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In the new liturgical calendar, the feast day of Saint Josaphat is celebrated today, November 12. In the traditional calendar, he is commemorated on the 14th.

Today’s saint was a religious and a bishop who sacrificed his life for the unity of the Eastern and Western Churches. In today’s context of ecumenical dialogue, other paths are often pursued, and a concept of unity different from that aspired to by St. Josaphat is defended. Let us take a look at his life.

Josaphat Kuncewicz was born in 1580 in Volhynia, which belonged to Greater Poland at the time and is now in western Ukraine. He came from a respected family; his father, Gabriel, was a councilman. He was baptized in the Orthodox faith with the name John. Even as a child, he was said to be very pious and to have had a vision of God.

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A handsome young man does not usually find it easy to escape the ladies who have taken a liking to him. Such was the case with Lancelot Avellino, born in 1521 in Castronuovo, Italy, the eldest son of Giovanni Avellino and Margherita Apelli. On more than one occasion, he found himself in a situation similar to that of Joseph in the house of Potiphar the Egyptian, but the memory of his beloved mother—a woman of extraordinary virtue—kept him from falling into temptation. Nevertheless, the interest of women pursued him at many stages of his life, and he always had to guard his chastity with great vigilance.

Lancelot— that was his given name—aspired to the priesthood. As a subdeacon, he taught catechism to children, guiding them toward a pious life. But the advances of the female sex did not cease, so he fled to Naples. Even there, he had to move several times to escape the amorous pursuits of ladies of high society. He controlled his passions through hard work and a very orderly lifestyle. In addition to theology, Lancelot studied law and soon earned a doctorate with honors.

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