In Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate (Rejoice and Be Glad), he enjoins us to embark on our Christian journey of holiness by embracing the ordinariness of everyday. Throughout his exhortation, Pope Francis calls out more than 40 saints who can assist us on our mission of Christian faith, and to teach us how to rejoice and be glad in all of life’s challenges, mysteries, and joys.
During the 34 weeks of Ordinary Time, we will introduce you to some of the saints mentioned in Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation. #OrdinarySaints for #OrdinaryTime #HolyOrdinary
St. Roque González
Feast day November 16
#141 Growth in holiness is a journey in community, side by side with others. We see this in some holy communities. From time to time, the Church has canonized entire communities that lived the Gospel heroically or offered to God the lives of all their members. We can think, for example, of … the South American martyr St. Roque González.
St. Roque was a Jesuit priest who was the first missionary to the Guarani people of Paraguay in South America. St. Roque was born in Paraguay, but his parents were Spanish colonists. Because of this he spoke Spanish and the native Guarani language fluently. He led a happy and productive missionary life, building churches throughout South America. His success was only possible because St. Roque took the time to develop relationships with local indigenous leaders who feared missionaries would only lead the way for Spanish colonists to take over the area.
Not everyone welcomed St. Roque and his contemporaries, however. St. Roque and fellow Jesuit Juan del Castillo were killed on November 15, 1628 while overseeing the installation of a new bell for one of the missions. Two days later their colleague St. Alonso Rodriguez was killed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roque_Gonz%C3%A1lez_y_de_Santa_Cruz
