St. Francis Xavier

"Many, many people hereabouts are not becoming Christians for one reason only: there is nobody to make them Christians. I wish the university students would work as hard at converting these people as they do at their books, and so settle their account with God for their learning and the talents entrusted to them."
- St. Francis Xavier (1506 - 1552)

Today is the feast day of St. Francis Xavier. Francis was born in 1506 at his family's castle of Xavier, which was near Pamplona, Spain. Francis studied at the University of Paris, and in 1534 joined the Jesuits due to the influence of his friend St. Ignatius of Loyola (the founder of the Jesuits). In 1537, Francis was ordained a priest in Venice, Italy. From Venice, Francis went to Lisbon, Portugal, and then to Goa, India. He lived among the poorest, and spent much of his time helping the sick and the poor. After preaching in India, he went to Malaysia and then to Japan. He had dreams of going to China, but he died before he reached the mainland in 1552. He was canonized in 1622, and is the patron saint of all foreign missions. 

St. Francis Xavier, pray for us!

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Picture Of And Information About St. Francis Taken From:

http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saintofday/

http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=423

http://www.marypages.com/FrancisXavier.htm