John of God

Saint John of God was born João Duarte Cidade on March 8, 1495, in Montemor-o-Novo, Portugal, into a once-prominent but impoverished family rich in faith. As a child he was separated from his parents and grew up as a homeless orphan in Spain, later finding shelter as a shepherd near Oropesa. Seeking a new path, he became a soldier and served for years across Europe, enduring hardship and even a near death sentence after being wrongly suspected of theft. Restless in spirit, he later traveled to North Africa, where he nursed a destitute family and, guided by Franciscans, returned to Spain. In Granada, after a profound conversion in 1537 while hearing Saint John of Ávila preach, John’s repentance led to his confinement among the mentally ill, where he witnessed cruel treatment. Urged to turn outward in love, he devoted himself to the sick poor, begging for them and founding a house of care that became the seed of the Brothers Hospitallers of Saint John of God. He is venerated as a patron of nurses and those who serve the suffering. His feast day is March 8.