São Lourenço de Brindes

Julius Caesar Russo, given name of Saint Lawrence, was born on July 22, 1559, in Brindisi, Italy. After being orphaned at the age of fourteen, he was taken in by an uncle, who lived in Venice.

Order of Friars Minor of Saint Francis of Assisi

Two years after arriving in Venice, he answered the call and joined the Order of Friars Minor of Saint Francis of Assisi. He joined the Capuchins of Verona, where he received ordination and assumed his new name in 1582.

Afterwards, he completed his training at the University of Padua. He returned to Venice in 1586, with the mission of becoming novice master of the Order.

Evangelizer and peacemaker

Saint Lawrence was a preacher of the Word of God in many places in Europe, such as Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Holland. Knowledgeable in Hebrew, Aramaic, Chaldean, Greek, Latin, German, Italian and other languages, he was able to delve deeper into the studies of the Holy Scriptures, thus firmly evangelizing Catholic orthodoxy against the Protestant Reformation. He was also a key player as a peacekeeper during the threat of invasion by the Turks.

Lourenço was the superior general of his own Order and ambassador of Pope Paul V, with the mission of mediating conflicting princes and kings.

São Lourenço constantly avoided honors. In addition to sleeping on the floor, he got up at night to pray and ate only bread, water and vegetables as penance.

Easter

Lourenço died in Lisbon in 1619, when he returned for the second time on a mission to Lisbon, Portugal.

He was canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1881. He received the title of Doctor of the Church in 1959, granted by Pope John XXII.