Saint Aloysius Gonzaga

I was born in 1568, as the eldest of seven children at my family’s castle in Castiglione delle Stiviere. As a son of a princely family, I grew up in royal courts and army camps. My father wanted me to be a military hero. At age 7 I had a profound spiritual experience, which marked my life of faith and desire to live for God alone. When I was 9, I began my education at court and by age 11 I was teaching catechism to poor children, fasting three days a week and practicing great mortifications. When I was 13 years old, I traveled with my parents and the Empress of Austria to Spain and served there at the court of Philip II. Some time later, I decided to enter the Society of Jesus, but my father strongly opposed it. However, at the age of 18 I entered the seminary in Rome. In 1591, a plague struck Rome and the Jesuits opened a hospital. Taking care of sick people, I caught the disease and died at the age of 23.