Saint Alonso Rodriguez, feast day October 31

The Church celebrates Saint Alonso Rodriguez on October 31. Born in Segovia, Spain, on July 25, 1531, Rodriguez was the third child of cloth merchants Diego Rodriguez and Maria Gomez de Alvarado.

After studying with the Jesuits in Alcalá, Rodriguez returned to Segovia at age 14 to assist his mother following his father's death. He eventually managed the family business and married Maria Juarez, the daughter of a cattle rancher. Following the deaths of his wife, his children, and his mother, Rodriguez sold his business and lived with two sisters. He later served as a porter at the Jesuit Montesion convent in Mallorca.