Bl. Peter Donders
Born: October 27, 1809
Died: January 14, 1887
Feast Day: January 14
Patron saint of: Missionaries
Born in Tilburg, Holland in 1089, Peter Donders always dreamed of being a priest. Working factory jobs to provide for his family, however, meant that Peter could not receive the necessary education. While he was originally rejected by the Franciscans, Jesuits, and Redemptorists, Peter was finally able to enter seminary formation through the gift of a generous benefactor and the perseverance of his local priests. Ordained in 1841, Peter spent much of his early priesthood ministering to slaves and indigenous people who lived amid river plantations before moving to Batavia where he lived with and ministered among people with leprosy. Peter’s perseverance and unceasing pastoral care for those he encountered are hallmarks of his life’s mission and ministry. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II on May 23, 1982.
Image: Unknown photographer - Blogspot Santose beatos catolicos, via Wikimedia Commons
