Raised in poverty in Ravenna, he became a scholar and then entered a hermit monastery of strict observance. As a cardinal bishop he labored to reform the Church against simony and clerical corruption, and he was named a Doctor.
Life
Saint Peter Damian was born in 1007 to a poor family in Ravenna, Italy. Orphaned young, he endured hardship, but with his brother's help he studied and became a fine teacher. Yet he left worldly success behind to join the hermit community of Fonte Avellana, living a life of prayer and penance, and he later became its prior.
At that time the Church was suffering greatly from simony and the corruption of the clergy. Through his writings and preaching he led the way in Church reform, and at the pope's request he became cardinal-bishop of Ostia and undertook several missions as papal legate. He died in 1072 and was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1828.
Spirituality
Peter Damian's spirituality is where solitary prayer meets zeal for the Church. He loved the silence of the hermitage, yet when the Church was ailing he came out of that silence to call for reform. His strictness flowed from a deep love that longed for the Church to be holy again.
Reflection
Peter Damian sought to correct the Church's faults because he loved her. When you see the Church's shortcomings, do you stop at criticism, or do you seek renewal together through prayer and involvement?