How well do you know the story of St. Dominic? Do you know who is included in his patronage, or what religious order he founded?
Dedicated to equipping spiritual leaders to give a reasoned defense of Christianity, St. Dominic is the founder of one of the top 10 largest religious orders in the world. As we celebrate his feast day on August 8, we invite you to discover five things about his life and legacy.
1. When St. Dominic was a child, he sold off his books to collect funds for the less fortunate.
Born to a noble family in Caleruega, Spain, in 1170, St. Dominic attended a well-respected school at Palencia thanks to the financial support of his uncle. With his zeal for understanding the Scriptures and empathetic heart, he set himself apart, displaying ascetic tendencies at an early age. On one occasion, he sold his books to raise money for the less fortunate!
2. An encounter with the leader of the Albigensians was formative in shaping his philosophy of missions.
After he was ordained a priest at age 24, Dominic embarked on a diplomatic mission to southern France with the goal of evangelizing rural populations and combatting the views of an errant faction. Called the Albigensians, this faction believed in equal twin forces of good and evil in the world, and associated all material substance with evil. As a result, they denied many critical doctrines, such as the resurrection of the body and the incarnation of Christ.
Dominic preached to people of this faction for years, as a civil war raged on. Unfortunately, after seven years of conflict, there were few converts. However, one night, Dominic stayed at the house of an Albigensian leader, discussing matters of theology until the rising of the sun – and ultimately, changed the man’s mind. The encounter was formative in shaping Dominic’s philosophy of missions, where rational argumentation was central.
3. He founded the Dominican Order in 1214.
Dominic believed that rational argumentation – and not threats of violence or declarations of dogma – was the proper path to persuading dissenters. It was upon this conviction that he based the Order of Preachers in 1214. Now known as the Dominicans, this order is committed to the conversion of unbelievers and the re-conversion of non-practicing Catholics, focusing on scholarship, preaching, and spiritual education.
4. Today, the Dominicans have over 5,000 members worldwide.
At the time of Dominic’s passing, the Dominican order had already expanded to 60 friaries across the continents, from Palestine to Scandinavia. Today, the Dominicans are one of the top 10 religious orders in the world, carrying on his legacy of compassion, spiritual education, and reasoned faith. St. Dominic is now recognized as the patron saint of astronomers and the Dominican Republic.
5. Tradition holds that St. Dominic was given the devotion of the Rosary by the Blessed Mother.
This connection is reflected at the Basilica, where the St. Dominic Chapel is lateral to the Our Lady of the Rosary Chapel. You can also find him honored in a window in the Chapel of Our Lady of Pompei.
Sources:
Butler’s Lives of Saints, ed. Bernard Bangley.
General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI, The Vatican.
“New statistics offer global snapshot of Dominican Order,” Order of Preachers.
“Saint Dominic,” Franciscan Media.
The Way of Saints, by Tom Cowan.