St. Francis Borgia was a young Spanish nobleman, a duke.
He was happily married with eight children. This happy life ended when
his beloved wife, Eleanor, died. Francis did something that astonished
all the nobles of Spain - he gave up his Dukedom to his son Charles and
became a Jesuit priest. The brothers tested him by treating him in exactly
the opposite way he had been used to all his forty-one years of life. He,
who had once been a Duke, had to help the cook, carrying wood for the fire
and sweeping the kitchen. When he served food to the priests and brothers,
he had to kneel down in front of them all and beg them to forgive him for
being so clumsy! Still he never once complained or grumbled. The only time
he became angry was when anyone treated him with respect as if he was still
a Duke. He spread the Society of Jesus all over Spain and in Portugal.
When he was made Superior General of the Jesuits, he sent missionaries
all over the world. Under his guidance, the Jesuits grew to be one of the
most powerful Orders. Despite all his success, St. Francis Borgia remained
modest and humble. His feast day is October 10.
See: Francisco de Goya. St.
Francis Borgia Exorsizing.
Recommended reading:
The
Book of Saints: The Lives of the Saints According to the Liturgical Calendar
by George Angelini, Victor Hoagland (Editor). Regina Press, Malhame &
Company, 1986.
365
Saints: Your Daily Guide to the Wisdom and Wonder of Their Lives
by Woodeene Koenig-Brick (Author). Harper SanFrancisco, 1995.