St. Francis of Assisi (c. 1181–1226) was one for whom that first step of conversion did not come easily. Like the rich young man of the Gospels, Francis enjoyed a life of material wealth and social advantage. Seeking to enhance those gifts through the pursuit of fame and personal glory, he went off to war only to return in defeat, physically wounded and emotionally broken. Beneath his life of abundance and ambition, an unspoken restlessness stirred within him, a longing that would find its true object and fulfillment in his personal encounter with the crucified Jesus.

A well-known anecdote about young Francis places him before the crucifix in the ruins of the small church of San Damiano. In this moment, he hears words similar to those spoken to Peter. To Francis, Jesus says, “Rebuild my Church.” But, before he can be a builder for Christ, he first had to be made.

Francis experienced a personal conversion. The word conversion derives its meaning from the Latin root, convertere, meaning to “turn around.” Unlike the rich young man of the Gospels, who found that first step in a new direction too difficult to take, Francis accepted Jesus’ radical invitation to give up everything to follow Him. As a sign of his complete conversion, Francis embraced a life of evangelical poverty and abiding trust in the Lord. From that point on, he would rely on the providential love of God to sustain him.

Then, within a year’s time, Francis began attracting others to his radical pursuit of the love of Jesus and his Gospel message. By the time of Francis’ death, the number of 'Little Brothers' had grown into the thousands, and the religious order today is known worldwide. Francis had become one of the great disciple-making saints of the Church.

Young Francis knew about Jesus, but something more was needed to set him on the path of discipleship. He had to experience the love of the crucified Lord in a personal way. This marked his conversion and the beginning of a new direction for his life. If you have yet to experience this love, I encourage you to pray for it now. When you pray, know that I also pray with you and for you, that upon receiving this gift, you will take the next step as a true disciple of Jesus.

Learn more about St. Francis of Assisi and St. Clare:

• St. Francis of Assisi (article)
• St. Francis of Assisi (video)‍
• St. Clare of Assisi (article)

When we think about the struggle with personal sin, perhaps no one comes to mind more often than St. Augustine of Hippo (354–430). His autobiography, Confessions, helps us understand that overcoming sin through the grace of confession is a gift from a loving, compassionate God.

As a young adult, Augustine’s struggle with sins of unchastity so consumed him that, even when his mind was set on converting to the truth of the faith, his will faltered. With words that forever mark his great moment of penitential grace, he pleaded with God to free him. In that instant, he heard the voice of a child, urging him to “pick it up” and “read it.” Noticing the book within his reach, he “snatched” the bound letters of Paul. The pages flipped open to Romans, and his eyes fell on chapter 13, verse 13:

[Not] in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh. 

In Confessions, Augustine recounts the immediate, interior change he experienced, writing, “There was infused in my heart something like the light of full certainty”... (8.7.29–30). After years of distancing himself from God, he was now ready to receive the fullness of grace in the Sacraments of the Church.

Learn more about St. Augustine and St. Kateri Tekakwitha:

• St. Augustine of Hippo (article)‍
• St. Augustine of Hippo (video)‍‍
• St. Kateri Tekakwitha (article)

The recent National Eucharistic Revival coincided with the canonization process of a new saint who has become a role model of Eucharistic discipleship in this post-Christendom age. Born in 1991, Carlo Acutis grew up in Italy, an ordinary boy raised by parents who were not particularly religious. Nonetheless, at a very young age, he demonstrated an extraordinary faith, especially in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. After receiving his First Communion at the age of seven, Carlo made it his practice to attend Mass daily. After Mass, he also devoted time in personal prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.

Carlo went to school, played soccer, did his homework, and enjoyed video games. Yet, his relationship with Jesus nurtured through the Eucharist prompted him to turn his gaze away from himself and toward the needs of others. He befriended those whom others bullied at school. He demonstrated unwavering concern for the needs of the homeless through small, personal acts of charity. His interest and knowledge of computers gave him the means to build a website on Eucharistic miracles, still accessible today. For Carlo, creating greater awareness of the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist became his way to spread the Good News of Jesus to the ends of the earth. Dubbed the “first millennial saint,” St. Carlo Acutis speaks to our hearts about the power of the Eucharist to transform our lives, making us disciples who are passionate about making more disciples for Jesus.

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‍Learn more about St. Carlo and St. Teresa of Ávila:

• Carlo Acutis (article)‍
• Carlo Acutis (video)‍‍
• St. Teresa of Ávila (article)

Perhaps no disciple took Jesus’ command to “make disciples of all nations” more literally, or lived that command more joyfully, than the patron saint of the Diocese of Joliet, St. Francis Xavier. Born into Spanish nobility, this youngest of six children was placed in his mother’s arms on April 7, 1506, at the Castle of Xavier in northern Spain. From the tower that rose above the centuries-old fortress, young Francis could see the sleepy valleys and rolling hills of the Navarre province. He might have thought of distant lands at the dawning of the Age of Exploration, but he had set his sights on a surer future, determined by his birth order and noble class. While his older brothers pursued military careers, his focus would be on higher academics and ecclesiastical posts.

At the age of 19, Francis enrolled at the University of Paris, still the center of learning and culture in Christian Europe. After a few years, his life took an unexpected turn with the seemingly inconsequential assignment of a new roommate. His name was Ignatius of Loyola. Fifteen years his senior, Ignatius boldly and persistently shared his radical Christian faith with Francis and their other roommate, Peter Faber. While Francis resisted, Faber was quickly won over. In time, the reluctant Francis acquiesced to Ignatius’ spiritual exercises, resulting in his own deep conversion. By 1534, this initial cadre of university students numbered seven members, all becoming priests. Together, they took the vows of poverty and chastity, and in 1540, Pope Paul III recognized the new “Jesuit” order.

Father Francis, his heart on fire with love for Christ and the Church, did not set out to live a vocation as a missionary. When an unexpected illness prevented another Jesuit from taking up the order’s inaugural trip to the Far East, Francis Xavier volunteered to go in his place. Arriving in India in 1542, the 36-year-old Francis began a decade of missionary activity, which began in the subcontinent and then continued to parts of modern-day Indonesia, Malaysia, and Japan. He was known for his joyful ministry to the poor, appropriating their lifestyle and customs while sharing the Gospel and winning converts wherever he went. He had a special love for ministering to the sick, especially lepers.

On December 3, 1552, as he awaited passage to mainland China from a small, coastal island, Francis succumbed to a fever and died. Those who have studied the accounts of his missionary work have estimated his number of baptisms at 30,000. This gives evidence of his heroic response to the Great Commission, not only to teach all that the Lord commanded, but also to baptize. Numerous miraculous healings were attributed to Francis’s intervention during his life, and after Francis’ death, through his intercession. On March 12, 1622, Pope Gregory XV canonized Francis Xavier and Ignatius of Loyola together, marking the reunion of the two saints in heaven. In 1927, on behalf of the universal Church, Pope Pius XI designated Saint Francis Xavier, along with Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (1873–1897), the co-patrons of worldwide missions.

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Learn more about St. Francis Xavier and St. Teresa of Calcutta:

• St. Francis Xavier (article)‍
• St. Francis Xavier (video)‍‍
• St. Teresa of Calcutta (article)