Saint of the Day: Sts Cosmas and Damian

Martyrs (d. ca 287)

Their story

+ According to legend, Cosmas and Damian were twin brothers from Syria who worked as physicians, serving the poor at no charge.

+ Although there are various legends about their lives and the way they died, they were probably killed around the year 287.

+ Devotion to these martyrs was widespread and, with Saint Luke the Evangelist and Saint Pantaleon, they are honored as the patron saints of physicians and pharmacists.

+ Saints Cosmas and Damian are included in the Roman Canon (the First Eucharistic Prayer).

For prayer and reflection

“This rich tradition of the Catholic Church should be kept alive so that, through the exercise of charity to those who are suffering, the values inspired by authentic humanity and by the Gospel are made visible: the dignity of the person, mercy and Christ's identification with the sick person.

No intervention will be adequate if it does not reveal love for the human being, a love nourished by the encounter with Christ.”—From an address of Pope Benedict XVI

Spiritual bonus

September 26 is also the day the Church celebrates the memory of Saint Therese Courderc (d. 1885). Inspired by the needs for spiritual enrichment opportunities for women and the work of the Society of Jesus, she established a new religious community, the Congregation of Our Lady of the Retreat in the Cenacle (the Cenacle Sisters), for this work. She was canonized in 1970.

Prayer

May you be magnified, O Lord,
by the revered memory of your Saints Cosmas and Damian,
for with providence beyond words
you have conferred on them everlasting glory,
and on us, your unfailing help.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(from The Roman Missal)

Saint profiles prepared by Brother Silas Henderson, S.D.S.