Venerable Matt Talbot

I was born in Dublin in 1856, into a poor family. My father had a difficult time supporting us. After a few years of schooling, I obtained work as a messenger for some liquor merchants. Soon I began to drink too much. For 15 years, until I was almost 30, I was an alcoholic. One day everything changed, after my friends snubbed me when I was in a pitiful state, begging them to buy me a drink. I vowed before God not to drink for three months, to make a general confession and to attend Mass daily. Avoiding a drink was really hard during the first days. As a remedy, I began to pray as intensely as I used to drink. I found a job as a builder. Later I joined the Third Order of Saint Francis. I spent every night reading the Scriptures and the lives of the Saints. Although I wasn’t rich, I contributed what I could to the missions. After 1923, my health failed and I died on my way to church.