St. Gerard Sagredo
Bishop of Csanád and Martyr
Feast Day: September 24
Biography
St. Gerard (c. 980–1046), known in Hungary as Gellért, was born in Venice, probably into the Sagredo family, and was entrusted as a boy to the Benedictine monastery of San Giorgio Maggiore, where he studied and later became a monk. Around 1020, while traveling toward the Holy Land, he was diverted to Hungary, where King St. Stephen was working to establish the Church among his newly Christian people. Stephen made Gerard tutor to his son and heir, St. Emeric. Gerard then spent about seven years as a hermit at Bakonybél, praying and writing. Around 1030 Stephen named him the first bishop of Csanád, a new diocese in the southeast of the kingdom, in what is now partly Romania. Gerard preached tirelessly, founded schools, and cared for the poor. His theological work, the Deliberatio on the song of the three young men in the Book of Daniel, still survives. After Stephen's death in 1038, the kingdom fell into turmoil, and in 1046 a pagan uprising broke out. On September 24, 1046, rebels seized Gerard at Buda and put him to death. Tradition holds that he was thrown from the hill above the Danube that now bears his name, Gellért Hill. He was canonized in 1083, with the approval of Pope St. Gregory VII, together with Stephen and Emeric.
Patronages
Symbols
Prayer
St. Gerard, faithful monk and shepherd, you left your homeland to help plant the faith in a young Christian nation. Pray for all who teach and form the young, that they may lead them to Christ. When unrest and hostility surround me, help me to stand firm, to preach the Gospel by my life, and to trust in God's care. Amen.
Asking for Intercession
Catholics ask saints to pray with us and for us, as we ask friends on earth. St. Gerard Sagredo, who lives in God's presence, intercedes before His throne. Speak from your heart: “St. Gerard Sagredo, please pray for me…” You may also pray the prayer above or include this intention in your Rosary.