"One of the great figures of Iberian Catholicism, St. John of God (1495-1550), was born João Duarte Cidade in Montemor-o-Novo, Portugal. As an 8-year-old, he disappeared, with some sources saying a visiting priest enticed him to follow him in his travels and others that he was kidnapped. In any event, his disappearance from home seems to have caused his mother's death and his father's joining the Franciscans.
"In any event, the priest and the boy seem to have separated, with John left the boy in the care of a shepherd in Oropeza, Spain. The shepherd raised him and apparently pressed him eventually to take his daughter in marriage. John opted to join the Holy Roman Emperor's Army, bound for Austria to fight the Turks. For a while - but only for a while - John's spirit for adventure seemed to find a place in the excitement (and gambling) of military life.
"But, as St. Augustine reminds us, 'our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee,' and John's was a restless heart. . . ."
In a recent commentary, writer John M. Grondelski reflected on the life, conversion, and ministry of St. John of God.
To access Mr. Grondelski's complete post, please visit:
National Catholic Register: Blogs: John Grondelski: St. John of God, Pray For Us (8 MAR 23)
For more information about Saint John of God, please visit:
Aleteia: Saint of the Day: St. John of God
Catholic Online: St. John of God
The Catholic Encyclopedia (1910 Edition): St. John of God
For information about the Hospitaller Order of St. John of God, please visit:
Hospitaller Brothers of St. John of God
There is an organization, St. John Ambulance, named after St. John of God. For more information about St. John Ambulance, please visit:
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