St. Cajetan

St. Cajetan was born in 1480 into the nobility of Venice, Italy. He received a law degree in Padua when he was 24. He worked as a diplomat for Pope Julius II, but when the pope died in 1513, he withdrew from the papal court.

He was ordained a priest in 1516. In 1522, he founded a hospital for incurables in his hometown; in 1523, he founded a hospital in Venice. Yet he also sought to work on spiritual healing, and he joined the Oratory of Divine Love in Rome. He felt, like several Protestant Reformers at the time, that the lay people needed more spiritual education and nourishment. Instead of splitting from the Church, he worked to reform it from within.

In 1524, he founded his own order, Congregation of Clerics Regular or the Theatines (from the town Theate) that would combine the spirit of monasticism with active ministry. One of its first members was the bishop of Chieti/Theate, who would later become Pope Paul IV.

The Protestant Reformation was gaining traction during this time, causing political strife. In 1527, the small order had to flee to Venice following the sack of Rome by the Holy Roman Empire, comprised of Protestant Germans, Italian mercenaries, and mutinous Spanish soldiers. Father Cajetan himself was tortured by Spanish troops before escaping.

He expanded the order, opening oratories throughout Italy. In Naples, he opened a bank to aid the poor. It offered an alternative to usurers. Today, the Bank of Naples is the oldest bank in continuous operation in the world.

St. Cajetan died on Aug. 7, 1547. He is the patron of bankers, unemployed people, gamblers, and document controllers. His feast day is Aug. 7.