Saint John of Capistrano

Saint John of Capistrano was born in the city of Naples on the 24th of June in 1386. Saint John of Capistrano struggled early in life due to his father's untimely death, but he would overcome the grief that he was stricken with to become a great person. John went to school, and even went to a university which was not all that common back then. He studied to become a lawyer at the University of Perugia. Perugia needed a new governor after John had finished his studies. The people chose John to take over the position.

John was a fair leader and only wanted the best for his people. He attempted to keep them out of war with Malatesta, but that would not really work out for him. His enemies would capture him and send him to be locked up in jail. He knew that he would remain in jail for a long time, so John took his time there alone to get closer to God.

John would not be let go for a long time. When he was let out, John was already thirty years old. After deeply contemplating his life and its purpose while in captivity, John decided when and if he was released he would become a religious figure of some sort. This is exactly what John did once he got out of jail. He became a Franciscan and lived with the others in their monastery. This was John's life for several years, but then he knew he needed more. He chose to become a priest. He would travel for forty years preaching stories of God and his goodness.

John put together the army of Christian people from all different countries that defeated the Turks and their efforts to rid the continent of Europe of Christianity. Pope Callistus II asked John for help putting together forces. John not only did the job, but did a magnificent job doing it. Their 70,000 man force was still outnumbered by the Turks, but they fought with heart.

Saint John took the leadership role over the forces he assembled. They knew they had less men, but still fought anyway. Their heart would be what earned them a victory in the battle. Saving Christianity from doom on the continent of Europe.

In October of 1456, a few weeks after the battle, Saint John would pass away. His feast day is on October 23rd.