Meet the five new saints of the Catholic Church
New saints include John Henry Newman and four women.
At St. Peter’s Square, In October 13, 2019: With 50,000 people in attendance from countries around the world, Pope Francis declared John Henry Newman, Mother Giuseppina Vannini, Mother Mariam Thresia Mankidiyan, Sister Dulce Lopes Pontes, and Marguerite Bays Catholic saints.
Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-1890): Theologian, literary figure, and founder of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in England. He was the first Anglican to become a Catholic priest and cardinal and is the first English person to be made a saint in almost 50 years.
Mother Giuseppina Vannini (1859-1911): Founder of the Daughters of Saint Camillus, she is the first Roman woman to be canonized in more than 400 years.
Mother Mariam Thresia Mankidiyan (1876-1926): Mystic, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Family (CHF) in Kerala, India. She spent her entire life assisting the poor, the sick, the elderly and all those in need, and was invoked as protector of families in difficulty and intercessor of couples who do not have children. She was beatified on April 9, 2000 by Pope John Paul II.
Sister Dulce Lopes Pontes (1914-1992): The first woman born in Brazil to become a saint. She is known as St. Dulce of the Poor for caring for the poorest of the poor in her convent’s chicken yard in Salvador, Bahia. At the time of her death in 1992, Sister Dulce had been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Marguerite Bays (1815-1879): Stigmatist and 19th-century Swiss laywoman. While she never entered a religious order, she dedicated her life to prayer and service to her parish community.
