jerusalem-sunrise:

screechthemighty:

So if you’re a college student and also the praying sort, I feel it is my duty to let you know that there is, in fact, a patron saint of test takers and poor students.

His name is Joseph of Cupertino, and the story goes that when he went to be examined for Minor Orders, he prayed for God’s intercession the night before because (due to learning difficulties) he was really only proficient in the knowledge of one subject. On the day of his examination he was asked about the one thing he happened to know about, and answered so well that he got in based on that one question alone.

Just to drive it home, this is the prayer for his intercession:

O  Great St. Joseph of Cupertino who while on earth did obtain from God the grace to be asked at your examination only the questions you knew, obtain for me a like favour in the examinations for which I am now preparing. In return I promise to make you known and cause you to be invoked.

They always tell this story at the last mass before finals where I go to college. For obvious reasons. He also levitated due to his ecstatic visions. That happened a lot, apparently.

This has been Children’s Fun Fact: Religion Corner.

And for Jewish tumblr folks, this is the prayer said before Torah study:

In Hebrew:

Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu melekh ha-olam, asher kiddeshanu be’mitzvotav, ve’tzivanu la’asok be’divrei Torah

In English:

Blessed art thou, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, who sanctifies us with Thy commandments and commanded us to engross ourselves in the words of the Torah.

Then again, Jewish people see study as a form of prayer in and of itself, so if that helps, go with it.