St. Philip Neri
Known for being spontaneous, even impulsive, St. Philip Neri was born to poor parents at Florence in 1515. He apprenticed with a businessman cousin. He was devout finding nighttime the right time to pray in the streets and St. Sebastiano catacombs.
Phillip moved to Rome in 1533 where he was a live-in tutor. He stopped studying theology and philosophy when he found that interfered with prayer. He co-founded a fraternity in 1548 with other laymen to work with pilgrims coming to Rome. He was ordained in 1551 often going out at night to pray with the destitute.
Known to possess a charming, comical personality along with deep humility, Phillip saved a serious side for prayer. He died in 1595. Pope Paul V beatified him in 1615 and Pope Gregory XV canonized him in 1622. He is the patron of the US Special Forces and the city of Rome. His body is in the New Church of Rome and his feast day is May 26.
