St. Ivo of Kermartin
Feast 05-19 · Canonized 1347
Patron of
About
Ivo was born in 1253 at Kermartin in Brittany, France. He studied civil and canon law in Paris and Orléans and became an ecclesiastical judge in the diocese of Rennes, where he was known for refusing bribes and defending the poor without charge.
He was ordained a priest and served as a parish priest, giving away his income and even his clothes to the needy, and sleeping on a straw mat. He was called "the advocate of the poor" for his tireless work on behalf of widows, orphans, and the destitute.
He died on May 19, 1303, and was canonized in 1347. He is venerated as the patron saint of lawyers, judges, and abandoned children.
Suggested prayer
O God, who gave St. Ivo of Kermartin the grace to refuse bribes and to defend the poor without charge, grant through his intercession that lawyers and all who seek justice may serve the poor first. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.