Saint Bernardino of Siena

Saint Bernardine of Siena, Italian San Bernardino da Siena, (born Sept. 8, 1380, Massa Marittima, Siena [Italy]—died May 20, 1444, L’Aquila, Kingdom of the Two Sicilies; canonized 1450; feast day May 20), Franciscan theologian and preacher of great eloquence who, with Saints John of Capistrano and James of the March, led the growth of the Observants, a strict branch of the Franciscan order that subsequently spread throughout Europe.

Of noble birth, Bernardine was orphaned early. He completed his education in Siena, where he then served the sick in hospitals (1400), contracting and nearly dying of plague. In 1402 he entered the Observants.

Source: Britannica.com accessed 2/23/22 by A. Chaparro