St. Paul of the Cross
1694 - 1775
St. Paul of the Cross was born at Ovada in the Republic of Genoa, January 3, 1694. His infancy and youth were spent in great innocence and piety. He was inspired from on high to found a congregation; in an ecstacy he beheld the habit which he and his companions were to wear. After consulting his director, Bishop Gastinara of Alexandria in Piedmont, he reached the conclusion that God wished him to establish a congregation in honor of the Passion of Jesus Christ. On November 22, 1720, the bishop vested him with the habit that had been shown to him in a vision, the same that the Passionists wear at the present time. From that moment the saint applied himself to repair the Rules of his institute; and in 1721 he went to Rome to obtain the approbation of the Holy See. At first he failed, but finally succeeded when Benedict XIV approved the Rules in 1741 and 1746. Meanwhile St. Paul built his first monastery near Obitello. Sometime later he established a larger community at the Church of St. John and Paul in Rome. For fifty years St. Paul remained the indefatigable missionary of Italy. God lavished upon him the greatest gifts in the supernatural order, but he treated himself with the greatest rigor, and believed that he was a useless servant and a great sinner. His saintly death occurred at Rome in the year 1775, at the age of eighty-one. He was canonized by Pope Pius IX in 1867. His feast day is October 20.
Previous Saint
< St. Paul Denn
Next Saint
St. Paul Chong Hasang >
Rate This Saint
Very Helpful Somewhat Helpful Not Helpful at All
Yes, I am Interested No, I am not Interested
1 - 9 of 9 Comments
Leave a Comment
Comments submitted must be civil, remain on-topic and not violate any laws including copyright. We reserve the right to delete any comments which are abusive, inappropriate or not constructive to the discussion.
Though we invite robust discussion, we reserve the right to not publish any comment which denigrates the human person, undermines marriage and the family, or advocates for positions which openly oppose the teaching of the Catholic Church.
This is a supervised forum and the Editors of Catholic Online retain the right to direct it.
We also reserve the right to block any commenter for repeated violations. Your email address is required to post, but it will not be published on the site.
We ask that you NOT post your comment more than once. Catholic Online is growing and our ability to review all comments sometimes results in a delay in their publication.
Send me important information from Catholic Online and it's partners. See Sample
Previous Saint
< St. Paul Denn
Next Saint
St. Paul Chong Hasang >
Find Saints
Catholic Online offers the largest searchable database of Catholic Saints on the internet.
| Browse Saints by Alphabet |
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
| Patron Saints by Alphabet |
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z |
Videos
St. Francis of Assisi 80,627 views View Video
Padre Pio 48,876 views View Video
Black Saints Vol I 31,683 views View Video
Black Saints Vol II 27,966 views View Video
Most Popular
Courageous Cardinal George of Chicago Defends Marriage, Calls for Public Conversion Read More
Pope Francis Refers to 'gay lobby' inside Vatican Read More
Fall of the Wall of Silence: More on Pope Francis and Reports of a 'Gay Lobby' in the Roman Curia Read More
Why Catholics Have Failed Our Culture: The Bottom Line Read More
No-one Can Change the Truth About Fatherhood. Love Your Father. Be a Good Father Read More
Daily Readings
Reading 1, Second Corinthians 6:1-10
As his fellow-workers, we urge you not to let your acceptance ... Read More
Psalm, Psalms 98:1, 2-3, 3-4
[Psalm] Sing a new song to Yahweh, for he has performed ... Read More
Gospel, Matthew 5:38-42
'You have heard how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for ... Read More
Saint of the Day
St. Emily de Vialar
June 17: St. Emily de Vialar, Virgin, Foundress of the Sisters of St. ... Read More
Latest Videos
Pope calls on G8 to seek the common good, not economic wealth View Video
Special Creation seminar DvD snippet View Video
Holy Name of Mary, Fr. Gabriel - ADWM #76: View Video
The Lord Bless You And Keep You 06-14-2013 View Video
Gospel Reflections Luke 7:36-8:3 View Video
Marketplace
Volume Five: Jesus the Redeemer
Bishop Leo O'Reilly of the Diocese of Kilmore, Ireland has given ... Read More
Gift for a Lifetime: Handmade Prayer Cross ~ Personalize, Ship Free Read More




















This is a really great sight! I've used it for soo many reports! Keep it up!
St. Paul of the Cross, please pray for to bear all the crosses in life, by puting them upon the Cross of Jesus, who shall teach me the value of patience, forbearence and fortitude.
Please pray for Jacob that he finds the right path, for his parents that they find the strenght and wisdow to guide him and for all cancer patients that they deal with their disease with grace and dignity. Thank you.
The only thing problem was that I was looking to read the Rule of St. Paul of the Cross and it is not cited in the article nor is there a link to interested individuals. Otherwise it is an excellent article.
Dear St. Paul of the Cross, Grant me the favour to bear the crosses, especially from my loved ones who fail to understand and appreciate me.
"God lavished upon him the greatest gifts in the supernatural order, but he treated himself with the greatest rigour", is the comment about St. Paul of the Cross that I take as my lesson of the day. Catholics today, desire the same spirit of humiliy and patience with which you served Jesus Our Lord. We will never understand the meaning of poverty, pain, hunger and disease in the world today. However, in your saintly life you have given us refelections on Christ's Passion and death, that united with Christ Crucified, our pain may be eased. Dear Saint, I pray for helpless, hungry, suffering children. Give these, the most vulnerable of all God's creation, the healing of mind and body. Amen.
St. Paul of the Cross, may your love inspire all of us. St. Vincentii M Strambi & St. Gabriel a V Perd, who great Passionist Love that followed Paul, bless us all.
I would love to read more information about St. Paul of the Cross
Sean Coughlin i am doing ST.Paul of the cross because he is holy and i like the name Paul