Saint Frances of Rome (or
Saint Francesca Romana; 1384 – March 9 1440) was an Italian saint.
She was born in
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
to wealthy parents. When she was eleven years old, she decided to be a
nunA Nun, or also known as a Sister in some cases, is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
, but within two years her parents married her off to Lorenzo Ponziano (or
de Ponziani), commander of the
papalThe Papal States, State of the Church or Pontifical States were one of the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
troops of Rome. Although the marriage had been arranged, it was a happy one, lasting for forty years, partly because Lorenzo admired his wife and her sister, Vannozza, and partly because he was frequently away at war.
Saint Frances of Rome (or
Saint Francesca Romana; 1384 – March 9 1440) was an Italian saint.
She was born in
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
to wealthy parents. When she was eleven years old, she decided to be a
nunA Nun, or also known as a Sister in some cases, is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
, but within two years her parents married her off to Lorenzo Ponziano (or
de Ponziani), commander of the
papalThe Papal States, State of the Church or Pontifical States were one of the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
troops of Rome. Although the marriage had been arranged, it was a happy one, lasting for forty years, partly because Lorenzo admired his wife and her sister, Vannozza, and partly because he was frequently away at war. The women prayed, visited the poor, and took care of the sick, inspiring other wealthy women to do the same. Francesca became widely known among the poor by the nickname "la Ceccolella".
Francesca and Lorenzo lost two of their six children to the
plagueThe Black Death was one of the deadliest pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. It is widely thought to have been an outbreak of bubonic plague caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, but this view has recently been challenged...
. In their case, it sensitized them to the needs of the poor. The city of Rome was largely in ruins, wolves were known to enter the streets. During the wars between the legitimate
popeThe pope is the Bishop of Rome and, as such, is leader of the worldwide Catholic Church...
and various antipopes, Lorenzo served the former. However, in his absence, much of his own property and possessions were destroyed. Eventually he would return, wounded, to Francesca's care, dying in 1436.
According to the
Catholic EncyclopediaThe Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to today as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language encyclopedia published in the United States. The first volume appeared in March 1907 and it was completed in April 1914...
, "With her husband's consent St. Frances practiced continency, and advanced in a life of
contemplationThe word Contemplation comes from the Latin root templum , and means to separate something from its environment, and to enclose it in a sector. Contemplation is the Latin translation of Greek 'theory'...
. Her visions often assumed the form of drama enacted for her by heavenly personages. She had the
gift of miraclesThe gift of miracles is, in Christian theology, among the charismata or gifts mentioned by St. Paul in his First Epistle to the Corinthians, among the extraordinary graces of the Holy Ghost...
and ecstasy, (as) well as the bodily vision of her
guardian angelA guardian angel is an angel assigned to protect and guide a particular person. The belief in guardian angels can be traced throughout all antiquity...
, had revelations concerning
purgatoryPurgatory is the condition or process of purification in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven. This is an idea that has ancient roots and is well-attested in early Christian literature, while the conception of purgatory as a geographically situated place is...
and
hellIn many religious traditions, Hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife, often in the underworld. Religions with a linear divine history often depict Hell as endless...
, and foretold the ending of the
Western SchismThe Great Schism of Western Christianity or Papal Schism was a split within the Roman Catholic Church from 1378 to 1417. By its end, three men simultaneously claimed to be the true pope. Driven by politics rather than any real theological disagreement, the schism was ended by the Council of...
. She could read the secrets of consciences and detect plots of diabolical origin. She was remarkable for her humility and detachment, her obedience and patience".
St. Francesca had turned part of the family's country estate into a hospital. On 15 August 1425, the feast of the
AssumptionThe Assumption of Mary is a belief held by Christians of the Catholic Church as well as some Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Anglicans, that the Virgin Mary, at the end of her life, was physically taken up into heaven...
, she founded the Oblates of Mary, a lay congregation of pious women, attached to the church of Santa Maria Nova in Rome, but neither cloistered nor bound by formal vows. On 4 July 1433 it received the approval of
Pope Eugene IVPope Eugene IV , born Gabriele Condulmer, was Pope from March 3, 1431, to his death.-Biography:He was born in Venice to a rich merchant family, a Correr on his mother's side. Condulmer entered the Order of Saint Augustine at the monastery of St. George in his native city...
. It is now known as the Oblates of Saint Frances of Rome. When her husband died in 1436, she became the group's superior. She died in 1440 and was buried in that church.
On 9 May 1608 she was canonized by
Pope Paul VPope Paul V , born Camillo Borghese, was Pope from 16 May, 1605 until his death.-Early life:...
, and in the following decades a diligent search was made for her remains. They were found on 2 April 1638 and reburied on 9 March 1649, which since then is her feast day. Again, in 1869, her body was exhumed and has since then been exposed to the veneration of the faithful in a crystal coffin. The church of Santa Maria Nova is usually now referred to as the church of
Santa Francesca RomanaSanta Francesca Romana, previously known as Santa Maria Nova, is a church in Rome, situated next to the Roman ForumThe church was built in the second half of the 10th century, incorporating an eighth-century oratory that Pope Paul I excavated in the wing of the portico of the Temple of Venus and...
. In 1925
Pope Pius XIPope Pius XI , born Ambrogio Damiano Achille Ratti, was Pope from 6 February 1922, and sovereign of Vatican City from its creation as an independent state on 11 February 1929 until his death on 10 February 1939...
declared her the patron saint of automobile drivers because of a legend that an angel used to light the road in front of her with a lantern when she travelled, keeping her safe from hazards.
External links