Saint Gregory I, also known as the Great, was the Pope of the Catholic Church between 590 and 604 AD. He was born around 540 in Rome. Gregory was born into a noble and wealthy family and his great-great-grandfather was Pope Felix III who reigned from 483 to 492.

His father was Gordianus and was a senator and a Prefect of Rome. Gregory's mother was Silvia, also from a noble family. Silvia and her sister Pateria are both recognized as saints in the Catholic and Orthodox churches.

Gregory was well educated and excelled in all his studies. He excelled so much that at the age of 33, he became the Prefect of Rome, just as his father had been.

Following the death of his father, Gregory had the family villa in Rome converted into a monastery. Today the monastery still stands as the ‘San Gregorio Magno al Celio’.

As a monk, Gregory was very hard and strict. When a monk on his deathbed confessed to stealing three pieces of gold, he ordered that the monk be left to die alone. After the poor monk had died, Gregory ordered his body to be thrown on a dung heap along with the three coins. However, in a turn of heart, Gregory offered 30 Masses for the deceased monk, thus paving the way for Gregorian Mass in the church.

When Pope Pelagius II died in 590, Gregory was proclaimed Pope by acclamation. Pope Gregory was famous for the emphasis he put on missionary work. He sent many people out to bring many to Jesus and into the Church. It was Pope Gregory who dispatched St. Augustine of Canterbury to Kent in 597.

Pope Gregory made many changes to the Mass, some of which still remain today. The position of the ‘Our Father’ in the Mass remains where Pope Gregory placed it.

Pope Gregory may have also established "cantus planus," known today as Gregorian Chant. The melodious, monophonic music is known throughout the Church and it gives us the oldest music we still have in the original form, some dating to the centuries just after the death of Gregory.

Pope Gregory was well known for his alms to the poor, and he gave quite generously from the donations made to the Church by the wealthy people of Rome. Everything from money to land was given to the poor in some fashion.

He ordered his clergy to go out into the streets to find and care for the poor in person. Any clergy who were unwilling to go into the streets and help the poor were replaced. Assets of the Church were even liquidated to provide income for alms.

When a famine struck Rome in the 590s, Pope Gregory ordered the Church to use its assets to feed the poor. At that time, the Church controlled nearly two thousand square miles of land. Instead of selling the produce of the land, Pope Gregory ordered it to be shipped to Rome and given away for free. In this way, he saved thousands of people from certain death.

Pope Gregory himself refused to eat until his monks returned from their work of handing out food. He also made certain to dine with a dozen poor people at each meal.

Pope Gregory suffered from arthritis in his last years. He died on March 12, 604 AD and was immediately proclaimed a saint by means of popular acclaim.

Saint Gregory's relics remain in St. Peter's Basilica to this day.

In 1969, the Second Vatican Council moved Saint Gregory's feast day from March 12 to September 3, so that it would not fall during Lent.

Other Saints of the Day
1. Our Lady of the Miracle
2. Saint Abundus of Cordoba
3. Saint Brijida of Jesus
4. Saint Frugentius the Martyr
5. Saint Vitalian of Capua