese of Bergamo, Italy was her spiritual teacher.   Benedictine nun at Bergamo. Dedicated to the education of young girls. Founder of the Institute of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on 8 February 1831. Built orphanages, retreat centers, and provided help to the old, sick and infirm; noted spiritual guide and teacher. An extensive correspondent, in addition to the Constitutions and Book of Duties for the congregation, she left over 3,500 letters. The Daughters continue their mission in Italy, Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, India, and Albania.   She died in Brescia. Her feast day is March 3 . The relics of Teresa Verzeri  are venerated in the chapel of the Daughters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in Bergamo.

St. Rafqa (Rebecca Pierrette Ar-Rayes)

Ø  She is also known as   Lily of Himlaya  and   Little Flower of Lebanon
Born	On 29 June 1832 at Himlaya, Lebanon
Died	On 23 March 1914 at the Convent of Saint Joseph, Grabta, Lebanon , of natural causes , at the age of 82
Venerated	11th  February 1982 by Pope John Paul II
Beatified	17th  November 1985 by Pope John Paul II
Canonized	On 10th  June 2001 by Pope John Paul II
Feast	March 23rd
Patronage	Against Sickness,

Virgin and nun of the Lebanese Order of St. Antony of the Maronites. She is known as the "flower of Himlaya," the little Lebanese mountain village where she was born and baptized with the name Boutrossieh (Pierrette or Petronila in French) on June 29, 1832. Her mother´s death and father´s second marriage marked her childhood. At 14, despite the fact her father wanted her to marry, she declared she was attracted to the religious life. After working for a Lebanese family in Damascus, she entered the institute founded by Father Joseph Gemayel for the education of girls. The institute was unable to survive the conflicts of the decade of the 1860s. So, in 1871, Rebecca entered the Order of St. Antony of the Maronites, inspired in ancient Egyptian monasticism, where she took the name Rafqa (Rebecca in French). In 1885 Rafqa decided not to join the nuns for a walk around the monastery. In her autobiographical account she wrote, “It was the first Sunday of the Rosary. I did not accompany them. Before leaving each of the nuns came and said to me, ‘Pray for me sister.’ There were some who asked me to say seven decades of the Rosary … I went to the Church and started to pray. Seeing that I was in good health and that I had never been sick in my life, I prayed to God in this way, ‘Why, O my God, have you distance yourself from me and have abandoned me. You have never visited me with sickness! Have you perhaps abandoned me?’”   Blessed Rafqa continued in her account to her superior, the next night after the prayer “At the moment of sleeping I felt a most violent pain spreading above my eyes to the point that I reached the state you see me in, blind and paralyzed, and as I myself had asked for sickness I could not allow myself to complain or murmur.”   Near the time of her death, Rafqa asked that her sight be restored for a single hour so she could again see the face of Mother Ursula; the hour of sight was granted.   Sister Rebecca offered her health to the Lord [ In 1885] afterward she lost her eyesight. For 30 years she suffered excruciating pain in her face. Then, in 1907, she suffered a painful paralysis. Her inert body was covered with sores. She offered her suffering in union with Jesus. Her feast is celebrated March 23, anniversary of her death

St. Paula (Paula of St. Joseph Calasanz)

Ø  Foundress of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary, Sisters of the Pious Schools
Born	On 11 October 1799 at Arenys de Mar, near Barcelona, Spain
Died	On 26 February 1889 at Olesa de Montserrat, Barcelona, Spain of natural causes
Venerated	On 28 November 1988 by Pope John Paul II (decree of heroic virtues)
Beatified	On 18 April 1993 by Pope John Paul II at Rome
Canonized	On 25 November 2001 by Pope John Paul II
Feast	26th February

Daughter of Ramon and Vicenta Fornes Montal. Raised in a large and pious family in a small seaside village. Her father died when Paula was 10 years old. She worked as a seamstress and lace-maker, and helped raise her siblings, then helped in her parish to care for other children. At age thirty, still single and devoting herself privately to God, she and her friend Inez Busquets opened a school in Gerona to provide a good education mixed with spiritual guidance. The school was such a success that she was able to found a college in May 1842, and another school in 1846. To staff and manage the schools, she founded the Daughters of Mary (Pious School Sisters) on 2 February 1847, and took the name Paula of Saint Joseph of Calasanz. Paula served as the leader of the congregation, and they received approval from Pope Blessed Pius IX in 1860. These schools have now spread to four continents. Her feast is on  Feb. 26.

St. Leonie Aviat (Leonie Françoise de Sales Aviat)

Ø  Co-founded the congregation of the Oblate Sisters of St. Francis de Sales along with Blessed Father Louis Brisson Ø  Motto : “Let us work for the happiness of others”
Born	16 September 1844 , Sezanne, France
Died	10 January 1914 , Perugia, Italy
Beatified	27 September 1992, Rome by Pope John Paul II
Canonized	25 November 2001, Rome by Pope John Paul II
Feast	10th Jan

Religious, Co- founder of the Oblates of St. Francis of Sales, she was born in Sézanne, France. The textile factories at the time contracted very young girls who came from the rural areas. Because of this, in 1858 Father Louis Brisson began the St. Francis de Sales Work, to offer them a Christian and human education. In Leonie (this was the future saint´s baptismal name) he found the collaborator he needed. He founded the Sisters Oblates of St. Francis of Sales in 1866. The congregation placed  under the patronage of St. Francis de Sales .Pius X approved its constitutions in 1911. Leonie, who took the name Françoise de Sales when she entered the convent, became the first superior general. In addition to initiatives for labor, she founded schools for general basic education in parishes, and a residence for young girls in Paris. On January 10, 1914 she died in Perugia after entrusting herself totally to God. To her last breath, she remained faithful to the resolution she had taken at the time of her profession: “To forget myself entirely.” Later, her evangelizing work extended to Europe, South Africa and Ecuador, with the motto: “Let us work for the happiness of others.” She was beatified in 1992 and canonized on November 25, 2001. Her feast is on Jan 10th .

St.Maria Crescentia Hoss

Ø  Virgin, Nun of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis
Born	20 October 1682 at Kaufbeuren, Bavaria, Germany
Died	5 April, an Easter Sunday, 1744 at Kaufbeuren, Bavaria, Germany of natural causes
Venerated	2 August 1801 by Pope Pius VII (decree of heroic virtues)
Beatified	7 October 1900 by Pope Leo XIII
Canonized	25 November 2001 by Pope John Paul II
Feast	April 5

Maria Crescentia Hoss , T.O.R., (1682–1744) is a Roman Catholic saint. She was a contemplative nun of the Third Order Regular of St. Francis.   She was born Anna Höss on 20 October 1682 in Kaufbeuren, in Bavaria, Germany,to Matthias Hoss and his wife, Lucia Hoermann, the sixth of their eight children. Only three of the children would survive into adulthood.   Anna was raised devoutly, and knew at an early age that she wanted to become a nun at the local monastery of the Franciscan Tertiary nuns, which occupied the old Meierhof of the town, in whose chapel she often prayed. As a poor weaver, however, her father did not have enough money to pay the customary dowry expected of a candidate, so she was not admitted. In 1703, the Mayor of Kaufbeuren (a Protestant) ,  insist to admit  Anna, the mother of the monastery felt obligated to receive her, and Anna was admitted in June of that year.  The superior, however, resented this and referred to Anna as a "parasite", since she was felt not to be contributing to the community. Nevertheless, Anna received the religious habit and took the name Maria Crescentia.   Though by then she had begun to suffer from poor health--even paralysis, in 1741 she was elected as the monastery's mother superior, serving in that office until her death on 5 April, Easter Sunday, 1744.   In  1900, Mother Crescentia was beatified by Pope Leo XIII. She was canonized on 25 November 2001 by Pope John Paul II . Her monastery was then renamed St. Crescentia Monastery  in her honor. Her feast is April 5.

St.Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello

Ø  Foundress of  Congregation of the Benedictine Sisters of Providence, who are dedicated to teaching
Born	On 2 October 1791 at Langasco, Campomorone, Italy
Died	On 21 March 1858 at Ronco Scrivia, Italy,  of natural causes
Venerated	On 6 July 1985 by Pope John Paul II (decree of heroic virtues)
Beatified	On 10 May 1987 by Pope John Paul II
Canonized	On 19 May 2002 by Pope John Paul II at Rome, Italy
Feast	21st March

Born on October 2, 1791 as Benedetta Cambiagio in Campomorone , Italy was Saint Benedicta Cambiagio Frassinello. At age 20 she had a profound mystical experience which left her devoted to prayer and desiring a religious life. But she went with her family's wishes and married Giovanni Battista Frassinella in 1816. The lived a normal married life for two years, but Giovanni was impressed with his wife's holiness and desire for religious life. The couple took care of her little sister until she died from cancer in 1825. Giovanni joined the Somaschan Fathers and Benedetta became an Ursuline nun.   Benedicta's started to grow ill in 1826 and she returned home and she began to work with other young women in the area. The work was going so well that her husband was assigned to help. The schools continued to grow and prosper and Sister Benedicta was appointed Promoter of Public Instruction. Even though they lived a chaste life, the unusual relationship developed into gossip from civil and Church authorities. To make sure she did not get in the way of the work, in 1838 Benedicta turned the work over to the bishop and went to live as a nun in Ronco Scrivia.   She did not want to withdraw from the world and start over again, she and five companions founded the Congregation of the Benedictine Sisters of Providence who are dedicated to teaching and they opened another school. She lived alone and the authorities did not have cause for gossip, and Benedicta spend the rest of her life in prayer and service. She died on March 21, 1858 in Ronco Scrivia of natural causes. She was canonized on May 19, 2002 by Pope John Paul II in Rome.