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{{Short description|Italian saint}}
{{Infobox Saint
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2012}}
|name=Saint Frances of Rome
{{Infobox saint
|birth_date=[[1384]]
|name=Frances of Rome
|death_date={{death date|1440|3|9|mf=y}}
|birth_date=1384
|feast_day=[[March 9]]
|birth_place=[[Rome]], [[Papal States]]
|venerated_in=[[Roman Catholic Church]]
|birth_name=Francesca Bussa de' Leoni
|image=FrancesRome.jpg
|death_date={{death date and age|1440|3|9|1384|mf=y}}
|imagesize=150px
|death_place=Rome, Papal States
|caption='''Saint Frances of Rome'''
|feast_day=March 9
|birth_place=[[Rome]]
|venerated_in=[[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic Church]]
|death_place=[[Rome]]
|image=AntoniazzoRomano.jpg
|titles=
|imagesize=250px
|caption=Part of a series ''The Life of St. Frances of Rome''<br />[[Tor de' Specchi Monastery]], Rome, Italy<br />by [[Antoniazzo Romano]] (1468)
|titles=Patroness of Benedictine Oblates
|beatified_date=
|beatified_date=
|beatified_place=
|beatified_place=
|beatified_by=
|beatified_by=
|canonized_date=[[1608]]
|canonized_date=1608
|canonized_place=[[Rome]]
|canonized_place=Rome, Papal States
|canonized_by=[[Pope Paul V]]
|canonized_by=[[Pope Paul V]]
|attributes=
|attributes=
|patronage=[[Benedictine]] oblates; automobile drivers
|patronage=[[Order of St. Benedict|Benedictine]] [[Oblate (religion)|oblates]], automobile drivers, widows
|major_shrine=[[Santa Francesca Romana]] Church, Rome
|major_shrine=[[Santa Francesca Romana|Church of Santa Francesca Romana]], Rome, Italy
|suppressed_date=
|suppressed_date=
|issues=
|issues=
|prayer=
|prayer=
|prayer_attrib=
|prayer_attrib=
|honorific_prefix=Saint|honorific_suffix=[[Obl.S.B.]]}}
}}


'''Francesca Bussa de' Leoni''' (1384 – March 9, 1440), known as '''Frances of Rome''' {{post-nominal styles|post-noms=[[Benedictines|Obl.S.B.]]}} ({{langx|it|Francesca Romana}}; {{langx|la|Francisca Rōmāna}}), was an Italian Catholic [[Christian mysticism|mystic]], organizer of charitable services and a [[Order of St. Benedict|Benedictine]] [[oblate]] who founded a religious community of oblates, who share a common life without [[religious vows]]. She was [[canonization|canonized]] in 1608.
[[Image:AntoniazzoRomano.jpg|thumb|right|''Histories of St. Francesca Romana'' by [[Antoniazzo Romano]]]]
'''Saint Frances of Rome''' (or ''Francesca Romana'') ([[Rome]], [[1384]] – Rome, [[March 9]] [[1440]]), like many saints, was born of wealthy Italian parents.


== Life ==
When she was eleven years old, St. Frances decided to be a [[nun]], but within two years her parents married her off to Lorenzo Ponziano (or ''de Ponziani''), commander of the [[Papal States|papal]] 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 a nickname "Ceccolella".
Frances was born in 1384 in Rome to a wealthy and [[aristocracy (class)|aristocratic]] couple, Paolo Bussa and Iacobella dei Roffredeschi, in the up-and-coming [[rioni of Rome|district]] of [[Parione]] and [[Baptism|christened]] in the nearby [[Sant'Agnese in Agone|Church of St. Agnes]] on the famed [[Piazza Navona]].<ref>Life of St. Frances on the website of her monastery {{in lang|it}} [http://www.tordespecchi.it/public/index.php?Storia:Santa_Francesca_Romana]</ref> When she was eleven years old, she wanted to be a [[nun]], but, at about the age of twelve, her parents forced her to marry Lorenzo Ponziani, commander of the [[Papal States|papal]] troops of Rome and member of an extremely wealthy family. Although the marriage had been arranged, it was a happy one, lasting for forty years.
[[File:Antoniazzo Romano – Santa Francesca Romana e il miracolo del grano.jpg|thumb|left|Santa Francesca Romana e il miracolo del grano]]
With her sister-in-law Vannozza, Frances visited the poor and took care of the sick, inspiring other wealthy women of the city to do the same. Soon after her marriage, Frances fell seriously ill. Her husband called a man in who dabbled in magic, but Frances drove him away, saying, "Begone, thou servant of Satan, nor ever venture into these walls again!" and later recounted to Vannozza that St. Alexis had appeared to her and cured her.<ref name="Habig">{{Cite web|last=Chapman|first=Sophie|title=BlackJack|url=https://franciscan-sfo.org/|access-date=2020-09-05|language=ru-RU}}</ref>


When her father-in-law died, Frances became the mistress of the household. During a time of flood and famine, she turned part of the family's house
Francesca and Lorenzo lost two of their three children to the [[Black Death|plague]]. In their case, it sensitized them to the needs of the poor. During the wars between the legitimate [[pope]] 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]].
estate into a hospital<ref name="foley">{{Cite web|date=2016-03-09|title=Saint Frances of Rome|url=https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-frances-of-rome/|access-date=2023-03-09|website=Franciscan Media|language=en}}</ref> and distributed food and clothing to the poor. According to one account, her father-in-law was so angry that he took away from her the keys to the supply rooms; but gave them back when he saw that the corn bin and wine barrel were replenished after Frances finished praying.


During the wars between the pope in Rome and various [[anti-popes]] in the [[Western Schism]] of the Catholic Church, Lorenzo served the former. According to one story, their son Battista was to be delivered as a hostage to the commander of the Neapolitan troops. Obeying this order on the command of her [[spiritual director]], Frances took her son to the [[Campidoglio]]. On the way, she stopped in the Church of the [[Aracoeli]] located there and entrusted her son's life to the [[Blessed Mother]]. When they arrived at the appointed site, the soldiers tried to put her son on a horse to transport him to captivity. However, the horse refused to move despite heavy whipping. The soldiers saw the hand of God in this and returned the boy to his mother.<ref name="lady">{{Cite book|last=Georgiana Charlotte Fullerton|first=Frances|url=http://archive.org/details/lifestfrancesro00capegoog|title=The life of st. Frances of Rome; of blessed Lucy of Narni, of Dominica of Paradiso, and Anne ...|date=1855|publisher=Burns and Lambert|others=Oxford University|language=English}}</ref>
According to the [[Catholic Encyclopedia]], "With her husband's consent St. Frances practiced continency, and advanced in a life of [[contemplation]]. Her visions often assumed the form of drama enacted for her by heavenly personages. She had the [[gift of miracles]] and ecstasy, (as) well as the bodily vision of her [[Guardian angel (spirit)|guardian angel]], had revelations concerning [[purgatory]] and [[hell]], and foretold the ending of the [[Western Schism]]. 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<nowiki>[.]</nowiki>"


[[File:Confessio of Santa Francesca Romana 05.jpg|thumb|right|Sculpture by Giosuè Meli (1866)]]
Francesca had turned part of the family's country estate into a hospital. On the feast of the [[Assumption of Mary|Assumption]], [[August 15]], [1425], she founded the Oblates of Mary, a lay congregation of pious women, attached to the church of S. Maria Nova in Rome, but neither cloistered nor bound by formal vows, which on [[July 4]], [[1433]] received the approval of [[Pope Eugene IV]]. The group became the [[Oblates of the Benedictine Congregation of Monte Oliveto]], headquartered in the nearby [[Tor di Specchi]]. She died in 1440 and was buried in that church.


During a period of forced exile, much of Lorenzo's property and possessions were destroyed.<ref name="paoli">{{Cite web|title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Frances of Rome|url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06205c.htm|access-date=2020-09-05|website=www.newadvent.org}}</ref> In the course of one occupation of Rome by [[Naples|Neapolitan]] forces in the early part of the century, he was wounded so severely that he never fully recovered. Frances nursed him throughout the rest of his life.
On [[May 9]], [[1608]] she was [[canonization|canonized]] by [[Pope Paul V]], and in the following decades a diligent search was made for her remains. They were found on [[April 2]], [[1638]] and reburied on [[March 9]], [[1649]]. Again, in [[1869]], the body was exhumed and this time 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 Romana]]. Peculiarly, in [[1925]] [[Pope Pius XI]] declared her the patron saint of automobile drivers. Her feast day is celebrated on [[March 9]], the date of the first translation of her remains.


Frances experienced other sorrows during her marriage to Lorenzo. They lost two children to the plague. Chaos ruled the city in that period of neglect by the pope and the ongoing warfare between him and the various forces competing for power on the Italian peninsula devastated the city. The city of Rome was largely in ruins, and wolves were known to enter the streets. Frances again opened her home as a hospital and drove her wagon through the countryside to collect wood for fire and herbs for medicine.<ref name="Loyola">{{Cite web|title=Saint Frances of Rome|url=https://www.loyolapress.com/catholic-resources/saints/saints-stories-for-all-ages/saint-frances-of-rome/|access-date=2020-09-05|website=Loyola Press}}</ref> It is said she had the gift of healing, and over 60 cases were attested to during the canonization proceedings.<ref name=lady/>
==External links==
*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06205c.htm Catholic Encyclopedia article]
*[http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0309.htm#fran 09 March saints] at [[St. Patrick's Church]]
*{{it icon}} [http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/26350 Santa Francesca Romana]


According to the [[Catholic Encyclopedia]], "With her husband's consent St. Frances practiced [[Josephite marriage|continence]], and advanced in a life of [[contemplation]]. Her visions often assumed the form of drama enacted for her by heavenly personages. She had the [[gift of miracles]] and ecstasy, as well as the bodily vision of her [[Guardian angel (spirit)|guardian angel]], had revelations concerning [[Purgatory]] and [[Hell]], and foretold the ending of the Western Schism. She could read the secrets of consciences and detect plots of [[Evil|diabolical]] origin. She was remarkable for her humility and detachment, her obedience and patience".<ref name=paoli/>
[[Category:1384 births|Frances of Rome]]
[[Category:1440 deaths|Frances of Rome]]
[[Category:People from Rome (city)|Frances of Rome]]
[[Category:Italian saints|Frances of Rome]]
[[Category:Women of medieval Italy|Frances of Rome]]
[[Category:Benedictine nuns|Frances of Rome]]


On August 15, 1425, the feast of the [[Assumption of Mary]], she founded the [[Olivetan]] [[Oblate]]s of [[Blessed Virgin Mary|Mary]], a [[confraternity]] of pious women, under the authority of the Olivetan [[monk]]s of the Abbey of [[Santa Francesca Romana, Rome|Santa Maria Nova]] in Rome but neither cloistered nor bound by formal vows, so they could follow her pattern of combining a life of prayer with answering the needs of their society.<ref name=dictionary>{{cite book|last=Farmer|first=David Hugh|title=The Oxford dictionary of saints|year=1997|publisher=Oxford Univ. Press|location=Oxford [u.a.]|isbn=0-19-280058-2|pages=191|edition=4.}}</ref>
[[br:Frañseza Roma]]

[[de:Franziska von Rom]]
[[File:Untitled (St. Francesca Romana), ca. 1650.jpg|thumb|left|Untitled (St. Francesca Romana), c.&nbsp;1650]]
[[es:Francisca Romana]]
In March 1433, she founded a [[monastery]] at [[Tor de Specchi Monastery|Tor de' Specchi]], near the Campidoglio, to allow for a common life by those members of the confraternity who felt so-called.<ref name=lady/> This monastery remains the only house of the Institute. That July 4, they received the approval of [[Pope Eugene IV]] as a [[religious congregation]] of oblates with private [[religious vows]]. The community later became known simply as the Oblates of St. Frances of Rome.
[[fr:Françoise Romaine]]

[[it:Santa Francesca Romana]]
Frances herself remained in her own home, nursing her husband for the last seven years of his life from wounds he had received in battle. When he died in 1436, she moved into the monastery and became the superior.<ref name=paoli/> She died in 1440 and was buried in Santa Maria Nova.
[[pl:Franciszka Rzymianka]]
[[Image:FrancesRome.jpg|thumb|Frances of Rome accompanied by her guardian angel]]
[[pt:Santa Francisca Romana]]

[[ro:Francisca Romana]]
== Veneration ==
[[sv:Franciska av Rom]]
On May 9, 1608, she was [[canonized]] by [[Pope Paul V]],<ref name="Habig" /> and in the following decades a diligent search was made for her remains, which had been hidden due to the troubled times in which she lived. Her body was found incorrupt some months after her death. Her grave was identified on April 2, 1638, (only the bones remained), and her remains were reburied in the Church of Santa Maria Nova on March 9, 1649, which since then has been her [[feast day]]. Again, in 1869, her body was [[exhumation|exhumed]] and has since then been displayed in a glass coffin for the [[veneration]] of the faithful. The Church of Santa Maria Nova is now usually referred to as the Church of St. Frances.

=== Patronage ===
In 1925 [[Pope Pius XI]] declared her the [[patron saint]] of automobile drivers because of a legend that an angel used to light the road before her with a lantern when she traveled, keeping her safe from hazards. Within the [[Order of St. Benedict|Benedictine Order]], she is honored as a patron saint of all oblates. She is also a patron saint of widows.

== See also ==
{{Portal bar|Biography|Catholicism|Saints}}
* [[Oblates of St. Frances of Rome]]
* [[Tor de' Specchi Monastery]]
* [[Order of St. Benedict]]
* [[Olivetans]]
* [[Portal:Catholic Church/Patron Archive/March 9|Saint Frances of Rome, patron saint archive]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{Catholic|wstitle=St. Frances of Rome}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Saint Frances of Rome}}
* [http://www.stpetersbasilica.info/Statues/Founders/FrancesofRome/Frances%20of%20Rome.htm Founder Statue in St Peter's Basilica]
* [http://www.stpetersbasilica.info/Exterior/Colonnades/Saints/St%20Francesca%20of%20Rome-47/StFrancesofRome.htm Colonnade Statue in St Peter's Square]
* [http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0309.shtml Saint of the Day, March 9: ''Frances of Rome''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111227171848/http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0309.shtml |date=December 27, 2011 }} at ''SaintPatrickDC.org''
* [http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/26350 Santiebeati] {{in lang|it}}
* [http://www.tordespecchi.it/ Website of the Monastery of Tor de' Specchi] {{in lang|it}}
* [http://www.christianiconography.info/francesRome.html Saint Frances of Rome] at the [http://www.christianiconography.info Christian Iconography] web site

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frances Of Rome}}
[[Category:1384 births]]
[[Category:1440 deaths]]
[[Category:15th-century Christian mystics]]
[[Category:People from Rome]]
[[Category:Benedictine mystics]]
[[Category:Angelic visionaries]]
[[Category:Benedictine oblates]]
[[Category:Founders of Catholic religious communities]]
[[Category:Benedictine saints]]
[[Category:15th-century Christian saints]]
[[Category:Medieval Italian saints]]
[[Category:Incorrupt saints]]
[[Category:Christian female saints of the Middle Ages]]
[[Category:15th-century Italian Roman Catholic religious sisters and nuns]]

Revision as of 22:45, 22 November 2024

Saint

Frances of Rome

Obl.S.B.
Part of a series The Life of St. Frances of Rome
Tor de' Specchi Monastery, Rome, Italy
by Antoniazzo Romano (1468)
Patroness of Benedictine Oblates
BornFrancesca Bussa de' Leoni
1384
Rome, Papal States
DiedMarch 9, 1440(1440-03-09) (aged 55–56)
Rome, Papal States
Venerated inRoman Catholic Church
Canonized1608, Rome, Papal States by Pope Paul V
Major shrineChurch of Santa Francesca Romana, Rome, Italy
FeastMarch 9
PatronageBenedictine oblates, automobile drivers, widows

Francesca Bussa de' Leoni (1384 – March 9, 1440), known as Frances of Rome Obl.S.B. (Italian: Francesca Romana; Latin: Francisca Rōmāna), was an Italian Catholic mystic, organizer of charitable services and a Benedictine oblate who founded a religious community of oblates, who share a common life without religious vows. She was canonized in 1608.

Life

Frances was born in 1384 in Rome to a wealthy and aristocratic couple, Paolo Bussa and Iacobella dei Roffredeschi, in the up-and-coming district of Parione and christened in the nearby Church of St. Agnes on the famed Piazza Navona.[1] When she was eleven years old, she wanted to be a nun, but, at about the age of twelve, her parents forced her to marry Lorenzo Ponziani, commander of the papal troops of Rome and member of an extremely wealthy family. Although the marriage had been arranged, it was a happy one, lasting for forty years.

Santa Francesca Romana e il miracolo del grano

With her sister-in-law Vannozza, Frances visited the poor and took care of the sick, inspiring other wealthy women of the city to do the same. Soon after her marriage, Frances fell seriously ill. Her husband called a man in who dabbled in magic, but Frances drove him away, saying, "Begone, thou servant of Satan, nor ever venture into these walls again!" and later recounted to Vannozza that St. Alexis had appeared to her and cured her.[2]

When her father-in-law died, Frances became the mistress of the household. During a time of flood and famine, she turned part of the family's house 

estate into a hospital[3] and distributed food and clothing to the poor. According to one account, her father-in-law was so angry that he took away from her the keys to the supply rooms; but gave them back when he saw that the corn bin and wine barrel were replenished after Frances finished praying.

During the wars between the pope in Rome and various anti-popes in the Western Schism of the Catholic Church, Lorenzo served the former. According to one story, their son Battista was to be delivered as a hostage to the commander of the Neapolitan troops. Obeying this order on the command of her spiritual director, Frances took her son to the Campidoglio. On the way, she stopped in the Church of the Aracoeli located there and entrusted her son's life to the Blessed Mother. When they arrived at the appointed site, the soldiers tried to put her son on a horse to transport him to captivity. However, the horse refused to move despite heavy whipping. The soldiers saw the hand of God in this and returned the boy to his mother.[4]

Sculpture by Giosuè Meli (1866)

During a period of forced exile, much of Lorenzo's property and possessions were destroyed.[5] In the course of one occupation of Rome by Neapolitan forces in the early part of the century, he was wounded so severely that he never fully recovered. Frances nursed him throughout the rest of his life.

Frances experienced other sorrows during her marriage to Lorenzo. They lost two children to the plague. Chaos ruled the city in that period of neglect by the pope and the ongoing warfare between him and the various forces competing for power on the Italian peninsula devastated the city. The city of Rome was largely in ruins, and wolves were known to enter the streets. Frances again opened her home as a hospital and drove her wagon through the countryside to collect wood for fire and herbs for medicine.[6] It is said she had the gift of healing, and over 60 cases were attested to during the canonization proceedings.[4]

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, "With her husband's consent St. Frances practiced continence, and advanced in a life of contemplation. Her visions often assumed the form of drama enacted for her by heavenly personages. She had the gift of miracles and ecstasy, as well as the bodily vision of her guardian angel, had revelations concerning Purgatory and Hell, and foretold the ending of the Western Schism. 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".[5]

On August 15, 1425, the feast of the Assumption of Mary, she founded the Olivetan Oblates of Mary, a confraternity of pious women, under the authority of the Olivetan monks of the Abbey of Santa Maria Nova in Rome but neither cloistered nor bound by formal vows, so they could follow her pattern of combining a life of prayer with answering the needs of their society.[7]

Untitled (St. Francesca Romana), c. 1650

In March 1433, she founded a monastery at Tor de' Specchi, near the Campidoglio, to allow for a common life by those members of the confraternity who felt so-called.[4] This monastery remains the only house of the Institute. That July 4, they received the approval of Pope Eugene IV as a religious congregation of oblates with private religious vows. The community later became known simply as the Oblates of St. Frances of Rome.

Frances herself remained in her own home, nursing her husband for the last seven years of his life from wounds he had received in battle. When he died in 1436, she moved into the monastery and became the superior.[5] She died in 1440 and was buried in Santa Maria Nova.

Frances of Rome accompanied by her guardian angel

Veneration

On May 9, 1608, she was canonized by Pope Paul V,[2] and in the following decades a diligent search was made for her remains, which had been hidden due to the troubled times in which she lived. Her body was found incorrupt some months after her death. Her grave was identified on April 2, 1638, (only the bones remained), and her remains were reburied in the Church of Santa Maria Nova on March 9, 1649, which since then has been her feast day. Again, in 1869, her body was exhumed and has since then been displayed in a glass coffin for the veneration of the faithful. The Church of Santa Maria Nova is now usually referred to as the Church of St. Frances.

Patronage

In 1925 Pope Pius XI declared her the patron saint of automobile drivers because of a legend that an angel used to light the road before her with a lantern when she traveled, keeping her safe from hazards. Within the Benedictine Order, she is honored as a patron saint of all oblates. She is also a patron saint of widows.

See also

References

  1. ^ Life of St. Frances on the website of her monastery (in Italian) [1]
  2. ^ a b Chapman, Sophie. "BlackJack" (in Russian). Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  3. ^ "Saint Frances of Rome". Franciscan Media. March 9, 2016. Retrieved March 9, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Georgiana Charlotte Fullerton, Frances (1855). The life of st. Frances of Rome; of blessed Lucy of Narni, of Dominica of Paradiso, and Anne ... Oxford University. Burns and Lambert.
  5. ^ a b c "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Frances of Rome". www.newadvent.org. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  6. ^ "Saint Frances of Rome". Loyola Press. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  7. ^ Farmer, David Hugh (1997). The Oxford dictionary of saints (4. ed.). Oxford [u.a.]: Oxford Univ. Press. p. 191. ISBN 0-19-280058-2.

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "St. Frances of Rome". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

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