St. Philip Neri was born at Florence, in Italy to poor parents. His father Francisco Neri who worked as a lawyer had two sons and two daughters. But Philip’s brother died when he was a little child.

As a child, Philip was affectionately called “Good little Phil.” He was always so jolly and friendly that everyone he met loved him. Philip went to Rome as a teenager. He studied theology and philosophy for three years under Dominican priests and was a good student.

Above all, Philip was a very active Christian. He lived simply and worked hard. But he also did much good for the people around him. He helped poor children and spent time with the sick. He was a friend to people who were troubled and lonely. In fact, he reached out to everybody he could for the love of Jesus.

Philip with the help of a few people started an organization to take care of poor pilgrims. That ministry gradually continued as a famous Roman hospital. The priest who guided him realized that Philip was doing so much to help the Christians of Rome come close to God again.

But when Philip was thirty-six he felt a strong calling to be a priest. It was then that he began his most wonderful ministry for others. He was available for the sacrament of Reconciliation for several hours every day. The lines of people who came to him grew longer. But Father Philip was never in a hurry. He never ran out of patience and gentleness.

People began to notice that he could often read their minds. He could sometimes tell the future and the Lord even worked miracles through him. But all Philip wanted to do was bring Jesus to the people. To avoid their admiration, he acted silly once in a while. He wanted people to laugh and forget that they thought he was holy.

St. Philip was making a difference, though. Because of him, the whole city of Rome was becoming better. Once he started to think about being a missionary to far-off lands. He was very impressed by the life of St. Francis Xavier, who had died in 1552 at the gate of China.

Philip had been a priest for just one year at the time of St. Xavier’s death. Should he leave Rome and volunteer for the missions? A holy Cistercian monk told him “Rome is to be your mission land.” After that, Father Philip was at peace.

St. Philip spent the last five years of his life offering the sacrament of Reconciliation to the people. He began working with youth, finding safe places for them to play, becoming involved in their lives. He died at the age of eighty in 1595.

Margaret Plantaganet was born in England. She was the niece of two English kings, Edward IV and Richard III. King Henry VII arranged her marriage to Sir Reginald Pole who was a brave soldier and a friend of the royal family. They had five children and Margaret also privately helped raise the king’s son Henry VIII. Years later, Sir Reginald died leaving Margaret a widow.

The young Henry VIII became king, he called Margaret the holiest woman in England. He was so impressed with her that he returned some property her family had lost in the past. He also made her a countess of Salisbury. Henry trusted her so much that Countess Margaret was appointed the governess of Princess Mary, his and Queen Catherine’s daughter.

But then Henry tried to marry Anne Boleyn although he was already married. Margaret told the king that what he did was wrong. This upset the king very much and he made her leave the court. The king was even more upset when one of Margaret’s sons, a priest (and who later became the famous Cardinal Reginald Pole), wrote a long article against Henry’s claim to be head of the Church in England.

Henry was out of control. He had become cruel and hateful. He threatened to get rid of Margaret’s whole family. Henry sent people to question Countess Margaret to prove her a traitor. They questioned her from noon until evening but could not find any fault with her. She had nothing to hide.

Then Margaret was wrongly accused and kept under house arrest at the castle of a nobleman. She was later moved to the huge tower of London without even a trial. During the long winter months, she suffered very much from the cold and dampness. She had no fire and not enough warm clothing.

Finally, on May 28, 1541, when she was seventy years old, Blessed Margaret was led out of the tower to the place of execution. She was tired and sick, but she stood tall and proud to die for her faith. “I am no traitor,” she said bravely. Margaret was beheaded on Tower hill and died a martyr for her faith in Jesus.