St. Raymond Nonnatus

St. Raymond was given the nickname “Nonnatus” which means “not born” in Latin, referring to his birth by caesarean section after his mother had died while giving birth to him. He is the patron saint of childbirth, midwives and pregnant women. St. Raymond was born in the thirteenth century in Spain, and his childhood was spent tending sheep. He would often pray at a country chapel dedicated to St. Nicolas. Later he joined the order of Mercedarian monks at Barcelona and worked with them to ransom Christian captives from the Moors in North Africa. His travels on this mission resulted in him being taken hostage and suffering at the hands of the Moors. Eventually he returned to Spain where he died in 1240 at the age of 36. According to tradition, there were several contenders for his body so it was placed on a blind mule which was then let loose. The mule went straight to the country chapel where St. Raymond used to pray as a youth. He was buried there and many miracles were attributed to him both before and after his death. His feast day is commemorated on August 31st. Stained glass windows of St. Raymond usually show him wearing the Mercedarian habit and a cardinal’s red mozzetta or cape, carrying the Eucharist cup and a martyr’s palm branch. Would you like to include a stained glass window or door panel of St. Raymond in your church building? Please contact us and we will gladly show you what we have available for you.