Saint of the Day: St. Aloysius Gonzaga YOUCATholic.com St. Aloysius Gonzaga The first-born son of seven kids, his parents had high hopes for him. His family was aristocratic and he was set to inherit it all. His dad wanted more than anything for him to become a soldier. He sent him off at the tender age of 5 to a military camp. But his heart was... Bethanie Ryan
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Saint of the Day: St. Aloysius Gonzaga
The first-born son of seven kids, his parents had high hopes for him. His family was aristocratic and he was set to inherit it all. His dad wanted more than anything for him to become a soldier. He sent him off at the tender age of 5 to a military camp.
But his heart was never in it. He was horrified by the violence that surrounded him in renaissance Italy. He once became very ill with kidney problems. As he lay convalescing, he prayed and read the stories of the saints. At the age of 9, he took a private vow of chastity. He decided he wanted to be a missionary and he prepared himself by teaching the faith to younger children.
When he was 15, he told his family that he wanted to be a Jesuit. This would completely obliterate any hopes his parents had for him. He would have to give up his inheritance. He would not become a soldier. His mother supported his decision, but his father refused. It wasn’t until two years later that his dad would finally give up his dreams for his son and allowed his son to follow his own calling.
St. Aloysius still had health problems and they affected his studies. He did manage to officially join the Jesuits and he was on his way to being ordained a priest when he died. When he was 22, the plague broke out in Rome. He wanted to help and the Jesuits let him volunteer at the hospital, but only on wards where there were no plague victims. Little did anyone know, one of the men on the ward did have the plague and gave it to St. Aloysius. He did not die from the plague but it did make all of his pre-existing issues worse. That led ultimately to his death just a couple months after his 23rd birthday.
We don’t live in renaissance Italy. We might not feel particularly religious. What does St. Aloysius have to teach us today?
I’d argue two things, one for youth and another for parents:
For youth: In this media-saturated culture, it is hard to find silence and peace. Even in renaissance, St. Aloysius only got some time to himself when he was sick. I would suggest that we all need to take some time out to listen to the voice of God. He speaks in the silence. And when we hear His voice, let us all have the courage to listen.
For parents: All parents throughout history had hopes for their children. From the moment we find out that we’re pregnant, we’re dreaming of what our child’s life could look like. But we can’t let those dreams stand in the way of the Holy Spirit. Easier said than done, I know, but it is part of the responsibility of parenthood. We are not raising children to do our will, but His will. We aren’t raising them to be extensions on our lives, but rather their own individual lives.
Dear Christian youth, you were a faithful follower of Christ in the Society of Jesus. You steadily strove for perfection while generously serving the plague-stricken. Help our youth today who are faced with a plague of false cults and false gods. Show them how to harness their energies and to use them for their own and others’ fulfillment—which will redound to the greater glory of God. Amen. - Prayer to St. Aloysius Gonzaga, Patron of Youth
