Saint of the day: Andrew Bobola

St. Andrew Bobola was born in 1591 in Sandormir, Poland. His family was noble, but Andrew became a Jesuit priest, and was ordained in 1622. Three years later, he went to Vilna, Lithuania, to serve as a parish priest, and the superior of the Jesuit community there.

As a parish priest, Andrew focused on taking care of the sick, especially during a plague outbreak. He is also well known for his missionary work, traveling for almost 20 years to preach and convert whole villages to Catholicism.

Cossacks captured and tortured Father Andrew after Mass on May 10, 1657. He was beheaded six days later as a martyr when he refused to denounce his Catholic faith.

In 1808, his tomb was opened, and his body was found incorrupt. He is now entombed in a Jesuit church in Krakow, Poland.

St. Andrew was canonized in 1938 by Pope Pius XI.