The Lives of Saints: The Good, Bad and Sin Quiz

Answer: St. Augustine of Hippo

St. Augustine of Hippo was born in 354 to a very devout mother. However, he lived a hedonistic lifestyle for many years. He fathered an illegitimate child and then abandoned his son Adeodatus and the son's mother to marry a rich heiress who was just ten years old. He would never actually marry the girl, because he had to wait until she was twelve to legally do so, and he became a priest in the meantime.

His dramatic change in lifestyle came after he met St. Ambrose of Milan and at the urging of his mother. St. Augustine would eventually become one of the most famous Catholic saints ever, and he was instrumental in getting the Church to adopt the concept of the Holy Trinity.

Answer: St. Olga of Kiev

St. Olga was the de facto ruler of Kievan Rus during the 10th century. Her husband Igor had been murdered by the Drevlians in an attempt to claim Kievan Rus for themselves. St. Olga, in revenge, had massacred most of the Drevlians and sold the rest to slavery. Some Drevlians were killed in brutal ways, such as being buried alive or burned at the stake.

Later in life, St. Olga converted to Christianity after seeing a magnificent church and hearing the word of God for the first time. She was canonized for her efforts to spread Christianity throughout her kingdom.

Answer: She had an abortion

Dorothy Day had an abortion in 1921 after she broke up with her lover. She did eventually have a daughter, even though she thought she was sterile. Day was active in the women's suffrage movement in the 1910s and 1920s and in the anti-Vietnam War movement in the 1960s and 1970s.

She was arrested several times for protesting. She eventually abandoned her original lifestyle for a more religious one and became involved in the Catholic Workers Movement. Her canonization process has slowed and stalled intermittently because of objections involving her abortion and lifestyle.

Answer: St. Francis of Assisi

St. Angela of Foligno lived a life of pleasure and great wealth until St. Francis of Assisi appeared to her in a vision, which made her realize she did not need such material possessions. Soon afterward, her husband, mother and children died in quick succession and she sold all of her possessions and became a nun.

She was canonized a saint in 2013 by Pope Francis. Unusually, Pope Francis waived the requirement that she meet the requisite number of miracles typical for canonization.

Answer: She claimed to be the product of a virgin birth

Mother Teresa never claimed to have come from a virgin birth. Her parents were Nikolle and Dranafile Bojaxhiu. Mother Teresa's birth name was Anjeze Bojaxhiu.

There were a number of controversies that dogged Mother Teresa during her life. One of the main criticisms of her was the source of her funds. She accepted funds from some of the world's most brutal dictators, including Haitian dictator Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier. Some of these donations may have even been stolen money from victims of genocide. She was also supported by Albanian leader Enver Hoxha, who had a long history of murdering dissenters.

Another criticism of Mother Teresa involved the quality of healthcare she provided to those in need. Many of the hospitals and homes she founded were not well maintained or clean. She was reported to have said that the poor need to suffer in order to be close to God, and her critics accused her of misspending her vast resources elsewhere and not directing them toward the poor. She herself received quality care in hospitals when she fell ill during the last years of her life. Mother Teresa's supporters refute these claims, and say she always provided the best care possible, and that her homes and hospices, while not glamorous, allowed for people of all religions to die with dignity and not on the streets.

Another criticism of her was that she admitted to at times losing faith in Christianity. This did not stop her from becoming a saint, and Pope Benedict XVI said that, like Mother Teresa, many people at times go through similar phases in their relationship with God. It should be noted that Mother Teresa never once denied the existence of God.

Answer: Jesus' crucifixion

St. Dismas was was one of two convicted criminals crucified alongside Jesus, according to the Bible. He is usually called the Penitent Thief rather than St. Dismas. It is a tradition in some Christian denominations that St. Dismas is the only known person confirmed to be a saint, since Jesus acknowledged him soon before his death. Dismas was crucified on Jesus' right while another thief (who mocked Jesus) was on his left.

It is not exactly known what St. Dismas' crimes were, but various Christian writers have speculated he was a thief who murdered those who would not hand over their belongings.

Answer: St. Pelagia the Harlot

St. Pelagia was an actress who may have also dabbled in witchcraft. St. John Chrysostom speculated that she may have actually drugged and possessed men into giving her things like jewelry and power. She had a sudden conversion at some point in her life. She freed her slaves and moved to the Mount of Olives, where she became an ascetic. She died from her severe austerities.

Answer: St. Mary of Egypt

St. Mary of Egypt had worked as a prostitute for nearly two decades since she was twelve years old. She joined a religious pilgrimage to the Holy Land in an attempt for find clients rather than partake in the religious experience. However, one day she tried to enter the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem but was physically blocked from entering by an invisible force.

She soon realized that the force blocking her was God, and she gave up prostitution to become a hermit. She is appropriately the patron saint against sexual temptation.

Answer: Satanic priest

Prior to becoming a Dominican lay brother, Bartolo Longo was a Satanic priest. He was born to a Catholic family 1841, but Longo found himself in the middle of the Italian Nationalist movement. The Pope was seen as an antagonist and standing in the way of the Italian Reunification.

As a result, Longo lost his faith and became a Satanic priest. He converted back to Catholicism in the 1870s after he felt depressed and confused with Satanism.

Answer: Junipero Serra

Saint Junipero Serra was a Spanish missionary to Mexico and the United States. He is best known for founding missions along the California coastline. His canonization was controversial on the grounds that he oppressed the native population in the area.

Some Native American activists claim Serra suppressed the native culture and contributed to the deaths of many Native Americans. Days after he was canonized, a statue of Serra was vandalized at the San Carlos Borromeo Mission in California.