Wednesday’s Woman: St. Darerca

The Basics: Born in the late 4th century in Great Britain; died in the early 5th century in Ireland; canonized pre-congregation; feast day, March 22. Wife and mother.

The Story: Darerca’s brother Patrick may be better known, but he couldn’t hold a candle to her when it came to parenting! It’s believed that Darerca, who married twice had as many as seventeen sons, all of whom became bishops, and that both her daughters also entered religious life. Furthermore, all or nearly all of the children are recognized as Catholic saints. All this would indicate that most of her children lived into adulthood, which certainly would have meant an active household for decades.

What We Can Learn from Darerca: The evangelization God calls us to do sometimes is big and public, as was the case with Patrick, and sometimes it’s confined to our homes, as was the case with his sister. The Lord loves us when we do as He desires, regardless of whether the world recognizes our obedience.

To Learn More About Darerca: While we don’t know much about her, the Catholic Encyclopedia sheds some additional light on this saint.

To Learn More About Other Women Saints and Blesseds: Come back next week, or consider buying my book, Sisterhood of Saints: Daily Guidance and Inspiration.

By Melanie

Melanie Rigney is the author of Radical Saints: 21 Women for the 21st Century and other Catholic books. She is a contributor to Living Faith and other Catholic blogs. She lives in Arlington, Virginia. Melanie also owns Editor for You, a publishing consultancy that since 2003 has helped hundreds of writers, publishers, and agents.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *