St. Gertrude

St. Gertrude, a 13th century German Benedictine nun and mystic, entered the monastery at a very young age, possibly due to her status as an orphan. Gertrude was well educated and her writing demonstrated her fluency in Latin. She devoted herself to personal prayer, meditation and crafting spiritual treatises for her fellow nuns. Several of her writings survive today. She strongly believed in prayer: "The more we pray for someone, the more that blessing rests on him, for no prayer made in faith remains unanswered, even if the manner of the answering is hidden from us."