St. Camillus de Lellis

Their story

Camillus de Lellis was born in 1550 in Bucchianico, Italy. His mother died when he was a child and his father, a soldier, paid him little attention. Camillus grew into a tall, hot-tempered young man and followed his father into the army. He also developed a wound on his leg that would trouble him for the rest of his life, and a passion for gambling that he could not control. By 1574, at the age of 24, he had gambled away everything he owned, down to the shirt on his back. Penniless, Camillus took work on a building project for the Capuchin friars. A sermon by one of the friars moved him deeply, and on February 2, 1575, he gave his life to God. He tried to become a Capuchin, but the sore on his leg kept him from being accepted. He went instead to the hospital of San Giacomo in Rome, first as a patient and then as a worker. He was shocked by how badly the sick were treated and gave himself completely to caring for them, eventually becoming the hospital's director. With St. Philip Neri as his confessor, Camillus studied for the priesthood and was ordained in 1584. He founded the Ministers of the Sick, known as the Camillians, whose members wore a red cross and promised to serve the sick even at the risk of their own lives. They cared for plague victims and wounded soldiers and helped the dying prepare to meet God. Camillus served the sick until his own death in Rome on July 14, 1614. He was canonized in 1746 and is a patron of the sick, nurses and hospitals. Because he knew the hold of gambling firsthand, he is also invoked by people struggling with gambling and other addictions.