feast day (memorial): August 8
patron of: astronomers
about:
- born: 1170, Calaruega, Spain
- died: 6 August 1221, Bologna (present-day Emilia-Romagna, Italy)
- also known as Dominic of Osma and Dominic of Caleruega, often called Dominic de Guzmán and Domingo Félix de Guzmán
- founder of the Order of Preachers (Latin: Ordo Praedicatorum, hence the abbreviation OP used by members) (more commonly known after the 15th century as the Dominican Order or Dominicans) [motto: Laudare, Benedicere, Praedicare ("To Praise, To Bless, To Preach")]
- The spread of the Rosary, a Marian devotion, is attributed to the preaching of St. Dominic. The Rosary has for centuries been at the heart of the Dominican Order. Pope Pius XI stated, "The Rosary of Mary is the principle and foundation on which the very Order of Saint Dominic rests for making perfect the life of its members and obtaining the salvation of others."
links/ sources:
- "Saint Dominic" (Wikipedia):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Dominic
- "St. Dominic" (Catholic Encyclopedia):
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05106a.htm
- "St. Dominic" (Catholic Online):
http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=178
- "Dominican Order" (Wikipedia):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dominican_Order