Saint Who?
Saints Who Studied Law
Saint Raymond of Penyafort
Priest and religious († 1275) Feast: January 7
Raymond was born into a noble family in Spain. By the age of twenty he was teaching philosophy, and he became a doctor of canon and civil law in his thirties. The bishop of Barcelona made Raymond his archdeacon, but several years later, Raymond felt called to enter the Dominican order. His Dominican superiors were impressed with his humility and fervor. Because of his prior experience with the law, he was asked to write a document for confessors summarizing cases of conscience to assist them in making moral decisions—one of the first manuals of its kind.
Although Raymond became famous for his preaching, other clergy continued to call upon him for his wisdom and insight in legal matters. Pope Gregory IX ordered him to collect all the papal and council decrees issued over the previous eight decades and create a compilation of canon law for the entire Church. When Raymond was elected Master General of the Dominicans, he clarified and simplified the constitutions of the order. Saint Thomas Aquinas composed his famous Summa Contra Gentiles at Raymond’s request.
But Raymond was a priest, first and foremost, and he probably considered his ability to bring many people—from slaves to nobles—to conversion as his greatest gift to God, and from God.
Heavenly Father, give us the grace to make decisions that are worthy of children of God.
