Today is the feast day of St John of God. 10 facts about this saint.
A saint’s feast day is generally the date he or she died, and St John of God did indeed die on 8 March 1550, but 8 March was also his birthday. He was born on this date in 1495.
His birth name was João Duarte Cidade.
He is the patron of Booksellers, hospitals, nurses, the mentally ill, heart patients, and the dying.
When he was eight years old, he disappeared. It’s not known whether he was kidnapped or ran away for a bit, but he was gone long enough that his mother died of grief and his father became a monk, so when he did reappear, he was a homeless orphan. He lived on the streets of Spain until he managed to get a job looking after Sheep.
His boss was fond of him and found him a diligent worker, and wanted to make John his heir. The catch was he’d have to marry the farmer’s daughter and he wasn’t interested in her, so he joined the army.
He almost died in the military, not from the fighting but because a pile of treasure was stolen on his watch and he was condemned to death. One of the officers managed to get him pardoned, at which point John went back to farming for four years. He still didn’t marry, and presumably missed the military life, for when another bunch of soldiers passed through his home town, he joined up again, this time remaining a soldier for 18 years.
Then he decided to go to Africa to help Christians enslaved there, willing to die as a martyr if need be. On the way, he met up with a Portuguese knight and his family with whom he became friends. When all their possessions were stolen and they were ill, John nursed them and helped financially. However, he became disillusioned with Africa and decided to go back to Spain.
When he was about 42, a religious conversion while listening to a sermon by John of Avila. He also had a mental breakdown and was sent to a hospital for the mentally ill where the treatment was frequent beatings. John of Avila visited him and told him he should think of helping others rather than feeling sorry for himself. He set up a house where he could care for the poor and sick but at first his history of mental health issues went against him, but eventually gained the sympathy of priests in the area. It’s also said that Angels visited his house and assisted as well.
He began to gain followers and in due course they organised to become the Brothers Hospitallers of Saint John of God, with a mission to care for the sick all over the world. Today the order has a presence in 53 countries, and operates more than 300 hospitals.
He died of pneumonia after plunging into a river to save a young man from drowning. He was 55 years old. His body was moved a few times but now rests in a basilica which was originally built as a church especially to house his relics.
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