Mark Roy’s career just wasn’t doing it for him.

He was doing his best to help the poor and forgotten as a lawyer, and even earned the nickname “The poor man’s lawyer.” He rarely lost a case, and was distinguished for his intellectual prowess.

On the inside, however, Mark experienced a profound emotional void. He wanted to help the poor outside of the courtroom, and make them feel accepted in a world that had written them off. He also had his own deep emotional need for acceptance—a need he wasn’t fulfilling among his fellow lawyers. Mark was considered an outsider in the legal world, and felt repelled by the corruption he saw there.

So, Mark Roy made a bold decision—for the sake of both his own emotional needs and the emotional needs of the poor. He became a Franciscan monk and took the new name of Fidelis.

Saint Fidelis of Sigmaringen dedicated his life to the poor. He first took care of their physical needs, and then made sure to take care of their emotional needs. He made them feel accepted.

As human beings, we have physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual needs. One of our most dominant emotional needs is our need for acceptance. We all need to feel we belong. In the face of rejection, we may put on a brave face and pretend that we can survive without acceptance. And that is true; we can survive without the nurturing acceptance provides. But we cannot thrive without it.

Our needs are powerful. In many cases, if they are not fulfilled in healthy ways, they will seek their own satisfaction in self-destructive ways. Our need to be accepted is powerful, and it is astounding what most people will do to gain some sort of acceptance or sense of belonging.

Saint Fidelis recognized that he wasn’t meeting his emotional needs as a lawyer, so he switched careers. And as a monk, he was able to do something beyond winning legal cases and directly meet the emotional needs of the poor he served by helping them feel accepted by himself and by God.

Sometimes we need to make a radical change like Saint Fidelis did. But more often, we are called to make smaller changes to meet our emotional needs, like hanging out with a different group of people or working to bring greater intimacy to our current relationships.

What change, large or small, is God calling you to make in order to take care of your emotional needs?

Patron Saint of: Lawyers

Symbols: A Sword and a Palm of Martyrdom

Feast Day: April 24

Feast Day Shared By: Saints Mary of Cleopas and Salome, and Saint Mary Elizabeth Hesselblad

Canonized: June 29, 1746

Canonized By: Pope Benedict XIV