Camillus lived a reckless life as a soldier before his conversion led him to devote himself to nursing the sick. He founded the Order of Ministers of the Sick, who serve patients as Christ himself, and became a pioneer of modern nursing.
Life
Saint Camillus de Lellis was born in 1550 in Bucchianico, in the Abruzzo region of Italy. As a young man he became a soldier, but he lost everything to gambling, and a chronic wound in his leg caused him pain throughout his life.
After a deep conversion in 1575, he worked at the hospital of San Giacomo in Rome, where he saw how poorly the sick were cared for, and he dreamed of a community that would serve them as Christ himself. After becoming a priest he founded the Ministers of the Sick, the Camillians, whose members wore a red cross on their chest. He died in Rome on July 14, 1614, was canonized in 1746, and is patron of the sick, hospitals and nurses.
Spirituality
Saint Camillus's spirituality is a love that serves Christ in the sick. He taught his brothers to care for patients as a mother cares for her only sick child. Knowing his own wounds and weakness, he could draw closer to the suffering of others, and that love lives on in hospital ministry today.
Reflection
Saint Camillus went from wayward soldier to friend of the sick. If a neighbor is in the hospital or ill at home, why not stay close to them today with a phone call or a prayer?