In VOLUME ONE, here is a fantastic range of Saints from Celtic England through to 19th Century France, each with their own beautiful witness and example of living life to its fullest and aiming to be Saints. In volume one we have: Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne and his mission from Ireland to the wild island of Lindisfarne and his tireless journeys throughout Northern England; Saint Anthony of Padua and his zeal upon seeing the return of the bodies of three Franciscan martyrs, prompting him to change his religious order and become one of the greatest preachers and miracle-workers in the history of the Church; Saint Dominic Savio, one of Saint John Bosco's students, who determined to become a Saint by spending hours before the Blessed Sacrament, encouraging his friends to pray with him before Our Lady of Sorrows, and being graced with a prophetic vision of England; Saint Philomena, a young Grecian princess who refused to become the bride of the ruling Roman Emperor and instead bore one of the most heroic prolonged witnesses to the Faith that God rekindled in our modern times with the discovery of her tomb in the 19th century; Saint Joan of Arc, often misrepresented in today's culture, who was called by God to lead an army to defeat the English despite being a young peasant girl, and who was executed by corrupt church leaders who envied her popularity; and Saint Bernadette of Lourdes, granted 18 apparitions of Our Lady in France, Who gave us a healing spring of water and affirmed Her title as The Immaculate Conception.
In VOLUME TWO we travel from Saxon England through to 20th century Poland with a diverse range of Saints from all over Europe offering a harmony of faith and Catholic devotion in their inspiring stories. Saint Clare of Assisi takes us back to 12th century Italy and her bold decision to reject her family wealth, titles and future by following Saint Francis into a life of worldly poverty but heavenly richness that inspires admiration and imitation; Saint Cuthman, a lively, devout Saxon shepherd boy takes us over the historic hills of Sussex as he founds a church; Saint Mechtilde of Magdeburg, a 13th century German Beguine shows us how important remembering the Holy Souls in Purgatory is; Saint Faustina gives us the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy and an image of Jesus that draws countless sinners to the fount of His Merciful Heart; Saint Wilfrid, a Saxon bishop who was exiled from Northumbria after annoying the Northumbrian king, travelled through England and converted the South Saxon pagans; and Saint Don Bosco, founder of the Salesians, whose many profound and mystical dreams give us a sobering look at the reality of sin and hell and the power of prayer and the intercession of Our Lady.
In VOLUME THREE we reach far back into the time of Saint Patrick and as close to us as Fatima now just over 100 years ago. Blessed Bartolo Longo is known as the Apostle of the Rosary but before that he was a Satanic high priest who was so embroiled in the new age and occult that his journey back to the Sacraments through the power of the rosary shows us how important this Catholic devotion is; so too, does Saint Jacinta of Fatima, a little shepherd girl from Portugal who is one of the seers of Our Lady of Fatima, and whose short but fruitful life brings to our hearts and minds the truths and realities of the spiritual realm; Saint Bede, known as the Father of English history, has left us great accounts of the Catholic Church in early England, powerful biographies of Saints and a great example of holiness in his own life; Saint Patrick brings us a tale of pagan Ireland brought to its knees by this zealous Catholic missionary who fought the devil and his snakes for the souls of the Irish people; Saint John of the Cross takes us back to 16th century Spain during the time of the counter-reformation and his example of total devotion to the Passion of Christ and the beautiful body of works left to us to read; and finally, Saint Margaret Mary, a 17th century French nun, who was chosen by Jesus to bring to the laity the devotion of the Sacred Heart at a time of Jansenism and mistrust of the love and forgiveness of God, takes us through her life and the messages of the Sacred Heart.
In VOLUME FOUR the lives of these six Saints cover 17th century Native America, 7th century Saxon England, 4th century Rome and Jerusalem and 16th century Spain; Saint Kateri Tekakwitha was a Mohawk who converted to the Catholic Faith and gave her life in dedication to purity, penance and utter devotion to the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar; 19th century Italy gives us Saint Gemma Galgani, the same age group as Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, and with the same love of the Cross and the Passion, of suffering to convert sinners and save souls, with her own unique battles with the devil and a special calling as a victim soul; while Saint Etheldreda of 7th century Saxon England, dedicates her life to purity and service of Christ as a princess, Queen and abbess of Ely, bringing her into conflict with the world and worldly men; Saint Mildred of Thanet was once the most popular Saint of England and beloved by many. Her great love for Christ saw her shine out as a Lily among the English and she has left us a dramatic account of her miraculous escape, like the three men in the Old Testament, from fire; Saint Teresa of Avila is beloved throughout the world and takes us on a journey of her life and reformation in 16th century Spain with the founding of the discalced Carmelite order; and finally, go back to the beginning of tolerance for Christianity in Europe with the mother of Emperor Constantine, who was so devoted to Christ that she made one of the first pilgrimages to the Holy Land to discover the relics of the True Cross.
In VOLUME FIVE travel through the Catholic history of Europe from 7th century Wales to the concentration camps of Poland. Saint Maximilian Kolbe was a Franciscan priest deeply devoted to the Mother of God. In this touching and thought-provoking film we follow this great champion of Mary from his early life to his death, which he willfully gave in place of a fellow prisoner in Auschwitz; Saint Winifred of Wales has left us a holy well where for many centuries people traveled for healing and devotion, even during Penal times. She was a young Catholic woman who caught the eye of a prince who hunted her down when she refused his advances and chopped off her head! Saint Padre Pio is one of the most popular Saints of the Catholic Church. In this film we journey through his whole mystical life, looking at the Wounds of Christ that he bore in his body for the conversion of sinners and in reparation for sins; Saint Piran was an early Saint of Cornwall, with an inspiring and uplifting story. He escaped pirates and came to England where he led a solitary life, going among the local people to help them rediscover tin smelting, thus earning the name of the Tin Saint; Saint Julian of Norwich is known as England's Catholic Mystic, her 16 revelations of the love of the Passion of Christ capturing the hearts and minds of people for almost a thousand years. She was the first woman author and her story takes us to the Wounded Heart of Christ and the power of His Sacred Passion and love of His Sorrowful Mother; in The Last Conversations of Therese we look at the many profound sayings written down by Saint Therese of Lisieux's sisters in the last several months of the Little Flower's life.
In VOLUME SIX, great founders such as Saint Benedict and Saint Francis share the same Catholic Faith with a 20th century martyr of Dachau, a 7th century French princess, a 12th century bishop and a 20th century victim soul. Saint Benedict of Nursia fled the pleasures of Rome to be alone in the wilderness far from the city, where he battled Satan and the weakness of our fallen flesh, to come out triumphant as a vanquisher of demons and the founder of a great religious order; Blessed Titus Brandsma was a Dutch theologian and Carmelite priest who refused to remain silent when the Nazi's appeared to destroy Christianity in his land. He has left us an heroic witness for the Faith that numbers him among the great Saints and Martyrs of the 20th century; Blessed Alexandrina da Costa is known as the fourth seer of Fatima. A young girl of Portugal who lived 200 miles from Fatima, she sustained an almost fatal injury that left her paralyzed when she jumped out of her window to escape attackers. She offered her life as a victim soul, entreated all to pray the rosary and live the message of Fatima, and suffered and prayed most especially for the consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary; Saint Bertha was a French princess who was given in marriage to King Ethelbert of Kent. Through her holy, Catholic example, the pagan king was well-disposed to welcome Saint Augustine to England on the Gregorian mission. We look at the founding of Canterbury Cathedral as the seat of the Catholic Church in England until it was taken by the Anglicans at the time of the Protestant Reformation; Saint Francis of Assisi was a knight and a soldier who converted from his life of worldliness and pleasure to become one of the greatest Saints of the Catholic Church and the first to bear the Stigmata. He founded the Franciscan order, one of the great scourges against the attacks of evil in the church, and he has left us a moving, thought-provoking witness; Saint Richard of Chichester was an English bishop who lived the life of an aesthetic while shepherding his flock and caring deeply for the conversion of souls, the correct disposition of the clergy and especially the correct way of celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. His shrine was one of the most visited in Europe until it was destroyed by King Henry VIII at the reformation.
In VOLUME SEVEN, journey with six wonderful Saints through England, France, Italy and Germany covering a thousand years of Catholic witness to the Faith. Saint Claude de la Colombiere was the spiritual director of Saint Margaret Mary. A young Jesuit priest, he was sent to England where he introduced the Duchess of York to the devotion of the Sacred Heart of Jesus as given to Saint Margaret Mary. He would have given his life for the faith and the conversion of the English when he was arrested and imprisoned during the Titus Oates plot, but he died in his early forties in France after an heroic life; Saint David of Wales is the patron of that country but relevant to the entire Catholic Church. He preached throughout Wales, drawing crowds and miracles that still capture the inspiration of many; Saint Mary Mazzarello's love for Christ saw her obediently respond to His call that she work with Saint Don Bosco to help young girls in need. She had such a love for the Blessed Sacrament and for service that countless women invoke her intercession in prayer today; Saint Edith Stein was an atheist who converted to the Catholic Faith after reading the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Avila. She became a Carmelite nun but her Jewish roots saw her targeted by the Nazis. After leaving many great philosophical thoughts and works, she was arrested and martyred at Auschwitz; Saint Simon Stock was also a Carmelite, who lived 700 years before Saint Edith Stein. He was given the Brown Scapular in a vision from Our Lady of Mount Carmel and earned his name from avoiding the world and living in prayer and sacrifice in a hollowed out tree (a stock); Saint Bega of Bees is an early British Saint, an anchorite who, after escaping an arranged marriage in Ireland and living for a time on the coast of England as a hermit, was consecrated a nun by Saint Aidan and found the great convent of Saint Bees.
Each of these films are available in single DVD from Mary's Dowry Productions too. Check out our other DVD box sets including The English Martyrs series (3 volumes) at www.marysdowryproductions.org
Other films about Saints, such as Saint Francisco Marto, that do not feature in these box sets will be included in Volume 8 when we have finished production on NEW films about the Saints. Coming soon!
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