CatholicSaints.Info

Also known as

• Joannes Eleemosynarius
• Joannes Misericors
• John of Alexandria
• John the Almsgiver
• John the Merciful
• John the Chaplain

Memorial

• 11 November
• 23 January on some calendars
• 15 January on some calendars

Profile

Born to the Cypriot nobility; his father as the governor of Cyprus. Married briefly, and father of one child. Entered the religious life when his wife and child died of disease. Patriarch of Alexandria, Egypt in 608. Archbishop. Known as the Almoner because of his generosity to the poor. Helped refugees from Persian assults on the Holy Lands. Forced to leave Alexandria when the Persians threatened to overrun it, he returned to his home on Cyprus. Predicted the date of his own death.

Born

• c.550 at Amathus, Cyprus

Died

• c.616 at Amathus, Cyprus of natural causes
• some relics in the cathedral at Presburg, Slovakia
• some relics in the church of San Giovanni l’Elemosiniere, Venice, Italy

Canonized

• Pre-Congregation

Patronage

• Casarano, Italy
• Knights Hospitaller

Representation

• bishop giving alms to a crippled man
• bishop giving alms to the poor

Readings

If we are able to enter the church day and night and implore God to hear our prayers, how careful we should be to hear and grant the petitions of our neighbor in need. – Saint John the Almoner

MLA Citation

• “Saint John the Almoner“. CatholicSaints.Info. 31 May 2022. Web. 25 April 2024. <>