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St. John of God is one of Spain’s leading religious figures. He was born in Montemoro Novo, Portugal, on March 8, 1495, into a deeply religious family that was poor but had once been wealthy and prominent.
As a young man, John worked for a farmer as a shepherd. The farmer, pleased with how strong and diligent John was, offered him his daughter’s hand in marriage to ensure that John would become the farmer’s heir. John declined, however, and moved to Spain.
In Spain he served heroically as a soldier under the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Then he worked in Granada as a peddler of holy pictures and religious books. He also produced books himself using the recently developed Gutenberg moveable-type printing press. His patronage of booksellers stems from this period in his life.
John underwent a major religious conversion on St. Sebastian’s Day (January 20) while listening to a sermon by St. John of Ávila, the man who later became his spiritual guide. About this time, John had a mental breakdown and was confined…
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