Peter González Telmo, OP (1190 – 15 April 1246), also known as Saint Elmo, was a Castilian Dominican friar and priest, born in 1190 in Frómista, Palencia, Kingdom of Castile and Leon.

Life

St. Peter Gonzalez was born in Castille, Spain, in 1190."Peter Gonzalez", ''Angelus News'', April 14, 2024
/ref> González was educated by his uncle, the

Bishop of Astorga The Diocese of Astorga () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church whose seat is in the city of Astorga, in the province of León, Castile and León, Spain.canonry Canon () is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an canon law, ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, in one of the houses within the p ...

when he was very young. On one occasion, he was riding triumphantly into the city, his horse stumbled, dumping him into the mud to the amusement of onlookers. Humbled, the canon reevaluated his vocation and later resigned his position to enter the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic Church, Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilians, Castilian priest named Saint Dominic, Dominic de Gu ...

."St. Peter Gonzalez", Catholic News Agency
/ref> González became a renowned preacher; crowds gathered to hear him and numberless conversions were the result of his efforts. He spent much of his time as a court preacher. After King Saint Ferdinand III of Castile and

Leon Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to: Places Europe * León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León * Province of León, Spain * Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again fro ...

captured Córdoba, González was successful in restraining the soldiers from pillaging the city."Blessed Peter Gonzalez", ''Saint of the Day'', Franciscan Media
/ref> He also worked for the humane treatment of Moorish prisoners. After retiring from the court, González devoted the remainder of his life to preaching in northwest Spain, and developed a special mission to Spanish and Portuguese seamen. He died on 15 April 1246 at Tui and is buried in the local cathedral.Mershman, Francis. "St. Peter Gonzalez." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 28 December 2015

Veneration

Peter González was

beatified Beatification (from Latin , "blessed" and , "to make") is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their name. ''Beati'' is the ...

in 1254 by

Pope Innocent IV Pope Innocent IV (; – 7 December 1254), born Sinibaldo Fieschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 June 1243 to his death in 1254. Fieschi was born in Genoa and studied at the universities of Parma and Bolo ...

. Although he was never formally

canonized Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sa ...

, his ''cultus'' was confirmed in 1741 by

Pope Benedict XIV Pope Benedict XIV (; ; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758. Pope Benedict X (1058–1059) is now con ...

. The

diminutive A diminutive is a word obtained by modifying a root word to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment, and sometimes to belittle s ...

"''Elmo''" (or "''Telmo''") belongs properly to the martyr-bishop

Erasmus of Formia Erasmus of Formia, also known as Saint Elmo (died ), was a Christianity, Christian saint and Christian martyrs, martyr. He is venerated as the patron saint of sailors and abdominal pain. Erasmus or Elmo is also one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, s ...

(died c. 303), one of the

Fourteen Holy Helpers The Fourteen Holy Helpers (, ) are a group of saints venerated together by Catholics because their intercession is believed to be particularly effective, especially against various diseases. This group of ''Nothelfer'' ("helpers in need") orig ...

. However, as Erasmus is the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

sailors A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor'' ...

generally, and Peter González of

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

and Portuguese sailors specifically, they have both been popularly invoked as "Saint Elmo." He is thus called “Saint Peter Thelmo” as titular of a parish in

Aparri Aparri (ibanag language, Ibanag: ''Ili nat Aparri''; ; ), officially the Municipality of Aparri, is a municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of , Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a ...

Cagayan Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan (; ; ; isnag language, Isnag: ''Provinsia nga Cagayan''; ivatan language, Ivatan: ''Provinsiya nu Cagayan''; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Cag ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

References

External links

Patron Saints Index: Peter Gonzalez
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez, Peter 1190 births 1246 deaths People from Astorga, Spain Spanish Dominicans Spanish Roman Catholic priests 13th-century Spanish clergy 13th-century Roman Catholic priests Burials at Tui Cathedral Spanish beatified people Dominican beatified people 13th-century venerated Christians