Saint Simón de Rojas

Simón de Rojas (28 October 1552 – 29 September 1624) was a Spanish priest of the Trinitarian Order known as the "Apostle of the Ave Maria", for his devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. A person of many abilities, Rojas was a theologian and a spiritual writer, as well as a friend and benefactor of the poor. Born 28 October 1552, in Valladolid, Spain, he lived a childhood steeped in piety. As a child, Rojas was cured of a serious speech impediment through his devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. His very first words were "Ave Maria", almost foreshadowing his lifelong devotion to the Virgin. At the age of twelve, he entered the Trinitarian monastery at Valladolid and there he made his religious profession on 28 October 1572, the day of his 20th birthday. He then went on to study at the University of Salamanca from 1573 to 1579, during which time he was ordained a priest in 1577. Rojas taught philosophy and theology at Toledo from 1581 to 1587. From 1588 until his death he fulfilled the office of superior in various monasteries of his province and was sent as apostolic visitor twice to his own province of Castilla, and once to that of Andalusia. His greatest joy was to visit Marian shrines, to pray to Mary and with Mary, to imitate her virtues, to sing her praises, to acknowledge her importance in the mystery of God and of the Church. Through profound theological studies, he came to understand even better the mission of Mary in cooperation with the Trinity for the salvation of the human race and the sanctification of the church. He lived his religious vows in the imitation of Mary. He held that, for everyone to be completely of God, as Mary had been, it was necessary to become her slaves, or better, slaves of God in Mary; for this reason he established the Congregation of the Slaves of Mary for the greater glory of the Trinity, in praise of the Virgin, in the service of the poor.