St. Philip Neri, patron saint of joy
May 26 is the memorial of one of my favorite saints, St. Philip Neri. He has a special place in my heart because he was on fire with love for the Lord and had a wonderful way of drawing others to the Faith -- through his warm sense of humor and charismatic personality. He treated everyone with equal dignity and respect and dedicated himself to helping others, regardless of their class or their state in life He demonstrated heroic charity and desired to bring all into a deeper relationship with the Lord. John Henry Newman, one of his followers, wrote this of him: "Nothing was too high for him, nothing too low. He taught poor begging women to use mental prayer; he protected orphans...Cardinals hung about his room, and popes asked for his miraculous aid in disease...It was was his mission to save people, not from, but in, the world."* St. Philip Neri was born in Florence, Italy on July 22, 1515, one of four children of the notary Francesco Neri. His mother died when he wa...