Saint Paschal Baylon

Paschal Baylon was born on May 16, 1540, at Torrehermosa in Aragon, Spain, on the feast of Pentecost, which Spaniards called "Pascua" of the Holy Spirit, hence his name. As a boy he tended sheep, taught himself to read so that he could pray the Little Office of Our Lady, and would kneel in the fields facing the distant church to adore the Blessed Sacrament.

At about 24 he entered the reformed Franciscans of Saint Peter of Alcántara as a lay brother, serving as doorkeeper, cook and beggar of alms. He spent every free moment before the tabernacle and was known for his joy, sometimes dancing before the altar. Sent on a mission to France, he defended the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist before Calvinists and was nearly killed. He died at Villarreal, near Valencia, on Pentecost Sunday, May 17, 1592. Canonized in 1690, he was named patron of Eucharistic congresses by Pope Leo XIII in 1897.

In Mexico and Central America San Pascual Bailón is beloved as the patron of cooks and kitchens; traditional cooks keep his image near the stove and pray "San Pascual Bailón, baila en mi fogón" (dance at my stove) for a dish to turn out well. In Villarreal, Spain, his tomb is venerated in a basilica that bears his name, and there are dances, processions and fiestas in his honor in Spain, the Philippines (Obando's fertility dance) and Latin America.