St. Raymond studied philosophy and rhetoric in Barcelona, obtained a doctorate in law in Bologna, and became a professor of canon law. Years later, the bishop of Barcelona, Berenguer IV, on a trip through Italy, proposed that he become a professor in the Seminary that he wanted to establish in his diocese. He returned to Catalonia, and in 1222, he became a Dominican. A year later, with the help of St. Peter Nolasco, he founded the Order of the Mercedarians, with the aim of rescuing Christian slaves.
Gregory IX's appreciation of the juridical culture of saint Raymond was great, and entrusted him to collect all the disciplinary and dogmatic acts of the Popes. He did so, and Gregory IX offered him the archbishopric of Tarragona. However, he refused it, because he wished to remain a simple Dominican friar. Stricken by illness, he returned to his first monastery to live a secluded life.
In 1238 the Dominicans elected him Master General of the OrderHe was the third after St. Dominic of Guzman and Blessed Jordan of Saxony. At the age of seventy he left his commission and returned to prayer and study. He died in Barcelona on January 6, 1275. He was declared blessed by Paul III in 1542, and a saint by Clement VIII in 1601. His remains are in the cathedral of Barcelona.
