Saint Aloysius Gonzaga

[Saint Aloysius holy card]
Also known as
Aluigi Gonzaga
Luigi Gonzaga
Memorial
21 June
Profile
Italian noble who grew up in a castle, the son of a compulsive gambler. Cousin of Saint Rudolph Acquaviva. Trained from age four as a soldier and courtier. Suffered from kidney disease which he considered a blessing as it left him bed-ridden with time for prayer. While still a boy himself, he taught catechism to poor boys. Received First Communion from Saint Charles Borromeo. At age 18 he signed away his legal claim to his family's lands and title to his brother, and became a Jesuit novice. Spiritual student of Saint Robert Bellarmine. Tended plague victims in Rome in the outbreak of 1591.
Born
9 March 1568 at castle of Castiglione delle Stivieri in Montau, Lombardy, Italy
Died
20-21 June 1591 at Rome of plague, fever, and desire to see God; relics entombed under the altar of Saint Ignatius Church, Rome
Beatified
19 October 1605 Pope Paul V (cultus confirmed)
1621 by Pope Gregory XV
Canonized
31 December 1726 by Pope Benedict XIII
Patronage
against sore eyes
AIDS care-givers
AIDS patients
Catholic youth
Jesuit students
relief from pestilence
teenage children
teenagers
Valmonte, Italy
young people
Prayers
Prayer of Self-Commendation to Mary
Prayer to...
Images
Gallery of images of Saint Aloysius
Storefront
Commercial Site
Additional Information
Catholic Encyclopedia, by J F X O'Conor
Catholic Online
Catholic Pages
Domestic Church, by Catherine Fournier
For All The Saints, by Katherine Rabenstein
Goffine's Devout Instructions
Google Directory
New Catholic Dictionary
Patron Saint of Youth
The Saints: A Concise Biographical Dictionary, edited by John Coulson
Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Society
Book of Saints, by the Monks of Ramsgate
Our Sunday Visitor's Encyclopedia of Saints, by Matthew Bunson, Margaret Bunson, and Stephen Bunson
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Readings
There is no more evident sign that anyone is a saint and of the number of the elect, than to see him leading a good life and at the same time a prey to desolation, suffering, and trials.

- Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
He who wishes to love God does not truly love Him if he has not an ardent and constant desire to suffer for His sake.

- Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
O Holy Mary! My Mother; into thy blessed trust and special custody, and into the bosom of thy mercy, I this day, and every day, and in the hour of my death, commend my soul and body. To thee I commit all my anxieties and sorrows, my life and the end of my life, that by they most holy intercession, and by thy merits, all my actions may be directed and governed by thy will and that of thy Son.

- Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
May the comfort and grace of the Holy Spirit be yours for ever, most honored lady. Your letter found me lingering still in this region of the dead, but now I must rouse myself to make my way on to heaven at last, and to praise God for ever in the land of the living; indeed I had hoped that before this time my journey there would have been over. If charity, as Saint Paul says, means "to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who are glad," then, dearest mother, you shall rejoice exceedingly that God in his grace and his love for you is showing me the path to true happiness, and assuring me that I shall never lose him.

Take care above all things, most honored lady, not to insult God's boundless loving kindness; you would certainly do this if you mourned as dead one living face to face with God, one whose prayers can bring you in your troubles more powerful aid than they ever could on earth. And our parting will not be for long; we shall see each other again in heaven; we shall be united with our Savior; there we shall praise him with heart and soul, sing of his mercies for ever, and enjoy eternal happiness.

from a letter to his mother by Saint Aloysius Gonzaga
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