St. Raymond of Peñafort, Priest

Raymond was born near Barcelona, Spain. At the age of 20, he became professor of philosophy at the Cathedral School of Barcelona, and eventually earned doctoral degrees in law. When he was called to the Dominican order, and he asked that he be given menial tasks to overcome his vanity. He became Pope Gregory IX’s confessor and codified and edited canons of the Church. From 1230 to 1917 his work was the authority on canon law. After asking to be relieved from his appointment as Archbishop of Tarragona in Aragon, he was elected Superior General of the Dominicans where he reformed, clarified, and put into permanent form the Constitution of the Dominican Order. He lived to be 100 years old, and spent his last 35 years in prayer and seclusion. He is the patron saint of attorneys, canon lawyers and medical record librarians.