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St. Lawrence is one of the most well-known deacon saints, notably for his method of martyrdom (being burned alive on a gridiron), and for the waterway bearing in name in the US and Canada. The Gulf of St. Lawrence was so named because the French explorer Jacques Cartier first arrived there on St. Lawrence's feast day in 1535. Lifetime:  225 to 258 Region:  Rome Patronages:  Comedians; Firefighters; Librarians Iconograpy:  Gridiron; Deacon robes; Censer Feast Day: August 10 Lawrence was born in a region of what is now Spain, which was at the time a Roman province. According to church tradition, both of Lawrence's parents, Saints Orentius and Patientia, were also martyred for their faith. Before his famous martyrdom, however, Lawrence was a layperson who happened to meet a wise teacher in his home town. That teacher would go on to become Pope Sixtus II (the same Sixtus that is referenced in the Communicantes  of the Roman Canon during Mass alongside Lawrence himse...

St. Laurence O'Toole recently made the news, even though he's been dead for over 800 years. Why? Because of a strange and kind of spooky caper involving the theft of his heart! But Laurence was quite well-known in his own days as well - in fact he was so respected that after his death, his canonization was speed-tracked to appease his many followers. Lifetime:  1128 to 1180 Region:  Ireland Patronages:  Archdiocese of Dublin, Ireland Iconograpy:  Basket of bread; Shield; Dublin architecture Feast Day:  November 14 Laurence O'Toole was known as Lorcán Ua Tuathail in Ireland (and St. Laurent in France, which he also visited, and where he died). He was born as a prince, but was the youngest of four sons, meaning he was not likely to inherit the title. When Laurence was 10, he was held hostage for two years by another king opposing his father. He was kept mostly alone and nearly starved. However, eventually the abbot of a nearby monastery intervened to secure L...