Patron St. Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier, born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta (7 April 1506 – 3 December 1552) was a Roman Catholic missionary born in Xavier,
Kingdom of Navarre (now part of Spain), and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. He was a student of Ignatius of Loyola and one
of the first seven Jesuits, dedicated at Montmartre in 1534.[1] He led an extensive mission into Asia, mainly in the Portuguese Empire of the
time.
He was influential in the spreading and upkeep of Catholicism most notably in India,
but also ventured into Japan, Borneo, the Moluccas, and other areas which had thus far not been visited by Christian missionaries.
In these areas, being a pioneer and struggling to learn the local languages in the face of opposition, he had less success than he
had enjoyed in India. It was a goal of Xavier to one day reach China.
A saint not because of his miraculous body
St. Francis Xavier was considered as a saint during his lifetime. After a careful study of his life and Apostolate he was canonized. As we said earlier, his body defied the normal destiny of the mortals throughout the centuries and has not yet crumbled into dust. This is an additional aspect of his life but not the main one.
Feast Day of Saint Francis Xavier
The Feast Day of Saint Francis Xavier is December 3rd. The origin of Feast Days: most saints have specially
designated feast days and are associated with a specific day of the year and these are referred to as the saint's feast day.
The feast days first arose from the very early Christian custom of the annual commemoration
of martyrs on the dates of their deaths at the same time celebrating their birth into heaven.
He was a man of prayer, a man concerned about the poor, the suffering, the jailed and all the underprivileged.
There will not be a better way to honour him than to follow his example instead of only asking favours from him.
