Franciscan Mission Associates (FMA), now in its 51st year of service to the missions of the world, is a spiritually based organization with worldwide mission-helping undertakings. It promotes information about and interest in the missionaries and their people - particularly in the Franciscan Missions of Central America, but also in the inner cities of the United States and Canada as well as every continent in the world.
 Saint Dymphna
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 PrayerLord, our God, you graciously chose St. Dymphna as patroness of those afflicted with mental and nervous disorders. Be close to those who suffer from these afflictions and give them extra graces and added patience in their pain; fill them with your presence, hope and relief. We ask you this through Christ, our Lord. Amen.
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St. Dymphna is another young saint venerated in the Catholic Church. She was killed by her own father, the pagan king of Oriel in Ireland, when she was about 15 years old. Distraught over the death of his wife, the king listened to the advice of his council and decided to marry his own daughter. To avoid this, Dymphna fled Ireland with her confessor, seeking a safe haven in the small town of Gheel in Belgium. Eventually she was discovered by her father who killed her and the priest when she still refused his advances. They were both buried in Gheel. St. Dymphna's name is recorded in the Roman Martyrology for May 15. 
