Image from Getty Images
Twenty-One Coptic New Martyrs of Libya
“These martyrs were baptized not only in water and the Spirit, but also in blood, with a blood that is a seed of unity for all followers of Christ.”
Black and white print of St. Scholastic from the Baltimore Prayer Book from Wikimedia Commons
St. Scholastica
St. Scholastica was the twin sister of St. Benedict, founder of Western monasticism.
Mohandas Gandhi 1931 Black and White Photo from Getty Images
Mohandas Gandi
He is particularly remembered for having demonstrated the practical power of nonviolent action, not simply as a moral code for the individual, but as a practical instrument of social change.
Satoko Kitahara Black and White Photo from Wikimedia Commons
Venerable Satoko Kitahara
Stunned by these words, Satoko determined to become one with the ragpickers, living among them and joining them in begging for trash.
Black and white etching of St. Aquila and St. Priscilla, His Wife from Wikimedia Commons
St. Prisca
St. Prisca was one of a number of women who played prominent roles in the early Church—not simply as “helpers” to the male apostles but as evangelists and Church administrators in their own right.
Justus Sustermans Portrait of Galileo Galilei 1636 attained via Wikimedia Commons
Galileo Galilei
The Italian scientist Galileo achieved his original fame through his invention of one of the early thermometers, his experiments in physics, and his refinement of the telescope.
The first statue ever created of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton on the grounds of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland attained via Wikimedia Commons
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
With her canonization in 1975, she became the first native-born saint of the United States.
Image of Jacopone of Todi illustration from Wikimedia Commons
Blessed Jacopone of Todi
Remarkably, in joining the Franciscans he found a new voice as a poet, indeed one of the great lyric poets of the Middle Ages.
Image of Hagar and Ishmael in the desert, 1870, from Getty Images
Hagar the Egyptian
Though not the main protagonist of the story of Abraham and Sarah, Hagar helps to characterize the Lord as a God of life who hears the voice of the oppressed and makes a way out of no way.
Image of Virgin of Guadalupe from Getty Images
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Through him, she called the Church to heed the voice of the poor, to serve as a vehicle for their cultural and spiritual survival.
