Catholic Saints

Traditionally the use of the term saint refers to a person who is recognized as having attained a certain level of holiness. Used within Christianity definitions do vary by denomination. In the Roman Catholic church, the title of Saint refers to a person who has been formally canonized (officially recognized) by the Church. There are more than 10,000 Roman Catholic Saints.

The older term for Saint is martyr, meaning someone who would rather die than give up their faith, or more specifically, witness for God. However, as the word martyr took on more and more the meaning of "one who died for the Faith," the term Saint, meaning holy, became more commonly used to describe the whole of Christian witnesses, both martyrs and confessors.

The Catholic Church teaches that it does not, in fact, make anyone a Saint. Rather, it recognizes a Saint. Once a person has been declared a saint, the body of the saint is considered holy. The remains of saints are called holy relics and are usually used in Churches. The saints' personal belongings may also be used as relics. Some of the saints have a symbol that represents their life.

The Little Flower proudly carries a large selection of gifts that honor the most well known Catholic Saints.

Saint Anthony
Saint Anthony of Padua (ca. 1195 – June 13, 1231) also venerated as Saint Anthony of Lisbon, is a Catholic Saint who was born in Lisbon, Portugal, as Ferdinand Martins de Bulhões to a wealthy family; he died in Padua, Italy.

One of the most beloved of Saints, his images and statues are ubiquitous. Proclaimed a Doctor of the Church on January 16, 1946, he is sometimes called "Evangelical Doctor". He is especially invoked for the recovery of things lost ("Saint Anthony, Saint Anthony, please come around. Something is lost that can't be found.").

When he died, it is said that the children cried in the streets, that all the bells of the churches rang of their own accord, and that angels came to earth to ring the bells for the death of the Saint.

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Saint Jude
Saint Jude is a Christian Saint based on the characters of Jude of James and Thaddeus in the New Testament. He is also called Lebbaeus, Thaddaeus, or Judas Thaddaeus. In the Roman Catholic Church he is the patron Saint of desperate cases and lost causes.

Saint Jude's attribute is a club. He is also often shown in icons with a flame around his head, representing his presence at Pentecost. He is sometimes represented holding an axe or halberd, as he was brought to death by one of these weapons. Tradition holds that Saint Jude preached the Gospel in Judea, Samaria, Idumaea, Syria, Mesopotamia and Libya. It is also said that he visited Beirut and Edessa, though the latter mission is also attributed to Thaddeus. He is reported as suffering martyrdom together with Simon the Zealot in Persia.

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Saint Joseph
Joseph "of the House of David" (also Saint Joseph, Joseph the Betrothed, Joseph of Nazareth, and Joseph the Worker) was, according to the canonical Christian Gospel accounts and tradition, the husband of Mary and the father of Jesus of Nazareth, although – as they also assert – Joseph did not physically beget Jesus, but Mary had conceived him through divine means.

In the Roman Catholic and other traditions, Joseph is the patron Saint of workers and has several feast days. He was also declared to be the patron Saint and protector of the universal Catholic Church (along with Saint Peter) by Pope Pius IX in 1870, and is the patron of several countries and regions. He is a rare example of a saint from the early days of the church whose devotional role has tended to increase in the centuries since the Middle Ages.

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