Art, obsession, and identity
Joannicius joined a monastery in his final years, and is said to have accurately predicted when he would die: November 4, 846.
Born in 752 in present-day Turkey, St. Joannicius went on to become a hermit. He reportedly had a number of powers, including invisibility and the ability to levitate.
St. Rose predicted that she would pass away on August 24, 1617, at the age of 31. It is said that her last words were, "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, be with me always."
Sources: (New Advent) (Holy Protection Russian Orthodox Church) (Simply Catholic) (American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese of North America) (St. Patrick's Church) (Grunge)
See also: The gruesome ways saints have died
St. Hedwig’s psychic abilities were developed later in life, among which was the prediction of her own death in 1243. She is said to have demanded to be given the Last Rites, even though no one around her believed she was about to die.
Born into an aristocratic family in Germany, circa 1174, Hedwig married Duke Henry I of Silesia, Poland. She dedicated her life to religion and charity, endowing several monasteries.
St. Madeleine Sophie Barat dedicated her life to teaching hundreds of women. Aged 85, she too predicted her own death, which occurred on May 25, 1865. St. Madeleine Sophie Barat was canonized in 1925.
St. Rose of Lima was born into a wealthy family in Peru in 1586, and went on to become a nun.
Born in France in 1779, Madeleine Sophie Barat later moved to Paris to join a convent. In 1800, at the age of 20, she started her own religious order: the Society of the Sacred Heart.
Hubert was an important member of the Belgian royal court. He once went hunting on Good Friday, when he spotted a stag with a cross in its antlers. Hubert then heard a voice saying "Hubert, unless thou turnest to the Lord, and leadest an holy life, thou shalt quickly go down into hell." To which he replied, "Lord, what wouldst Thou have me do?" The response was, "Go and seek Lambert, and he will instruct you."
About 10 months later, Stanislaus fell ill again. This time, though, he predicted he would die the following day, and this was exactly what happened on August 15, 1568.
St. Hubert went on to join a monastery and later became a hermit. After having a premonition about his death, he gave a sermon and passed away a few weeks later, as predicted.
St. Ita was in her nineties when she predicted the date of her death. She blessed the nuns in the convent before she passed away on the predicted date.
Born in Ireland sometime in the 5th century, St. Ita (aka St. Deirdre, St. Mida, or Íde of Killeedy) went on to become a nun and open a convent, where young boys would be trained in Christian studies. For this reason, Ita became known as "the foster mother of the Irish saints."
A few years later, they both were hit by the plague. Following Cuthbert’s recovery, Boisil told him, "You see, brother, that God has delivered you from this disease, nor shall you ever feel it again, nor die at this time; but my death being at hand, neglect not to learn something from me so long as I shall be able to teach you, which will be no more than seven days." And, indeed, he died seven days later.
Years later, Cuthbert had a premonition about his own death. He fell ill and died exactly when he predicted he would.
He was, however, too young to be accepted into the order in Vienna, so he left the city and headed to Bavaria. He walked over 400 miles (643 km) and had to beg for food, but eventually was accepted into the religious order.
Lyubov was born in Ryazan, Russia, sometime in the mid 1800s. She was paralyzed, but one day she heard the divine instructions to get up and "play the fool!"
St. Stanislaus Kostka was born in Poland in 1550. From an aristocratic background, the boy was sent to study at a Jesuit college in Vienna. One day he fell ill and had a vision of the Virgin Mary, who cured him, under the condition that he’d join a Jesuit monastery. That’s exactly what he did.
Known for her psychic abilities (including the prediction of the Russian Revolution), St. Lyubov of Ryazan also predicted her own death, three weeks in advance.
The story goes that she told her friend Lizon'ka: “I am going to die soon, and you must pray to God for me. Go to my grave and take dirt from it, and line my coffin with pink cloth."
St. Rumbold (or Rumwold) of Buckingham was the son of a Northumbria king. He was born in 662 and died three days later. So, how could he have predicted his own death? It turns out he could speak!
St. Philip was, however, opposed to the violence used by the czar and ended up being removed from his post. He wrote, "I lament not of the innocent murdered as martyrs and saints; it is your soul that I mourn over. Although a monarch blessed from above, you are still a mortal one, and you will have to account for all of your deeds before the Lord."
Legend has it that St. Matrona predicted her own death three days before it happened. In fact, she is said to have given instructions for her funeral in advance. Matrona became a saint in 1999.
St. Matrona was born blind (circa 1881-1885) and then became paralyzed at the age of 17. But she was also gifted, and was said to be able to predict the future as well as heal the sick.
One day, she asked an elderly dying nun whom she was nursing to make a promise to her. The promise was that she would ask God to "permit Sister Teresa Margaret to join her quickly in order that she may love Him without hindrance for all eternity."
St. Teresa Margaret died in 1770 at the age of 23, shortly after the elderly nun she was nursing passed away. She was canonized in 1934.
He was first sentenced to life imprisonment, but later the czar sent an assassin to murder St. Philip. Without the identity of the man or the reason for the visit being revealed to him, St. Philip said, “Do not blaspheme, fulfill the purpose of your visit." St. Philip was strangled to death, and later canonized in 1636.
St. Philip was in a monastery in 1567 when Czar Ivan IV, aka Ivan the Terrible, made him leave to become the Metropolitan of Moscow (the equivalent of a Catholic archbishop).
St. Teresa Margaret was an Italian Discalced Carmelite nun born in 1747. She joined a nunnery when she was 18.
St. Boisil was a monk who could predict the future. Having heard of Boisil’s abilities, St. Cuthbert later joined Boisil at the Melrose monastery to begin his educational journey.
After his birth, Rumbold, affirming to be a Christian, asked to be baptized. Legend has it that he even gave a sermon on the topic of the Holy Trinity. The medieval infant saint is said to have predicted his own death and to have given instructions about his burial.
The process of canonization involves a number of criteria, including verified miracles. In addition, many of the men and women who became saints also possessed a number of abilities, such as foreseeing the future. In fact, throughout Christian history, we find several examples of saints who predicted a number of things, including their own deaths!
In this gallery, you'll get to know who these saints were, and all about their predictions. Click through and discover the saints who predicted their own deaths.
The baby saint who predicted his own early death
And more saints who foresaw their gruesome ends
LIFESTYLE Religion
The process of canonization involves a number of criteria, including verified miracles. In addition, many of the men and women who became saints also possessed a number of abilities, such as foreseeing the future. In fact, throughout Christian history, we find several examples of saints who predicted a number of things, including their own deaths!
In this gallery, you'll get to know who these saints were, and all about their predictions. Click through and discover the saints who predicted their own deaths.