March 8th St. John of God.

The founder of the Hospital Brothers who bear his name, he was born in 1495 at Montemor-o-Novo in Central Portugal, and was only brought to a serious Christian vocation after some years as a soldier and after a period working as a shepherd in the South of Spain. He landed up in Granada, in Andalusia, where the famous travelling preacher John of Avila persuaded him to devote himself to the poor and the sick, of whom the town was filled with a great multitude. The Bishop of Granada recognised his work and call, and allowed him to wear a religious habit, though the actual institution of the hospital Order did not occur until after his death in 1550, after some 11 years of unstinting work and prayer among the deprived, who flocked to him for attention.