From: rich <
richarra@gmail.com>
May 19th - St. Crispin of Viterbo
Also known as
Crispinus of Viterbo
Crispinus von Viterbo
il Santorello
Kryspin z Viterbo
Peter Fioretti
Pietro Fioretti
d. 1750
=C2 Peter Fioretti was born at Viterbo, Italy, on November 13, 1668. His father, Ubald, died when Peter was very young. The raising of the boy
and his stepsister was left in the hands of his mother, Marsha, who
had already been widowed once when she married Ubald. When Peter was
five years old, his mother dedicated him to the Virgin Mary at the
shrine of Our Lady of the Oaks near Viterbo. "Look," she told her son,
"this is also your mother. I have made you a gift to her." Peter never
forgot that experience, and throughout his life referred to Mary as
his "momma." Since his mother could not afford to educate him, Peter's
paternal uncle, Francis, provided for his schooling. After working as
a cobbler for his uncle, the frail, lean 25-year-old Peter asked to
join the Capuchins, desiring to imitate Felix of Cantalice.
The provincial minister, Angelo of Rieti, immediately accepted him for
the novitiate. However, Peter met with opposition from his family,
especially from his mother. Reminding her that she had already given
him to the Virgin Mary, she consented to his going to "serve the
Madonna." Having gotten to the novitiate, Peter also met with
resistance from the novice director who, seeing how frail Peter
appeared, advised him to return home. The novice director allowed him
to remain as a guest while awaiting a decision from the provincial
minister.
The provincial minister reminded the novice director that it was the
provincial minister's prerogative to accept novices and the director's responsibility to discern the vocation of those accepted. Peter was
received into the Roman Capuchin province on July 22, 1693, taking the
name, Crispin (after the patron of cobblers). Despite his prior
training as a cobbler, in all his 57 years as a Capuchin, Crispin was
never assigned as cobbler for the friars. After professing vows on
July 22, 1694, he was assigned to Tolfa as cook for three years and
then passed through a series of assignments: infirmarian at Rome, cook
at Albano, orchard keeper at Monterotondo, and finally, questor at
Orvieto for 38 years. Crispin knew everyone and everyone knew him,
considering him a close personal friend. He possessed an amazing
ability to integrate a life of feverish activity, on the one hand,
with a solid interior life. Without concern for his own wellbeing,
Crispin cared for those stricken during the epidemics at Farnese,
Gallese and Bracciano. As questor, he begged for food not only on
behalf of his Capuchin brothers, but also to provide for all the needy
of his "big Orvietan family." For the friars, he would only beg for necessities, nothing more.
Crispin accomplished a remarkable amount of good in the area of social
and spiritual assistance, energetically ministering among the sick,
the imprisoned, sinners, unwed mothers, families experiencing
hardship, and those on the brink of despair. He was a skilled
peacemaker both within his own Capuchin community and with others.
Before beginning any task, Crispin always prayed first to Mary, his
mother. He possessed a contagious joviality and his ministry was
marked by a profound sense of joy. Nothing escaped his notice,
particularly in discerning what people really needed. Daily he visited
the sick and local prisoners, pleading their cause, urging the guards
to respect their human dignity, bringing them bread, chestnuts and
tobacco, and arranging for families to take turns providing the
prisoners with good, homecooked meals. Babies were often abandoned on
the doorstep of the friary and then placed in the care of Our Lady of
the Star Shelter. Crispin took a personal interest in these
foundlings, arranging for their being apprenticed in one or the other
trade, and keeping in touch with many of them well into their adult
lives. Crispin was filled with intuition and insight which prompted
many learned people to seek his counsel.
Crispin was convinced that much of human misery, both material and
spiritual, was due to injustice. He therefore set about to confront
social injustice by admonishing merchants, reminding people of
workers' rights, and asking forgiveness of debts whenever possible. He
used his sense of humor to lighten people's burdens. Every little
occurrence found its way quickly to Crispin's ears. Without
hesitation, he would offer himself as a mediator, friend, and
counselor. Nonetheless, he was not without his critics and crosses,
both within and outside the friary. Some called him opinionated and
aggressive; others, a hypocrite. Some friars expected Felix to make
their life easier. When their expectations were not met, they became embittered.
Besides many letters, Crispin left a treasury of maxims, among them,
"One doesn't get to heaven in a taxi."
During the winter of 1747-48, Crispin fell gravely ill and was
transferred to the provincial infirmary at Rome. Recovery was but
temporary, and on May 19, 1750, the 82-year-old Crispin died of
pneumonia at the friary of the Immaculate Conception located near the
Piazza Barberini on Rome's famous via Veneto. Among the many sayings
attributed to him was the exhortation, "Let us love God who deserves
it!"
Beatified by Pius VII on September 7, 1806, Crispin was canonized by
Pope John Paul II on June 20, 1982.
Source: Capuchin Order, San Francisco, California.
Saint Quote:
Mary seeks for those who approach her devoutly and with reverence, for
such she loves, nourishes, and adopts as her children.
--Saint Bonaventure, Doctor of the Church
Bible Quote:
All things are delivered to me by my Father. And no one knoweth the
Son but the Father: neither doth any one know the Father, but the Son,
and he to whom it shall please the Son to reveal him.=C2 (Matt. 11:27) D=
RB
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MARY, GUARDIAN OF THE FLOWERS
In a garden of souls stands a Lady so fair,
She caresses each petal growing weak from despair,
Breathes the strength down upon them,
Brings the waters of life,
Feeds the plants that have weakened
From the earth's constant strife.
The flowers spread out in colors profuse,
Each a bud a fair promise of heavenly use.
Tender hands take the bent stalk
Grown weak from the flight,
From the darkness of soil that has shut out the light.
Turned the blossoming petal with soft tender hands,
To face up to the Light that shines down from His land
Sprinkles stardust to cover the flowers with grace
As they grow on the path
That leads straight to the place.
Where the fairest of Flowers sits next to Her Son,
As She welcomes you all
From a mission well done!
--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
* Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)