Today, October 16, is the Feast of St. Gerard Majella, C.Ss.R. St. Gerard was a Redemptorist Brother and a companion of St. Alphonsus Liguori.

He was born in 1726 in Muro, Italy. He grew up in poverty and developed a great respect for the poor.

St. Gerard was sickly most of his short life on this earth. As a result, when he developed the desire to join a religious community, he was turned down until he approached the Redemptorists.

As a Redemptorist, he remained close to the poor. His ability to be empathetic and to read souls helped him to counsel religious women.

He also had mystical abilities, such as the ability to levitate and bi-locate. Many miracles are associated with St. Gerard: 1) restoring a boy's life after he fell from a high cliff; 2) blessing a poor farmer's crops to free it from mice; 3) blessing a poor family's supply of wheat that miraculously lasted over a year; and 4) multiplying bread for the poor, as Jesus did.

Additionally, St. Gerard's prayers aided women in labor. For example, one day while walking about, Gerard unknowingly dropped his handkerchief. The young girl witnessed it and brought it to Gerard's attention. As she attempted to return the handkerchief to him, he told her to keep it, saying she might need it one day.

Years after St. Gerard's death, the young girl, now an adult, had married and was bearing a child. During labor, she was on the verge of losing her baby. She remembered her encounter with St. Gerard and quickly requested that St. Gerard's handkerchief be brought to her. Almost immediately upon receiving it, the pain left her and she gave birth to a healthy child.

St. Gerard died of tuberculosis on October 16, 1755. He was only 29 years old. He was canonized on December 11, 1904, by Pope Pius X.




Prayer to St. Gerard for Safe Childbirth

O Great Saint Gerard, beloved servant of Jesus Christ, you were the perfect imitator of your meek and humble Savior. Likewise you were a devoted Child of Mary, his Mother. Please enkindle within my heart the heavenly fire of charity which glowed in your heart and made you an angel of love.
O glorious Saint Gerard, when falsely accused of crime, you faced the accusations, like your Divine master, without complaint. And in your innocence, you were raised up by God to become the Patron and Protector of mothers-- especially expectant mothers.
Preserve me from danger and from the excessive pains that accompany childbirth. Shield the child within me, that it may see the light of day and receive the lustrous waters of baptism through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.