Sv. Camilo de Lellis felt, because of his own experience of war and wounding, a call to establish within the Catholic Church an order to deal with the care of the sick and wounded. The order he founded still operates today, and its members have a vow to help the sick, even when their own lives are in danger.
On July 14, 1614, a saint especially dedicated to caring for the sick and wounded died – St. Camille de Lellis. His own experiences of war and wounding led him to establish an order within the Catholic Church that would deal with the care of the sick and wounded. Thus was created the Order for the Court of the Sick (lat. Ordo Clericorum Regularium Ministrantium Infirmis). Today, the members of that order according to St. The camel is usually called camellians, and behind the name they bear the initials M.I. (lat. Ministrantes Infirmis).
Sv. Camilo de Lellis was a soldier in the first phase of his life. Namely, those were the times when there was intense war in southern Europe against the Ottoman Turks. The naval battles against the Turkish navy were particularly bloody. In the fight, St. Camilo suffered a wound on his leg that later tormented him for a long time. After a tumultuous military life in his early youth (he allegedly joined the army at the age of 16), and even the propensity to gamble, St. Camilo was converted in 1575, when he was about 25 years old. He began to care for the sick, and later felt called to establish a religious community dedicated to better organization of care for the sick. He became a priest, and in the whole process he was supported by the famous saint Philip Neri, who was about 35 years older than St. Camel.
Members of the order which St. Kamilo founded wearing a specific habit with a large red cross. This cross is quite reminiscent of the Red Cross as today’s world symbol of health care, but it should be noted that camellias originated almost 300 years before the founding of the International Red Cross. Sv. Camilla is today considered the protector of patients, hospitals, nurses, paramedics and doctors. Some also call for his help against gambling (he was allegedly a gambler himself before he converted). John of God. Note that camellias are also dedicated to the care of plague sufferers, which is a dangerous occupation due to the possibility of infection. In the modern world, camellias also provide care to AIDS patients. It is very interesting that camellians have a vow to help the sick, even when their own lives are in danger.
