Who are your favorite lesser- known Saints?

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ColinFaust

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Hello! This is my first ever started topic on these forums. What better way to kick things off than to ask everyone who their favorite saints are? Personally, I am obsessed with reading and learning about our beloved saints, especially some of the lesser known saints- many of whom were martyrs. What a blessing it is to have such powerful and inspiring models who display the level of holiness we are all called to. Also, if anyone has any good book recommendations on a particular saint- please share!
 
For no particular reason I can think of, St. Dorotheos of Gaza popped up in my mind.
 
In another era he may have been more popular, but I feel like he is not very popular today, but St Gregory the Wonderworker.
 
St. Philomena’s my homie 😇 Is she well known? I dunno.

Julian of Norwich fascinates me. She’s not a canonized saint but two or three of the last several Popes have spoken highly of her writings. I can’t figure out why she’s not canonized.
 
Ven. Pierre Toussaint. His cause is still with the Vatican for beatification, but I hold him in high regard. He was a slave who was considered the best hair dresser in New York in the late 18th, early 19th centuries. In addition to founding and contributing to many social justice programs in the city, he also paid for the freedom of his wife and children. He voluntarily stayed a slave to support his mistress when her husband squandered their wealth and died, leaving her penniless. He was so respected in New York, that the rich caucasian parishioners of Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral brought him and his family to sit with them during mass when an usher tried to throw him out. The spread of the faith among the upper class female population of New York during this time is thought to be influenced by his discussions with the ladies about his faith as he did their hair.
 
OK, I’m being a stinker, but many of these saints are not “lesser known” or maybe that is a very ambiguous adjective or criterion.

They are great saints, of course, don’t get me wrong. lol
 
“Catherine of Siena” by Sigrid Undset

(Certainly not lesser know but an excellent life of a saint to read.)
 
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From what I understand, her cause hasn’t been progressed because the details of her life are very clouded. We don’t even know if Julian was her real name or even if she actually came from Norwich. It has been speculated that she was known as the saint of St. Julian’s, Norwich as the church at which she was an anchoress was St. Julian’s Church in Norwich. There is actually debate if she was a professed religious anchoress or if she was simply a pious lay woman who was quarantined at the Church after encounters with the plague.

There is also speculation as to the authenticity of the entirety of her writings. Parts of the Long Text of Revelations of Divine Love have been found in other theological treatises not attributed to her which predate the earliest known existence of the Long Text by about 100 years.
 
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I’m from this small town in Mexico called Yuriria ,and during the Cristero War, we go a martyr of our own. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II. His name is Blessed Elias Del Socorro Nieves. He was a priest who was murdered for saying mass in secret when it was illegal. The soldiers who shot him told him “ Let’s see if dying is like saying mass” he is reported to have said “ You are correct, because to die for the faith is a sacrifice pleasing to God”. After this he blessed those same soldiers and cried out the famous Cristero cry “ Long Live Christ the King!”. Please help me pray for his canonization! (Please Note: This uploaded content is no longer available.)
 
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Saint Eric.
Now, I’m Lutheran, so while I don’t venerate saints directly, I view them as pious examples and forbearers. I have a soft spot for Saint Eric for a specific reason, not covered by his vita(that’s the right word?)
His cult took on some of the forms and practices of the local pre-Christian main god, and in doing so eased the general acceptance of the conversions. It made Christianity seem more familiar, traditional and well holy which promoted longterm acceptance. Sort of unintended positive consequences.
I give his statue a nod when I pass it in our cathedral, with a prayer to God for UN mediators and similar tasks in conflict-torn times and places.
 
This warms my heart so, especially because what you are doing, seeing his life as an example of faith and being inspired by his example, giving his statue a nod, this all what veneration is :)! Coming from one of our Fellow Christians of another denomination, it makes me happy to see that the saints help you all this way too. I hope my post doesn’t bother you in any way. I truly only meant to say how nice it was to see it!
 
Lol No, your comment didn’t bother me, and Thank you for your kind sentiment.
I draw the line at actively addressing a saint or Mary, even as intercessor, which just feels weird to me, but I don’t have an issue with Catholic modes of veneration.
Grace flows like water, though we sip from cups of different shapes.
 
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I still can not understand the glorification of people and giving them a special title in heaven and on earth.
There are a lot of very holy people who managed to escape from the self-PR.
These people are so many. These are the Christian missions unknown to us serving in hot spots where there is a war, or in the countries where there is a hunger.
These people are not advertised at ecclesiastical titles , neither by PR media, but does that mean they’re less Holy?
 
They are perfectly happy in heaven with beatific vision whether they are venerated on earth or not. The communion of saints is more for us than for them – to be given examples of heroic sanctity to strengthen our own weak faith.
 
Blessed Jerzy Populesko… He’s probably the most recent of the saints on the thread, and incredibly underrated
 
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