Saints

STANDING FOR THE FAITH: Blessed Antonio Primaldo, the Saint Who Stood to the End (UPDATED)

May 1, 2013 By Kathy Schiffer 6 Comments

On December 20, Pope Benedict XVI–amid a flurry of 23 decrees including the much-touted proclamation of Pope Paul VI as “venerable”—advanced the cause of canonization of Blessed Antonio Primaldo e Compagni. With the recognition of the miraculous healing of Sister Francesca Levote, which has been attributed to the intercession of Blessed Antonio and his Companions, the way has been paved for their eventual canonization.

It’s been a busy week, what with the holidays and all—but I thought Blessed Antonio worthy of mention, if only because of the unusual circumstances surrounding his death.

Blessed Antonio was a tailor in the city of Otranto, Italy, in the 1400s. In 1480 the city was invaded by Turkish Moslems, their 150 ships and 18,000 troops greatly outnumbering the 6,000 inhabitants of the town. The conquerors executed the elderly bishop, Archbishop Stephen Pendinelli, and took the women and children into slavery. They rounded up all the men between the ages of fifteen and fifty—some 800 men in all. The Ottoman captors threatened to kill all the men, but promised to grant their lives and the freedom of their women and children if the men would simply renounce Christ and become Muslim.

Blessed Antonio remained firm, and encouraged his fellow citizens to stand strong in their faith. “My brothers,” he said, “until today we have fought in defense of our homeland, to save our lives, and for our earthly governors. Now it is time for us to fight to save our souls for the Lord. And since he died on the cross for us, it is fitting that we should die for him, remaining firm and constant in the faith, and with this earthly death we will earn eternal life and the glory of martyrdom.”

Blessed Antonio was the first to be beheaded, followed by 799 others. Tradition holds that Blessed Antonio’s headless body remained standing and could not be knocked down by the Turkish soldiers. Only when the last of the men was slain did his body collapse of its own accord. One of the Muslims, seeing this miracle, was converted and professed his faith in Christianity—after which he was immediately impaled upon a scimitar by his own comrades-in-arms.

Relics of the Blessed Martyrs of Otranto in the Cathedral crypt

The relics of the 800 martyrs are revered in a number of churches throughout Italy and Spain. Here, a number of the relics are enshrined in the Cathedral city.

UPDATE: It’s official! The canonization of Blessed Antonio Primaldo and the 800 Italian laymen killed by Ottoman soldiers will occur on May 12, 2013 in St. Peter’s Square. It will be the first canonization carried out by Pope Francis since his election in early March.

Filed Under: Beatification, Martyrs, Saints Tagged With: Blessed Antonio Primaldo 6 Comments

Will Blessed Pope John Paul II Be Canonized on October 22?

April 22, 2013 By Kathy Schiffer Leave a Comment

Workmen install a large banner in St. Peter’s Square on May 2, 2011, one day after the Beatification of the late Pope John Paul II.

The medical council charged with reviewing a possible miraculous healing attributable to Pope John Paul II has ruled it “inexplicable” and has forwarded the file to the Vatican Congregation for the Saints for further study.

According to the Italian newspaper La Stampa, the canonization of Karol Wojtyla is moving forward and may happen as early as October 2013. The proceedings have been conducted in secrecy; but Andrea Tornielli, reporting from Vatican City, reported:

In January, the postulator of the cause, Mgr. Slawomir Oder, submitted a presumed miraculous healing to the Vatican Congregation for the Saints for a preliminary opinion. As it is known, after the approval of a miracle for the proclamation of a blessed, the canonical procedures include the recognition of a second miracle that must have occurred after the beatification ceremony.

Two doctors of the Vatican council had previously examined this new case, and both gave a favourable opinion. The dossier with the medical records and the testimonies was then officially presented to the Congregation, which immediately included the examination in its agenda. In the past few days it was discussed by a committee of seven doctors, the council (presided over by Dr. Patrick Polisca, Pope John Paul II’s cardiologist), Pope Benedict XVI’s personal physicians and now Pope Francis’s. The medical council also gave a favourable opinion, the first official go-ahead by the Vatican, by defining as inexplicable the healing attributed to the intercession of the blessed Karol Wojtyla.

According to Italy’s Panorama Magazine, the healing selected for further study was chosen from four cases which had been submitted to the Vatican.

In May 2005, Pope Benedict XVI waived the normal five-year waiting period before beatification proceedings for his predecessor could begin, citing “exceptional circumstances”.

In 2009, the Congregation for the Saints unanimously ruled that Pope John Paul had lived a life of virtue; just a month later, Pope Benedict signed a declaration ruling that he had, in fact, lived a “heroic, virtuous life”.

The first miracle attributed to the late pope—the miracle which led to John Paul’s beatification in May 2011—was the healing of Sister Marie Simon-Pierre, a French nun who had suffered from Parkinson’s disease. Sister Marie had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2001 and deteriorated rapidly, becoming incapacited within only four years to the point that she could no longer write and could barely drive. The sisters began praying to Pope John Paul for her healing; and within only a few weeks, the Parkinson’s symptoms disappeared and doctors confirmed that she was completely healed.

At this point, specifics regarding the second healing are still confidential; but it is believed that the second miracle occurred shortly after Pope John Paul’s death. If the Congregation for the Saints also rules that there is no natural cause for this second healing, Blessed John Paul II could be canonized as early as October. One source has suggested that while no date has been determined at this time, it could be Sunday, October 20—the nearest Sunday to Blessed Pope John Paul’s October 22 feastday.

Filed Under: Beatification, Canonization, Miracles, Pope John Paul II, Saints Leave a Comment

La Verna: St. Francis’ Hilltop Home-Away-From-Home

March 18, 2013 By Kathy Schiffer 1 Comment

View from the valley of La Verna, atop a steep cliff

St. Francis, after whom our new pope is named, is most often associated with the Italian village of Assisi. And fair enough: Assisi was home base for Francis and the other monks of the Order of Friars Minor.

Sometimes, though, he just needed to get away. That’s what happened when, in August 1224, Francis withdrew to La Verna, about a day’s walk away, for an extended 40-day period of prayer and fasting.

Pope Francis has invited the monks of La Verna to attend his inaugural Mass tomorrow morning. I thought, then, I’d tell the story of this beautiful monastery in the hills.

* * * *

The Count of Chiusi, Count Orlando, had given Francis and his monks the monastery of La Verna, a beautiful retreat center atop a mountain, as a gift in 1213. A few years later, in 1218, Count Orlando built him the Santa Maria degli Angeli Chapel. There, Francis retreated for prayer and contemplation, and it is there—at La Verna—that Francis received the stigmata.

It was also there, on or about September 17, that Francis had a vision of an angel, a seraphim. After that vision, Francis developed the stigmata, wounds like those of Christ, in his hands, feet and side.

* * * * *

The monastery at La Verna operates still today. The Franciscan monks still gather for prayer six times each day (even during the night hours).

Guests are welcome at La Verna—and the cost, compared to a standard European hotel, is very small. Our family stayed there on our road trip during the Jubilee Year, in October 2000; and I think the cost, for our simple room, an ample breakfast, lunch, and an evening feast complete with wine (and the opportunity to set your alarm and pray with the monks at 2:00 a.m.) was about $34/night.

I’ve been thinking about that trip today, anticipating St. Francis’ feastday; and I thought I’d share some of our family photos with you.

All the bells summon the monks to prayer.

The courtyard and walkways lead to comfortable rooms in the monastery.

La Verna is home to one of the world’s largest collections of Della Robbias–glazed pottery created by Italian artist Luca Della Robbia.

The Nativity, by Della Robbia

Our private dining room, where we enjoyed an ample breakfast, lunch and dinner. Dinner was a beef stew slow-roasted in the fireplace, fresh bread, and regional wine.

My husband, Deacon Jerry Schiffer, explores the courtyard

Here is the cleft in the rock, where Francis slept and where the raven woke him for prayer. It’s also the spot where he was visited by an angel, and where he received the stigmata.

Linda and Dennis, our companions, leaving the rocky ledge where, it’s reported, Nazi youth were frightened by an earthquake and ran away– without destroying the monastery, as they had planned.

Altar of St. Francis. Small chapels and prayer rooms throughout La Verna remind us of the centrality of prayer in the monks’ lives.

We wait (and wait, and wait…) while Jerry telephones hotels in Rome, our next destination.
(Can you believe that we were in Europe and did not have reservations for that night?! We did, though, find rooms at the Michelangelo, a lovely hotel just a brief walk from St. Peter’s Basilica—so the drama ended well.)

Sister Jacinta, our guide and travel angel, is from India–but she generously led us on a guided tour of the monastery and grounds. Here, she returns to the chapel for the noon prayer.