John Smith
As I prepare to receive Confirmation, I have given thought to the saint I am choosing as my patron saint for the Sacrament. I have chosen St. Maximilian Kolbe as my Confirmation Saint. St. Maximilian Kolbe was born in Poland on January 7, 1894 and given the baptismal name of Raymond Kolbe. Around the time of his First Holy Communion, Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to him. She came to him offering two crowns, one that meant purity or one that meant martyrdom, and asked him which he wanted. He said that he would accept both. This was a notable moment in his life as it began his desire to love and serve the Virgin Mary.
In 1907, Raymond and his older brother joined a Franciscan seminary and in 1910 he was received as a novice. It was at this time he took the name of Maximilian. From 1912 to 1919, Maximilian Kolbe was in Rome working on his religious studies. He was ordained in Rome on April 28, 1918. During this time, Maximilian’s love of Mary grew and became even stronger. He founded the Crusade of Mary Immaculate known as the Militia of the Immaculate.
In 1919, Maximilian Kolbe returned to Poland and began spreading his Militia of the Immaculate movement. He created a Roman Catholic Magazine called the “Knight of the Immaculate” which promoted the knowledge, love and service of Virgin Mary. His movement and magazine began to grow and in 1927 he founded a new friary near Warsaw. He called it Niepokalanow, the City of the Immaculate. By 1939, Niepokalanow had expanded from eighteen friars to nearly 900, becoming the largest Catholic religious house in the world. He envisioned many missionary centers worldwide, but his failing health brought him back to Poland in 1936.
In 1939, when the Germans invaded Poland, they had taken most of the friars at Niepokalanow to holding camps in Germany. In 1941, the Gestapo used the writings in the “Knight of the Immaculate” against him and arrested Fr. Maximilian. He was taken first to the Pawiak Prison in Poland and was later transferred to Auschwitz. On the night of August 3, 1941, he offered his own life in the place of a man who was condemned to die by starvation with 10 others. In the starvation chamber, Fr. Maximilian led the other 9 men in prayers and hymns over the span of 10 days as they slowly succumbed to starvation. When only Fr. Maximilian was left, the S.S. Guards became impatient and gave him a lethal injection on August 14, 1941.
Fr. Maximilian Kolbe was beatified by Pope Paul VI in 1971 and Pope John Paul II canonized Maximilian Kolbe as a “Martyr of Charity” and “Patron Saint of Our Difficult Century” in 1982. He is the patron saint of prisoners, journalists, families, drug addicts and the pro-life movement.
I chose this saint because of his devout love for Mary and his selflessness. St. Maximilian Kolbe sacrificed himself for a man he didn’t even know which showed how selfless he had become while serving the Blessed Mother. This Saint will help me to grow after confirmation because I want to have the same faith that he showed throughout his life.
Basics for writing a Saint Report
- Type your first and last name at the top left-hand side the paper
- Type in Times New Roman or Arial size 12 font
- Single space your report
- Give a short story of your saint’s life- Only notable facts should be given
- Describe why you chose this saint
- Explain how this saint will help you grow through and after Confirmation.
- One page only
Please turn in your saint report by attaching it to an email and emailing it to . In the subject line please type your first and last name, a dash, then the abbreviation SR. For example: Naomi Beckman- SR. This is how I will know that an email contains the Saint Report.
This report is due January 14th.
This should be easy for you to write. Please contact me if you are having trouble either writing the report or choosing a Confirmation Saint. I am here to help in any way that I can.