Thank
God for all the benefits he has bestowed upon you, that you may be
worthy to receive greater. Always side with the poor rather than with
the rich, until you are certain of the truth. Be devout and obedient
to our mother the Church of Rome and the Supreme Pontiff as your
spiritual father. In conclusion, dearest son, I give you every
blessing that a loving father can give a sons. May the three Persons
of the Holy Trinity and all the saints protect you from every evil.
And may the Lord give you the grace to do his will so that he may be
served and honored through you, that in the next life we may together
come to see him, love him and praise him unceasingly. Amen.
– Saint
King Louis IX
from a spiritual testament to his son
Saint
King Louis IX's patronage:
barbers; builders; button makers; construction workers;
Crusaders; death of children; difficult marriages; distillers;
embroiderers; French monarchs; grooms; haberdashers; hairdressers;
hair stylists; kings; masons; needle workers; parenthood; parents of
large families; prisoners; sculptors; sick people; soldiers; stone
masons; stonecutters; tertiaries; Archdiocese of Saint Louis,
Missouri.
