Birthplace: Parzham Bavaria
Date of Birth and Death: 1818-1894
Feast Day: April 21st

Notable: Capuchin Lay Brother

Life:Born as Johann Birndorfer, the youngest of nine children, he grew up in a pious loving environment on a farm. He frequently sought silence and solitude to worship.

In his mid-teens, his parents died leaving him the farm and thereon led a life of prayer and charity. At the age of 31, he joined the Capuchins as a lay brother and took the name Conrad and took his vows in 1852. For the next 40 years, he served people from all walks of life as a porter at a friary in Alttotting Bavaria. He was committed to serving the 100,000 people who came sick, poor or hungry to the friary’s door every year.

He was a true servant of humanity. He greeted everyone with a kind gesture, a smile and a generous offering of food. He was especially committed to the children, particularly those who were abandoned, by gladdening their hearts. He seldom ate or slept preferring prayer. When he died, the children recited the Rosary which he taught them outside his window.

Prayer

Dear God, we beseech The to help us to serve as St. Conrad did - to know when to speak and to know the right things to say - to know when a gesture speaks more clearly than any words. There are so many who need comfort in these times. Help us to support then and love them through our actions and through our prayers. We ask this in thy loving name. Amen.