 St. John Joseph of the Cross
Name: St. John Joseph of the Cross
Date: 5 March
Saint John Joseph of the Cross was born on the feast of the Assumption in 1654, on the island ofIschia in the kingdom of Naples. From his childhood he was a model of virtue, and in his sixteenthyear he entered the Franciscan Order of the Strict Observance, or Reform of Saint Peter ofAlcantara, at Naples. Such was the edification he gave in his Order, that within three years after hisprofession he was sent to found a monastery in Piedmont. He assisted in its construction himself andestablished there the most perfect silence and monastic fervor. One day Saint John Joseph was found in the chapel in ecstasy, raised far above the floor. He wonthe hearts of all his religious, and became a priest out of obedience to his Superiors. He obtainedwhat seemed to be an inspired knowledge of moral theology, in prayer and silence. He assisted atthe death of his dear mother who rejoiced and seemed to live again in his presence, and after he hadsung the Mass for the repose of her soul, saw her soul ascend to heaven, to pray thereafter theirGod face to face. With his superiors’ permission he established another convent and drew up rules for the Community,which the Holy See confirmed. Afterward he became a master of novices vigilant and filled withgentleness, and of a constantly even disposition. Some time later he was made Provincial of theProvince of Naples, erected in the beginning of the 18th century by Clement XI. He labored hard toestablish in Italy this branch of his Order, which the Sovereign Pontiff had separated from the samebranch in Spain. His ministry brought him many sufferings, especially moral sufferings occasioned bynumerous calumnies. Nonetheless, the Saint succeeded in his undertakings, striving to inculcate inhis subjects the double spirit of contemplation and penance which Saint Peter of Alcantara hadbequeathed to the Franciscans of the Strict Observance. He gave them the example of the mostsublime virtues, especially of humility and religious discipline. God rewarded his zeal with numerousgifts in the supernatural order, such as those of prophecy and miracles. Finally, consumed by labors for the glory of God, he was called to his reward. Stricken withapoplexy, he died an octogenarian in his convent at Naples, March 5, 1734. Countless posthumousmiracles confirmed the sanctity and glory of the Saint, and he was canonized in 1839 by PopeGregory XVI. Reflection. Christ by His death has acquired for Christians the grace of the state of interiordeath, by which the heart in its depths cannot be moved by any attraction coming from the world. Its honors, its riches, its pleasures are as though offered to a dead person. This is a state whichmust be carefully conserved and cherished by each one of us. (Jean-Jacques Olier) |
